Department of Neighborhood Empowerment
Newsletter

May 17, 2004

SUBJECT: Information Bulletin No. 2004-02
Reorganization of DONE Staff and Services

As you may already be aware, the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment is in the process of a bold internal reorganization.

It has been caused, in part, because of the newest round of budget cuts that have reduced our budget and eliminated several staff positions.

For some Neighborhood Councils, the reorganization will mean that you will be assigned a new Project Coordinator or a new Senior Project Coordinator. For others, it will mean that you will have the opportunity to work with additional members of our staff who are specializing in elections, training, community engagement, and policies and procedures.

The goal is to take the staff that remain, and reorganize the department so that we speed up the effort to make Neighborhood Councils as independent, self-sufficient, and self-reliant as possible.

This involved a re-examination of our priorities with special attention given to the mandates placed upon us in the Plan for a Citywide System of Neighborhood Councils, the ordinances, and City Charter.

Two attachments that could not be added to this e-mail message can be found on our home page at www.lacityneighborhoods.com.

Background:

In response to the City’s fiscal crisis, and in response to the changing needs of Neighborhood Councils, the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment has reorganized its priorities, functions, and staff. In order to assist Neighborhood Councils in the most efficient manner possible, the Department has reorganized existing functions from the current structure of three Neighborhood Council service regions (Valley; Central and East; Harbor Area, South and West).

The reorganization was a result of extensive discussion that centered on the mission of the Department to serve and support Neighborhood Councils. This plan was designed to focus our work, prioritize the key areas of support for Neighborhood Councils, and be more effective in serving them.

There are a few key elements that the Department wanted to ensure were captured by this reorganization:

1. Shifting priorities from helping groups with certification to empowering Neighborhood Councils once they have had their elections.

2. Improving our efficiency.

3. More efficiently addressing the elections work that has grown to consume a huge proportion of the Neighborhood Councils’ and our field staff’s time.

4. Focusing our training and outreach efforts so that staff can work on these critical needs on a daily basis;

5. Prioritizing our work and acknowledging that we cannot do everything that we would like to do, or that we are expected to do.

It is our sincere belief that this restructuring allows our staff an opportunity to better focus their talents on serving and supporting Neighborhood Councils.

Reorganization:

The priorities of the Department are as follows:

1. Serve Neighborhood Councils.

2. Support their elections.

3. Share with them standardized policies, procedures, and efficiencies.

4. Provide training and technical assistance.

5. Focus outreach efforts on the forming areas that have yet to be certified.

Under the leadership of Parker Anderson, the Department's Field Director, this will be accomplished in the following way:

The Neighborhood Council Advocate Team, under the direction of Michele Cuevas, will focus on serving all Neighborhood Councils. Each Neighborhood Council Advocate (Project Coordinator) will work with a group of nine or 10 Neighborhood Councils to increase Neighborhood Council effectiveness through:

1. Being the first point-of-contact for Neighborhood Councils.

2. One-to-one assistance in preparations for meetings, special events, and outreach.

3. Processing bylaw adjustments, and helping with funding applications, office space checklists, and other related forms.

4. Assisting with interpersonal conflicts or grievances.

5. Supporting the development of regional coalitions between Neighborhood Councils and other city entities.

6. Documenting Neighborhood Council accomplishments, and sharing best practices.

This team will be geographically-based in Panorama City, Downtown Los Angeles, Watts, Southwest Los Angeles, the Harbor Area, Lincoln Heights, and Boyle Heights.

The Elections and Innovations Team, under the direction of Jamiko Bell, will prioritize the important work of election support, including the policies, procedures and outreach; streamline City processes; and develop better ways to solve problems, through:

1. Sharing best practices for elections.

2. Personalized assistance in the development of election procedures.

3. Outreach planning and other election related events.

4. Improving the processes within the Department to improve the flow of information to Neighborhood Councils about laws, commission and departmental policies, and opinions from the City Attorney’s office.

This team will be headquartered in the Watts office, but will also be responsive to citywide Neighborhood Council election activities by occasionally working out of the regional offices.

The Empowerment Academy and Community Engagement Team, under the direction of Rita Moreno, will focus on:

1. Providing the Neighborhood Council leaders with training and expertise through the Empowerment Academy by building the skills and capacity of leaders to be more effective in their Neighborhood Council.

2. Assisting those areas that have yet to organize a Neighborhood Council, or that have been left “orphaned,” by actively engaging the community to build a base for the certification process.

3. Developing a centrally-located Neighborhood Council Resource Library and Training Center in our Little Tokyo offices.

4. Providing departmental leadership for the ongoing organization of the Congress of Neighborhoods and "Budget Day."

This team will be headquartered in the Little Tokyo offices, but will be responsive to forming Neighborhood Council groups and training activities by occasionally working out of the regional offices.

Other reassignments of various administrative staff are also required in order to better serve Neighborhood Councils.

Timeline:

The reorganization will take place during the month of May while the Department informs the public, relocates staff, and transfers assignments. All staff assignments will be fully implemented no later than June 2004.

Check our Web site for:

Reorganization of Neighborhood Council Service Areas (Staff Assignments)
Reorganization of Neighborhood Council Service Areas (Map) (Coming Soon)

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Greg Nelson

Department of Neighborhood Empowerment
340 E. 2nd Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

866 / LA HELPS
213 / 485-1360
213 / 485-4608 fax
done@mailbox.lacity.org email
www.lacityneighborhoods.com website