Venice Neighborhood Council
PO Box 550, Venice, CA 90294 / www.VeniceNC.org
Email: / Phone or Fax: 310.606.2015
Administrative Committee Meeting Minutes
Extra Space Storage, Presidents Row Room
658 South Venice Blvd, Venice, 90291
Monday, November 10, 2008 at 7:00 PM
Note: The Administrative Committee does not address or consider the merits of proposed agenda items. Its function is to determine whether a proposed agenda item will be placed on the next Board meeting agenda, postponed, referred to a specific committee for review and recommendation, treated as an announcement, or considered and resolved as a non-Board administrative matter.
1. Call to Order and Roll Call: Present: Mike Newhouse, Chair; Stewart Oscars; Hugh Harrison; Nadine Parkos; Joe Murphy. Absent: Ira Koslow; Linda Lucks. Also Attending: DeDe Audet; Challis Macpherson; Marc Saltzberg; Ivan Spiegel.
2. Approval of the AdCom Agenda [November AdCom: Approved]
[All motions approved by unanimous vote unless otherwise noted]
3. Approval of any outstanding Administrative Committee minutes submitted by the Secretary
[November AdCom: Approved]
August 10, 2008 Administrative Committee Meeting Minutes
(see http://venicenc.org/files/081013VNCAdComMinutes.doc)
4. Announcements & Public Comment on items not on the Agenda (15 min, no more than 2 minutes per person)
5. Old AdCom Business [November AdCom: A covered by SR 13; B provided by JDM & will be updated]
A DeDe Audet (310-821-4417; ): As ex-president who often represents VNC at extra-VNC groups, I request guidance on (a) reporting from these groups, (b) representing position of VNC and position of other VCs as in West L.A. group to oversight committees. I am currently taking the position that extra VNC groups serve as clearinghouses for VNC.
B Stewart Oscars (310-305-8248; ): Request ad com to look at board member attendance at board meetings and see if all board members are fulfilling their attendance requirements. if they are not let us consider replacing them. backstory: with all the interest in becoming board members it behooves us to elect members who will participate in our meetings. request joe murphy to bring attendance records to ad com meeting.
6. New AdCom Business
A Form of ballot to vote on Board Vacancies: to fill 2 vacant Community Officer positions on the Board.
B Form of ballot to vote LUPC Vacancies: to fill 2 vacant positions on LUPC.
[November AdCom: considered both A & B and adopted the below process]
1. One ballot will be used listing all remaining LUPC & Board candidates.
2. Each board member will vote for 2 Board candidates; in the event of a tie between three or more candidates for the first board position, runoff votes will be held between the tied candidates only until the two positions are filled. The same process will be used if one candidate is appointed to the first position but two or more candidates are tied for the second position.
3. The LUPC candidates will consist of those who expressed interest in LUPC, excluding any LUPC candidates appointed to the Board in the prior vote. The same process will then be used to fill the 2 LUPC positions.
4. Upon completion of the voting process, board members sign their ballots and they are posted.
C Ira Koslow: Candidates appearance before VNC? [November AdCom: Mike will handle this at meeting]
D Ivan Spiegel: request for 10 minute "recruiting recess" to occur immediately following the elections.
[November AdCom: Approved a 10-minute recess to allow for this]
E Ivan Spiegel: Bylaws changes to be made prior to June 2009 to bring VNC Bylaws into compliance with new City voting schedule and City Clerk default values. [November AdCom: Referred to R&E to report back in 60 days]
F V2K letter supporting funding of gang prevention [November AdCom: Mike to send letter drafted by V2K]
G Consideration of DRAFT November 18, 2008 Board Agenda (see below)
7. Announcements & Public Comment on items not on the Agenda (15 min, no more than 2 minutes per person)
8. Adjourn
Draft – Board of Officers Meeting Agenda
Westminster Elementary School (Auditorium)
1010 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, 90291
Tuesday, November 18, 2008 at 7:00 PM
1. Call to Order and Roll Call
2. Approval of the Agenda
3. Approval of any outstanding minutes submitted by the Secretary
October 21, 2008 Board Meeting Minutes
(see http://venicenc.org/files/081021VNCBoardMinutes.doc)
Committee Reports are provided in written form when available
4. Scheduled Announcements (no more than 1 minute per report unless otherwise stated)
A Mike Newhouse (): (i) Reminder of the Westside Food Bank food and clothing collection drive, the location of donation bins brought by Tara Nicole Weyr (perhaps call on her to elaborate on where and how to make further donations); (ii) Recognition of the collection and donation of blankets to the Westside Food Bank by the children of the school attended by Emily Elliot’s children; (iii) Awarding of a Certificate of Appreciation honoring the Other Film Festival. [November AdCom: Added to agenda]
B DONE, LAPD, and other Governmental Reports
B James Murez (310-399-6690; ) & Jed Pauker (310-839-9209; ): Presentation of a case tracking system for LUPC (15 min) – See Exhibit A [Postponed to November 18 Board Meeting]
[November AdCom: Referred to LUPC to initiate 60-day trial of system and report back to AdCom]
C Linda Lucks (310-745-3240/310-450-2554; ) regarding Conflict of Interest Training: You may take the required Conflict of Interest Training from the comfort and privacy of your own home! Sit back and listen to the melodious voice of Sec. of State Debra Bowen as you re-fresh your memory about the rules that govern us as NC leaders. Since the City Council is seriously considering putting teeth into this mandate andmay alsorequire us to filean annual personalfinancial disclosure form, I urge those who have not yet complied to do this soon. It makes us look credible to the City andit does help. You can take the training in small bites, or do it at one 2 hour sitting. It is wellworth the effort. http://ethics.lacity.org/education/ethics2007/?audience=done
[November AdCom: NP/JM motion approved 3-2-0 and placed on agenda]
D Linda Lucks (310-745-3240/310-450-2554; ): Report on The Great Southern California ShakeOut
[November AdCom:Added to agenda]
E Marcia Hanscom (310- 823-7040; ): Celebrate Ballona (5 min)
[November AdCom:Placed on agenda]
E Isaias Cantu (213-473-6804; ) of Neighborhood Council Election Unit:
The City Clerk - Election Division is making preparations for the 2010 NC Elections. In this respect, we wanted to make sure that we meet with NC Leaders and invite them to participate in the NC Election Development Group.
As we prepare for the elections, we want to ensure that NC Leaders are kept abreast of critical information and their feedback incorporated as we move forward. As such, we are contacting you as a leader of a Neighborhood Council Coalition group to request an opportunity to visit your next meeting and address your membership. Some of the key items that we would be covering would be:
-General Election Process
- Regional
- NC ElectionPreparation (Bylaw Adjustments)
- Participation in the NC Election Development Group
- Approximate Election Timeline and Benchmarks (Candidate Filing, Vote-By-Mail)
We wouldappreciate an opportunityto get to provide this information to your coalition membership at your next meeting. More importantly, we would like the opportunity to personally invite your coalition membership to participate in the NC Election Development Group.
Please contact me to discuss the possibility of attending your next meeting.
Thank you, and I look forward to hearing from you!
Isaias Cantu, Sr. Project Coordinator, Neighborhood Council Election Unit. Service Center Manager
City of Los Angeles, Office of the City Clerk, Election Division
[November AdCom: Postponed to January 2009 AdCom & Board meetings; JM email to confirm]
F Mohammad Blorfroshan (310- 823-7040; ) of Department of Transportation/Western District Office: Would like to present discuss and answer questions in regards to the Department of Transportation's proposal to install a "Scramble Crosswalk" Operation at the intersection of Pacific Avenue and Windward Avenue in Venice. [November AdCom: Placed on agenda as amended]
G DeDe Audet (310-821-4417; ): waiting for letter from DeDe
[November AdCom: Added & placed on agenda]
H Ivan Spiegel (310-821-9556; ): Senior Prom
[November AdCom: Added & placed on agenda]
5. Announcements & Public Comment on items not on the Agenda (15 min, no more than 2 minutes per person) no board announcements
6. Old Business
A From Board Members [November AdCom: Placed on agenda as amended]
I Joe Murphy (310-895-0344; ): Motion to adopt the following policy:
POLICY STATEMENT REGARDING PROJECTS REQUESTING SIGNIFICANT VCZSP VARIANCES
To be presented at neighborhood meetings before consideration by LUPC
1. The Venice Coastal Zone Specific Plan (VCZSP) sets out guidelines for new development in Venice.
2. Projects requesting significant variances to the VCZSP are subject to additional VCZSP provisions – including but not limited to provisions relating to character and scale – which do not apply to projects that do not request such variances.
3. It is recommended that projects requesting significant variances to the VCZSP be designed in such a way that they address the above additional provisions for presentation and discussion at Neighborhood Meetings and at the LUPC meeting at which the project is to be considered. In this context, participants are encouraged to consult not only the relevant sections and provisions of the VCZSP, but also the concerns of each individual neighborhood which can be found on the LUPC web site section of www.venicenc.org.
[Postponed to 11/18 Board Meeting]
B From LUPC [November AdCom: Removed]
I Challis Macpherson () on behalf of LUPC: I, Challis Macpherson as Chair of the Land Use and Planning Committee, request that the VNC Board of Officers approve the LUPC policy statement on massing, scale and mansionization as approved by a vote of 6-2-0 August 27, 2008 at a regular LUPC meeting.This policy statement will be included in LUPC’s Neighborhood Notification Policy which is sent each applicant for a significant variance to the VCZSP. [Postponed to 11/18 Board Meeting]
LUPC POLICY STATEMENT ON MASSING, SCALE, AND MANSIONIZATION
To be read or otherwise presented at each neighborhood meeting arranged to present a project to that neighborhood before it goes before LUPC to be heard
1. Venice Coastal Zone Specific Plan (VCZSP) sets out the guidelines for new development in Venice.
2. VCZSP notwithstanding, the LUPC expects that new development projects shall attempt to accommodate neighborhood concerns regarding, in particular, massing and scale.
3. New construction projects should be designed so that they do not completely fill the buildable envelope, but are rather articulated and designed in such a way that they address the scale and massing of the immediate neighborhood for which they are proposed.
4. LUPC believes that in order to address neighborhood concerns on density and scale, compromises between the maximums permitted under the VCZSP and the legitimate desires of neighbors and neighborhoods should be sought regarding height, light, air and space. This issue should be addressed in the Neighborhood Meeting suggested by LUPC and convened by the project applicant.
5. PARTIES MAY consult not only the relevant sections and provisions of the VCZSP, but also the plans drafted by each individual neighborhood, which can be found on the LUPC web site, www.VeniceNC.org or on www.Veniceunchained.com. (The "draft specific plans").
These plans were created in a public process organized by the city in 1988 and address scale and massing for specific Venice neighborhoods. These documents were not incorporated into the VCZSP when it was compiled by the LA City planning department.
The Draft Specific Plans arguably represent the formally presented ‘intent’ of the Venice neighborhoods and should be consulted by both the applicants and their neighbors prior to the LUPC mandated neighborhood meeting for each new project.
6. This policy statement is issued by the Land Use and Planning Committee of the Venice Neighborhood Council only, and is not binding. Compliance with it does not guarantee a particular outcome of any kind, nor does it obviate an applicants need to comply with any other notices, policies, rules, laws or otherwise as required by city, county, state, federal government or other applicable laws or regulations.
C From Stakeholder [November AdCom: Postponed to 12/08 AdCom Meeting]
I Todd von Hoffmann (310-398-9231; ) on behalf of the Venice Heritage Foundation: Request of Board to send a letter to Councilman Rosendahl and/or "To whom it may Concern", supporting the Venice Heritage Foundation's efforts to establish a Venice Heritage Museum along the lines of the Red Car Historical Museum in Seal Beach. Letter is:
On behalf of the VNC, I’m pleased to add my support to The Venice Heritage Foundation. Their mission statement - “Envisioning a Venice History Museum” - focuses on an important goal for our community. Abbot Kinney’s “Venice of America” has had a full and fascinating life and that continuing story deserves to be shared. While the need for a museum heritage center has often been discussed over the years, the VHF was created solely with this purpose in mind. The founding members – all lovers of things Venice - include collectors, successful community volunteers, and, significantly, noted author and historian Elayne Alexander.
The VHF plan is particularly exciting. It calls for the restoration of an original Pacific Electric Red Car to serve as the initial museum space to be located in Venice. The Seal Beach Museum has demonstrated the success of this idea with their own Red Car museum and public library residing similarly (and very appropriately) on old Pacific Electric right-of-way property.
The Foundation has located a 100 year old Red Car (PE511) ready for a home and restoration volunteers are standing by. The restored trolley itself will evoke a charming period of our history and add another treasured sight along our gateway to Venice. The VHF plan tastefully suggests an additional adjunct building replicating the old pagoda-style PE substation that used to stand nearby along Venice Blvd. called “The Tokyo Station”.
The museum space will be available to all local collections, public and private, and serve an important community function for residents, visitors, scholars, and students. We can’t think of a better theme than a celebration of our incredibly interesting past and a legacy for our future.