LADWP Giving Away Compact Flourescent Lightbulbs (CFL)

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is delivering two FREE compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) to our residential customers. Delivery teams will be in your area over the next few months to provide you with a bag containing your free bulbs and conservation information.

Why is the LADWP Providing CFLs?

CFLs are one of the simplest and most effective energy savings tools available. One CFL can reduce an annual electric bill by $8 to $10. Just think of how much money you can save on electricity if you replaced every bulb in your home with a CFL! And, the savings continues because a CFL bulb will last 10,000 hours compared to 1,000 hours for a traditional bulb.

WHEN YOU RECEIVE YOUR FREE BULBS INSTALL THEM IMMEDIATELY AND START SAVING MONEY!

Proper CFL Disposal

Please follow the instructions on the box regarding proper disposal. CFLs may be disposed of at LADWP Customer Service Center collection bins or at City S.A.F.E. recycling centers. Call the Household Hazardous Waste Hotline at 1-800-988-6942 (press option 2) or log on to www.lacity.org/SAN/index.htm, and select "Universal Waste" for more disposal information.

For more information regarding the CFL distribution visit www.ladwp.com or call (213) 367-4614.

Don't Dump on LA!

Do you know that citizen's can receive a $1,000 for reporting illegal dumping. Tune in this Sunday morning to radio station KHHT 92.3 FM's public affairs program "Community Review" at 7 a.m. to learn more. "Don't Dump on LA," the City's illegal dumping prevention campaign, will be featured. During one segment of the hour-long show, host Josefa Salinas will interview Deputy City Attorney Sonja Dawson of the Neighborhood Prosecution Program and Chief Street Services Investigator Gary Harris of the Bureau of Street Services. They will discuss critical issues related to this concern for our city and the $1,000 reward citizens can receive for reporting illegal dumpers. Ads about the campaign are running on the station through mid-February. A commercial about Sunday's morning's show also is airing. If time permits, please tune in to "Community Review" to learn more about "Don't Dump on LA" and the reward.

Richard E. Lee
Public Information Officer
City of Los Angeles
Department of Public Works
200 N. Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213 978-0324

Free Mammograms!

We will be offering Free mammograms at the FRC on February 4th from 8:30-3:00. This free service will be available to those women without health insurance, who are 40 and over. Please print the attached flyers and share with your contacts.

Registration is recommended.

Family Resource Center invites you to participate in our Women’s Health Day!

Where: L.A. Care Family Resource Center (Located in Plaza Mexico Shopping Center)
Address: 3180 E. Imperial Highway Lynwood, CA 90262
Telephone: 1-310-661-3000
When: Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

NANDC Now Accepting Applications

ALL STAKEHOLDERS:
NANDC IS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR
PRESIDENT AND TWO (2) AT-LARGE BOARD MEMBERS

All stakeholders can apply to fill open seats on our board. You do not have to be registered to vote with L.A. County. You do not have to be a U.S. citizen. Your immigration status does not matter. To be a stakeholder you must do ONE of the following within the EC NANDC boundaries:

1) Live;
2) Work;
3) Own property;
4) Own a business;
5) Attend school; or
6) Attend a religious institution (like a church, mosque or temple).

Your application must include:

1) A copy of your resume
2) A letter addressed to the community from the applicant describing the value the applicant would add to the community as a member of the governing board.
3) A petition signed by a minimum of 10 stakeholders in support of your application. Signatures shall include name, address and telephone number for each NANDC stakeholder.

INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

The deadline to apply for NANDC President is February 28, 2009. Applications for At-Large position are accepted on an ongoing basis until the seats have been filled.

Email your application to Rachel Capata (click on her name to send an email), or deliver in person to our next meeting. For meeting location info, please visit www.nandc.org.

Facing Foreclosure? Know Someone Who Is?

HELP FAMILIES PREVENT FORECLOSURE
Because nothing is worse than doing nothing.

Refer residents, friends and family to the Los Angeles Neighborhood Housing Services or LA NHS. LA NHS provides confidential foreclosure prevention clinics and counseling at NO CHARGE.

NO ONE SHOULD PAY FOR A LOAN MODIFICATION

In Los Angeles County, a home is foreclosed every 15 minutes. Don't wait, do something now. Foreclosure affects everyone!

Homeowners will learn about the foreclosure process and the specific steps they must take to prevent foreclosure. Counselors will request to see a homeowner's mortgage statement(s) and monthly budget.

Email LA NHS to register for a clinic here.

Park & Pay Stations Installed Near USC

The Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) is in the process of installing Park & Pay Stations near USC. The pay stations will be activated as follows:

Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Jefferson Bl between Vermont Ave and McClintock Ave (13 pay stations)

Thursday, January 22, 2009
Jefferson Bl between McClintock Ave and Figueroa St (9 pay stations)
west side of Figueroa St south of Jefferson Bl (3 pay stations)

Additional information can be found at here. Traffic officers will be stationed nearby as ambassadors to assist the public the first two days of operation of the new Park & Pay Stations.

As you may know, LADOT has been adjusting parking meter rates and hours of operation since September 2008 to better match the heavy demand for parking throughout the City. Previously, L.A.'s rates were among the lowest in the country, having not been adjusted in over 20 years on the average. The minimum parking meter rate in the City is now $1 per hour, with rates up to $3 and $4 per hour Downtown.

In addition, most meters ceased operation at 6:00 PM, just when they are most needed in many areas to keep parking spaces turning over and available for evening customers. The meter hours have now generally be extended to 8:00 PM Citywide. In entertainment and shopping districts, where the demand for parking extends later, meters operate up to midnight on Friday and Saturday nights and from 11 AM to 8 PM on Sundays.

The parking meter rate for the Pay Stations and all single space meters in the area will be $1 per hour, and the new meter hours will be 8am-8pm Monday-Saturday. The existing time limits, such as the "4 Hour Parking" near the campus, will remain the same.

Important Workshops Regarding the Expo Line

The City of Los Angeles is conducting community workshops as part of the development of Transit-Oriented District (TOD) Plans and Market Studies for four Metro Exposition Line stations. Please attend the workshop for your station of interest.

The community workshops will be held as follows:

Vermont & Western Expo Stations
Saturday, February 7, 2009
10 am – 2pm
Ahmanson Senior Center (EXPO Center)
3990 South Menlo Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90037

23rd & Flower / Jefferson Stations
Saturday, February 14, 2009
10 am – 2pm
Los Angeles Trade Tech College
Garden Room
400 West Washington Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90015

Issues regarding the Expo Line are of great importance to the citizens of our community. Please plan to attend and spread the word regarding these workshops to as many people as you can.

Don't Dump on L.A.!

LOS ANGELES (November 20, 2008) - City of Los Angeles public officials today introduced “Don't Dump on LA,” a new prevention campaign targeting South Los Angeles and Wilmington, stressing the City’s $1,000 reward for citizens who report information that leads to the arrest and conviction of illegal dumping violators.

Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo joined Council members Janice Hahn, Council District 15, and Jan Perry, Council District 9, and other public officials to announce the campaign in a news conference at the intersection of Lanzit Avenue and 112th Street, one of the most heavily impacted thoroughfares in South Los Angeles.

“Illegal dumping continues to plague and degrade quality of life in many of our neighborhoods, including South Los Angeles,” said City Attorney Delgadillo. “Together with our Department of Public Works partners, we will continue to target some of the worst areas in our city for illegal dumping and increase awareness of this serious problem so that all of our residents can live in a safe and clean environment.”

In addition to Department of Public Works Board members and the Bureaus of Street Services and Sanitation, representatives of the Los Angeles Police Department, EnvironmentLA (the Environmental Affairs Department), and the California Integrated Waste Management Board joined the elected officials at today’s news conference. The campaign will target severely impacted sections of Council Districts 8, 9, and 15 in South Los Angeles and Wilmington.

"For years, I have worked closely with the community to find ways to keep people from dumping in our neighborhoods. We have installed cameras in alleyways, we have changed the law so that we can impound the cars of people who dump, but the missing piece has been surveillance and enforcement of our laws--which is why today’s announcement is so welcomed," said Councilwoman Janice Hahn. "With the grant we have
received for the “Don’t Dump on LA” campaign, we will soon see increased surveillance and enforcement. We need to make some arrests and set some examples."

EnvironmentLA was awarded a $500,000 California Integrated Waste Management Board grant on behalf of the City to combat illegal dumping and fund the campaign. Cleanup of chronic, illegal dumping sites; additional surveillance of known illegal dumping problem areas; and community outreach for prevention and proactive approaches are components. It will serve as a pilot for the development of an effective incentive and enforcement strategy citywide.

Radio ads on selected stations, in both English and Spanish language, will begin airing as early as late December and early January. Associated websites and radio talk shows will feature the campaign, as well. In-theater ads on illegal dumping prevention also will start to appear at Magic Johnson Theaters in the Crenshaw district during the same time period.

Illegal dumping cleanup efforts cost the City about $12 million annually. “By conducting this campaign, we hope to encourage citizens to report illegal dumping when they see it occurring to help keep our city clean and beautiful and we remind them to call the city’s non-emergency hotline 3-1-1, to report violators,” said Board of Public Works President Cynthia M. Ruiz. “All calls are strictly
confidential,” she added, “and convicted offenders can receive both misdemeanor and felony sentences.”

Citizens also can report illegal dumping online at the following website: http://www.lacity.org/boss/StreetUseInspection/form.htm. The “Don't Dump on LA,” campaign will support efforts of the South Los Angeles Illegal Dumping Prevention Collaborative which was founded by the City Attorney's Office in 2005 to develop prevention strategies to combat the problem and prioritize impacted locations. Members include the Public Works Bureau of Street Services, the Neighborhood
Prosecutor Program, LAPD South Los Angeles Area Senior Lead Officers, the Departments of Building and Safety, Transportation, Housing, and Water and Power.

For more information, contact Richard E. Lee, Public Information Officer of the Department of Public Works Bureau of Sanitation Public Affairs Office at (213) 978-0324, or Frank Mateljan, Press Deputy, Office of the City Attorney at (213) 978-8340.

Invitation to Arts and Cultural Community Meetings

To: Neighborhood Council Friends and Colleagues
From: BongHwan (BH) Kim, General Manager, Department of Neighborhood Empowerment

The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs is holding a series of community meetings throughout Los Angeles. Feedback from the meetings is essential to develop the City's new Cultural Master Plan which will provide a vision for the future of arts and culture in Los Angeles, and guide the mission of the Department of Cultural Affairs. The meetings will start promptly and include a presentation and interactive sessions.

Please see the attached flyer for more information, including dates and locations. We hope you can attend one or more of these meetings, and please forward this flyer or personally invite friends and family who are interested in community meetings and the art and culture of Los Angeles.

To find out more about the Cultural Master Plan, visit the
Department of Cultural Affairs website.

For additional information, please contact:
Leora Lutz
Email: leora.lutz@lacity.org
Cultural Master Plan Program Assistant
Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs

NEWS: Ruling Regarding MTA Expo Line Crossings

In a decision regarding the Expo Line Construction Authority's proposed street-level crossing next to Dorsey HS, the judge has ruled MTA's crossing unsafe and the community and LAUSD's safety concerns valid. The decision is a tentative decision that will either be adopted or amended by the full PUC commission on November 21, but it is a major milestone in the construction of the Expo Rail Line and struggle between a vocal South LA community group and their elected leaders and MTA.

"This is a major battle victory in a long and unfortunate war," said Damien Goodmon, the Chair of United Community Associations, who's project is the Citizens' Campaign to Fix the Expo Rail Line (Fix Expo).

"We are pleased that the Judge heard the safety concerns of the rail safety experts, traffic experts, LAUSD and the community. And we are regretful that the Commission didn't allow hearings on many of the other crossings. We believe that as the evidentiary hearings on Farmdale and Harvard revealed, the evidence used by the Expo Authority to support their assertions that they are building a safe project is both unfounded and has been manipulated."

"We believe it is now incumbent upon our elected officials from the council members to the congressional leaders, to do the responsible thing and listen to the experts and Judge's concerns about the safety of this crossing, and take into account the impacts to the community and schools of the grade separated options. This is a transportation project that will impact this community for 100 years. It is important we have a safe light rail line that is a compliment and a good neighbor to the South LA communities that it passes through."

"Our intent is to now go back to the community and discuss this further, but for now we are relieved that the street-level crossing has been taken off the table."

Russ Quimby international rail safety testified in the hearing that the street-level crossing left a high risk of catastrophic accident http://fixexpo.blogspot.com/2008/10/international-rail-safety-expert-russ.html

As proposed, the Farmdale Avenue crossing creates a high risk that students will be injured and killed because the proposed safety mitigation measures essentially put the burden on students to maintain their own safety. The proposed crossing also creates a higher risk of a catastrophic accident. [....]

By "catastrophic accident," I mean an accident involving fatalities and/or injuries to a large number of people. As proposed, the at-grade Farmdale Avenue crossing creates the notable risk that a catastrophic accident may well occur under one of several different scenarios. For example:

First, that a train will collide with a vehicle with sufficient force to either derail the train into and/or push the vehicle into the proposed "holding pens" where several hundred students are trapped inside, killing or seriously injuring scores of students in a single accident.

Second, that a train will collide with a vehicle (particularly a truck or bus) rupturing and igniting a fuel tank which would engulf students in the holding pen in flaming diesel or gasoline.

Third, a combination of the above two scenarios where the students are crushed and burned simultaneously by vehicles and/or a derailed train.

Regarding the possible delay the changes to the project may require:

"Since when is building something more quickly more important than building it safely? Additionally, MTA's own documents show that from the inception of this project, 15 years ago, the community has been said the crossings near our schools were not safe. But out of bureaucratic arrogance and political indifference, MTA and our political leaders have fought us at every turn. So if there is a delay to the project, the delay is of MTA's own making and the failure of political leadership to address legitimate community concerns."

References to the history of community comments documented in MTA's own studies on the Expo Line.

Regarding impacts the project could have on the Expo Line budget:

"In 2004, MTA pulled this project out of the federal New Starts Program, in the process walking away from $320 million federal dollars, saying they'd spend the local money instead because they wanted to speed up construction of the project. That doesn't sound like a broke agency to me. That sounds like an agency with plenty of financial options. In the past year alone, MTA has appropriated $222 million extra dollars to the project, including $54 million to add an overpass in Culver City. And they appropriated these funds while telling us with a straight face that there's no money for grade separation in South LA. It is insulting to the intelligence of people that have followed this issue to suggest this $3 billion agency, that has engaged in these actions, doesn't have the money to make the Expo Line safe in our community - particularly right next to our large urban schools. MTA has the resources, MTA has many options, but MTA has always and continues to lack a concern for safety in South LA."

Some excerpts from Koss' ruling, which is available on the web here.

"A.07-05-013, for authority to construct an at-grade crossing at Farmdale Ave. in the City of Los Angeles, should be denied. "

"Authorization to construct a light rail line over an existing pedestrian tunnel crossing at Harvard Blvd., in the City of Los Angeles, requested in A.06-12-020, should be denied."

"Expo Authority proposed a state-of-the-art system of gates and other warning devices at the Farmdale crossing, including swing gates to allow pedestrians to exit the rail right-of-way when all other gates are down. All of these gates, however, can be avoided easily by pedestrians. Considering the large number of crossings during peak periods, and the student populations using the crossing, we find that any system of gates or other warning devices at-grade would not eliminate all potential safety hazards."

"The parties discussed several other crossings at or near school sites along other light-rail lines. However, none of these cases presented the unique characteristics of the proposed Farmdale crossing at Dorsey. This issue, therefore, provided little or no weight in our determination of practicability."

Contact:
Damien Goodmon
323.845.2003

Prepare Today - Survive Tomorrow!

On Saturday, October 25, 2008 from 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM at the California African American Museum (CAAM), Levitical Network will host a free “PREPARE TODAY – SURVIVE TOMORROW” DISASTER PREPAREDNESS FAIR along with State Farm Insurance, the American Red Cross, Southern California Edison, Southern California Gas Company, and State Senator Mark Ridley-Thomas.

People of all ages are invited to attend this festive and informative event that will feature experts in earthquake, fire and other natural disasters who will share how we can assist our families, friends, foes, communities, churches and businesses in preparation. In addition to great speakers and gobs of information, there will be food, fun, music and entertainment; and activities for the kids and youth.

Please take advantage of this wonderful opportunity.

CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VIEW

Your Genes: Choice or Chance?

Senator Mark Ridley-Thomas and
The Empowerment Congress
Invite you to join us in a very special and intriguing discussion on

Your Genes: Choice or Chance?

Saturday, October 25, 2008, from 1:00-3:00 p.m.
California Science Center
700 State Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90037

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE!
The past decade in biological research has produced startling findings and set the stage for major potential inroads toward progress against human disease.

In particular scientific research on the human genome has pitted the hopes for progress toward the eradication of disease against ethical concerns about manipulating the human genome and worries over public access to private data.

What is the role of our genes vs. our personal health choices in determining health outcomes?

As genetic information becomes more readily available should we err on the side of privacy in making decisions regarding employment, insurance and law or should we override these issues in order to address a greater common good?

What are the ethical issues associated with manipulating the human genome and should theological considerations play any role in the formulation of policies and guidelines pertaining to genomic research and personal decision-making?

Join us in this timely and exciting conversation with scientists and other community members to learn more about your genes and the choices and decisions you can make for yourself and your family.

Admission is FREE!

Register online: goto.californiasciencecenter.org/sciencematters, or by phone: (213) 744-2420.

Featured panelists include:

Conan Nolan—moderator: Reporter, NBC4

Pragna Patel, Ph.D.: Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute for Genetic Medicine, USC School of Medicine

Mr. Olophius Perry, Esq.: District Director, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, L.A. District Office

James J. Walter, Ph.D.: Professor of Bioethics and Chair, The Bioethics Institute, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, California

Stanley F. Nelson, M.D.: Professor and Vice Chair of Human Genetics and Professor of Psychiatry, Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA

Support for this program was provided by the California Community Empowerment Foundation and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.