Ferris Wheel Effects on Parking, Traffic and Views

The Venice Stakeholders Association has called for the City of Los Angeles to perform a full Environmental Impact Report on the proposal to place a 200 foot Ferris wheel in the Venice Beach Recreation Area at the foot of Windward Avenue.

“The parking, traffic and scenic impacts of the Ferris Wheel installation are highly problematic for our neighborhood,” said Mark Ryavec, VSA president. “Oddly, the firm proposing the Wheel has offered no mitigation.”

In a letter to City Recreation and Parks officials, the VSA’s attorney, John Henning, notes that the Wheel could draw up to 16,320 visitors per day, based upon the capacity of the Wheel given at a recent public hearing by a representative of Great City Attractions, the firm proposing the installation.

“The Ferris wheel would operate 12 hours per day, 7 days per week, from 10 AM to 10 PM,” Henning wrote. “It contains approximately 40 “capsules” in which riders would sit, and there are 8 seats per capsule, for a total of approximately 320 riders when fully loaded. Each cycle (i.e., “ride”) of the Ferris wheel lasts about 14 minutes, so there would be approximately 51 cycles per day, for a total of 16,320 individual riders per day.”

Henning also points out that unlike a restaurant, which turns over its seating every 60 to 90 minutes, the Wheel will turn over its seats every 14 minutes, so the Wheel will generate four to six times has many visitors clamoring for a ride….and seeking non-existent parking.

A restaurant of that size would be required to provide 80 parking spaces under the Venice Local Coastal Specific Plan, the City land-use ordinance that governs development in Venice. Great City Attractions has offered no parking or traffic mitigation.

“We’re asking the City to apply to itself the same land-use rules that it would apply to any other new development of this size in our neighborhood,” Ryavec said.

Attachment: Letter to LA City Recreation and Parks Department

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

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.

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.

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

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

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