City Manager's Bi-Weekly Update to the City Council
September 27, 2013
City Clerk’s Office
· IndieCade Festival - Staff is finalizing elements with the festival organizers for the set-up to begin on Tuesday, October 1st. The IndieCade Festival and will occur on October 4th – 6th at various locations throughout downtown Culver City including Parcel B (9300 Culver Boulevard), the Ivy Substation, the Veterans Memorial Building and Fire Station #1. Events include an industry conference, workshops, salons and a “Gamewalk” on Saturday and Sunday, which is free and open to the public. More information is available at http://www.indiecade.com/.
Community Development Department
· Building Safety Division – Division revenues generated for the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2013/14 have exceeded $915,000, with technology surcharge fees totaling over $43,000.
· Beats by Dr. Dre – Building plans have been submitted for a 73,024 square foot tenant improvement (for Building #1) located at 8550 Higuera Street and a 30,779 square foot tenant improvement (for Building #2) located at 8600 Hayden Place.
· Blaze Pizza – This new restaurant has opened at 4114 Sepulveda Boulevard.
· East Borough – A permit has been issued for a tenant improvement for a new restaurant located at 9810 Washington Boulevard.
· Culver City Mazda – Plans have been submitted for tenant improvements to an existing building and a 5,492 square foot, 3-story addition. The improvements include a new showroom, sales/manager offices, service lounge, reception area, retail parts and customer café.
· 4043 Irving Place –This project is approximately 82% complete and within budget. It is scheduled for completion in October 2013.
· Kimukatsu – This new Japanese restaurant opened a location at 4130 Sepulveda Boulevard on the corner of Washington Boulevard. Kimukatsu is the most famous pork cutlet restaurant in Japan, with multiple locations in Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, and Sendai.
Fire Department
· Multi-Agency Training - On Sunday, September 22nd, the Culver City Fire Departmentand the Los Angeles City Fire Department’s Station No. 5 personnel conducted a joint training exercise at Culver City’s Drill Yard.The Los Angeles Fire Station’s Task Force, Rescue Ambulance, Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams conducted a confined space rescue with Culver City units that consisted of rescuing two patients from a below grade location. Firefighters were able to utilize equipment off of the USAR vehicles that consisted of breathing compressors, communication devices, high angle rescue techniques, harness gear and specialized medical equipment. A great deal of information was shared between the two departments and both departments benefited tremendously by familiarizing themselves with each department’s equipment and operating procedures.
· Department Promotions – On September 23rd, Fire Engineer Joe Zimmerman was promoted to Fire Captain and Firefighter/Paramedic Nick Mendes was promoted to Fire Engineer. Both of these individuals competed in a highly competitive promotional process to earn a spot on the eligibility list. The Department will be conducting a Badge Ceremony to present each of them with their newly earned badges.
Information Technology
· Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Presentation - On September 12th, staff from IT, Community Development, and Public Works attended the Los Angeles Regional Imagery Acquisition Consortium meeting to discuss the upcoming acquisition of digital aerial images and other location-specific data. GIS Project Manager, Johnnie Griffing (pictured) provided a presentation about how Culver City Public Safety has incorporated aerial images and GIS location data to enhance its operations. Culver City has been a member of the regional consortium since it was established in 2005. The consortium is sponsored by the County of Los Angeles and includes over 50 cities. Participating cities have realized a significant cost savings by obtaining aerial data through the consortium as compared with each city individually contracting for this service.
Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department
· Senior and Social Services – The Culver City Senior Center is offering a new class to Senior Center Members – Gentle Yoga. Gentle Yoga is designed for those who may have physical limitations that prevent them from sitting on the floor, getting up and down, or going into forward bends. The benefits include improvement of balance, posture, stability, coordination, strength, flexibility and peace of mind. The fee for this class is $5.00 and will be held on Wednesdays from 11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. The first class takes place on Wednesday, October 2nd at 11:15 a.m.
The Senior Center is offering another new class to Members – Meditation. You can deepen your happiness and peace of mind, rediscover joy, and improve your health through meditation and this non-denominational class will show you how to do so. The fee for this class is $3.00 and will be held on Wednesdays, 3:30 – 4:30 p.m. The first class is on Wednesday, October 9th.
The 11th Annual Free Kids Carnival Celebrating Disability Awareness Month will be held Sunday, October 20th from 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. at the Senior Center. There will be crafts, carnival games, food & drinks, a petting zoo, live entertainment, a photo booth, a balloon-maker and more! To attend, family or staff members must RSVP no later than October 17th by calling 310-253-6717.
· Veterans Memorial Building – Indiecade’s IndieXchange will take place in multiple rooms on Thursday, October 3rd. For more information, visit http://www.indiecade.com/.
The Southern California Sports Collectors Show takes place on Saturday, October 5th. For information, please visit http://www.socalsportscollectors.com/#/.
· Parks – The turf renovation at Syd Kronenthal Park is now complete and the fence was taken down last Thursday. The park is again open and available for league play and public use. Park staff, along with Major League Softball, performed aeration, dethatching, fertilization, irrigation system upgrades, and hydro seeding of a sports turf seed mix to get the fields ready for the current Fall Ball and Soccer seasons.
Police Department
· Tellefson/Tilden Neighborhood Association Meeting - On September 17th, Lt. Jason Sims met with the Association for a Neighborhood Watch meeting, which included a discussion about recent crime trends and emergency preparedness.
· Lindberg Park Neighborhood Watch Meeting - On September 17, 2013, Lt .Sims met with the Lindberg Park Neighborhood Watch group, and they had a presentation from Animal Services Officer Fleeger Corolla. Lt. Sims also discussed recent crime trends in their neighborhood.
· Mentone Neighborhood Watch Meeting - On September 17th, Captain Iizuka met with the Mentone Neighborhood watch for the first time. Thanks to Sharon and Steve Elstein for coordinating and organizing the new Neighborhood Watch group.
· Lt. Milt McKinnon Graduates from the FBI National Academy - On September 20th, Lt. McKinnon graduated from the 254th Session of the National Academy along with men and women from 49 states and 22 international countries, three military organizations and one federal civilian organization. Lt. McKinnon attended the 10 week course in Quantico, Virginia. Congratulations to Lt. McKinnon on this accomplishment.
Public Works
· Permit Parking Program - On Monday, September 23rd, the City Council discussed the Residential Permit Parking Program (PPP), including proposed Procedures and Regulations for Residential Permit Parking Districts, the creation of 12 preferential parking districts citywide and related fees. After hearing input from approximately 30 people, the City Council directed staff to change the proposed PPP, with modifications to the fee structure for 3rd and 4th annual residential parking permits depending on the number of licensed drivers in the applicant’s home, and an exclusion to parking enforcement on certain holidays.
Staff will return to the City Council in October for formal approval of the PPP by the adoption of a resolution. If approved, the adopted PPP will be implemented during the 2014 calendar year. However, some aspects of the adopted program, such as the availability of an increased number of parking permits, will be available immediately after adoption.
· Food Waste Program – Public Works Environmental Programs & Operations will be launching a Food Waste Program in October 2013. The City will provide collection routes for food and compostable waste in CCUSD’s five elementary school cafeterias beginning October 1st. Recently, the District made a commitment to remove Styrofoam lunch trays and instead serve the children hot lunches on compostable paper plates. CCUSD will be the first customer participating in Culver City’s Food Waste Program. The School District and its Green 5 Sustainability team have been working for the last few months to gear up for the start date in October. By not sending our food waste to the landfill, we are significantly reducing our school community’s carbon footprint, as about 40% of our landfill trash is currently food waste and about 34% of greenhouse gas (GHG) methane in the US are emitted from our landfills. By keeping this organic material out of the landfill we reduce the creation of greenhouse gases, and by composting our food waste we return this valuable organic matter back to the soil to be used again. Our composted food waste will be delivered back to the community and back to our schools as nutrient-rich soil for our school gardens. We anticipate scheduling Compost Give Away Days for our whole community. To schedule a bin placement and to be added to the Food Waste route for your businesses, please contact Customer Service at (310) 253-6400. A representative will contact you to discuss logistics and help you develop a strong Food Waste Program at your site.
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