Your Favorite Spot in Los Angeles

As we begin the New Year, I hope you will think about your favorite public places in Los Angeles and visit them. Whether they include the Merry-Go-Round in Griffith Park that you rode as a child or Exposition Park Rose Garden, go enjoy those places again. Los Angeles is a city rich in cultural and recreational treasurers. Tourists are delighted to be here. I hope you are, too.

City Views Should Not be For Sale

Dear Friends,
The City Council is considering a new comprehensive sign ordinance that governs all billboards and advertising signage in Los Angeles. The Council voted this week to table the ordinance for three months of further consideration.
I have reviewed the proposal carefully and I have some real concerns. I appreciate and admire fine architecture and it concerns me to see beautiful buildings covered up in advertising. To read the City Council file on this issue, click here.
There are two “sign districts” in Los Angeles where large, dramatic signage is permitted: in Hollywood and on 15th St. downtown, adjacent to Interstate-10.
These sign districts work well, but I don’t want them all over the city.
After a great deal of thought, I plan to introduce a motion to restrict any new sign districts to one specific geographic area: the Downtown Center. There are many suitable locations downtown for larger signage. By limiting sign districts to downtown, we can curb visual clutter in other areas of the City.
Furthermore, I cannot support the “Grandfathering of Pending Sign Districts”. Those sign districts that have been approved by the full City Council, should of course be included, even if they are not yet in place.
However, sign districts that are proposed and have NOT gone through the process – such as one in my district at Metro Universal, which has NOT completed the Environmental process and does NOT have project approval - SHOULD NOT BE GRANDFATHERED.
I am holding a press conference on the Spring Street steps of City Hall at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, May 20th. Please join me if you support these motions. I hope to see you there, and as always, continue to enjoy and love Los Angeles.

Tom

Fire Station Pancake Breakfasts

I hope you'll all visit your local firehouse this weekend for Fire Service Recognition Day. Fire stations throughout Los Angeles will be open on either Saturday or Sunday.
Meet the fire fighters who protect your home and business, eat a few pancakes and learn about emergency services in your area. (For more information, click here.)

Please Attend Wilshire Subway Meetings

The public voted for Measure R in the November election, which means that the long-awaited subway expansion to the Westside is finally moving forward. This is great news for Los Angeles. The subway will connect and unify the city; reduce traffic and clear away some of the pollution that comes with it.
I hope you'll take the time to attend the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (Metro) public meetings on the Westside Subway Extension. The City of Los Angeles will get the absolute best subway system possible if you - the active, engaged citizens learn about the various plans - and say what you want.
For more information, please visit the Westside Subway Extension project website at www.metro.net or contact the project information line at 213.922.6934.
There are three more meetings this week:

Westwood area: Monday, April 20, 6 – 8pm Westwood Presbyterian Church 10822 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles Served by Metro Lines 20, 720, 920. Free parking available at the location.

Supplemental Scoping Meeting Korea Town/Mid-Wilshire/Wilshire Center area: Wednesday, April 22, 5 - 7pm Wilshire United Methodist Church 4350 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles

City of Santa Monica: Thursday, April 23, 6 – 8pm Santa Monica Public Library 601 Santa Monica Bl, Santa Monica Served by Metro Lines 4, 20, 33, 333, and 720. Validated vehicle and bike parking is available.

The agenda for each meeting is the same:
Open House: 6 - 6:30pm Project Update Presentation: 6:30 – 7:00 pm Question & Answer Session: 7:00 - 8pm

As you probably know, Metro is a County agency, not a City agency. I have met with Metro officials myself on your behalf and I'm counting you to advocate for the subway you want, as well.

Tom

Billboards and Supergraphics

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your letters and emails regarding billboards in the City of Los Angeles.
I share your frustration regarding the proliferation of supergraphics and digital billboards. That is why I introduced a motion in October directing the Los Angeles fire, planning and building and safety departments to report to Council on the potential safety hazards of supergraphics. I also seconded Council President Eric Garcetti’s motion to instruct the City Attorney and Building and Safety to report on the City’s settlement agreement relating to digital billboards.
The City Council also voted unanimously on December 17th, 2008 to adopt a three-month moratorium on all off-site sign permits, which meant that no new billboards or supergraphic signs (on the sides of tall buildings) will be approved for three months.
The moratorium is designed to give the Planning Department time to develop a new comprehensive ordinance that regulates the approval and installation of billboards. (To see the staff report, click here. Unfortunately, some companies have flaunted the city’s ban, or Interim Control Ordinance (ICO), by erecting new billboards and supergraphics. Department of Building and Safety inspectors are aggressively citing these offenders. The City Attorney has assured me that the offenders and property owners will be prosecuted fully for violating the ICO.
On a statewide level, Assemblymember Mike Feuer introduced a bill that would impose a statewide, two-year ban on new digital advertisements, pending the release of national studies on traffic safety around these lighted billboard displays. I support this bill’s adoption by the legislature this session. If you have any questions on this issue, please contact me at tom.labonge@lacity.org Again, thank you for contacting my office about this important issue.

Tom

Historic Designation of Griffith Park

Dear Friends,

Thank you to everyone who wrote to me regarding the historic designation of Griffith Park.

I whole-heartedly embraced this designation in my testimony before the Cultural Heritage Commission. I am a preservationist and have supported preservation initiatives throughout the 4th District.

To research how historic designation would impact Griffith Park, I visited Balboa Park in San Diego, where the buildings are designated but not the entire park. I also visited Golden Gate Park in San Francisco and Washington Park in Portland, Oregon. I spoke at length with park personnel about managing historic resources. It was great to see and learn about these dynamic urban parks.

I also called many meetings with city staff: the Office of Historic Resources, the Department of Recreation and Parks, the Department of Water and Power and other agencies. We discussed how historic designation would effect day-to-day park management and emergencies such as fires and fire recovery.

This research confirmed the wisdom of historic designation. I hope the designation will help to protect and preserve Griffith Park beyond my tenure as Councilman. I have directed the departments to work closely together to ensure that the historic elements of Griffith Park are preserved without placing unnecessary burden on daily, regular park management and maintenance.

Thank you again for your interest in Griffith Park.

Tom

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends. It's the best holiday of the year because it reminds us to be grateful for all of the wonderful people we love. Enjoy the holiday and as always, continue to enjoy and love Los Angeles.

Tom

Opposing Metro Universal

You may be aware that I am opposing the $800 million Metro Universal development project proposed for 3875 North Lankershim Boulevard.
This is a timely issue now because the City is currently accepting public comment on the Draft Environmnetal Impact Report (DEIR) for this proposed, 1.5 million-square-foot development. I encourage everyone in the 4th Council District to read the report by clicking here and responding to it.
That's your role. My role is to press the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA),as the property owner, to be accountable to the neighborhood for its role in this high-density development proposal.
I am opposed to this project because:

• The proposed development - twin 24-story towers, 34-story high-rise and 10-story parking garage - is too big and too dense for the banana-shaped parcel.
• The planned traffic mitigations are not adequate to absorb the traffic this development will generate. Lankershim is the only adjacent north/south street. There is no grid to absorb traffic flow.
• The project requires the taking of land by eminent domain from Weddington Park South. This will negatively impact park operations, cast the park in the shadow of a 10-story parking structure and require the city to relocate a park road and other amenities.

The MTA's response has been that the project's scale is necessary in order to meet the financial requirements imposed by its development deal structure. I feel strongly that the MTA is a public agency, whose mission - first and foremost - is to provide an efficient and effective transportation system.
I have encouraged the MTA, as the property owner and partner in this project, to take a renewed look at its development contract, scale back the proposed density and find a better balance between profits and impacts on neighborhoods and traffic.

Sincerely, Tom