"Eagle
Rock: Where land use planning is a contact sport"
THE EAGLE ROCK ASSOCIATION
In this issue:
1. MEET THE CANDIDATES --
FEBRUARY 15, 18, 23 AND 25
2. TERA AND ERNC TO CO-SPONSOR COUNCIL CANDIDATE FORUM -- FEBRUARY 25
3. EAGLE ROCK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL (ERNC) ELECTION RESULTS
4. WALGREENS -- PLANNING AND LAND USE MANAGEMENT (PLUM) COMMITTEE
REPORT
5. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE NEW PLAY FESTIVAL -- FEBRUARY 20 TO 23
6. EAGLE ROCK/HIGHLAND PARK LITTLE LEAGUE ADDS MINORS DIVISION
7. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE EXHIBITION TO FEATURE SELF PORTRAITS -- FEBRUARY
27 TO MARCH 27
8. LA CONSERVANCY EVENT -- BUILT BY BECKET: A CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
-- MARCH 4
9. EAGLE ROCK'S OWN CATFISH BITE OUTLET WILL BE FEATURED ON HGTV
-- MARCH 16
10. LETTERS AND E.MAILS
11. QUOTE OF THE WEEK
1. MEET THE CANDIDATES -- FEBRUARY 15, 18, 23 AND 25
TERA as an organization cannot endorse candidates for any elective office.
There will, however, be four events coming up at which stakeholders can
meet and greet the candidates for the14th District Council seat. Everyone
is invited to attend:
February 15th (this weekend!)
Meet and Greet for former Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa
At the home of Joanne Turner, TERA President
5278 Ellenwood Drive
Eagle Rock
Saturday, February 15, 2003
5:00 to 6:30 p.m.
February 18th
Meet and Greet for Paul Gonzales
El Sol Restaurant
1949 East First Street
Boyle Heights
Tuesday, February 18, 2003
6:00 p.m.
February 23rd
Meet and Greet for Councilman Nick Pacheco
At the home of Hilary Norton Orozco, TERA Vice President
5120 Highland View Avenue
Eagle Rock
Sunday, February 23, 2003
1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
February 25th
Candidate Forum -- Paul Gonzales, Nick Pacheco, and Antonio Villaraigosa
Moderated by the League of Women Voters
Eagle Rock Community Cultural Center
2225 Colorado Boulevard
Eagle Rock
Tuesday, February 25, 2003
7:00 p.m.
(See announcement below for details)
2. TERA AND ERNC TO CO-SPONSOR COUNCIL CANDIDATE FORUM -- FEBRUARY
25
TERA and the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council are sponsoring a 14th District
City Council candidate forum to be moderated by The League of Women Voters of
Los Angeles. Candidates are Paul Gonzales, Nick Pacheco, and Antonio
Villaraigosa.
Tuesday, February 25, 2003
7:00 p.m.
Eagle Rock Community Cultural Center
2225 Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock
Parking is available on the street and at Bank of America.
To help defray TERA's and the ERNC's cost of the event, a contribution of $2.00
per attendee is encouraged.
For more information call (323) 259-TERA (8372).
Please plan to join us -- we look forward to seeing you there!
3. EAGLE ROCK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL (ERNC) ELECTION RESULTS
TERA heartily congratulates all winners in last Saturday's historic Eagle Rock
Neighborhood Council elections. Voter turnout was larger than the
elections committee expected. Approximately 600 stakeholders turned out
to cast ballots in the election:
Dalila Sotelo -- President
Pattie Sugerman -- Treasurer
Danette Inzalaco -- District 1 Director
Jessica Wethington -- District 2 Director
Anita Hultman -- District 3 Director
Maximillian Vasquez -- District 4 Director
VACANT -- District 5 Director
Cheryl Leutjen --District 6 Director
Rich Monk -- District 7 Director
Bill Markis -- District 8 Director
Caroline Olmedo -- Youth Representative
Michael Nogueira -- Business Representative 1
VACANT -- Business Representative 2
Art Casillas -- Civic Representative 1
Manuel Montano -- Civic Representative 2
Barbara Marback -- Education Representative
Marlene Schmidt --Public Safety Representative
VACANT -- Faith-based Representative
[Editor's note: Could the former candidates who sent out the
misleading mailers and placed their own names on publicly posted city-sponsored
signs (but still didn't win) please remove your trash? It's cluttering up
our community. Thank you. By the way, who won the free TV?]
4. WALGREENS -- PLANNING AND LAND USE MANAGEMENT (PLUM) COMMITTEE
REPORT
TO THE COUNCIL OF THE FILE NO. 02-2834
CITY OF LOS ANGELES
Your PLANNING AND LAND USE MANAGEMENT Committee
reports as follows:
Yes No
Public
Comments XX
CATEGORICAL EXEMPTION and PLANNING AND LAND USE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE REPORT
relative to Design Review and Specific Plan Project Permit Compliance
Modification 2 for the proposed construction of three one-story retail
buildings located at 2222 Colorado Boulevard and 5041-5051 Eagle Rock
Boulevard.
Recommendations for Council action, pursuant to Motion (Pacheco-Reyes):
1. FIND that this action is categorically exempt from California Environmental
Quality Act of pursuant to Article VII, Section 1, Class 3(17) of the City's
Environmental Guidelines.
2. ADOPT the FINDINGS of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee as the
FINDINGS of the Council.
3. DENY APPEALS filed by Joanne Turner (Eagle Rock Association), Cesar Portillo
(Friends of Atwater Village), and Andrew Garsten (Echo Park Historical
Society), to sustain the determination of the Director of Planning, THEREBY
APPROVE the Design Review and the Specific Plan Project Permit Compliance
Modification 2 for the proposed construction of three one-story retail
buildings totaling 18,965 square feet at 2222 Colorado Boulevard and 5041-5051
Eagle Rock Boulevard, subject to modified Conditions of Approval.
Applicant: Tab Johnson, Rich Development
DIR 2001-3476 DRB,
SPP, MOD2D 10
Fiscal Impact Statement: The Planning Department reports that there is no
General Fund impact, as administrative costs are recovered through fees.
TIME LIMIT FILE - JANUARY 28, 2003
(LAST DAY FOR COUNCIL ACTION - JANUARY 28, 2003)
Summary:
At its meeting held January 7, 2003, the Council approved Motion
(Pacheco-Reyes), asserting jurisdiction, pursuant to Charter Section 245, over
the determination of the East Los Angeles Area Planning Commission to deny
appeals filed by Joanne Turner (Eagle Rock Association), Cesar Portillo
(Friends of Atwater Village), and Andrew Garsten (Echo Park Historical
Society), and to sustain the determination of the Director of Planning
approving the Design Review, and to approve the Specific Plan Project Permit
Compliance Modification 2 for the proposed construction of three one-story
retail buildings (including a Walgreen's drug store) totaling 18,965 square
feet at 2222 Colorado Boulevard and 5041-5051 Eagle Rock Boulevard.
At its meeting held January 21, 2003, the Planning and Land Use Management
Committee conducted a public hearing relative to this matter. A
representative of the Planning Department stated that the appeals oppose the
APC's action on the grounds that the site plan violates the Colorado Specific
Plan. The Plan prohibits parking between the frontage of a building and
the front property line and requires at least 75% street frontage.
During the public comment period, the applicant presented a modified site plan.
The plan places the frontage of two retail uses at the property lines
along Colorado and Eagle Rock Boulevards. The new site plan also reduces,
from two to one, the number of alleys with access to Colorado Boulevard.
The new map was described as a compromise between the developer and the
intent of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan.
Members of the public who spoke against the determination of the Director of
Planning also stated their objections to the new site plan. The Colorado
Boulevard Specific Plan was drafted to enhance the pedestrian atmosphere by
moving parking away from the street and bringing new commercial uses to their
front property lines. The Boulevard's commercial activity has improved as
new businesses have opened ñ in compliance with the terms of the Specific Plan.
Approving the Walgreen's project will set a negative precedent for other
new projects. The applicant's proposed compromise site plan includes a
street wall along Colorado Boulevard that was contrived to circumvent the
purpose of the Specific Plan. Colorado Boulevard egress and ingress will
worsen traffic at an intersection already congested with vehicles and buses.
Other residents stated their concerns relative to the lack of opportunity
for public input into the project's approval.
Other speakers stated that the new site plan does not comply with requirements
of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan as there is still parking between the
frontage of Walgreen's and the property line. It was stated that the
Specific Plan prohibits parking between the front property line and "any
portion of the building facing Colorado Boulevard." Other opponents
of the Director's determination stated that the Specific Plan sets the
community standards for new development. These standards are policy which
are in conflict with Walgreen's corporate policy. It was further stated
that the community does not oppose Walgreen's itself. A fair solution
would be for the developer to redesign the proposed site plan and place the
front of drug store along Colorado Boulevard. The speakers urged the
Committee to side with the community by granting the appeals and by denying
both the project approved by the Director of Planning and the revised site plan
presented by the applicant.
Other members of the community spoke in favor of the project. Project
supporters stated that the drug store will provide needed services to a diverse
community. The project was submitted before the Colorado Boulevard
Specific Plan came into effect. The existing building is not in use.
Seismic retrofitting is not economically feasible, thereby rendering the
building obsolete. A magnet for the homeless, illegal dumping, and
graffiti, the vacant structure has become a nuisance for the surrounding
community. Walgreen's will help revitalize the area, a secure investment
in the community during uncertain economic times.
Councilmember Pacheco of the 14th Council District stated his support for the
compromise site plan presented by the applicant. The Councilmember stated
that the City has no legal grounds to not approve the project as designed.
Mr. Pacheco recommended that the Committee deny the appeals and approve
the project, as conditioned to require that no certificates of occupancy will
be issued until all three buildings have been constructed.
The Planning and Land Use Management Committee recommended that Council deny
the appeals and to approve the project's new site plan, as conditioned to
require that no certificates of occupancy will be issued until all three
buildings have been constructed.
John A. White
Legislative Assistant
Planning and Land Use Management Committee
213-978-1068
5. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE NEW PLAY FESTIVAL -- FEBRUARY 20 TO 23
The
Occidental College Theater Department will feature staged readings and workshop
presentations of six student-written productions during this year's New Play
Festival, scheduled for Feb. 20-23 at the college's Keck Theater. The
productions are professionally directed with some professional actors and many
student actors. Admission is free.
For a
campus map and directions to Occidental, please visit www.oxy.edu/oxy/welcome.
For more information, call (323) 259-2922.
The
schedule is as follows:
Thursday,
Feb. 20, 8 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 22, 8 p.m.
"Eddie
Gets Pressed" (Workshop production)
A comedy about a man's struggle with former girlfriends, a dead psychoanalyst
and salty pirates.
Written
by Nick Tonkin '03
Directed
by Tracy Young
Friday,
Feb. 21, 8 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 23, 8 p.m.
"City
Limits" (Workshop production)
At a failing garage in 1996, three people deal with escape, choices and the
reality of living with those choices. "City Limits" illustrates a
life-changing day, after which nothing is the same.
Written
by Morgan Matson '04
Directed
by Nancy Howard
Saturday,
Feb. 22, 3 p.m.
"Stuck
in Love" (Reading)
A boy-meets-girl story backwards. Truth, intimacy, sex and pain surround three
couples dining in a restaurant. The players tell the bittersweet story of a
failed relationship.
Written
by Kim Kerry-Tyerman '04
Directed
by Laural Meade '88
Saturday,
Feb. 22, 5 p.m.
"As
She Knows It" (Reading)
A non-traditional play about traditional relationships. It is a drama exploring
three generations of women.
Written
by Lake Sharp '05
Directed
by Angela Kang '98
Sunday,
Feb. 23, 3 p.m.
"Static"
(Reading)
A one-act play about the way men and women communicate as experienced by a
female sociology professor in 1976.
Written
by Colleen Robertson '05
Directed
by Robert Fieldsteel
Sunday,
Feb. 23, 5 p.m.
"Family
Affair" (Reading)
A one-act play that examines the relationships between the diva, Bianca, and
those closest to her in the wake of her Hollywood scandal.
Written
by Brandi Austin '04
Directed
by Patrice Quinn
The
festival is being produced by Maggie Fullilove-Nugent '04 and Laural Meade '88.
The event is paid for in part by the New York Community Trust-Wallace Reader's
Digest Special Projects Fund.
6. EAGLE ROCK/HIGHLAND PARK LITTLE LEAGUE ADDS MINORS DIVISION
The Eagle Rock/Highland Park Little League this spring is adding a minors
division for boys and girls ages 8-9-10 who are too young to play with 11 and
12 year olds of the majors division. (ER/HP Little League is affiliated with
national Little League and is distinct from the Parks and Recreation Department
city league that plays at Eagle Rock Park.)
We're doing this because lots of kids, including my own, have been playing
Little League summer and fall baseball in South Pas, Altadena, Glendale and
elsewhere since Eagle Rock Little League didn't have a minors division. Well,
we've changed that.
Sign-ups for both minors AND majors are taking place in the office at Yosemite
Park every Saturday in February, 9 a.m.-12 noon. Season begins in late March
and runs through June. For additional information, call Dave Lear at
323-254-4778.
Thanks,
Sean Mitchell
7. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE EXHIBITION TO FEATURE SELF PORTRAITS --
FEBRUARY 27 TO MARCH 27
Four Southern California artists will show
their work at an exhibition titled "The Real Me," a mixed-medium
assortment of self-portraits that will be on display from Feb. 27 through March
27 at Occidental College's Weingart and Mullin Galleries. An opening reception
is scheduled for 7-9 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27. Regular gallery hours are 10 a.m.
to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday.
Featured artists are Sandeep Mukherjee, Sharon Hayes, Ron Santos and Liat
Yossifor. Mukherjee will give a lecture on his work at 5 p.m. Tuesday, March 11
in Weingart Center for the Liberal Arts, Room 117.
Occidental College is located at 1600 Campus Road in Eagle Rock. For a campus
map and directions to the college, please visit http://www.oxy.edu/oxy/welcome.
8. LA CONSERVANCY EVENT -- BUILT BY BECKET: A CENTENNIAL
CELEBRATION -- MARCH 4
Built by Becket: A Centennial Celebration
By Chris Nichols, Modern Committee Outreach Chair
On the evening of Tuesday, March 4, 2003 the Los Angeles Conservancy's Modern
Committee will present a salute to the legendary Los Angeles architecture firm
Welton Becket & Associates and its founder Welton Becket. The firm's
indelible mark on the Los Angeles landscape includes such icons as Capitol Records,
the Music Center, Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, Bullock's Pasadena, the
Beverly Hilton and Century City. These buildings helped form the architectural
and social identity for the booming young city of Los Angeles in the
Mid-Century era.
This once-in-a-lifetime centennial event, to be held at Becket's landmark 1963
Cinerama Dome in Hollywood, reunites members of the firm's original staff,
including Capitol Records designer Lou Naidorf, with contemporary critics and
historians who will put the Becket legacy into perspective. Alan Hess, author
of Googie and Viva Las Vegas, will explore the Becket firms' lasting impact on
Southern California. "Welton Becket's greatest buildings are as much a
part of Los Angeles as Christopher Wren's are of London. They cannot be divided
from the way we see or think of L.A." says Hess. Rare memorabilia from the
Becket family archive and vintage films will also be on display for one night
only.
Welton Becket was born in Seattle, Washington in 1902. He received an
architecture degree from the University of Washington in 1927 and also studied
at the famed Ecole des Beaux Arts. In 1929 Becket began his architectural
career as a draftsman at a small Los Angeles firm, and in 1933 he formed a
partnership with his Washington classmate Walter Wurdeman. In 1935, Wurdeman
and Becket created their first great L.A. landmark, the Pan Pacific Auditorium.
Throughout the following decades Wurdeman and Becket, and the successor film
Welton Becket and Associates turned out many world-famous Los Angeles icons as
well as numerous important structures around the world. At the time of Becket's
death in 1969, Welton Becket and Associates was the largest architectural
office in the world.
Included in the ticket price is an illustrated booklet featuring a self-guided
driving tour of over twenty Becket buildings in greater Los Angeles. The
following Saturday, March 8, the Modern Committee will present a docent-led
tour of several of these classic buildings including the pristine 1964 Music
Center Complex downtown and the lavish interiors of the recently refurbished
Bullock's (Now Macy's) Pasadena.
Tickets are $20 for members and $25 for non-members. Tickets include the March
4 lecture and film screening, the booklet and the March 8 tour. The March 4 event
begins at 7:30 p.m. and the hours for the March 8 tour are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Tickets sell out fast -- order early to avoid disappointment!
For ordering information, visit http://laconservancy.org/events
9. EAGLE ROCK'S OWN CATFISH BITE OUTLET WILL BE FEATURED ON HGTV --
MARCH 16
Catfish Bite Outlet will air as part of a segment for HGTV (HOME and GARDEN
TELEVISION) called "The Finer Things." This will be syndicated nationally
on March 16th (Sunday). No time is slotted yet. This will air
several times, so we will keep you updated as we receive more information.
CATFISH BITE OUTLET WEB SITE -- Our new Catfish Bite Outlet Web site
will go live one week before this segment, at http://www.catfishbiteoutlet.com.
10. LETTERS AND E.MAILS
" I LOVE the TERA e.letter. Very informative and topical. Keep
up the good work! "
-- Andy Jardini, Mt. Washington resident
11. QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"I
love a strong woman with a good mind, integrity, tenacity, and vision. I
sure hate to lose this one, but TERA's not really losing a Board member; we're
gaining a Neighborhood Council president!
All the best to you, Dalila. Affectionately --"
--
Joanne
We welcome your comments. Please include your name.
Joanne Turner <artburn@earthlink.net>
President, The Eagle Rock Association (TERA)