26. February 2010 by admin.

Neighborhood Council Coalition

Info@lanccoalition.org
www.lanccoalition.org

The LANCC meets on the first Saturday of each month.
See our web site for details and agendas.

LANCC/BUDGETLA MEETING
This Saturday, February 27, 2010 at 10:00 AM

GUEST SPEAKERS

• DEP. MAYOR LARRY FRANK
• SPECIAL ASST. CITY ATTY JANE USHER

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

BudgetLA
February 27, 2010, 10:00 am
Hollywood Presbyterian Church
Upper Terrace Hall (enter on Yucca, park on Yucca)
1760 N. Gower Avenue, Hollywood , CA 90028

Leonard J. Shaffer
Chair, LANCCoalition

Posted in LOS ANGELES, budget, meeting | Print | 1 Comment »

26. February 2010 by admin.

Sunday, March 7, 2010 10:00am - 2:00pm Women’s History Month Program begins at 1:00pmCalifornia African American Museum Exposition Park 600 State Drive LA 90037Car Seat Checks will be at: Figueroa Street & State Drive in the Round-a-bout. Parking: parking lot at 39th Street & Figueroa Street. CHP sponsored Car Seat installation and safety checks Child ID kits available from KIDS ARE 1st Enjoy the California African American Museum Learn about resources in your community. Talk to Senator Price about issues affecting you. For more information please contact Rebecca in Senator Price’s District office at (213)745-6656 or e-mail Rebecca.Bernal@sen.ca.gov

Posted in LOS ANGELES, outreach | Print | No Comments »

24. February 2010 by admin.

In his letter to Mayor Villaraigosa, BH Kim stated “I support the consolidation of our department with the Community Development Department (CDD) understanding that the General Manager for CDD will become the General Manager for the new department that includes Neighborhood Empowerment, I will no longer be serving in this position effective upon this appointment or June 30, 2010, whichever comes first.” Download the letter here: BH Kim Letter

Posted in LOS ANGELES, DONE | Print | 1 Comment »

18. February 2010 by admin.

This is a re-post of an article originated from the BudgetLA website.OurLA, by Michael Cohen, 15 February 2010

At Saturday’s LANCC Budget LA meeting, moderator Stephen Box reminded us that when the oxygen masks on an airplane in distress are lowered we first put them on ourselves and then assist others. NCs need to take care of themselves because like the airline passenger we won’t be of help if we are incapacitated by defunding.

It was suggested in passing at City Hall? That to save the City money those NCs that didn’t show up to the BudgetLA meetings should lose all their funding.

A proposal to reduce DONE staffing by including NC volunteers something previously endorsed at the Feb. 6th LANCC meeting got some serious discussion. One queried can we get enough NC members to staff the 30 or so volunteer positions and another Paul Hatfield, was concerned about continuity in the DONE with NC volunteer turn over.

Doug Epperhart presented the plan in place of Shawn Simons, away in New York. He said the final numbers or conditions are not cast in concrete.

The Education and Neighborhoods Committee will take up the issue of DONE and NC structure and funding this Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 3 p.m. in the City Council chambers.

BongHwan Kim, General Manager of the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment, welcomes the changes put forth. He reminds us that the neighborhood councils are considered mini-city councils by the City , at least for the purposes of oversight. That requires NCs to have various department resources and support. That makes DONE an enforcer of numerous regulations and keeps it involved in many areas, diluting focus and requiring expertise in those areas. That is inefficient.

Community Partners, a non-profit was proposed to handle financial oversight of NC funding, taking a large workload off of DONE’s shoulders. BongHwan Kim felt that a non-profit could likely do it better and cheaper, largely because the non-profit wouldn’t be burdened by the City pension system.

When the NC pulse was taken to support outsourcing there was some hesitation with a split vote. The motion was amended to explore the possibility of outsourcing rather than recommending it presently.

At the LANCC BudgetLA meeting Feb. 6th a 7% charge for all transactions by Community partners was thought to be their fee. At Saturdays meeting Lupe Solorio of Community Partners said the fee could be 12%.

The hybrid plan presented Saturday consists of reorganizing DONE into four departments:

1. Administration – Responsible for the efficient running of the DONE office
2. Public Relations – To create a citywide NC campaign to encourage stakeholder participation in the system
3. Governmental Relations – Create relationships with City departments and foster communication with City Hall
4. Training – Programs to create strong boards and seamless transitions.

The total paid City personnel required is just 17 which includes a General Manager and Assistant GM. This is less than the proposed cut by the CAO to 19. The slack left by the reduced staff would be formally picked up by 35 NC unpaid positions staffed by NC volunteers, permanently assigned to DONE.

The reported savings to the City is at least $4 Million, again more than required by the CAO’s plan.

In exchange the NCs want minimal cuts leaving funding largely intact, re-instituted a one year rollover of unspent funds year, maintain the current system of bank cards for small disbursements and to allow NC involvement in determining expenditure categories.

Everyone is asked to arrive at Tuesday’s City Council meeting early to meet City Council staff and to attend the Education and Neighborhoods Committee meeting starting in the same chamber at 3 p.m.

Michael Cohen is a long time community activist and Reseda NC Council Liaison. He can be reached a mncohen@earthlink.netmncohen@earthlink.net

Posted in LOS ANGELES, budget | Print | 1 Comment »

16. February 2010 by admin.

The Olympic Park Neighborhood Council ELECTION COMMITTEE will meet this Thursday, February 18, 2010 at 6:30pm at I LOVE BOBA located at 1144 Western Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90006 (Western Ave., south of Country Club Drive). The Committee will cover topics including election OUTREACH, CANDIDATE FILING and ELECTION PROCEDURES. All are invited to attend.

Download the AGENDA here: Election Committee AGENDA 021810

Stakeholders interested in participating in the election as a candidate may download a filing packet here: Complete Candidate Filing Packet

Posted in LOS ANGELES, elections, outreach, meeting, neighborhood, agenda, opnc | Print | 1 Comment »

16. February 2010 by admin.

From the Mayor’s office:
Attached is a flyer for the “Make the Homeless Count Sock Drive” taking place from February 14th to March 14th.  Many of the homeless in our communities lack basic necessities including socks.  The City of Los Angeles will organize events on Tuesday, March 30th to support the U.S. Census Bureau’s Homeless Enumeration program in order to boost the homeless count and deliver socks, food, and other much-needed items.

Download the flyer here: Sock Drive Flyer

Please pass this information on to your family, friends, colleagues, and contacts within the community so that we can ensure that EVERYONE gets counted in the 2010 Census!  Thanks!

Posted in census, homeless, LOS ANGELES, outreach, event | Print | 1 Comment »

12. February 2010 by admin.

The City of Los Angeles and LA Unified are sponsoring a Day of Service event to be held on March 20, benefitting LA High and Wilshire Crest Elementary. Contact Fabiola.Vilchez@lacity.org (213/ 978-0812) for more info. We invite you to post the attached flyers at appropriate locations in your neighborhood and to be a part of this event.

Day Of Service flyer (english)

Dia de Servicio (en espanol)

Posted in LOS ANGELES, outreach, neighborhood | Print | 1 Comment »

12. February 2010 by admin.

 The organization BudgetLA will meet this Saturday, February 13, 2010 at 10am at Hollywood Presbyterian Church, Upper Terrace Hall, 1760 Gower Avenue (enter on Yucca, park on Yucca) and as part of their planned agenda will discuss the following topics:

Regenerative - DONE Reorganization - NC Collaborative Proposal
1) The “Hybrid” version of DONE - staff and volunteers
2) The Departmental Focus of DONE
a) Administrative
b) Public Relations
c) Government Relations
d) Training
3) Outsourcing Funding Oversight
4) The proposed budget

Collaborative - NC Funding and Structure - Forum
1) Rollover Funding - Proposed Elimination
2) Petty Cash Procedures - End BankCard System
3) Neighborhood Council Funding - 50% Cut
4) Transfer of Funding Program Oversight

BudgetLA supports the activities of several neighborhood council groups, all working together to pursue solutions to LA’s Budget Crisis. Participants include the Los Angeles Neighborhood Council Coalition, the Saving Los Angeles project, the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils, the Mayor’s Budget Advisory Committee and representatives from neighborhood councils throughout the city. For more information visit http://BudgetLA.org where you will find a Calendar of upcoming events, the Speakers Bureau, an archive of BudgetLA videos and links to individual neighborhood councils. Join BudgetLA on Facebook and follow BudgetLA on Twitter (@BudgetLA) To get involved, join BudgetLA on Saturday, February 13 at 10:00 am for “Look for the Union Label” at Hollywood Presyterian Church, 1760 Gower Ave., Hollywood 90028.

Posted in LOS ANGELES, budget, event | Print | No Comments »

5. February 2010 by admin.

All lanes of the northbound San Diego Freeway (I-405) from Getty Center Drive to Greenleaf Street will be closed nightly beginning Saturday, February 6 through Friday, February 12 between the hours of 1 a.m. and up to 7 a.m.

Additionally, the eastbound and westbound Santa Monica Freeway (I-10) connectors to northbound I-405 will be closed nightly, from Monday, February 8 to Wednesday, February 10 between the hours of 9 p.m. to 6a.m.

The following ramps will be closed intermittently from Saturday, February 6 through Friday, February 12:  Sunset Boulevard on-ramp; Olympic/Pico Boulevard on-ramp; Moraga Boulevard on-ramp; eastbound and westbound Wilshire Boulevard on-ramps and off-ramps; Getty Drive/Sepulveda Boulevard on-ramp; Skirball Drive/Mulholland Boulevard on-ramp and off-ramp; Santa Monica Boulevard on-ramp and off-ramp and the Ventura Boulevard off-ramp.

Ramp closure hours could vary between the hours of 1 p.m. to midnight but will be predominantly between midnight and 6 a.m.

All closures are weather-permitting and subject to change.

The various closures are to enable striping, geotechnical boring, Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) drainage, utility, Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) and drainage surveys for construction of the I-405 Sepulveda Pass Widening Project.

The I-405 Sepulveda Pass Widening Project, a joint effort between Metro and Caltrans, will complete the last remaining 10-mile gap on the northbound I-405 carpool lane system. Scheduled for completion in 2013, the project will significantly improve traffic flow for northbound I-405 commuters, providing a continuous carpool lane from Orange County to the San Fernando Valley.

For additional information and ongoing construction updates, visit www.metro.net/I-405 or call the project hotline at (213) 922-3665.

Posted in LOS ANGELES, streets | Print | 1 Comment »

1. February 2010 by admin.

Press Conference
Monday, February 1, 2010
12:30 pm
City Hall Rotunda
200 Main Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Budget & Finance Committee
Monday, February 1, 2010
1:00 pm
City Council Chambers
200 Main Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012LOS ANGELES – Neighborhood Council representatives from throughout the city are headed to City Hall to call on the Mayor and the City Council to honor the City Charter which established the neighborhood council system and which mandates appropriate funding. They take with them a BudgetLa Statement that says “At this time of financial crisis for the City, the solutions require a partnership between the elected officials at City Hall and the elected representatives of our 90 neighborhood councils.”

Neighborhood Councils exist to advise the Mayor and the City Council on City Budget priorities, to monitor the delivery of services, and to involve the community in the governance of the City of Los Angeles. The Charter goes so far as to call for periodic meetings with responsible officials of City departments.

As the CAO’s “City Restructuring Proposals” are considered by the Budget and Finance Committee on Monday afternoon, Neighborhood Council leaders will stand in defense of the neighborhood council system and will position the NC system as a Funding Solution, a Communication Solution, and as a Community Building Solution. Ultimately, the NC system is an ASSET, not a LIABILITY, and it is protected by the City Charter. To that end, neighborhood councils stand as partners with the Mayor, the City Council, and the City Staff in working together for “An LA that Works!”

BudgetLA has hosted two emergency workshops which have drawn 110 different members from 47 different neighborhood councils, all focused on working together to take on bankruptcy, pensions, the delivery of city services and the reorganization of the city system. The BudgetLA position starts with two basic premises, that “everything is on the table and must be considered as we work together to solve the budget crisis, and that neighborhood councils must be at that table as partners in the process.
The NC reps have taken a full-spectrum approach to the budget crisis and believe that it is essential that the community engage with our elected officials as well as city staff to pursue Revenue innovations along with Pension reform while maintaining prioritized delivery of City Services and the implementation of Organizational improvements, all of which work together to guarantee that Los Angeles take its place as a Great City.

This past Saturday, BudgetLA opened with Alex Rubalcava who addressed LA’s future on “The Road to Bankruptcy.” It also featured Department of Neighborhood Empowerment’s GM, BongHwan Kim and his “Vision for Neighborhood Councils” presentation. Visit BudgetLA CityWatchLAfor a details on Saturday’s BudgetLA workshop. BudgetLA will meet again on Saturday, February 13 and on Saturday, February 27 at Hollywood City Hall. Both BudgetLA sessions will start at 10:00 am.
BudgetLA supports the activities of several neighborhood council groups, all working together to pursue solutions to LA’s Budget Crisis. Participants include the Los Angeles Neighborhood Council Coalition, the Saving Los Angeles project, the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils, the Mayor’s Budget Advisory Committee and representatives from neighborhood councils throughout the city. For more information visit http://BudgetLA.org where you will find a Calendar of upcoming events, the Speakers Bureau, an archive of BudgetLA videos and links to individual neighborhood councils. Join BudgetLA on Facebook and follow BudgetLA on Twitter (@BudgetLA) To get involved, join BudgetLA on Saturday, February 13 at 10:00 am for “Look for the Union Label”  at Hollywood City Hall, 6501 Fountain Ave., Hollywood 90028.

Posted in LOS ANGELES, budget, event, meeting | Print | 1 Comment »

23. January 2010 by admin.

The  OLYMPIC PARK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL’s EXECUTIVE Board will meet this Monday, January 25, 2010 – 7:00 PM at the Los Angeles High School COMMUNITY ROOM, 4650 W Olympic Boulevard, Los Angeles CA 90019. Upcoming NC Election prodedures will be discussed. Click on the Agenda to the left to view or dowload here: EC AGENDA 012510dnl

Posted in LOS ANGELES, elections, exec board, meeting, agenda, opnc | Print | No Comments »

19. December 2009 by admin.

As part of the Board Of Neighborhood Commissioners regular monthly meeting on Monday December 21 at 11:30am a request to change the bylaws of the OPNC to reduce the board and quorum size has been agendized as item 7 - “…Commission action approving or rejecting Article VI section 1 of the OPNC bylaws regarding the size of it’s governing body and related quorum adjustments”. We invite all stakeholders and OPNC board members to attend this meeting at LA City Hall , 10th Floor Conference Center - Room 1060, 200 N Spring Street. Download the agenda here: Commission AGENDA 122109

Posted in LOS ANGELES, meeting, agenda, DONE | Print | 1 Comment »

5. December 2009 by admin.

We invite all stakeholders to learn more about the Neighborhood Council system and participate in the upcoming elections to be held in our area May 13, 2010. Join EMPOWER LA for an open dialogue on how you can make an impact with your local Neighborhood Council. EMPOWER LA will be holding an Open Dialogue presentation on Thursday, January 28, 2010 at a location tbd. Engage your Government and Community - Collaborate with  your City Council Member and City Agencies on Issues of Concern - Become a Voter and/or a Candidate in the 2010 Neighborhood Council Election. For further info, click  2010 ELECTION FLYER . OPNC will be hosting a presentation at their January 2010 meeting and we invite you to attend and/or contact us for more information at info@theopnc.org. You may call EMPOWER LA at (213) 485 1360 or access their website www.empowerla.org

Posted in LOS ANGELES, elections, outreach, training, neighborhood, opnc | Print | No Comments »

27. October 2009 by admin.

The monthly OLYMPIC PARK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL Board of Directors’ meeting will be held on Monday, November 2, 2009 – 7:00 PM at the LAPD West Bureau Community Room – 4849 West Venice Los Angeles CA 90019. Click on the Agenda to the left to view or dowload here: OPNC Agenda for 110209

Posted in outreach, LOS ANGELES, meeting, agenda, neighborhood, DONE, opnc | Print | No Comments »

1. October 2009 by admin.

The monthly OLYMPIC PARK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL Board of Directors’ meeting will be held on Monday, October 5, 2009 – 7:00 PM at the LAPD West Bureau Community Room – 4849 West Venice Los Angeles CA 90019. Click on the Agenda to the left to view or dowload here: OPNC Agenda 100509dnl

Posted in LOS ANGELES, outreach, meeting, agenda, opnc | Print | No Comments »