North Hills West needs a new look! Announcing our first ever logo contest…
NHWNC is holding a contest for stakeholders in an effort to figure out our future logo.
Bill Banning Ad Trailers Goes to Governor
A bill allowing cities to ban mobile advertising trailers has passed the California Legislature and is headed to the governor's desk. Once signed, the Los Angeles City Council will be able to pass a motion regulating the signs within city limits. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has until Sept. 30 to act on the legislation or it will become law without his signature. "These mobile eyesores have been a threat to our community, blighting our neighborhoods and creating horrific safety issues. This legislation will finally give us the local control to ban them once and for all," said Mitch Englander, chief-of-staff to Councilman Greig Smith. The bill was co-sponsored by state Assemblymen Bob Blumenfield (D, San Fernando Valley) and Mike Feuer (D, Los Angeles).
New Watering Schedule Now in Effect for LADWP Customers
Changes to the City of Los Angeles' Water Conservation Ordinance went into effect today (August 25, 2010) for Los Angeles City residents and businesses, allowing LADWP customers to water with sprinklers up to three days per week. Customers whose street addresses end with an odd number – 1, 3, 5, 7 or 9 – are permitted to use their sprinkler systems on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Customers whose addresses end in even numbers – 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 are permitted to do so on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Addresses ending in fractions are treated as whole numbers and observe the same day restrictions as others on their same side of the street, (ie: 4321 ½ is regarded as 4321, an odd-numbered address.)
By entering this contest you agree to the following contest rules:
- The intention of this contest is to engage the North Hills West stakeholders, to re-brand the image of North Hills West and to establish a “new look” for the area.
- There are no limitations on who can enter this logo contest.
- There is no limitation on number of entries by each person.
- This contest is hosted by the North Hills West Neighborhood Council 2010.
- The final logo selected will become the exclusive property of NHWNC for the future.
- Only logos and/or slogans submitted online will be accepted.
- Logo must be submitted in .jpeg, .eps, or other high resolution formats, should not be larger than 300×250 in file size, and should be able to be compressed and/or enlarged. Use of white space is encouraged.
- Logo will be reproduced and used in all, but not limited to; advertising, correspondence, mailers, signage, promotional materials with no financial compensation to the designer, however a local business MAY donate a prize.
- Credits will be given to the designer on the council website and designer may include a hyperlink if applicable to their own site.
- All images posted to the NorthHillsWestNC.com website will be made public in a poll for visitors to vote on based on “liking” it.
- Images submitted may not include copyrighted material and those will be rejected.
- The final decision on the winner will be at the discretion of the Board with a recommendation provided by the Outreach Committee.
- Criteria included on all submissions will be; ease of reproduction, creativity, representation of the North Hill West NC region and how well it works with our NC partners in the areas.
- Contest is open until October 10th, 2010 – however, logo contest may be extended at any time at the discretion of the Outreach Committee.
- Logo prizes may vary and are not guaranteed by the NC Board as they are donations to the contest and at the will of the business.
Feel free to visit the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment NC Logos page to see examples of other Neighborhood Council logos.
Send your artwork submissions to logocontest@northhillswestnc.com by October 10, 2010.
Schwarzenegger Has Until September 30 to Sign
A bill allowing cities to ban mobile advertising trailers has passed the California Legislature and is headed to the governor’s desk.
Once signed, the Los Angeles City Council will be able to pass a motion regulating the signs within city limits. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has until Sept. 30 to act on the legislation or it will become law without his signature.
“These mobile eyesores have been a threat to our community, blighting our neighborhoods and creating horrific safety issues. This legislation will finally give us the local control to ban them once and for all,” said Mitch Englander, chief-of-staff to Councilman Greig Smith.
The bill was co-sponsored by state Assemblymen Bob Blumenfield (D, San Fernando Valley) and Mike Feuer (D, Los Angeles).
Bruce Boyer, owner of a mobile billboard company has parked a trailer outside Blumenfield’s Van Nuys office reading: “Free Valley Streets … Fire Fascist Bob Blumenfield.” The sign has already attracted at least one parking ticket.
“Even if the legislation is signed into law, we will file for declaratory relief in Federal Court. The legislation is such a perversion of the rights of vehicle owners that it would most likely be blocked by the courts,” Boyer said in an email. “If that failed, Blumenfield did such a sloppy job writing the legislation that we could fire cannons through the loopholes in it,” he said.
“Bottomline, the sign trailers will still be out there, and the pols will have Bruce as their straw-man. I will not yield to the fascists and surrender my rights. Oh, and I don’t scare well either!” Boyer said.
Several months ago Boyer parked a trailer beside the Devonshire Division police station. “I have a license plate. The state of California says I can operate on any street or highway in the state. I have every right that everybody else does,” Boyer told KABC-TV.
“I’m tired of seeing these unsightly billboards on unhitched trailers all over our neighborhoods. They are nothing more than road spam,” Blumenfield said. “I know many others are sick of them too. Literally thousands of people in our community have complained to me about these eyesores. It’s time to get rid of them once and for all,” he said.
“These signs are a distracting safety hazard for drivers, a source of blight in neighborhoods, and a drain on scarce parking spaces intended for business patrons. They should be outlawed, and this legislation will help communities take action against them,” said Feuer.
The bill is strongly supported by the City of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles City Attorney’s office, a Blumenfield spokesman said.
To express your opinion on this issue, you can contact the governor at http://gov.ca.gov/. Choose the Interact tab for email instructions. Or you can phone his Los Angeles office at (213) 897-0322.
Watering Days Expanded, Schedule Based on Customer Street Address
Changes to the City of Los Angeles’ Water Conservation Ordinance went into effect today (August 25, 2010) for Los Angeles City residents and businesses, allowing LADWP customers to water with sprinklers up to three days per week. Customers whose street addresses end with an odd number – 1, 3, 5, 7 or 9 – are permitted to use their sprinkler systems on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Customers whose addresses end in even numbers – 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 are permitted to do so on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Addresses ending in fractions are treated as whole numbers and observe the same day restrictions as others on their same side of the street, (ie: 4321 ½ is regarded as 4321, an odd-numbered address.)
Sprinkler time limits are based on the type of nozzle used. Spray head sprinklers and bubblers, which are non-conserving models and are common in most landscapes, are allowed up to 8 minutes per watering station per day. Rotors and multi-stream rotary heads are allowed 15 minutes per cycle and up to two cycles per day per watering station. Watering with sprinklers is restricted to hours before 9:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m., regardless of the watering day.
All other prohibited uses of water, which include prohibiting hosing down driveways and sidewalks and water runoff, requiring all leaks be fixed and only using hoses fitted with shut-off nozzles, remain in effect. Hand-watering using garden hoses fitted with shut-off nozzle devices is permissible any day of the week before 9:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m.
To read the rest of this LADWP news release, go to: http://www.ladwpnews.com/go/doc/1475/881355/
The City Council unanimously approved a motion
(.pdf) today to add five positions to the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment, which oversees the city’s 91 neighborhood councils. This is a budget-neutral move, transferring $1.3 million from the Community Development Department to ensure DONE can continue its important work as a stand-alone department.
Take action by letting our Governor know that you support AB 2756, proposed by Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield, which helps ban mobile billboards. AB 2756 has already passed the state Assembly, and is moving through the state
Senate this month. If passed, it becomes law only if signed by the Governor. Go to www.assembly.ca.gov/blumenfield — click on “Ban Mobile Billboards — Sign Here” and send a message that mobile billboards are unsafe, unsightly
and unwanted in our community.
[Assemblymember Blumenfield represents the 40th Assembly District, which includes North Hills West. He is the Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee. Blumenfield will be presenting the list of names collected on his website to the Governor before he makes his decision on the bill. ]
A physician who founded Lakeside Community HealthCare, Keith Richman represented the 38th Assembly District, covering parts of the north San Fernando Valley, Simi Valley and Santa Clarita, from 2000-06. (File photo)
Keith Richman, a former California Assemblyman who would have been mayor of the San Fernando Valley if the 2002 secession drive had prevailed, has died after fighting brain cancer for more than a year.
Richman died Friday night at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. He was 56.
“Keith Richman was a great leader and passionate public servant,” Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said. “He advocated for so many important causes in California, including health care and pension reform, and his work for our state made a lasting impact that will be remembered.”
Colleagues remembered the longtime Northridge resident’s political courage in being one of the few prominent elected officials who supported San Fernando Valley cityhood before the movement became popular.
“There are few people that have done so much for the San Fernando Valley,” said Richard Close, who was chairman of the secession effort.
“Keith was a warrior, and we needed warriors,” said attorney David Fleming, a major backer of secession.
Read the rest of this article on the Daily News website.
NEW AND IMPROVED!
We’re excited to share the new and improved North Hills West website. While it’s still being built, some things may look different — chances are it is in the process of being added soon. Feel free to shoot an email over to the webmaster with any suggestions. You can even add them in the comments section below each element.
What to be on the front lines for the latest news from your NHW?
Click on the “Contact Us” button above and fill out the form. You’ll get our weekly email blast with all the hot topics and happenings in our area.
We are looking forward to presenting you with the most up-to-date information regarding your neighborhood, North Hills West.
Building a website that is interactive, attractive, and relevant is a work in progress and while we continue to build this site, we want to encourage our stakeholders to get involved with their neighborhood, and to join us as we focus on improving North Hills West!
Please let us know what’s important to you and we’ll get it on the site as soon as we can!
Thanks,
Your web committee and webmaster 2010
Jul 10
20
New Technology to Fight Graffiti
It’s now even easier to report graffiti to the City so it can be cleaned up fast.
In addition to calling 311, you can now report graffiti directly using the City’s online 311 function at http://anti-graffiti.lacity.org/welcome.cfm. Just enter the exact address and a report and clean-up order are automatically generated.
The City also is making efforts to explore today’s rapidly evolving technology to make it faster and easier for citizens to report graffiti and other non-emergency problems. The City now has its own iPhone application to report problems. The application was created by Citysourced in a public-private partnership and can downloaded for free on iTunes. It allows iPhone users to take snapshots of graffiti, potholes, illegal dumping and other issues. Using the iPhone’s GPS system, the photo and the exact location are automatically sent directly to the City’s 311 system. It even notifies the user when the problem is resolved.
To download the app or see pictures of how it works, visit http://itunes.apple.com/app/citysourced/id336854714.
The application should be available for Blackberry, Android, Palm, & Windows Mobile 7 platforms this year.
Jul 10
19
iWATCH Anti-Terrorism Tip System
The iWATCH system was launched in 2009 by the LAPD as a tool to allow members of the public to report suspicious activity that can help efforts to fight and prevent terrorist attacks.
Like a 21st century Neighborhood Watch, iWATCH brings tips and information from the public into SAR, the LAPD’s Suspicious Activity Reporting system developed after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
To access iWATCH visit LAPDonline.org/iwatchla
Watering Days to be Based on Street Address, Rebates Increased, and Phases of Ordinance Simplified
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles City Council today (Aug. 18, 2010) approved changes to the City of Los Angeles’ Water Conservation Ordinance. The changes simplify the law’s water conservation “phases” and change the schedules for permissible outdoor watering with sprinklers. Under the revised Ordinance, customers whose street addresses end with an odd number – 1, 3, 5, 7 or 9 – will be permitted to use their sprinkler systems on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, before 9 a.m. and after 4 p.m. Customers whose addresses end in even numbers – 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 – will be permitted to do so on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, before 9 a.m. and after 4 p.m. Addresses ending in fractions will be treated as whole numbers and observe the same day restrictions as others on their same side of the street, (ie: 4321 ½ is regarded as 4321, an odd-numbered address.)
Sprinkler time limits will be based on the type of nozzle used. Spray head sprinklers and bubblers, which are non-conserving models and are common in most landscapes, will be limited to 8 minutes per cycle and one cycle per day per watering station. Rotors and multi-stream rotary heads will be allowed 15 minutes per cycle and up to two cycles per day per watering station.
The revised Ordinance will also reduce the number of water conservation phases from six to five. “Phases” of the Ordinance correspond with severity of water shortage, with each increase in phase containing stricter conservation measures. Currently, Los Angeles restricts LADWP customers to outdoor watering with sprinklers twice-weekly.
All other components of the Ordinance, including the prohibited uses of water, will remain the same. Watering with sprinklers is restricted to hours before 9:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m., regardless of the watering day. Hand-watering using garden hoses fitted with shut-off nozzle devices is permissible any day of the week before 9:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m.
Following approval by the City Council, the Ordinance is subject to review by the Mayor. If approved, the changes will become effective upon publication, which would occur approximately one week after the Mayor’s review period ends.
Educational awareness efforts, and enforcement where applicable, will continue to be conducted by the LADWP Water Conservation Team, whose members actively patrol Los Angeles communities to help inform customers of water waste they observe in progress and learn about through tips from neighbors and concerned residents who call 1-800-DIAL DWP or send e-mails to waterconservationteam@ladwp.com.
In an effort to help our customers save water and money, LADWP has increased the rebate on water conserving sprinkler nozzles to $8 per nozzle, which covers the purchase price. The Department offers numerous other rebate programs and incentives for switching to water efficient devices and tips for easy ways to reduce water use. This information, as well as comprehensive information on the new watering schedules and the prohibited uses of water, is all available at www.ladwp.com.
Customers may apply for a Hardship Variance from specific Ordinance requirements, including customers in designated High Fire Severity Zones. Variance Instructions and Forms are available online at www.ladwp.com/waterconservation and at all LADWP Service Center locations. For more information, call 213-367-0771.
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the nation’s largest municipal utility, provides reliable, low-cost water and power services to Los Angeles residents and businesses in an environmentally responsible manner. LADWP serves about 1.4 million electric customers and 680,000 water customers in Los Angeles.
