There will be a joint meeting of the Venice Neighborhood Council, South Robertson Neighborhood Council, Palms Neighborhood Council and Mar Vista Community Council Transportation and Infrastructure Committees on Tuesday, January 7, 2014, from 7-9:00 at the Windwood School.
Agenda
I. Call to Order—Mitchell Rishe presiding.
II. Introductions and Public Announcements/Comments on topics not on the agenda.
III. Public Comment
IV. Proposed Joint Motions of the Neighborhood Councils of South Robertson, Venice, Palms and Mar Vista (SoVePaM)
1) POLICY MOTION: Electroinic Billboards The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils oppose the efforts by Lamar Central Outdoor, as well as CBS Outdoor and Clear Channel, or any other billboard operators in Los Angeles, to file suit or to attempt to force the City of Los Angeles in any other way, to allow for the conversion of Lamar’s traditional billboards to digital/electronic format, or to restore operations of digital/electronic billboards already declared illegal.
2) POLICY MOTION: DWP CONTRACT ISSUES
The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils support the following recommendations to the Mayor and City Council for their upcoming and/or ongoing LADWP contract negotiations:
a) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils support a three-year freeze in pay raises.
b) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils support ongoing reform in LADWP policy to reduce the overall bonus/overtime amount that LADWP employees are currently receiving.
c) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils support a termination of the clause requiring increases in LADWP employee pay when outside private contractors are called in to perform necessary water/power infrastructure maintenance, installation, customer service or construction.
d) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils oppose any LADWP labor action (such as a strike) that would threaten the construction, maintenance or operation of any water/power City infrastructure.
e) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils support a full disclosure of the proposed Memorandum of Understanding and all side agreements, as well as any City Budget impacts relative to the proposed contract.
f) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils support a full disclosure of all IBEW campaign contributions over the past ten (10) years to determine any political conflicts of interest relative to any City Council vote.
3) POLICY MOTION: JMB/CENTURY CITY SPECIFIC PLAN:
a) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils oppose any attempt by JMB Developers and the City of Los Angeles Planning to violate the Century City North Specific Plan and/or other any other covenant established to limit the commercial office space to 2.5 million square feet.
b) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils therefore oppose the proposed 731,000 square foot JMB-proposed Century City Center in that it is extra commercial office square footage that is three times the limit in size that JMB developers is allowed to build, based on the number of trips it currently owns, unless the JMB developers purchase the number of trips from other commercial landlords that enables this tower to be legally built without creating a precedent to an illegal tripling of the size of Century City.
c) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils further oppose any attempt to triple the size of Century City’s office/commercial square footage in that it will create devastatingly negative impacts on the environment, on traffic, on the economy and on the quality of life for Westsiders from La Cienega to the ocean, and implore both CD5 Councilmember Paul Koretz and CD11 Councilmember Mike Bonin to demand that JMB developers and City Planning adhere to the covenant of 2.5 million square footage of legal office space for Century City.
4) POLICY MOTION: CITY OF LOS ANGELES GENERAL PLAN FRAMEWORK ELEMENT CHAPTER 3: PROTECTION OF LOW DENSITY RESIDENTIAL AREAS:
a) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils believe that clear and reasonable land use regulations, including definitions and performance standards [noise, traffic, parking, operating hours, and the like], are necessary for good governance, civil society, buffering of uses between zone classifications, proper code enforcement, neighborhood stability, public health, and public safety.
b) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils adhere to the General Plan of the City of Los Angeles, which specifically protects the residential character of low density residential areas as stated in the General Plan Framework Element Chapter 3 – Land Use Goals, Objectives and Policies Issue Two: Uses, Density, and Character:
“Single-Family Residential Overview
The Framework Element recognizes the importance of existing single-family residential neighborhoods and the need to conserve them. Traditionally, they have formed the fabric that has distinguished the City from other urban areas. Even with substantial growth, the single-family dwelling is still considered to be a major objective of most income and ethnic groups.
These areas also afford added opportunities to take advantage of the variety of lifestyles such as water-oriented, rural/agricultural and equestrian-keeping special use neighborhoods”
And, additionally stated as:
“Goal 3B: Preservation of the City’s stable single-family residential neighborhoods”.
There exist substantial low density areas within the SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils’ boundaries. ANY prospective change to this General Plan Framework policy is a serious matter of public process and accountability to SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils stakeholders.
THEREFORE, the SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils call for full Environmental Impact Review in compliance with CEQA, to completely assess the impacts of any and all proposed ordinances, revisions, regulations, or plans which alter the above stated policy with regard to the character of the City’s low density residential areas comprising over 65% of the City’s land use–including complete analysis of fiscal impacts to vital City services and future burdens on the City’s aging physical infrastructure.
5) POLICY MOTION: NOTICING OF OFF RAMP CLOSURES:
WHEREAS, SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils’ residents have been deeply impacted by the 405 widening project, which is more than one year behind schedule and more than $75 million over budget, and
WHEREAS, the 405 widening project has resulted in freeway off ramp closures commonly used by SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils’ residents, including the 405 S Pico/Olympic off ramp, that appear to occur at random times and with no advance warning of the closure. This deprives us of an opportunity to plan ahead, causing us to take exits far from our destination, resulting in additional transit time (in addition to the delays caused by the widening project itself) and further increasing air pollution. This also demonstrates a total lack of respect and understanding for the inconveniences and delays that we have been subjected to throughout the duration of the years-long widening project.
NOW, THEREFORE, to alleviate commuter transit time and as a show of respect and understanding for those commuters who have been so severely impacted by the widening project, the SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils respectfully request that councilmembers Mike Bonin and Paul Koretz request that Cal Trans/Metro post notice of an off ramp closure at least one off ramp before the closure (i.e., before the Santa Monica off ramp for a Pico/Olympic closure), to allow commuters sufficient opportunity to take the prior off ramp.
6) POLICY MOTION: SPECIAL PARKING REVENUE FUND REVENUES
a) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils maintain that the City of Los Angeles has been inappropriately (and, possibly, illegally) raiding the SPRF (Special Parking Revenue Fund) and diverting those revenues to the General Budgetary Fund, and demands that it end this practice.
b) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils demand that the City Council and Mayor of Los Angeles redirect all previously diverted revenue of the SPRF, and all present and future SPRF revenue towards the establishment of parking lots and structures, for which the revenue was and is intended.
c) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils demand that City Council and Mayor of Los Angeles direct all past, present and future SPRF funds to be directed towards the communities from which they were collected.
7) POLICY MOTION: EXPO LINE AND VENICE RAPID BUS PARKING LOT ESTABLISHMENT
a) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils maintain that there is insufficient parking and overall access to the Exposition Light Rail Line, and to the connecting Venice Blvd. Bus Lines.
b) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils maintain that the “Exposition Boulevard/I-10 Freeway” and “Venice Boulevard to the Beach” were the two transportation corridors to be mitigated by the Expo Line, and that there is no Westside Metrolink/Park and Ride equivalent for Westsiders to access.
c) The SoVePaM Neighborhood Councils therefore strongly urge the City of Los Angeles, Metro and Caltrans (which owns Lincoln and Venice Boulevards) to establish public parking lots, and/or encourage public/private parking endeavours, to facilitate access of those commuting by car, bicycle or other methods to create more parking lots at/near Exposition Line rail stations and highly-utilized Venice Bus Line bus stops.
V. Public Comment
VI. Future Agenda Items
VII. Adjournment.
Council Meeting
WINDWARD SCHOOL, Tom Hunter Board Room, Room 800
11350 Palms Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90066 (SW corner of Palms and Sawtelle Blvds.)
Rotating Co-Chairs: Mitchell Rishe and Ken Alpern
Thanks to Alex R for the heads up!
