Westwood Neighborhood Council recap – Sept. 15

The Westwood Neighborhood Council meets monthly to discuss issues pertaining to Westwood Village and the surrounding areas.

Comments by public officials

• Janet Turner, a field representative for Congressman Ted Liu’s office, said the city will rename Barrington Park to “Veteran’s Barrington Park,” and will move an existing dog park off its land if an alternate site can be found. If officials are not able to move the dog park, Turner said it could be an opportunity for veterans to train service dogs or run a kennel.
• Jasmine Shamolian, a field representative for Councilmember Paul Koretz, said a city ordinance will limit new developments to approximately 45 percent of the lot size. She added Koretz requested construction at Rocco’s Tavern to halt until its developers respond the the Design Review Board. His office also terminated a development project on Westwood Boulevard because its developers did not submit necessary documents to the city.
• Marco Perez, a representative from UCLA Government and Community Relations, said he met with Steve Sann, chair of the Westwood Community Council, Lisa Chapman, president of the Westwood Neighborhood Council, and other community leaders to discuss UCLA’s role in reinstating Westwood Organized Meaningful Projects. Before the project was terminated two years ago, students volunteered for one day per year to clean and improve Westwood.
• Los Angeles police officer Chris Ragsdale said crime is still up overall, with grand theft auto and auto burglaries up 28 percent since last year. He added LAPD is deploying more officers in Westwood for nightwatch missions because of the increase in crime.

Land use

• The council unanimously approved the extension of Soleil Westwood’s alcohol permit for five years, which would allow the restaurant to serve alcohol at private parties.
• Jay Beeber, the San Fernando Valley Outreach Coordinator, spoke in support of the Neighborhood Integrity Initiative, a March 2017 ballot measure that would halt Los Angeles construction requiring general plan amendments, zone change or height district change for two years with exceptions for projects with 100 percent affordable housing and down zoning. He said the initiative would only affect a small portion of luxury developments and prevent the city from giving concessions to developers.
• Luke Klipp, president of the Los Feliz Neighborhood Council, spoke against the initiative. He argued a moratorium on development will exacerbate Los Angeles’s housing crisis, and added the city council is already pursuing legislation to make developers more accountable.
• The council passed a motion to support the Neighborhood Integrity Initiative. Eight councilmembers voted in support, seven abstained and one voted against.

Motions

• The board approved a change to its bylaws that would allow parents of University High School students, the closest high school to Westwood, to run for an education community director seat.
• The board unanimously voted to donate $1,000 toward two buses for UCLA Volunteer Day to transport about 100 UCLA students to Emerson Middle School.