Why Trees Are So Cool!
Fall, 2024
City trees play a vital role in urban environments. They improve air quality by filtering pollutants, provide shade that reduces heat and energy consumption, and enhance aesthetics, contributing to mental well-being. Trees also support biodiversity by providing habitat for various species and can help manage stormwater, reducing flooding risk. Additionally, they can increase property values and promote community engagement, making urban areas more livable and sustainable.
Whittier Conservancy Gifts Trees to Ocean View Elementary School
Summer, 2024
Over the last 10 to 15 years, The Conservancy has gifted more than six figures to the city to plant trees throughout Whittier, including street trees, the Greenway Trail and the Hadley Street medians.
The Conservancy is now shifting its attention to Whittier’s school yards, where the effects of climate change present an opportunity for meaningful teaching moments and renewed commitment to the stewardship of our fragile environment.
At Ocean View Elementary School tree branches were growing into and impeding the utilitiy lines. Instead of trimming the trees, they were cut down and unnecessarily removed by the utility company.
The Conservancy donation of $3500 to Ocean View School goes towards tree planting to restore their canopy. It will help enable the planting of three to four mature trees on the school grounds.
The Conservancy has received donations and joint grants from Southern California Edison, to fund these gifts. These generous donations come from Conservancy members, supporters within the community and local officials.
Historic Nixon House Saved
Spring, 2021
The Conservancy, the City, and the owner have collaborated to save and adaptively reuse the historic Nixon House for community purposes.
Adjacent to the Nixon homestead, the house was built in 1927 and purchased by Richard Nixon’s parents in 1945; it was listed as RMN’s voting address during his years as both a Congressman and Vice-president. His brother Don lived there and continued to operate the family store and gas station at Whittier Blvd. and Santa Gertrudes. Don Nixon was a noted local personality in his own right who expanded the family business with the operation of Nixon’s Drive-in restaurant and a large grocery store at the location of the current Sprout’s. Frank and Hannah Milhous Nixon were early participants in the settlement of East Whittier when it was split off from the successful Leffingwell Ranch a century ago. The house is representative of just a handful of homes from the period that launched the development of East Whittier.
In 2000, the Historic Resources Commission listed the house as a local historic resource. That classification was upheld by two judges in 2015 and 2018. When the city supported the owner’s request for demolition in January, the Conservancy and the community rallied in support of the house’s importance to the history of Whittier. The current commission agreed and voted unanimously to uphold the house’s status as a historic resource. This ruling gave both the Conservancy and the City time to think about possible relocation sites in an effort to save the building, provide the owner time to submit his plans for the site, and find a suitable location and purpose for the adaptive reuse of the building.
Stay tuned. More info coming soon.