6 Ecological Facts About Studio City You Might Think are April Fools' Jokes

 These are true, they're not April Fools' jokes as wild as they sound.

1. Rainwater is collected in a large dish in the hills to help put out fires.

The giant cistern that is underneath the park at the area in , near the museum, is the place where the rainwater is collected. (There's a mini model and drawings explaining it.)

The large tank that’s 70 feet in diameter and eight feet deep is made of concrete and has a steel reinforced roof.  When there’s a fire in the hills, or at a nearby house, the fire department can tap into the reserve of water. (See photos in gallery to the right.)

2. The  first green pet care facility in the nation was built in Studio City. 

is green from door to door. It’s a LEED-approved facility with alternative power, and dogs and cats are picked up and delivered in hybrid vehicles.

3. Parks were planned along the Los Angeles River in the 1930s.

It’s true, a visionary of early Los Angeles history, Frederick Law Olmstead— the guy who designed Central Park—came up with the idea that if parks were developed along the banks of the river, then it would have allowed it to move more freely. Those plans are still on the books.     

4.There’s an exceptional house that’s eco-friendly in Studio City that is NOT owned by

The Treehouse is a 2,400-square-foot house owned by Marty Meisler. His house shows how lower energy bills, lower maintenance and healthy indoor air quality. Ed's house is, of course, a model for an eco-safe home that has retro-fitted a previous home, and he is in another part of Studio City from the ground up.

5. There’s a dog food store where you can get fresh venison, lamb, salmon as well as buffalo and alligator meat for your pets.

 It’s all at , and it's all handpicked by the owner Brad Kriser. (Watch for a story about this coming this weekend.)

6. Studio City is the bathtub drain of the Valley.

It’s funny, but true concept, that Studio City is the lowest part of the San Fernando Valley, but it’s also where all the water that washes off the street pours past as the to Long Beach.

Community activist once explained, “All the water washes down this direction, and we have a place where two rivers come together. One way to look at it is if the San Fernando Valley was a big bathtub, then Studio City would be where the drain is.”

This also explains why the from the Tillman Reclamation Plant (up river) overflowed in the drains spilling out in Studio City during heavy rains a few weeks ago.