The Public Square: January 9–11, 2012

A brief look at items of interest to Hollywood residents that are on upcoming agendas at City Council, City Council Committees, Neighborhood Councils, various City Boards and Commissions, and County Board of Supervisors. LA City Agendas can be found here and LA County Board agendas can be found here. Meeting times, locations, and agendas are subject to change, so be sure to check and confirm.

Monday, January 9:

• Hollywood Studio District Neighborhood Council Board (6:30 PM)
  • Agenda (.pdf)
    • Meeting will be held at Santa Monica Boulevard Community Charter School (1022 North Van Ness Avenue).
• Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Commission - Special Meeting (6:30 PM)
  • Special public hearing to gather public input regarding the formation of the new City Council district boundaries. See this post and this post for more info.
  • Agenda (.pdf) 
    • Meeting will be held at Los Angeles Community College (855 N. Vermont Avenue) in the Theater.

Tuesday, January 10:

• County Board of Supervisors (9:30 AM)
  • No items of note.
• City Council (10:00 AM)
  • Item 28 (Council File 12-0026)
    • Motion relative to transferring a total of $500,000 in AB1290 funds (property tax increment funds allocated by the CRA/LA to the City) to Council District 4's general salaries account to pay for Council Office staff salaries and “for funding and support of community services efforts in CD 4.”
    • Viewpoints: While the CRA/LA may have been abolished, it is clear that the misappropriation of the funds the Agency collected for “redevelopment” will continue. $500,000 in property tax funds for Council Office staff salaries and some undefined “community services”? Really?
• Mid City West Community Council Board (7:00 PM)
  • Agenda (.pdf)
    • Meeting will be held at the National Council of Jewish Women Building (543 North Fairfax Avenue) in the Auditorium.

Wednesday, January 11:

• Housing, Community, and Economic Development Council Committee (8:30 AM)
  • Item 2 (Council File 11-2115)
    • CRA/LA Board report (.pdf) relative to authorizing its staff to negotiate and execute a Tri-Party Memorandum of Understanding with the City of Los Angeles’ Bureau of Engineering and the Friends of the Hollywood Freeway Central Park for the preparation of a an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Hollywood Freeway Central Park project AND for the transfer of up to $2 Million in Hollywood Tax Increment Funds to fund the preparation and processing of the EIR and EIS.
    • Note: As I noted in this post, if you are interested in this action you are too late. On Friday, December 16th, the City Council took this report under consideration, per “Rule 23 of the Rules of the City Council” (which permits the City Council to take immediate action on unagendized actions if an “emergency” exists) and approved the recommendations of the CRA/LA Board (see Council File 11-2115-S1). The Mayor approved this item on December 22nd.
  • Item 6 (Council File 12-0049)
    • CLA and CAO to report on the implications of the California State Supreme Court’s recent ruling affirming that the State Legislature has the authority to abolish State Redevelopment Agencies such as the CRA/LA.
• Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners (9:30 AM)
  • Item 2 (General Manager Report No. 12-008)
    • Recommendation that the RAP Board approve the allocation of $959,095 in Quimby fees to the Griffith Park Swimming Pool Rehabilitation Project. Per the report, the scope of this project includes improvements to the swimming pool, pool's mechanical systems and equipment, and the bathhouse.
  • Item 2 (General Manager Report No. 12-009)
    • Recommendation that the RAP Board approve the allocation of $23,508 in Quimby fees to the Las Palmas Senior Center Building Improvement Project. Per the report, the scope of this project includes improvements to the senior building and the adjacent parking lot.
• City Council (10:00 AM)
  • Item 14 (Council File 12-0049)
    • CLA and CAO to report on the implications of the California State Supreme Court’s recent ruling affirming that the State Legislature has the authority to abolish State Redevelopment Agencies such as the CRA/LA.
    • See also the Housing, Community, and Economic Development Council Committee agenda above.
• Transportation Council Committee (2:00 PM)
• Item 6 (Council File 12-0031)
• Motion (.pdf) instructing LADOT to report with recommendations and actions necessary to permanently close Yucca Street to through vehicular traffic at Las Palmas, Cherokee, and Whitley Avenues with traffic diverters that prevent access for vehicles but allow bicycle and pedestrian movement. Per the motion, the above mentioned Yucca Street intersections have been subject to a temporary vehicular street closure, pursuant to Section 21101.4 of the California Vehicle Code, since 1995 .
• Viewpoints: As I noted in this post, CVC Section 21101.4 permits a street to be temporarily closed to the public for 18 months and permits a maximum of eight 18 month extensions. Therefore, the total permitted "temporary" street closure length under CVC 21101.4 is 162 months or 13.5 years. This street closure has been operative since May 1995 – a total of 16.5 years – which clearly is far longer than the maximum legally permitted “temporary” street closure. In fact, it seem that the City only bothered to extend this “temporary” street closure one time, to May 1998, and has been illegally enforcing this street closure since that time (see Council File 95-0619-S1).
• Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Commission (4:00 PM)
  • Item 3 (Ad Hoc Committee on Outreach)
    • Ad Hoc Committee on Outreach and staff reports on actions related to the outreach program; including a discussion of the “Pre-Final Map” public hearing schedule. Commission discussion and possible approval.
• Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council Board (7:00 PM)
  • Agenda
    • Meeting will be held at the Ebell of Los Angeles (4400 Wilshire Boulevard) in the Wilshire Ebell Theater.
  • Item 11.A.3 (Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council Boundary Issues)
    • Consideration of a proposed motion on redistricting that “requests that the Redistricting Commission, as part of its current redistricting efforts, re-unite the complete Greater Wilshire area, as defined by our area map (.pdf) and as traditionally understood by our area homeowner and neighborhood groups, fully within the 4th City Council district.”