News of Venice, CA and Marina del Rey CA
Do not Enter signs have been on Carter side of Walgreens and the shopping center since last December. One resident of Triangle got ticket this month for entering off of Carter.
“I just got a ticket for going to the yogurt store,” wrote resident. “As you can see I wasn’t even in the parking lot yet. So beware of going in the way we always have. I got out of the car and took the picture so when I go to court I can show it. All the cop had to do was warn me sense I wasn’t in there yet.”
The Department of Recreation and Parks will be hosting a paddle tennis tournament at the Venice Beach paddle courts, 1800 Ocean Front Walk, 11, 12 April. Registration is $40 per person and must be completed by 11 April.
There will also be a “Big West Shoot-Out, 3 -Wall Ball” Tournament at same time. Registration is now until 11 April and is $30 per person.
Any questions, contact Fred Ealey at 310-399-2775.
Note:This is report of happenings at the last meet of the Venice Neighborhood Council. It is prepared by members of the council.
At the Venice Neighborhood Council (VNC) Board meeting held Tuesday, March 17, Board members considered a wide range of issues, including short-term rentals, Mello Act compliance and mandatory online voting for future Neighborhood Council elections.
Chaired by Vice President Marc Saltzberg, the Board thanked members of the Outreach Committee and recognized the efforts of Chairperson Sylvia Aroth and team leader Rob Dew for the success of the first annual Green Venice Expo, which was held on February 28th at Mark Twain Middle School.
According to Aroth and Dew, some one thousand Venetians were in attendance, meeting with sustainability activists and vendors about keeping Venice a green community. A series of speakers, including activist/actor Ed Begley, Jr., addressed the passionate array of green activists and supporters – which also included Venice local, Tree Man!
“We were very happy with the content as well as the attendance, and we plan to make this an annual event,” noted Dew, to the applause of those in attendance.
A presentation by a subcommittee of the Land Use and Planning Committee (LUPC) discussed concerns about short-term rental housing and the effect it has on neighborhoods and affordable rentals here in Venice.
“The VNC has long understood the impact on the quality of life of short-term rentals and we will continue to support regulation of these short-term offerings,” said Vice President Saltzberg.
The Board also endorsed a request by Councilman Mike Bonin (11th CD) to improve compliance with the Mello Act, which protects affordable housing in this Coastal Zone community.
“Councilmember Bonin is to be congratulated for recognizing the lack of Mello compliance and its impact on working families who rent here in Venice,” noted Saltzberg.
In other business, the VNC endorsed a “Budget White Paper” calling for both short- and long-term changes to the municipal budget process that engages all citizens.
The Board also went on record opposing mandatory online voting for future Neighborhood Council elections.
“Neighborhood Councils are grass-roots in function, and the election guidelines and process should be determined locally. Online voting discourages a wider range of participation, and we pride ourselves on maximizing our reach to local Venetians by positioning these contests as a community gathering and Town Hall of sorts,” noted Parliamentarian Ivan Spiegel.
For more information about Venice Neighborhood Council, visit them online at www.VeniceNC.org.
The VNC has an information booth at the Farmer’s Market every Friday from 7 to 11am, just west of the Library on Venice Blvd., where you can ask questions or pick up the latest information about the Venice Community.
Check out your lucky star 25 April from 7:30-10 pm at the Christian Science church parking lot, 7855 Alverstone Ave, Westchester.
Astronomer enthusiast Bob Eklund will have several high quality telescopes of different types set up. His plan is to view Jupiter with its four moons, Earth’s moon, and stars and nebulae.
Eklund says bring the children and learn astronomy together. Enjoy the sky. If it is cloudy or rainy, there will be an indoor learning session on basic astronomy.
Last Friday–27 March–of every month is celebrated in Venice and hosted by the Venice Symphony Orchestra.
“Weather is getting warmer, so come on out and see what Conductor Wesley Flowers has cookin,” wrote George Francisco. “Remember, all you have to do is come out and have fun and have a drink or a delicious beer from our friends at Santa Monica Brew Works and you will be helping the VSO give free music education to our local public school kids. We make it easy to do good!
Karen Wolfe, parent of a student at Venice High School and an elected member of School Based Management Council, wrote Venice Update about steps being taken by concerned citizens. An initial meeting will be held today (25 March)vbat 6 pm at the Venice Public Library, 501 Venice Way, Venice, CA 90291.
“Just wanted to keep Venice Update in the loop about how we at Venice High School are moving forward following the recent arrests of students,” Karen Wolfe wrote.
“The details are unknown to most of us and will remain so, as the accused are juveniles. However, a group of parents and teachers is beginning to engage in productive discussions with the goal of arriving at recommendations for the school and for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Venice High has been neglected and, although no one would wish this crisis upon a community, it may provide an opportunity for an allocation of resources that has been needed for some time. We see that there is a need to include the larger Venice community in these discussions and to have them take place outside the purview of the school district, which understandably may be primarily concerned with liability. In other words, we truly want to improve our school and prevent something like this from every happening again.
“We are meeting at the Venice Public Library this Wednesday at 6:00pm. I have a meeting this evening with an LA County Commissioner on Human Relations to seek his guidance and hopefully a facilitator. It is conceivable that a series of discussions will take place, and perhaps programs to educate the public about issues that might have played a part in these alleged incidents, and could prevent them from occurring again. We welcome any concerned community members to participate.”
Karen Wolfe has offered her email for anyone interested in attending meetings or wanting to provide input. Contact info will be given via Venice Update when requested.
Clabe Hartley, owner of Cow’s End coffee shop at Venice Pier area, had his finger bitten off by a transient.
http://link.patch.com/53926da8bc1705a04f0000012ev72.l/VQ-zLEmOo5ZTej8xFcf22
My Voice Matters! Film was received today from the Venice workshop put on by Institute for Public Strategies 11 March at Oakwood Recreation Center.
Panelists were Brenda Simmons, executive vice-president for Institute for Public Strategies; Tricia Keane, planning director for Councilman Mike Bonin; Claudia Martin, local neighborhood prosecutor for quality of life issues from City Attorney’s office; and Sarah Blanch, Westside impact project manager for Institute for Public Strategies.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-mansionization-temporary-steps-20150317-story.html
Senior Lead Officer SLO Summit Tuesday and LA Police Department is inviting the public. Guest speakers will be Robert Hoebink and Kevin Shaw. oebink and KIt will be held Tuesday, 6:30 to 8:30 pm at the Ahmanson Recruit Accademy, 5651 MANCHESTER AVE ROOM, Room 224
LA, CA 90045.
Questions can be directed to Peter Abskharon 310-622-3976