Support Your Block Captain and Help Them Help You!
The Association hosted its annual Block Captain’s dinner at the Wilshire Country Club to thank our hardworking network of block captains and to share information about the important projects in Hancock Park. Block captains heard from the Association Committee Chairs on Security, Street Trees, and the status of Concrete Streets. Association President Cindy Chvatal also talked about the danger to residential communities from Senate Bill 50 which would allow multi story, apartments and condominums to be developed near mass transit sites such as bus stops. Since Hancock Park is in the middle of many major traffic arteries this would mean all of Hancock Park would be open for uncontrolled development. Fortunately, for this year at least and after significant efforts from associations like the HPHOA and citizens through the state, this bill will not go forward.
Your block captain is the key to a successful neighborhood watch and crime prevention network. The LAPD says this is the most effective and important way to prevent crime. So, if your block captain knocks on your door and asks you to fill out an information sheet, please take the 5 minutes to do so. This information is used to keep you and your neighbors aware of issues and information; provides a means for contact in the case of an emergency and keeps your block connected and the neighbors informed. Your block captains are your neighbors and are volunteers building and maintain our community. Give them a hand!
We thank Councilman David Ryu who attended the dinner and let us know that the fight to maintain our historic concrete streets has been successful. The City now has a plan and a budget to repair our streets in concrete and has already started doing so. The City will also require that developers, contractors, utility companies and anyone else making a hole in the street, must replace an entire segment in concrete. This saves our street from the deterioration that has happened because of haphazard repairs. Thanks to our Councilman and the hardworking Street Committee.
Remember, Hancock Park is an HPOZ so be sure and check with our City Planner Suki Gershenhorn (suki.gershenhorn@lacity.org), before starting any major landscaping projects or planning changes to the exterior of your house, including changing your driveway and windows. The HPOZ Preservation Plan, which regulates our HPOZ can be found at http://www.preservation.lacity.org/hpoz/la/hancock-park There is also an online form you can fill out to help speed up the process (http://preservation.lacity.org/hpoz/initial.screening.checklist). Report graffiti sightings by calling 311 or at the City’s Anti-Graffiti Request System - http://anti-graffiti.lacity.org/welcome.cfm?CFID=1007&CFTOKEN=411CDB4F-0FC3-4EE1-89DE58DCCB435538 and by calling Hollywood Beautification, 323-463-5180.