Sunday, January 20, 2013

VSA Calls for Unpermitted Railroad Container to be Removed from Beach




The Venice Stakeholders Association has filed a letter with City and Coastal Commission officials asking that the City adhere to State laws, which require a Coastal Development Permit and environmental review for any development in the coastal zone, especially a sizable structure which blocks public views of the beach and ocean such as the railroad transport container recently installed at Windward Plaza.

The letter, directed to City Recreation and Parks Commission president Barry A. Sanders and general manager Jon Kirk Mukri, notes that the container “constitutes ‘development’ within the Coastal Zone and thus requires the issuance of a Coastal Development Permit by both the City and the California Coastal Commission. In addition, the installation requires the preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).”

“The City must abide by the same rules that apply to private property owners,” said Mark Ryavec, VSA president.  “No Boardwalk property owner could plop down a huge storage container on a parking lot and then start using it to store the possessions of up to 80 people on a daily basis without the proper permits. 

“That it is an industrial use in a park environment makes it all the more objectionable.”

The letter demands that the container be removed immediately, because it is an unpermitted use, and indicates the Stakeholders will consider applying for an injunction if it is not removed.

Monday, January 14, 2013

Stop the Boardwalk storage program

Alert

Dear VSA Supporters,
 
Please send an email to Councilman Bill Rosendahl and the Venice Neighborhood Council regarding the Homeless Beach Locker Enablement Program as soon as possible.
 
The intention of homeless advocates - Linda Lucks, Steve Clare, David Ewing, etc. - is to assist the hundreds of transients living along the Boardwalk, in the park and on the walk streets to continue to occupy these public spaces. These advocates estimate that 80 campers can store their stuff in this container on any given day.  
 
Such facilities are counter productive unless they are provided in the context of transitional housing and services such as job training, drug rehab and mental health counseling. 
 
Other cities with successful homeless serving programs, such as Santa Monica, avoid such stand-alone "locker" and storage facilities because they have proved to just make it easier for the campers to stay on the street and in the parks and do not draw them into counseling and housing.
 
Lucks, et al, hope to put the program into place without public comment or support!!!
 
Send your comments to <Billrosendahl@aol.com>,  <cecilia.castillo@lacity.org>, <Board@VeniceNC.org> to stop the Boardwalk storage program.
 
PLEASE WRITE NOW!!  The Venice Neighborhood Council will hear this matter on January 22nd.
 
Just send a simple message:  No Storage lockers on the beachfront please...
 
Please also attend the VNC Board meeting Tuesday evening at 7 PM at Westminster School to oppose the storage locker program.
 
Thanks for helping us make Venice a safer and cleaner place to live.
 
Mark Ryavec
President