Okay, that’s a little girly. But how else to explain why the dwp “forgot” that both Silver Lake and Ivanhoe Reservoirs are cultural landmarks? That before they drained a drop, or made a game out of throwing HDPE bird balls into it, they should have gotten permission from City Planning? No, we don’t have to go back THIS far! 1930s, photo courtesy of Doug Baldwin. Bigger photos at silverlake.org. Believe me, I would have played this card early on, when dwp drained the lake and then SAT ON IT, if I had known about it. But this applies equally well to the non-preservative plastic balls bobbing around in it right…

Really, I couldn’t say it better myself! Reading what some other blogs had to say about the 6 million bird balls thrown into the reservoir Monday, to the tune of $2 million, I was most impressed with the commenters themselves! Take a peek. A commenter over at Curbed LA had something interesting to say: The balls are black because UV radiation won’t deteriorate them. White would absorb less heat but you are also getting an insulating effect from the air trapped inside the balls. Like putting a big blanket on the lake. Unfortunately it will likely insulate the lake in the wrong way… keeping the heat trapped in the lake.…