Monday, March 5, 2012

Great Observation Wheel




City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks

Re: Great Observation Wheel

Dear Sirs and Madams:

Your department has solicited community views on a proposal to allow the installation,
for a temporary period, of a 200 foot Ferris wheel, known as the Great Observation
Wheel, at the foot of Windward Avenue in the Venice Beach Recreation Area.

The Venice Stakeholders Association is a non-profit organization committed to civic
improvement. While many would be delighted to ride a Ferris wheel at the proposed
location and to enjoy the stunning views which it will make available, we have serious
concerns about the project, principally related to the parking demand and increased traffic
that will result from this installation.

We would ask that this project be viewed as an opportunity for the City of Los Angeles to
seriously reconsider its policy regarding any and all events and installations in the Venice
Beach Recreation Area. For example, the filming of the Ninja Warrior Challenge this
last week took over much of the park from south of Windward Avenue almost to Market
Street. Our members report that public parking on Windward on Saturday and Sunday,
while filming was underway, was completely taken up by 7:30 AM by visitor vehicles in
the 200 block of Windward. This resulted in residents who do not have on-site parking
being held hostage in their homes or running the risk of having to park many blocks away
from their homes if they gave up their street parking spaces on Windward during the day.

The Wheel proposal is a good reason for the City of Los Angeles to apply to the
Coastal Commission for preferential 24/7 permit parking for beach adjacent residents
and to craft an ordinance to require that all events and installations in the Venice Beach
Recreation Area pay in-lieu parking fees to a dedicated Venice parking fund, which is
immune to being “swept” by the City Council for non-parking purposes or use outside of
Venice, to the end of creating parking structures of modest height in Venice.

Thank you for your consideration of our views.

Sincerely,

Mark Ryavec

Mark Ryavec, President

cc: Mayor Antonia Villaraigosa, Councilman Bill Rosendahl

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Petition to stop closure of Venice Post Office




The Venice Stakeholders Asssociation, Mark Ryavec and others have filed a petition today in the D.C. Circuit to stop the closure of the Venice Main Post Office.




Thursday, January 19, 2012

VNC to Oppose Enforcement of Ban on Camping on OFW




Please Attend this Meeting and Voice Your Support for the Beach Curfew to End the Cesspool of Drugs, Alcohol, Public Inebriation, Intimidation and Late Night Noise along Ocean Front Walk


(Venice, CA/01-19-12)  The leadership of the Venice Neighborhood Council has convened a meeting to allow its allies to voice their opposition to enforcement of the existing City Beach Curfew.  This comes upon the heels of the City’s posting of signs that spell out the 12-5AM curfew and the determination of the City Attorney and LAPD to enforce it.

The Venice Neighborhood Council's Neighborhood Committee will hear from City representatives and residents about the newly posted rules that close Ocean Front Walk and the beach and grassy areas from 12 to 5AM. The meeting will be held Monday, January 23rd, at approximately 8:00PM, in the Oakwood Park Recreation Center, 767 California (enter from 7th Avenue).

The Neighborhood Committee is not elected from the various neighborhoods that comprise Venice, but are appointed by VNC president Linda Lucks.  As such, they represent Ms. Lucks views on Venice, not the broad majority of residents who have filed numerous complaints about the intolerable situation we all see on the Boardwalk.  The current population living on the Boardwalk and the park areas deprive the residents and visitors of their right to safely enjoy this public space.  The City is long overdue in taking the steps seen in nearby cities such as Santa Monica to stop camping in public parks.

Much of the crime in Venice, from car break-ins and home invasions to burglaries and vandalism, has its start in the lawless attitudes of those who live on Ocean Front Walk and the population of criminals and drug users/dealers that they attract to Venice.  Tell the VNC that you want it to stop.

Those residents who want to see the police follow-through on enforcement of the curfew should come to the meeting and speak up for enforcement.  We will need a good turn out to show the LAPD and Council Office that the majority of Venetians favor enforcement.

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Donation Thanks

Friends of the Venice Post Office,

I wanted to write to everyone to let them know that our neighbors
Michael King and Diana Pollard, of the Studio of Architecture, havegraciously donated $500 towards the $2,500 legal bill the VSA incurredin filing the initial appeal of the USPS' decision to close the PostOffice.

Michael and Diana have been long-time residents on Horizon and havegenerously donated their time and professional skills on innumerable community projects over the years.

Michael has also been especially helpful in advising the VSA and theVenice Post Office Task Force on the architectural and land-use/planning issues raised by the USPS' proposals for both the Post Office and the Annex.

Many thanks Michael and Diana!

Mark Ryavec

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Enforce Ban on Camping at Venice Beach


PLEASE HELP MAKE VENICE A SAFER COMMUNITY BY SENDING THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE TO MAYOR VILLARAIGOSA, CITY ATTORNEY TRUTANICH, COUNCILMAN ROSENDAHL AND POLICE CHIEF BECK

The disorder and criminality and especially drug use and sales on OFW reverberate throughout our community, driving much of the crime we see in our neighborhoods.  And the City's tolerance of the campers on the Boardwalk and in the park area has created a magnet that brings others to Venice to engage in illicit activity.
The Message:

 


Subject:  Enforce the Ban on Camping at Venice Beach

Please enforce the ban on camping in the Venice Beach Recreation Area (LAMC 63.44 (D) (4)).

The park and its Ocean Front Walk have become a cesspool of drug use and sales, public drunkenness, public defecation and urination, assaults, intimidation, late night noise, off-leash dogs, and a breeding ground for criminal activity that is directed at residents, businesses and private property, including automobiles which are routinely broken into in Venice.

Residents and visitors now feel they must avoid the Boardwalk due to the dangerous conditions that exist there.  Many in the travel press now advise visitors to skip Venice Beach due to these conditions.

The campers who truly want a bed for the night can obtain a bed at one of the several shelters which have been opened early for this purpose.

Please act to restore Ocean Front Walk to its former glory as a safe, cool and friendly place for LA residents and visitors alike.

Sincerely,

tent still up at 10 am
debris piling up around public restrooms
a magnet for drinking and drugs
Click on the links below to edit and send this message to:

Mayor mayor@lacity.org
Deputy Mayor Larry.Frank@lacity.org
West LA Director for the Mayor joseph.hari@lacity.org
Public Safety Policy Director steve.olivas@lacity.org
City Attorney ctrutanich@lacity.org
Atty.Schedule@lacity.org
CD11 Councilmember Billrosendahl@aol.com
Assistant to CD11 Councilmember margaret.hash@lacity.org
Police Chief Charlie.Beck@lapd.lacity.org
Police Captain jon.peters@lapd.lacity.org

Monday, November 21, 2011

Janice Hahn supports VSA appeal of Venice PO closure



Re: Support for Appeal of USPS Decision to Close the Venice, CA, Main Post Office

Dear Mr. Callender,

I am Writing to support the Venice Stakeholders Association and other Venice residents in their appeals of the USPS' decision to close the Venice Main Post Office (VMPO) at 1601 Main Street in Venice, Califomia. The USPS' decision represents a 60% closure and a sale of this historic facility, and thus is an appealable action.

My constituents have informed me that the current level of USPS customer service at the VMPO does not now and has not historically met the USPS' standard of providing window services to the public within five minutes. Apparently, at this location, waits of 20 and 30 minutes are not uncommon for window service.

However, despite failure to provide services in a reasonable period, l have been informed in
meeting with Diana Alvarado of USPS' Pacific Facilities Services Office that it has decided to close three customer service windows and relocate the remaining two windows to the Venice Carrier Annex at considerable expense. This is unacceptable.

The Venice community has long been under­-served by the USPS at the VMPO, even though the physical facilities allow more personnel to be present to reduce the wait time and provide quicker customer service. Given that customers already wait an astonishing amount of time, I am concerned that loss of the three windows will lead to an even lower level of service for local residents.

I also would note that under 39 C.F.R Section 241 .4(Í) USPS has a duty to comply with local planning and zoning requirements and building codes and to provide plans and drawings of new postal installations to appropriate local government officials. I have been informed that USPS has not complied with this statute. It appears to me that the Postal Service should assure that local land-use laws can be met at the proposed new location for customer services before it proceeds any further with its plans to sell the existing facility, which currently has adequate space to provide the requisite level of customer service.

For these reasons I urge the Commission to remand the USPS’ decision back to USPS with
instructions to investigate, in consultation with the Venice community and officials ofthe City of Los Angeles, a means to keep this facility in use as a post office and to provide a higher level of customer service commensurate with maintaining a wait time of less than five minutes and with improving the USPS' relationship with its customers.

Sincerely yours,

Janice Hahn
Member of Congress

Attachment: Appeal of Venice Stakeholders Association

Monday, October 17, 2011

Appeal of Venice Post Office Closure


(Venice, CA/10-16-11)  The Venice Stakeholders Association filed an appeal Friday with the U.S. Postal Rate Commission seeking to overturn the U.S. Postal Service's decision to close and sell the Venice Post Office and relocate customer services to the Venice Postal Annex, a sorting and carrier storage facility.
The appeal claims that the Postal Service failed to follow its own rules for the closure and seeks to have the Commission revoke the closure.

The dramatic decrease in the extent of Post Office operations, simultaneous with its "relocation," means that the action is the functional equivalent of a closure - or at least a partial closure - and thus is subject to the right of an appeal to the Postal Rate Commission.

The Venice Post Office, a 1939 Works Project Administration structure, is of significant historical, architectural, and community value.  It also contains the historical mural "Story of Venice" by noted artist Edward Biberman.

John Henning, the Stakeholders' attorney, notes in a letter to David E. Williams, the Vice President of Postal Network Operations, that federal law requires the Postal Service to "comply with local planning and zoning requirements and building codes."

However, the USPS has already announced it will soon issue a contract for approximately $400,000 to install a customer service facility in the Annex.  This is before it has submitted any plans to the City of Los Angeles to review compliance with LA planning and zoning codes, in particular compliance with the current requirements for adequate employee, public and carrier truck parking, and parking lot setbacks, landscaping and re-striping.   City rules will also require up-dating the facility to meet the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Henning suggests that Williams, in his recent denial letter stating that no appeals are permitted to his decision, is attempting to bully Venice residents into not appealing his earlier decision, when closures of main post offices are indeed appealable to the Postal Rate Commission.

Residents fear the loss of the historic structure and mural if it is sold, on one hand, and foresee increased parking congestion and a continuation of exceptionally poor maintenance of the grounds around the Annex, on the other, if customer operations move to the Annex.

"We fully understand the severe budget constraints facing the Postal Service," said Mark Ryavec, president of the Venice Stakeholders.  "But in downsizing, the Postal Service still has to follow its own rules - and they haven't in this instance."

"Representatives of the Postal Service have told us that they do not have to comply with local land-use laws, while a clear reading of the federal law shows this is incorrect," Ryavec said.  "It also shows they have been premature in deciding to relocate customer services before they have determined, in consultation with the Los Angeles City Planning Department, if the re-configuration of the Annex building and adjoining parking lot is legally permissible; for example, can they provide the required parking."