Eddie North-Hager

<p>Though it is clear that South Los Angeles is park poor compared to rest of Los Angeles County, current fiscal problems lend people to dismiss the idea of spending more money creating parks, adding trees or fixing sidewalks. Turns out that maybe Los Angeles can’t afford not to invest in more natu

<p>How does a new park in Culver City become a destination, while the urban trail of Stocker Corridor is overlooked by many of its own nearby residents?</p>

<p>There are a lot reasons to head to South Los Angeles and hiking probably isn't at the top of your list. As home to nearly one million people, the region is one of the densest areas, but also the most park poor. There are 92 parks and recreation areas in South Los Angeles totaling about 1,200 acres. That translates to 1.2 acres for every 1,000 people, significantly less than the national standard of 6 acres. Of what's available, here are a handful of accessible areas of significant size that offer a chance to get back to nature and beauty within the city -- with a physical challenge, of course.</p>

<p>The health of South Los Angeles suffers in part because much of this area was designed for the poor. The infrastructure itself plays a role. How did western L.A. County end up having 59 acres of park space per 1,000 people and South L.A. end up with 1.2? Many of the problems we are facing toda

<p>While obesity is a problem for Americans in all walks of life, it’s worse when you don’t live near a park, when access to public transportation is limited, when sidewalks are broken and streetlights are few. In fact, a National Institutes of Health study found that just living in a socioeconomically deprived area leads to weight gain and a greater risk of dying at an early age. In stark terms, people in Culver City live an average of eight years longer than people in Jefferson Park, according to Crump. Yet these two communities in the middle of Los Angeles are only a couple of miles apart.</p>