By Nick Antonicello
While Councilwoman Traci Park is now knee-high in developing new public policy downtown, her predecessor and recent political challenger are staying active in the political arena, at least in Democratic party politics.
Former two-term councilmember Mike Bonin along with unsuccessful council hopeful Erin Darling are seeking elected positions as delegates to the California Democratic Party convention representing area assembly districts.
Bonin, long a political activist and supporter of Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential race as well as Bernie Sanders attempts in 2016 and 2020 served two terms as a LA City Council member and was forced to drop his bid for a third term when some 26,000 CD-11 voters signed a recall petition that was just short of the required number to enable his exit. It was after that second recall drive failed numerically speaking, it closed the door for a third term due to Bonin’s miserable record and policies he supported and proposed when it came to the issue of homelessness. Bonin then supported fellow progressive and liberal Erin Darling, also a Venice attorney who initially finished first in the June 8th runoff and received 48% of the vote against Park in the November runoff.
It was the closest of all the city council races where nearly 100,000 voters participated in selecting a new council member in Park in nearly a decade and the first female to represent Venice since Cindy Miscikowski.
While one was forced to leave the race and the other lost in a rather close contest, their continued interest and participation in Democratic party politics is indeed interesting as to any future political ambitions.
THE 2023 ANNUAL VENICE HOMELESS COUNT IS NOW UPON US
The annual homeless count sponsored by LAHSA will be held later this month and volunteers are needed to ensure an accurate count:
Happy New Year! Like every year, we’ve resolved to end homelessness for the thousands of Angelenos who experience it night in and night out. If you’re looking to make a New Year’s resolution to help end homelessness in Los Angeles, one of the best ways you can help is by volunteering for the 2023 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count.
The Count helps us better understand where our unhoused neighbors are so we can better deploy resources to help them find a permanent home.
Register online to join any of our deployment sites across the county. We need everyone’s help to count our unsheltered neighbors and better understand where resources are needed to get people indoors and help outreach workers do their essential, life-saving work.
FLOWER AVENUE UPDATE
Thanks to the persistent efforts of VNC Community Officer Clark Brown, who is seeking reelection to the VNC in 2023, the size of the current encampments have been drastically reduced, swept and cleared.
Fencing at the site has been assembled, much like what we see at the Venice Library and Brown has been working closely with our new city leaders as well as those Flower Avenue residents most impacted by the unhoused population and these encampments.
This cleanup will be a personal priority from a media coverage point of view moving forward.
Nick Antonicello is a thirty-year resident of Venice and currently serves as a member of the Outreach & Oceanfront Walk Committees of the Venice Neighborhood Council. Have a take or a tip? Contact Antonicello at nantoni@mindspring.com
