[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 14 (Wednesday, January 24, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E185]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PARAMOUNT 50TH ANNIVERSARY

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                         HON. LINDA T. SANCHEZ

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 24, 2007

  Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, 50 years ago, on 
January 30, 1957, the village residents of Clearwater and Hynes, who 
shared a five-square mile area of Southeast Los Angeles, came together 
to preserve a way of life by merging their communities into the City of 
Paramount.
  Clearwater, first settled in 1886, and Hynes, settled in 1898, were 
two villages mutually bonded through their shared dairy and hay 
industries. The new city was named after the main boulevard that ran 
through the business district. At the time of Paramount's 
incorporation, the area was one of the Nation's largest dairy producers 
and the world's biggest receiving point for hay. Paramount began as 
home to more cows than people, with an estimated 25,000 cows in its 
city limits. During this time Paramount did $1 million worth of 
business a month--$150,000 from cream alone. As the dairies thrived, so 
did the banks, grocery stores, businesses, and restaurants downtown.
  During the 1960s and 70s, Paramount transitioned into a more urban 
landscape with many of the dairies moving out to more rural areas, 
taking a large portion of the local workforce with them. Neighboring 
and nearby cities built suburban shopping malls and housing 
developments, which strained the small merchants of Paramount and aided 
in the City's loss of business revenue.
  By the late 1970s, the major agricultural centers of Paramount, known 
for its dairies and hay market, fields and feedlots, were overtaken by 
concrete and asphalt. Unfortunately, county planners thought Paramount 
was better suited for auto repair shops and salvage yards. The 
following years brought uncontrolled growth and ultimately lead to an 
overbuilt environment that eventually deteriorated in many areas of 
town. Despite such challenges, Paramount's fate was not sealed.
  Paramount became the exception to the rule. The City took heed of its 
``disaster area'' status in the early 1980s and, rather than sink under 
the weight of its problems, chose a proactive plan to turn itself 
around. This eventually turned Paramount's ``Rust Belt'' status into 
``The Revitalization of Paramount.''
  The City launched a concerted effort to make physical improvements 
everywhere in town. By using municipal tools like zoning ordinances, 
planning regulations, design guidelines, redevelopment, and economic 
incentives, the City took it upon itself to inspire its residents and 
business owners to think big and reach for something more. Thus began 
Paramount's turnaround.
  By confronting urban blight and providing exceptional city services, 
Paramount thrived economically and culturally. Paramount, California is 
now known for its successful transformation and its attractive business 
climate and quality of life. The City has received numerous awards for 
its forward thinking.
  Today, Paramount is a growing community of landscaped boulevards, 
enhanced police service, parks, recreation programs, affordable 
housing, public art, and tree-lined neighborhoods with white picket 
fences.
  I want to share Paramount's success with the rest of our Nation as a 
model of one city's can-do attitude and ability to overcome the 
destruction that urban blight can wreak on our most precious assets--
our communities and the people that live in them.

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