Department of Neighborhood Empowerment
Newsletter

October 25, 2002

Re: Early notification of planning applications. Need for e-mail and mailing addresses. David Tokofsky School Board motion.

PLANNING DEPARTMENT LEADS THE WAY

As you are all well aware, early notification is a critical part of the Neighborhood Council system. And few issues will probably consume more time than planning and land use for many Neighborhood Councils.

Therefore, it is exciting to announce that the City Planning Department, and its Director Con Howe, are assisting Mayor James Hahn in implementing a state-of-the-art early notification system. From now on, as Neighborhood Councils become certified, they will be e-mailed regular reports that list the applications that have been accepted for review by the Planning Department within their area. Some will be significant and others extremely minor. But this will give you the earliest possible notice about projects that you may want to track.

We recommend that you establish a good working relationship with the Planning Department representative who handles planning matters within your area. They can be extremely valuable in helping you understand the process. We are working with the Planning Department to provide additional training.

Additionally, the Planning Department’s mailing contractor will be sending the certified Neighborhood Councils, the newest members of our city family, public hearing notices via the Postal Service at no charge.

Therefore, it is important that we know the mailing address and the e-mail address to which you would like these notices, and other correspondence, sent. There is a roster of neighborhood councils on our Web site at www.lacityneighborhoods.com. Click on "Neighborhood Councils" and look for the list of NC Leaders. The goal is for this list to contain the official e-mail address and mailing address for each Neighborhood Council. If there isn't an official mailing address or e-mail address listed for your Neighborhood Council, please let us know. If you’d like the planning notices sent to a different address, also let us know, and we'll ensure that the Planning Department has those addresses.

SCHOOL BOARD MOTION

School Board Member David Tokofsky introduced the following motion to the Board, and it is scheduled for discussion and a vote on November 12. The meeting starts at 3 p.m., but there will be an attempt made to set this item for 3: 30 p.m. So there’s no need to come before then. 333 South Beaudry Avenue. There is validated parking on 3rd Street.

David Tokofsky’s e-mail address is david.tokofsky@lausd.net, and you can reach all of the Board members through the district’s Web site at www.lausd.k12.ca.us.

The School Board members understand that the power of Neighborhood Councils will reach far beyond City Hall. This motion is a first formal step toward making the School District an active and enthusiastic partner with the Neighborhood Councils in making our city and our neighborhoods better places in which to live.

The motion:

Whereas, In May 2001, the Plan for a Citywide System of Neighborhood Councils was approved, establishing a system through which people in neighborhoods may be empowered to create Neighborhood Councils to serve their needs;

Whereas, The Plan also set minimum standards to ensure that Neighborhood Councils represent all stakeholders in the community, including neighborhood schools;

Whereas, Schools are recognized as neighborhood centers and are frequently used as the site of Neighborhood Council meetings;

Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Board of Education of the City of Los Angeles direct the Superintendent to examine the following issues related to schools and neighborhood councils: Use of schools by Neighborhood Councils for meetings; establishing a point of contact for the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment within the District; a system for dispersing neighborhood council information to schools; posting of Neighborhood Council meetings on school bulletin boards and identification of possible roles for the Neighborhood Council within the District and report back to the Board of Education within 60 days with a plan.

Greg Nelson

213 / 485-1360
866 / LA HELPS toll-free
213 / 485-4608 fax
done@mailbox.lacity.org email