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December 2015
IN THIS ISSUE: We learn more about how the City is preparing for El Nino, take a
look at the cutest airport amenity ever, and find out how Mike is tackling traffic
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at one of the worst chokepoints on the Westside... b u t f i r s t , please read this
month's Neighborhoods First Profile about a longtime Mountaingate resident
who served our country bravely in three different wars.
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You can find out more about Mike , meet your CD11 staff and see the latest
videos and updates from the Westside on our website Connect with Twitter
at www.11thdistrict.com . And remember to like Mike's Facebook page and follow
him on Twitter to always see the latest news about your neighborhood.
Councilmember Mike…
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In addition to protecting our nation, Colonel Frankel has also been a part of
creating our city’s greatest export - entertainment. He is an accomplished
novelist, screenwriter and producer whose credits include Perry Mason , I Spy , The
Mod Squad , Mannix , and numerous Movies of the Week.
Colonel Frankel and his late wife Louise were both active in making their
neighborhood of Mountaingate and the entire City of Los Angeles a better place to
live, and Louise even served on the Los Angeles City Fire Commission from 2002 -
2010.
At the age of 93, Ernie is tough as nails and an inspiration to all.
After receiving reports from neighbors about a sudden, dramatic and growing
problem with traffic congestion in the Osage and Westport Heights areas of
Westchester, Mike asked traffic engineers and experts with the Department of
Transportation to examine key intersections so they could suggest solutions to
the increase in congestion.
During site visits, the engineers had the opportunity to talk with drivers in the
line of traffic and it appears that much of the traffic the neighborhood has
experienced is created by mobile apps that direct drivers to take those streets. As
Chair of the Transportation Committee, Mike will be holding a hearing on the
impact of mobile phone apps on local traffic and ways it can be minimized.
Thank you to all of the neighbors who have been working with us to improve
traffic in their neighborhood.
Protecting Against Brush Fire and Improving Public Safety in the Pacific
Palisades
On the morning of November 8, a brush fire spread through the canyons near Via
del las Olas in Pacific Palisades. Thankfully, a quick response and exemplary
work by Los Angeles firefighters allowed them to knock down this brush fire
before it claimed any lives or property.
The fire was started by people illegally camping in the canyon, and Mike quickly
acted to work with the Los Angeles Police Department, Los Angeles Fire
Department and neighborhood leaders to protect public safety. In addition to a
series of immediate actions by LAPD, which included aerial surveying of the
canyons and regular patrols by LAPD officers, Mike is also working with LAFD
Deputy Chief Patrick Butler, the Pacific Palisades Homelessness Task Force
(PPTFH), park rangers, and private security to develop an even more robust
system to patrol and keep these areas clear. The PPTFH and its chair Maryam Zar
have been incredible partners, driving this process and making sure government
agencies stay responsive to community needs and focused on solutions and
problem solving.
Mike met up with a City work crew and some Venice neighbors on the morning of
November 9 to help with the ongoing repair work being completed on the walk
bridges over the Venice Canals.
The work includes sanding, replacing or adding screws to planks (which Mike got
to help with), applying non-slip paint, and more. Most importantly, the work will
maintain the unique and rustic character of the bridges. Neighbors and visitors
have been waiting almost a decade for these bridges to be repaired and made safe
- and Mike is pleased to deliver.
“The maddening traffic on Sunset has been getting incrementally worse for
decades -- but I refuse to believe we can’t make it better,” Mike wrote in a letter to
the community announcing the initiative . “That’s why I am launching my Sunset
Traffic Initiative and taking three big steps to address the problem. We are going
to focus on unprecedented collaboration, expert analysis, and community input,
in order to come up with proposed solutions, big and small.”
You can find out more about the Sunset Traffic Initiative and sign-up to receive
an invitation to the Charrette
at http://www.11thdistrict.com/a_new_dawn_for_solving_sunset_traffic .
On Saturday, November 28, the Mar Vista Chamber of Commerce hosted "Make It
Mar Vista” along Venice Boulevard. The event was the area’s small business
showcase, highlighting one of the Westside’s more walkable corridors with small
shops and locally-owned restaurants, it was also another outreach event for
the Great Streets Program on the Westside. Mike's office and the Great Streets
team set up some of the elements of the Great Streets pilot project, including a
protected bike lane and parklets.
In addition to enjoying the pop-up parklets and protected bike lane, neighbors
celebrated the official grand opening of the popular Sweet Lucie's Ice Cream and
Treats, ate at Venice Grind, Status Kuo, Louie's of Mar Vista, Hurry Curry Indian
food, and did some holiday shopping at small businesses like Soaptopia, Surfing
Cowboys, Vintage on Venice and Sam Johnson's Bookshop. Mike and local Mar
Vistans were joined at the event by Maria Contreras-Sweet, the Administrator of
the U.S. Small Business Administration and a member of President Obama’s
Cabinet.
"I love public art and the community character that the graffiti walls add to
Venice Beach and I am very proud of helping to create and maintain the walls,"
Mike said. "Thank you to everyone for their patience as the maintenance work
was completed."
On November 18, members of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps joined with
community leaders and FedEx to plant trees in Glen Alla Park in Del Rey. The LA
Conservation Corps program employs at-risk youth between the ages of 18-24 to
complete neighborhood-improving projects like tree planting and street
cleaning. Thank you to everyone who made this great event possible!
Mike's Annual Winter Shelter Drive Collecting Needed Supplies - Now Through
December 18
The Westside Winter Shelter Program offers hundreds of homeless people on the
Westside a warm bed. The Shelter opened early this year in anticipation of El
Nino rainstorms, and will remain open until the wet weather subsides in early
next year. Especially with this year’s longer operating period, we need your help
to ensure the program has the supplies it needs to operate.
Please
visit http://www.11thdistrict.com/2015_westside_winter_shelter_donation_drive to
see a list of requested supplies and to find out more about the three locations
where donations can be dropped off.
In early November, Mike had a great time hosting another Hike with Mike .
Neighbors from Westchester, Playa del Rey, Playa Vista, Del Rey, Venice, Mar
Vista, West LA, Brentwood and Pacific Palisades joined Mike and his staff for a
hike through Will Rogers State Historic Park to Inspiration Point.
"I love taking these hikes and holding roving meetings with neighbors during my
open office hours while enjoying the incredible natural beauty of the 11th
District," Mike said afterwards.
Hikes with Mike are part of Mike's Access 11 program, which seeks to connect
neighbors with local government by providing opportunities for people to meet
their local representative without needing to trek downtown during normal
business hours. Mike also often hosts Pop Up Office Hours at Farmers Markets
and other neighborhood events as part of the program.
The Playa Vista Shuttle will operate full time starting Monday, December 14. This
free service will take neighbors throughout the Playa Vista community and
selected communities outside of PV, including Venice, the Marina, Playa del Rey
and Westchester. The shuttle will operate Monday through Friday from 7am to
10pm, Saturday from 10am to 10pm, and Sunday from 10am to 8pm. Find out
more at http://blog.playavista.com/2015/11/daily-shuttle-coming/ .
Thank you to all of the volunteers who helped make this cleanup another
tremendous success!
In separate votes, the Council also: started the process of creating more free
voluntary storage for homeless people; took the first steps towards creating the
position of City Homelessness Czar; created an account for the $100 million we
have committed to spend on homeless programs; and significantly revised an
ordinance that had been criticized as criminalizing homelessness.
"These are important steps," Mike said. "But still baby steps in what must be a
large, consistent, and focused effort by all levels of government to move people
from the streets into housing."
http://www.11thdistrict.com/policy_update_november_17
Earlier in November, Mike had the honor of serving as the emcee for the 20th
annual Celebrating Success Breakfast . Every year, The Westside Coalition
celebrates and honors individuals who have overcome the many challenges of
homelessness to lead self-sufficient lives. This year, twenty-four individuals
were celebrated, each with their own unique story on their journey to live with
dignity.
Listen to Mike talk about some of the inspiring stories of success in this video .
Getting to LAX is Getting Easier
Mike has been deeply involved in ensuring that this plan will not only put a
premium on passenger convenience, but will take cars off the road in the
neighborhoods near the airport - improving traffic and the local environment.
On November 20, Mike and his colleague Bob Blumenfield welcomed some special
guests to Council Chambers as they celebrated the work of the Los Angeles World
Airports's Pets Unstressing Passengers (PUPs) program.
LAX's PUPs Program started in 2013 with the goal of providing stress relief and
comfort to passengers through interaction with pets, and it is one of the nation’s
largest airport-run, therapy-dog programs. Therapy dogs and handlers walk the
departures levels in the gate areas of each terminal, visiting passengers awaiting
flights and providing airport information regarding LAX projects, construction
related traffic impacts, and way finding.
Santa Monica launched its Breeze Bike Share system in November, which
provides publicly available bicycles for short trips. As part of that program
Venice will be getting five bike share stations, offering residents and visitors
alike another mobility option on the Westside. Bike share stations will be
installed at the following locations in early 2016:
Bike share users can return bikes to any station in Santa Monica or Venice for
free, but are also permitted to lock bikes outside of official stations within the
system area for $2. For more information about the program and to view the
system area visit www.santamonicabikeshare.com/ .
Find Out More About the City Council's Work to Put Neighborhoods First
On November 16, the City Council's Budget and Finance Committee (on which
Mike serves) and Public Works Committee held a joint hearing at City Hall to
discuss the city's burgeoning sidewalk repair program. The Council is looking to
expedite a 30-year program into a 10-15 year program, while protecting and
enhancing our urban forest, using green infrastructure technology, and making
sure they complement the work of Vision Zero , our Mobility Plan , the Great
Streets Program , and Metro's Active Transportation Plan .
As the conversation about sidewalks evolves, Mike will continue working with his
colleague Felipe Fuentes and the local environmental group Tree People
to advocate for the sidewalk repair program to protect and enhance Los Angeles'
urban forest.
Find out more about the repair options being considered by the City Council in
the City Administrative Officer's report at this link .
In addition to finding out more about how you can prepare for El Nino
at www.11thdistrict.com/are_you_ready_for_wet_weather , Mike is encouraging
everyone to sign up for NotifyLA, our emergency alert system
at www.NotifyLA.org and to attend the upcoming December 9 town hall meeting
in Westchester (details in the calendar section below).
After a decade of service to the people of the 11th Council District, Mike's Special
Advisor, Constituent Advocate and Liaison to the Public Works Department,
Mark-Antonio Grant retired at the end of November.
Mark-Antonio, who previously worked for Mike's predecessor Bill Rosendahl, has
been an exceptional member of Mike's team. Mark-Antonio helped to coordinate
the complicated addition of mobile offices at LAPD's Pacific Division, create and
install the Venice Sign and subsequent holiday lighting programs, and facilitate
the beautification of the Sepulveda Boulevard corridor. He also helped create the
inaugural Mar Vista Relay for Life and organized the repair and upgrade of the
Venice Canal pedestrian bridges, as well as many, many more projects that have
improved life for people living, working, and visiting the Westside.
We will all miss working with Mark-Antonio and we wish him the very best in his
well-deserved retirement.
Welcome Ezra
Mike welcomed new Senior Planner Ezra Gale to the Council District 11 team in
November. Ezra, who until recently worked with the Building Industry
Association on legislative advocacy projects, will work with residents to ensure
neighborhood-friendly development on the Westside. Ezra will also work in
conjunction with Mike's Planning Team and District Staff to promote sustainable,
neighborhood-friendly and transit-oriented development.
Community Calendar
Council President Herb J. Wesson Jr. nominated Mike to participate in the viral
fundraising effort # 10SecondsOfShakespeare
1 0SecondsOfShakespeare , which supports "the youngest
Shakespeare troupe in the nation," the Los Angeles Drama Club . Mike decided to
recite a passage from Romeo and Juliet, which has personal resonance with Mike
for a few reasons. Watch the video at the link below to find out more and see
Mike perform #10SecondsOfShakespeare.
BRENTWOOD | DEL REY | MAR VISTA | PACIFIC PALISADES | PLAYA DEL REY | PLAYA VISTA | VENICE | WEST LA | WESTCHESTER
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