To Beautify L.A., Just Add Water And Stir Renewal

"Outside the city, the graffiti-lined concrete channel has become one of the best-known symbols of Los Angeles. Cutting a 51-mile swath through dozens of communities, the ominously abandoned flood-control ditch has often played the apocalyptic backdrop in major sci-fi films. .. Now, city officials are looking into revitalizing major stretches of the channel - which, after all, was once a real river - into a world-class waterfront. The idea is to return some lost soul to the city's most neglected individual neighborhoods."

Thanks to Chris Steins