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Report to the Community

REPORT TO OUR COMMUNITY

FEBRUARY 2024

A STORM MESSAGE FROM MAYOR KAREN BASS

METRO PROPOSES TRAFFIC CONGESTION
PRICING IN
SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS

NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL EXPRESSES CONCERN FOR WEAKENING CITY STANDARDS FOR CONSTRUCTION NOISE AND VIBRATION

NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL ADVISES LOS ANGELES CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS OF HILLSIDE CONSTRUCTION
LOOPHOLES AND OVERSIGHTS

BABCNC ASKS CITY TO INTEGRATE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL EMAIL SYSTEM WITH CITY OF LOS ANGELES

PLANNING AND LAND USE RECOMMENDATIONS BY NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL

BUDGET ADVOCATES REPORT

THE BENEFITS OF GROWING NATIVE PLANTS IN YOUR GARDEN

SCRAPBOOK: TRAVELING FROM
HOLLYWOOD TO THE
SAN FERNANDO VALLEY BY BICYCLE IN 1898

PET ADOPTIONS

BEL AIR–BEVERLY CREST NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL
REPRESENTATIVES AND COMMUNITIES

Scroll Down for Details

A STORM MESSAGE FROM MAYOR KAREN BASS

Thank you to all the Angelenos that stayed safe and informed during the storm. Thanks to your preparedness, there were zero storm-related deaths this week. Thank you for staying safe and informed.

As we recover from intense rainfall this week, the City continues to respond to impacts and support recovery efforts with emergency crews clearing mud and debris flows, power outages, fallen trees, roadway flooding and other obstructions across the city.

After the 4.6M earthquake that was felt in our region this afternoon, we urge Angelenos to prepare for the possibility of ANY emergency.

City Response

Mud and Debris Flow:
City agencies are responding to reports of mudslides and debris flows particularly along canyon roads and hillsides. Commuters are advised to avoid driving on canyon roads.

Building and Safety Inspectors are assessing homes near the affected areas, and the Bureau of Engineering team has assessed the need for restoration of slope stability and has already begun to reconstruct the affected hillsides.

Department of Transportation Traffic Officers have been deployed to support multiple closures and direct drivers away from impacted areas. As recovery work continues, drivers are advised to avoid canyon roads which may be subject to sudden and intermittent closures as city crews work on assessment and repairs.

Heavy winds and rain caused multiple power outages across Los Angeles. Thanks to the work of LADWP crews, more than 100,000 households have had their power restored since the start of the storm. Angelenos can report outages at LADWP.com/Outages.

Stormwater Capture:
In collaboration with LA County Flood Control and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, preliminary estimates show that more than 7 billion gallons of stormwater have been captured in Los Angeles alone since the beginning of Sunday’s storm event.

Shelter Reponse During The Storm:
With the alert of severe weather in the forecast for our region, Los Angeles established a coordinated approach in partnership with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to outreach and connect with unhoused Angelenos across the City. Targeted outreach was done in the waterways and high flooding areas, including in the L.A. River and Sepulveda Basin. We secured hundreds of hotel vouchers and opened additional recreation and park shelters to keep unhoused Angelenos safe and dry with access to supportive services.

The work doesn’t stop there, we are shifting the way we recover by including a plan after the storm with the goal of connecting unhoused Angelenos in a shelter with ongoing services and interim housing options.

Frequently Asked Questions After The Storm:

If I have mud in my yard what do I do?

Angelenos can report damage to 311. The Department of Building and Safety has been activated to go out and assess reports of damage.

If my house has damages, where can I receive assistance?

Angelenos are recommended to contact their insurance company and document their damage. Document every loss and expense. Take photos, keep receipts and contact your Insurance Agent. A recovery plan can take these things into account and help you make the most of your time and money. To file a claim click here. Local Assistance Centers are able to provide California state or federal government disaster assistance.

How do I find out which roads are closed?

The city has established an Interactive Evacuation and Road Closure Map.

What if my backyard is stable, but I'm worried it's about to collapse? Where can I find help?

We recommend Angelenos to seek advice from a geotechnical expert. A professional can advise on the best ways to prevent or reduce landslide risk without creating further hazards.

My house was yellow or red tagged, what do I do? Where do I get updates from?

If evacuated, return home only when it has been indicated and safe to do so. The Department of Building and Safety will continue to communicate with impacted households until repairs have been completed. Find more information on how to determine when there is a threat of flash flooding and debris flows here.

What if there is a broken pipe in my apartment or home?

Floodwaters damage materials, leaving mud, silt and contaminants that can promote the growth of mold. You need to safely and thoroughly dry your home to reduce these hazards and the damage they cause. LADWP recommends having an emergency supply of water in case the pipe infrastructure in your area receives damage during an emergency disaster. Find emergency resources from LADWP here.

How can I prepare for future flooding?

During the storm season, local Fire Stations offer free sand and sandbags. Find your local station here.

While we won’t see the chance of rain until next week, now is a good time to prepare for any emergency or weather related disaster.

Visit Ready.LACity.gov to learn how you can plan for any emergency and create an emergency kit for any disaster.

The city will continue to assess damage and respond quickly and safely to ensure we recover and prepare for future severe weather conditions.

Karen Bass
Mayor

Early Metro Draft Map: Circles denote spots on Santa Monica Mountain Roads where tolls would be collected from drivers traveling both North and South on cross mountain roads.

METRO PROPOSES TRAFFIC CONGESTION PRICING
ON SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS ROADS

Background: Metro has been investigating the use of tolls on local roads to reduce traffic, raise revenue, and reinvest those funds into non-roadway transportation projects (such as rail and buses).

Metro has narrowed the areas they are investigating for further study to three areas: traffic in and out of downtown, traffic on I-10 west of downtown to Santa Monica, and traffic north-south over the Santa Monica Mountains from I-405 to I-5 including tolls on Sepulveda Blvd, Roscomare Rd, Beverly Glen Blvd,
Benedict Canyon Dr, Coldwater Canyon Ave, Lookout Mountain Ave, and Laurel Canyon Blvd.

Such tolls would affect hillside residents running local errands in addition to cross-mountain commuters. The Brentwood Community Council has prepared a letter opposing congestion pricing until after the Sepulveda Transit Corridor and Metro D/Wilshire Line have been completed and their effect on traffic assessed.

The Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council agreed to OPPOSE the Metro proposal to impose tolls on local roadways in the Santa Monica Mountains Zone and to write to the Mayor and Councilmembers expressing its OPPOSITION.

NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL EXPRESSES CONCERN FOR WEAKENING CITY STANDARDS FOR CONSTRUCTION NOISE AND VIBRATION

On January 9, 2024 the BABCNC Planning and Land Use Committee sent a letter to Mindy Nguyen of the Department of City Planning City of Los Angeles, signed by Travis Longcore, Ph.D., President. The letter was endorsed by the full Board at its subsequent meeting. Following are excerpts from that letter:

"We are concerned that the CEQA thresholds update proposal is to weaken the protections from excessive noise for all areas of the city, including the much less developed hillside areas, on the argument that Los Angeles is an "urban environment" and that residents are "used to temporary construction noise.”

"This approach is disrespectful to the residents of Los Angeles and is not based in the intent of CEQA which is “Take all action necessary to provide … freedom from excessive noise”

"There is no provision in CEQA that allows a Lead Agency to simply assert people are used to excessive noise so it is now acceptable, which is what the updates, in effect, do."

"We are gravely concerned about the process by which the update has been proposed, its questionable technical merit, its discriminatory approach to people who do shift work, and the resulting implications for the hillside areas that we represent that are substantially quieter than much of the rest of the City."

"Process Is Rushed and Excludes Meaningful Public Input. The email announcing that City Planning intended to update these very important thresholds was sent on December 8, 2023 with a deadline for comments of December 20, 2023."

Map of highly variable noise levels in Los Angeles area as mapped by the National Park Service in a nationwide assessment, provided to City Planning by the Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council.

"This is shocking enough, but even more concerning is that this was not an announcement of starting the process, but rather the end of what had to be an extensive process already undertaken outside the public eye with a hand-selected group of consultants picked by City Planning, with no notice to the community that the effort was even ongoing." (emphasis added)

"A review of the Technical Advisory Panel for the proposed updates reveals a list of consulting firms that make their living by doing analysis for developers seeking to have permits granted for construction projects. They have, by definition, a significant and unavoidable conflict of interest in the development of the updates because regardless of whether they have any current client seeking permits, any future clients would benefit from the updated guidelines that they recommended to the City."

"The entire proposal must be withdrawn, and the process started again with a citizen advisory panel and a technical advisory panel that is free from financial conflicts of interest."

There followed 5 pages of technical notes and visuals to assist the City in the development of standards.

THE FAMILIAN CAMPUS OF THE AMERICAN JEWISH UNIVERSITY SOLD
TO THE MILKEN COMMUNITY SCHOOL

On December 27^th, 2023, Jeffrey Herbst, President of the American Jewish University, announced that the Board of Directors of the American Jewish University approved the sale of the Familian Campus to the Milken Community School. AJU chose Milken over Chabad of California, the other interested party.

AJU President Herbst wrote in the Jewish Journal that AJU decided to sell its Bel Air Campus, which first opened in 1977 to “unlock the value of the asset so that we could continue with our mission and make meaningful changes to our programs”.

Richard Sandler, Milken’s Chairman, and Dr. Sarah Shulkind, Milken’s head of school, wrote in an email to the Milken community “with the property being in such close proximity to our main campus and the site’s history as an important Jewish communal resource, we plan to use the site for the benefit of Milken students, particularly through athletics, wellness, performing arts, Jewish programming, and several other important initiatives”.

The arrangement allows the American Jewish University to remain on the 22 acre Familian campus for at least 3 years and to continue to operate the community mikvah (a ritual bath) for at least that long.

The move of the Ziegler School to 350 South Beverly Boulevard, Beverly Hills, will continue as planned.

Robin Greenberg

                 Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council meetings
                               are available to the public via Zoom

              FEBRUARY AND MARCH MEETINGS BY ZOOM –
         YOUR CHANCE TO PARTICIPATE FROM ANYWHERE

The next meeting of the Neighborhood Council will be on Wednesday February 28, at 7PM exclusively on Zoom, as now permitted by State and City law.

This is your invitation to join us!

Our meetings include reports to the Council by Los Angeles City representatives, providing timely vital information on our community.

Are there questions or concerns that you have for your Neighborhood Council? We set aside time at each meeting for you to speak directly to the council.

The council addresses important issues at each meeting. Our discussions are robust, sometimes long and detailed and reflect the many different points of view of representatives of many different neighborhoods, all working for the betterment of the City.

You can watch and participate from wherever you are. We will send you a link to join our meetings, all of which are open to the public. CLICK HERE

NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL ADVISES LOS ANGELES CITY COUNCILMEMBERS OF HILLSIDE CONSTRUCTION LOOPHOLES AND OVERSIGHTS

On January 22, 2024 the Neighborhood Council
sent the following letter:

Honorable Councilmembers Raman and Yaroslavsky:

Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council represents hillside residential areas with narrow streets and limited points of entry and exit. For residents’ safety, emergency vehicles need to be able to pass through our streets freely and quickly.

When an emergency medical situation arises, residents need to be able to get help without delay. Furthermore, our entire area is in a designated very high fire hazard severity zone, and many of our neighborhoods are already quite distant from the fire station that serves them. Protecting the ability of first responders to enter and for residents to evacuate quickly should a catastrophic fire or other disaster occur is also critical to public safety.

For nearly a decade, our neighborhoods and our stakeholders — your constituents — have also experienced the adverse impacts of a high density of construction, resulting in hazardous conditions threatening our safety and creating potential liability for the City. That these impacts were occurring was the impetus behind the introduction of the Hillside Construction Regulation, which was passed and applied to Bel Air in 2017, Laurel Canyon and North of Sunset in 2018, and Coldwater Canyon in 2023.

Despite these measures, dangerous conditions remain. Construction creates frequent road blockages which often last for extended periods, often 30-45 minutes or more, and which constitute a serious safety hazard. Emergency vehicles and residents can’t enter or exit their neighborhoods.

Many of the residents of our area are elderly, and this presents an especially dangerous and frightening situation for them. This is not a theoretical problem; we know of real cases 2 where construction blockages significantly delayed emergency trips to the hospital. We also know of people who have had to leave longtime homes due to these construction impacts.

We are conscious of property rights and understand that homes may need to be updated but putting residents’ lives at risk is an unacceptable cost. The fact that this decade-long hazard continues is a travesty. Your constituents deserve better.

We note that the following situations are especially hazardous:

Areas with multiple haul routes operating at the same time or with a single haul route operating with very heavy traffic
Failure of sites utilizing the same ingress and egress points to coordinate their hauling and large deliveries, including cement trucks
Failure of sites to provide appropriate traffic control when hauling or receiving deliveries
Failure of sites to verify passability of streets prior to attempting deliveries of oversized construction equipment
Worker parking, material storage and construction bins and trailers narrowing roads to a single lane of traffic
Sites utilizing cul-de-sacs for parking and storage of materials

These may be addressed in many ways, including but not limited to:

Limiting the density of construction projects using a single ingress and egress point
Instituting stricter regulations regarding traffic control and provide enforcement for those regulations
Modifying the haul route process to limit the number of truck trips using a single ingress and egress point Additional elements of haul route reform may include further limiting of allowable grading, use of deputy inspectors assigned by LADBS rather than chosen by developers, banning transfer of approved haul routes with transfer of property ownership, requiring assignment of approved routes to by-right hauling and large material/equipment deliveries, extension of hillside haul route rules to large material/equipment deliveries, and use of revenue from bonds collected for street repair for repair of specific streets damaged by construction traffic, particularly hauling.
Verifying actual width of continuously paved roadway before issuance of permits
Modifying the penalty structure for violations of the HCR to ensure compliance and deter future infractions
Requiring worker shuttling for new construction and major remodels in HCR areas

Following the adoption of the Hillside Construction Regulation, the former Councilmembers from Council Districts 4 and 5 each assured BABCNC leaders that the ordinance would be modified imminently to address additional hillside concerns arising out of the continuing construction.

We are grateful that a number of requested modifications are in the pending Wildlife Ordinance. Other issues remain, specifically relating to plan check, grading and site management. Our primary concern at this time is public safety, and addressing this is our urgent request. We implore you to proceed with modifications that protect residents’ welfare.

This letter was prepared by the BABCNC Planning and Land Use Committee and approved by a vote of 17 yeses, 3 noes, and 3 abstentions of the BABCNC Board at a publicly noticed board meeting on November 15, 2023. We look forward to working with you and your staff to bring effective solutions to Council in an expedient manner.

Sincerely,
Travis Longcore, Ph.D., President
Ellen Evans, Vice President, Legislative Affairs

PLANNING AND LAND USE COMMITTEE MOTIONS
APPROVED BY NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL

8429 W CRESTHILL ROAD 90069
Project Description: To allow 6 additional retaining walls in lieu of the 2 maximum allowed. 48 inches max height, solely to enable planting of native trees & shrubs to control erosion.
Council Action: To support the project with the caveat that there be a covenant that runs with the land that designates that these walls are only to support trees and landscaping and not to set a precedent for retaining walls.

1255 N CLARK ST 90069
Project Description: Remodel of an existing two-story sfd for a 316 sq ft addition and new roof deck in the R1-1-HCR zone.
Council Action: To support the project with the caveat that the roof deck be required to prominently display a large no smoking sign, and that only shielded, low intensity lighting be used on the roof deck.

9171 W THRASHER AVE 90069
Project Description: Construction of a 6-ft tall fence and gate along the front property line for approximately 131 feet long. Lot Area:
Council Action: To recommend that the Zoning Administrator not grant the request for an over-height wall/fence because of its location within the street dedication area and because it was not considered as part of the original permit application and should have been because it would have triggered review of the project design so that the street dedication area could have been protected

BUDGET ADVOCATES REPORT

The Budget Advocates are an elected, all volunteer, independent
advisory body, charged with making constructive
recommendations on the City budget to the Mayor and the City Council

January 2024 Los Angeles City Budget Update

The City has six capital projects that will require funding of over $20 billion over the next decades:

The City is pursuing a plan to restore an eleven-mile section of the Los Angeles River that stretches from Griffith Park to Downtown Los Angeles. This involves the creation of wetlands and the development of the 42-acre Taylor Yard into a park. The estimated cost is $1.5 billion, most of which will be funded by the City. It does not include the other 21 miles of the River that are in the City and the 19 miles that are south of the City.

The City is also looking at expanding and modernizing the Convention Center, most likely in a partnership with the Anschutz Entertainment Group, the operator of the Convention Center and the owner of LA Live. The projected cost is in the range of $1.5 billion. This does not include the cost of an 850-room four-star convention hotel that would provide additional meeting space.

The City is also considering the development of a Civic Center consisting of 1.5 million square feet of office space that will allow the City to consolidate its many departments into a centralized location and 3.5 million square feet of residential space. This development would involve numerous phases over the next decade. The cost is estimated to be in the range of $2-3 billion, some of which may be funded by private sector developers.

The City’s Official Statement also discloses that $2 billion is needed to upgrade the City’s parks and recreational facilities. Likewise, $5 billion is needed to upgrade our streets and sidewalks.

The City is also on the hook for $8 billion through 2037 to comply with the Clean Water Act, a portion of which may be funded through Measure W which is a parcel tax approved by 69% of the voters in November of 2018. Funding for these projects has not been identified.

On December 11, 2023, City Controller Kenneth Mejia released an audit of the LAPD airborne operation also known as the Air Support Division or helicopter program. The audit focuses on the LAPD’s use of helicopters from fiscal years 2018-2022 and explores whether the LAPD is justified in the spending for the program’s current size and scope that includes 17 helicopters and more than 90 employees. The average annual expense of $46.6 million exceeds the budget of 14 City departments. The audit has been assigned Council File 23-1422.

Budget Advocates Activity: To date the Budget Advocates have met with the leadership of over a dozen City departments to learn about their Fiscal Year 2024-2025 budget requests and to discuss the delivery of City services. By the end of this month, we will have met with most of the City departments and will be preparing our reports and recommendations that will be included in our annual White Paper to be submitted to the Mayor and City Council for their consideration. All Neighborhood Council boards and Budget Representatives will also receive a copy.

BABCNC ASKS CITY TO INTEGRATE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL
EMAIL SYSTEM WITH CITY OF LOS ANGELES

In order to save more than $3,000.00 annually, the Bel Air Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council voted to write a letter to the appropriate City of Los Angeles Departments, (e.g., the Mayor’s office, DONE and City Council) requesting integration of our Neighborhood Council email system into the City of Los Angeles IT Department.

                                 Native California Monkeyflowers

                                              GO NATIVE!!!

There are so many good reasons to plant California natives in your garden. Native gardens are healthier for you and your family and are more sustainable. In addition to restoring the natural ecosystem, they can reduce your water bill, reduce your exposure to pesticides and other chemicals, and can keep your yard cooler than other low water use alternatives.

Planting more natives increases species abundance and diversity, and helps local wildlife populations regenerate.

A native plant garden can fit every type of style and budget. Whether you have an acre of land or just a small corner to plant, you can help restore nature in your garden and can slow the loss of biodiversity by planting natives.

What are the benefits of planting natives?

Restoring Biodiversity

California is blessed with almost 7,000 native plants – many are unique to our state. The City of Los Angeles is fortunate to be located within a globally
recognized “biodiversity hotspot”. Biodiversity hotspots are home to the highest diversity of endemic plants and animals that are found nowhere else in the world.

While Los Angeles is a biodiversity jewel, this designation also means that the biodiversity here is threatened. Unfortunately, the last few decades have seen rampant development and a startling loss of biodiversity; many species are on the brink of extinction.

As development replaces natural habitats, planting gardens, parks and roadsides with California native plants can help provide an important “bridge” to nearby remaining wildlands (thereby preserving our native plants and wildlife).

Metiilja Poppy Ceanothus

Reducing Water Usage

Once established, many California native plants need minimal irrigation beyond normal rainfall. Many of our native plants can withstand dry periods and do not deplete our limited water reserves.

Switching to a native garden can offer color, drama, and even lawn options while still offering the advantage of a garden with low water needs.

There are several native grass alternatives as well as grass-like plants which can be used to replace turf; they require less water and fewer resources to maintain them.

Unfortunately, some homeowners mistakenly believe that replacing a lawn and lush plantings with gravel and a succulent/cactus garden is the best way to save water. This alternative may reduce a homeowner’s water bill, but laying gravel instead of growing something green, adds to the heat gain of the City, and it doesn’t support wildlife or biodiversity.

Reducing Maintenance
While no landscape is maintenance free, California native plants require significantly less time and resources than common non-native garden plants. California native plants do best with some attention and care in a garden setting, but you can look forward to using less water, little to no fertilizer, little to no pesticides, less pruning, no mowing, and less time.

Ribes viburnifolium Salvia clevellandii

Removing the use of pesticides and fertilizers
Native plants have developed their own defenses against many pests and diseases. Since most pesticides kill indiscriminately, beneficial insects become secondary targets in the fight against pests.

Reducing or eliminating pesticide use lets natural pest control take over and keeps garden toxins out of our creeks and watersheds. While native gardens require natural mulch, they do not require fertilizers, which saves homeowners time and money.

Attracting and supporting wildlife
A native garden is wildlife friendly. Native plants provide food and habitat for wildlife; they attract insects, bees and butterflies which are critical for pollination, and which provide important food sources for our bird population.

California’s wealth of insect pollinators can improve fruit set in your garden, while a variety of native insects and birds will help keep your landscape free of mosquitoes and plant-eating bugs.

Providing Wildfire Resilience
Planting natives can help maintain a wildfire resilient landscape. For example, the massive canopy of a coast live oak can act as a shield for your home, extinguishing embers that travel miles ahead of a fire. Likewise, an evergreen ground cover such as coyote brush can help diffuse embers rolling towards your home.

Toyon Juncus paten

What do I need to know before planting natives in my garden?
Now is the perfect time to plan and plant the native garden you’ve been dreaming of. Late fall, winter, and early spring in Southern California are the best times to plant natives.

If you are looking for a source of information, Calscape is a database that gives you access to 150 years of knowledge about California native plants local to your area and can show you which plants are truly native to any specific location in the state. At Calscape.org you will find helpful information regarding all your native plant questions - plant selection, irrigation, mulching, weed control and pest control practices.

A Final Note: California Native plants vs “California Friendly” plants
As a final note, do not be fooled by landscapers or nurseries who try and offer “California Friendly” plants in exchange for “California Natives”. They push these alternatives because they have used them for years and they are comfortable using them. If you have made the commitment to improve biodiversity and to restore our natural environment you will be able to find nurseries that carry California Natives.

Footnote: The sources for this article were The National Wildlife Federation, The Theodore Payne Foundation, theodorepayne.org/landscaping-for-wildfire-resilience, and Calscape.org

Mindy Rothstein Mann

SCRAPBOOK:
The history of the Bel Air-Beverly Crest
Neighborhood Council Communities
and the Communities around us

In 1897 people could bicycle from Hollywood to
the San Fernando Valley along the Cahuenga Pass.

Today, this is where the 101 freeway brings thousands of cars along the same route.

On the south end of the Cahuenga Pass, Harvey Wilcox was the original real estate developer of a very high moral city filled with churches. His wife Daeida named it Hollywood. It was a dry city, where drinking alcohol was not permitted.

Wilcox kept looking for some kind of industry to supply employment for the people to whom he sold residential lots.

On the north end of the Cahuenga Pass, the San Fernando Valley was also dry but for another reason - it had no water. Most farming was dry farming and the major crop was wheat.

During the next 14 years, Cecil B DeMille chose Hollywood to make a movie called the Squaw Man and Harvey Wilcox encouraged movie companies to build movie studios in his community.

And during the same 14 years William Mulholland figured out how to bring water from the snow melt in the high Sierra to dry Los Angeles.

It was14 years when everything changed.

Andre Stojka

A NEW FRIEND MAY BE WAITING FOR YOU
There are so many wonderful animals waiting for new homes.
The Los Angeles Animal Shelters are inundated..
If you can adopt or foster an animal, please visit one of the six L.A. shelters.

https://www.laanimalservices.com/search/cats?field_species%5B28%5D=2

The City's shelters are suffering from extreme overcrowding and hundreds of beautiful animals desperately need new homes -- dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, turtles, chickens, and more.

If you can’t adopt, consider volunteering, fostering an animal for a period of time, or providing items from the shelter’s Wish Lists. Every bit helps!

Visit the Shelter
Closed Mondays
Tuesdays through Friday 8 a.m.—5 p.m.
Saturdays and Sundays 11 a.m.—5 p.m.

West Los Angeles Animal Shelter
11361 W Pico Blvd (just west of the 405)
Los Angeles, CA 90064
Phone (310) 207-3156
https://www.laanimalservices.com/shelters/west-los-angeles/

Volunteer: https://www.laanimalservices.com/volunteer/
Foster: https://www.laanimalservices.com/volunteer/foster-program/

Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council
bringing together volunteer representatives
and these communities
for a better Los Angeles

Bel-Air Association: Mark Goodman, M.D., Gail Stroloff,
Jaye Rogovin, Leslie Weisberg
Bel Air Crest Master Association: Irene Sandler
Bel Air Hills Association: Andrew Paden, Patricia Templeton
Bel Air Glen District: Timothy Steele, Ph.D
Bel Air Ridge HOA: André Stojka
Benedict Canyon Association: David Scott Kadin, Donald Loze, Nickie Miner, Robert Schlesinger
Casiano Estates Association: Sandy Ryan
Franklin-Coldwater District: Steven Weinberg
Holmby Hills HOA: Jason Spradlin
Doheny-Sunset Plaza Neighborhood Association: Mirco Gros
Laurel Canyon Association: Jamie Hall, Robert (Bobby) Kwan,
Stephanie Savage, Cathy Wayne
North of Sunset District: Aaron Kamin, Vadim Levotman,
Angela Roessel
Residents of Beverly Glen: Dan Palmer, Robert Ringler
At-Large Traditional Stakeholder: Shawn Bayliss,
Mindy Rothstein Mann
At-Large Youth Representative: Alonzo Wickers
Commercial or Office Enterprise Districts: Maureen Smith
Community Interest At-Large: Ellen Evans
Custodians of Open Space: Travis Longcore, Ph.D.
Faith-Based Institutions: Robin Greenberg
Private 7-12 Schools: Jon Wimbish
Private K-6 Schools: Elisabeth Barcohana
Public Educational Institutions: Kristie Holmes

THE LOS ANGELES NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL SYSTEM

Because of the size of Los Angeles, each Los Angeles City Council member represents around 250,000 people. To keep City officials in closer touch with the neighborhoods of the City, in 1999 Los Angeles adopted a Neighborhood Council system to advise the City Council members of local issues.

There are 99 separate Neighborhood Councils in the City of Los Angeles. Members of the Neighborhood Council are considered City employees without compensation of any kind. They are formally elected by the public or communities and must live, work or own property in the area they represent.

The Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council represents approximately 28,000 people in a beautiful mountain and canyon area of the Santa Monica Mountains within City of Los Angeles bounded on the West by Sepulveda Boulevard, on the North by Mulholland Drive, on the South by Sunset Boulevard and on the East by Laurel Canyon. All Board and Committee meetings are open to the public.

Hannah Carter Japanese Garden
part of our Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council community

The Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council REPORT TO OUR COMMUNITY is published by the Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council Outreach Committee:
Robin Greenberg, Mirco Gros, Mindy Rothstein Mann,
Nickie Miner,Robert Schlesinger, Maureen Smith,
Patricia Templeton, Alonzo Wickers
Andre Stojka: Newsletter Editor and Outreach Chair
BABCNC President: Travis Longcore, Ph.D.
Newsletter (c) 2023 Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council
Photo Credits: Robin Greenberg, UCLA, Shutterstock, Wikipedia

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Please contact us at: [email protected]

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