Port Director Warns Panel to Drop Cannery Project

Port of Los Angeles executive director Ezunial Burts advised a Wilmington citizens’ advisory committee Tuesday to abandon plans to include the Heinz pet food cannery in a waterfront commercial and recreational development.

Burts told the Wilmington Community Advisory Committee that continued pursuit of a project at the cannery could jeopardize the port’s support for waterfront development projects at the foot of Avalon Boulevard. Burts said that development at the site is “undo-able” because of asbestos in the building and bleak economic forecasts for a proposed retail project.

The panel has long pushed to include the cannery property in a commercial revitalization zone. A proposal to make the building a historic landmark, which could protect it from demolition, is to come before the City Council May 8.