How Venice is going down, both spiritually and literally A little about the heart of Venice and Sea

Before I begin writing, I would like to give a little disclaimer that this blog post ended up being all over the place. I began with the intention of describing the sea level rise in Venice and was going to write an almost-all-scientific article with my opinions scattered around. However, as I continued writing I realized that sea level rise will ultimately hurt much more than what meets the eye with Venice, but more the individual lives. So naturally, I drifted into the original residents of Venice, how they feel in the present, and therefore how they are set to be even more disappointed in the future. Disclaimer aside, I believe all the information I have written about is worth knowing and critical for the awakening of the Venice community and larger area of Los Angeles. Enjoy…

This is real and happening right now. And no, no one is taking any immediate steps in effort to prevent or lessen it. Venice is on track to go underwater, and the Venice in question is not even the Italian city known globally as the sinking Venice. This is happening in Los Angeles, California. The metropolitan area of Venice is a hotspot for tourism, commercial structures, and single family homes. It has been home to creative minds, vendors, and even tech companies recently.

As it is Los Angeles is situated at a low elevation, leaving the city vulnerable to flooding as it is bordered by the coast of the Pacific Ocean. Venice lacks a variation within its topography, meaning it is flat. Therefore, adaptation strategies are critical in order to protect the current state of the neighborhood.

Sea level rise has become a major concern for coastal communities around the world. In California, sea level rise is already causing flooding and damage to property in Venice and other low-lying areas. The state is facing the risk of losing billions of dollars in tourism revenue as beaches erode and coastal infrastructure is damaged. Scientists have predicted that sea level rise will continue to accelerate over the next century, posing a serious threat to California's economy and way of life. sea level rise is also likely to cause changes in weather patterns, resulting in more extreme storms and droughts. As sea level rise continues to progress, it is essential that communities take action to protect themselves from the impacts of this global problem.

Sea Level Rise will harm the structures of Venice in a way that makes them no longer accessible. With that being said, the business density of Venice is relatively high in comparison to the rest of LA. This is because rather than having wide highways and empty lots, Venice has narrow roads and an incredibly walk-friendly and social environment.

Moreover, one of Venice’s main attractions is its Boardwalk which offers restaurants, cafes, a variety of shops, vendors, and entertainment shows along the width of the coast. As the Boardwalk is quite literally on the coast of Venice, it is the most exposed and in-danger area. The 4 canals and neighboring Marina Del Rey will also overflow in the coming years and flood Venice from its core.

The predicted Sea Level Rise for Venice is minimum 3 feet, taking into account the carbon dioxide emissions, added water from melting arctics, and irreversible global pollution, by 2100. The worst case scenario is an expectancy of 10 feet sea level rise.

To give statistical information:

In the case that Venice experiences a 1 foot sea level rise, 4% of Venice will be flooded. With that being said Venice has a land area of 88693981.347 square feet, therefore the 1 foot sea level rise translates to a water coverage of 3754793.618 square feet. If we take into account that the areas in which all businesses reside are around the coast and canals, this means that people's livelihood will be completely destroyed. To add on, in the case that there is a 7 foot sea level rise, 24%, yes TWENTY-FOUR PERCENT, of Venice will be inhabitable due to flooding. Venice has over 2,000 business establishments, therefore the local economy of Venice will be affected in countless ways.

These statistics are inevitable as there is already an ongoing global warming crisis which will lead to a definite rise in water levels, the only thing we can do is prevent even more damage that will follow. The impacts will be both extensive and expensive as the rising water will not only affect the coast but will also result in the cliffs to erode, the land to be dredged, high tides, minorities and low income families to be left homeless, economic disruption, and more.

Of Course there are reasons as to why there has not been any proper action taken towards this matter, such as economic downturns and the government refusing to fund flood barrier gates & other preventative measures. However, it is not to say the reasons are valid. People of power are simply not taking this issue seriously and it will yield colossal damages. This is not only about the infrastructure and system of zoning which will be destroyed; but the larger issue at hand. It all ties down to the people of Venice.

Venice is a neighborhood on the Westside of Los Angeles, California. It is bounded by Santa Monica to the north, Lincoln Boulevard to the south, the Pacific Ocean to the west and Venice Boulevard to the east. The community of Venice was founded in 1905 as a seaside resort town by tobacco millionaire Abbot Kinney. The canals for which Venice is known were created in order to mimic those found in Venice, Italy. However, over time the area has undergone significant changes. Today, Venice is known for its eclectic mix of residents, including artists, musicians, and actors. The Oakwood community is one of the few remaining African American communities in Venice. It is located on the north side of town and is home to about 1,500 residents. Gentrification has led to rising rents and property values, displacing many longtime residents. While Venice may have changed significantly from its early days, it remains an vibrant and unique community.

I want to exemplify a certain community in Venice, to hopefully give an idea of the grander Venice and life within it. The locals of Venice have been dissatisfied with the overall community, or lack of community, for many years now. The community of Oakwood has a long and important history regarding the African-American community that built a life there. The community of Oakwood plays a pivotal role in defining Venice’s character and spirit. It used to be more than streets and residential structures; and was more of a family and culture.

I took a trip to Venice last week and had the chance to interview some locals. By interview I mean I went to Oakwood and asked random people their experience in Venice. I struck gold when I came across a lady who said her family had been living in Oakwood for 3 generations. She told me it is nothing like the way it used to be and has lost its energy entirely. She said with the rent prices going up and commercial places taking over the streets it became practically inhabitable for her community and that a lot of her family businesses were shut down through the years. Moreover, she said that the streets used to have mass water fights, in which on hot summer days everyone would turn on their garden hoses and fill buckets with water, they would follow by showering their neighbors with the water and this would spread to entire blocks around Venice. She said that that is THE Venice she knows and grew up in. Later on Oakwood was segregated and designed as a nine square mile area that was only meant for black people.

It's really crazy how with time the energy of a place can change so much, and even though I never experienced the old Oakwood, I most certainly felt a lack of spirit in the present Oakwood.

This all started when Abbot Kinney hired African-Americans to construct the Venice canals and afterwards Kinney had a group of employees consisting of the black community. Naturally, they became locals in the area and became residents of what is now called Oakwood. Therefore, they are the original Oakwood members. This is why it broke my heart to hear that the very same members of Oakwood now feel foreign to their own home.

Going all the way back to the topic of Sea Level Rise, if there are no extreme precautions taken, not only the community of Oakwood but as a whole every resident of Venice will experience great trauma. Even if the sea level rise is out of the individual's control, the overall community should not be condemned to such an irreversible disaster.

To conclude, this blog post is written in an attempt to urge people to research this matter and take precautions so that the community of Venice can face as minimal destruction as possible. As the community continues to change, it will be interesting to see how it affects the people who live there. It is clear that Venice has undergone a transformation in recent years, and that this transformation has had a profound impact on its residents. Hopefully, the ongoing transformation does not collide with an unavoidable rise of the sea level.