Monday, August 18, 2003 at 6:30 PM
Meeting Location: Q-topia, 6021 Hollywood Blvd., LA 90028
Agenda Item #1: Welcome & Roll Call
The meeting was called to order at approximately 6:40 PM. Eleven Board Members were present: J. Fisher, R. Brown, S. Swan, A. De Bello, J. Balasz, A. Ettinger, N. Foster, P. Godfrey, S. Larsen, M. Chesse, C. Suhayda.
Agenda Item #2: Approval of Minutes from July 21, 2003 Board Meeting
Minutes from the July 21, 2003 Board Meeting were approved without revision or addition.
Agenda Item #3: Discussion on possible sites for Fire Station 82 (FS 82) relocation
Presentations were made by representatives of LAFD, Hollywood Billiards, Toyota of Hollywood and Florentine Gardens. The following are summaries of each presentation.
Chief Prince (LAFD): FS 82 needs more resources and staff. There is a need for a regional FS that can accommodate training with fire apparatus, ladder training and adequate classroom space. LAFD wants the station to be located below Franklin Ave. The first site selected at Garfield & Hollywood Blvd was dropped because of loss of housing. An attempt was made to reduce the community impact of the FS by cutting the size of the project in half. But the LA City Attorney, who indicated that the project couldn't be cut in half, rejected this. The project is currently 14 months behind schedule. The target date for completion of the project is November 2007. The times required for various phases of the project are-- Design (12-14 months), Bids (4-6 months), and Construction (14-16 months). The cost of the building(s) is estimated at $11 million while the cost of the land is estimated at $15 million. All three property owners, Hollywood Billiards, Toyota of Hollywood and Florentine Gardens, have appealed the decision to have their property considered as a site for FS 82. The next community meeting for an update on FS 82 is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 4th.
Jeff Bey (Owner-Hollywood Billiards): Jeff discovered that his property was under consideration as a site for FS 82 just 10 days ago. He spoke of the history of Hollywood Billiards. It was originally located in the Louis B. Mayer Bldg on the SW corner of Hollywood & Western intersection. He took over the building in 1998. His first step was to deal with the gang problem. He spent $400,000 in building restoration efforts. On January 17, 1994 the building was damaged by the Northridge quake and was subsequently red-tagged. Jeff decided to relocate his billiards business. He subsequently moved into the current property located at 5750 Hollywood Blvd. He invested $3.5 million to transform it to a state of the art billiards facility. Hollywood Billiards won an award for outstanding design from Billiard Digest. The building(s) has 30,000 sq. ft of space on a 2-acre parcel. Jeff stated that he has had a 15-yr commitment to the community. He held a charity benefit that raised $40,000 for an AIDS project. Another benefit raised $17,000 for the families of slain police officers. Other groups benefiting from fundraisers held at Hollywood Billiards included: NYC Transit Officers and single parents with children.
John Sullivan (Toyota of Hollywood): The dealership distributed a handout that provided essential information on the positive impact of this business on the Hollywood community. The dealership has $100 million in gross sales per year. This generates $6.8 million in state and city tax revenues and $2 million in local taxes. The dealership has a $7 million payroll and 152 employees. These employees provide an income for about 600 people. The average employee salary is between $45,000-$50,000 per yr. All financial records of the dealership are open for public review. Toyota of Hollywood needs to sell at least 300 vehicles per month. The rule of thumb for car sales is that you need a month and a half supply on your lot; thus they need space for 450 cars. There are also regulations from the manufacturers---Toyota, Ford and Lincoln-Mercury that they must comply with. Tony Chapman (General Manager) also spoke on the historical and local impact of this business. It was the first Toyota dealership in the country. Today, it services 50,000 vehicles per year; of these 18,000 are from the Hollywood area. Orlando Gonzales (Sales Manager) also spoke on behalf of the dealership. In summary, any substantial loss of land by the dealership would significantly affect sales, profitability and threaten the business.
Wes (Florentine Gardens): Argued that FS 82 should be centrally located between FS 27 and FS 35. This would place the site in the near vicinity of the Hollywood Blvd -Western Ave intersection. Wes presented maps showing where FS 82 should ideally be located. A client of Florentine Gardens also spoke on the historical nature of the club and his enjoyment of the entertainment that the club offers.
Public Comments on FS 82:
· Joel Fisher---What will happen to theater on the west side of Florentine Gardens? Chief Roy Prince response was that a mid-block design for FS 82 would require a 250-ft frontage. If FS 82 goes into the Florentine Gardens site, the theater will also be taken for the project. Chief Prince reiterated the need to locate FS 82 at one of these three sites, noting that Beachwood Canyon is a long and difficult run. Also calls to FS 82 will increase in the years to come because of the aging population; most critical calls are for heart attack.
Votes on Location of FS 82:
A) Public Vote (35 in attendance):
· Locate FS 82 at Hollywood Billiards: 0 Yes 8 No
· Locate FS 82 at Hollywood Toyota: 0 Yes 14 No
· Locate FS 82 at Florentine Gardens: 6 Yes 11 No
B) Hollywood United Neighborhood Council Board Vote (11 Board Members):
· Locate FS 82 at Hollywood Billiards: 0 Yes 7 No
· Locate FS 82 at Hollywood Toyota: 0 Yes 11 No
· Locate FS 82 at Florentine Gardens: 7 Yes 3 No
Agenda Item 4: Officer Reports
A) President's Report: Joel Fisher reported that 100 stakeholders had completed questionnaires on the Mayor's Budget priorities at the Mayfair Market. This Saturday, 8/23, we'll continue outreach with the stakeholder questionnaires at Mayfair Market from 10 AM - 2 PM, and at Beachwood Market from 2 PM - 5 PM.
B) Vice President's Report: Russ Brown reported on the Hollywood Leadership Mixer which was held on July 31st. Russ was very pleased with the turnout and noted that CD 4 council member Tom LaBonge, developer Tom Gilmore, LAPD officers, Social Service Agencies, and many others were in attendance. He considered the event successful in that Hollywood United NC Board members had a chance to meet and mingle with local community leaders.
C) Secretary's Report: Susan Swan reported for Susan Polifronio. The Hollywood United NC office is in the process of being set-up at the Gallery. Jennifer Christie is working as a part-time office assistant.
Agenda Item 5: Treasurer's Report
penditures recurring from $2,217 to $717
· Outreach from $1,950 to$450
· Total reallocation of $6,000
John requested that this $6,000 be moved to Meeting & Expense; this would increase Meeting & Expense to $7,086. John also requested that the Board approve the costs of the Strategic Planning Session of Saturday, August 9th. The costs incurred were detailed on the handout distributed at the meeting, with the total at $1,322.71.
Board Votes were:
Budget reallocation: 9- Yes, 0- No, 2- Abstain
Strategic Planning Session cost: 11- Yes, 0- No
To adopt the goals of the Strategic Planning Session: 8- Yes, 0- No, 2- abstain.
Agenda Item 6: Committee Reports
6b: Griffith Park Boundary Update
Russ Brown stated that two rounds of discussions have taken place on how to administer Griffith Park (GP) by the two Neighborhood Councils (NC), Hollywood United NC (HUNC) and Greater Griffith Park NC (GGPNC). The question that we're trying to resolve is how many NCs should share the GP resource. There are potentially 12 NCs that could be included but this is unmanageable. Russ proposed that since GGPNC doesn't claim the HUNC portion of GP, that we agree to go back to the original boundaries of these two NCs but that these 2 NCs share all issues concerning GP.
Susan Swan requested that all of Fern Dell be included within the HUNC boundaries so that there are no differences in how opposite sides of the street are dealt with. Incorporate all of the street (Fern Dell area) on Western Canyon Road.
Andrew Ettinger asked whether we (HUNC) are managing GP? Russ Brown replied that we're not managing GP. It's a shared resource and we have an advisory role on matters concerning GP.
A question arose concerning our boundary along and through GP. Russ Brown stated that we need to refer back to our by-laws, especially in regard to our boundary in the Fern Dell area. Joel Fisher stated that there was a mediation agreement between HUNC and GGPNC that was signed by both board presidents. According to that agreement, it appears that all of Fern Dell along Western Canyon Road is included within the HUNC boundaries.
Susan Swan requested that HUNC make sure that this is the case; that there is no division on Western Canyon Road, down the middle of the road.
The Board agreed to refer this back to the GP subcommittee (Russ & Lucinda) for further clarification of the boundary shared with GGPNC.
Agenda Item 7: New Business
A) Elevate Art & Entertainment Sub-committee to Standing Committee
A motion was put forward to Ann DeBello---That a separate Arts & Entertainment Committee be established and that the A&E no longer be a subcommittee of the Executive Committee. Board vote: 11- Yes, 0- No.
Norma Foster and Andrew Ettinger will be co-chairs of this the A&E Committee. It will meet the 4th Wednesday of the month.
B) Little Country Church of Hollywood
Andrew Ettinger reported on efforts to save the Little Country Church from developers and to preserve it as a non-denominational church. He stated that this church is a historic landmark and reported on the history of the efforts undertaken to save this church. The church was recently sold. The pews have been sold, fire has damaged the interior, and the exterior is in disrepair. Andrew asked that the Board support efforts to save this church. Russ Brown indicated that there is a need for a preservation plan and a buyer interested in preservation, if this is to be successful. Motion put forward: That the Board support attempts to preserve the Little Country Church of Hollywood, a cultural-historic site in Hollywood. Board vote: 11-Yes, 0- No.
C) Bronson Park Picnic
Susan Swan reported that the Neighborhood & Environment Committee is planning a picnic in Bronson Park for Sunday, 10/26 from 11 AM - 2 PM. Planning is in progress concerning food, a children's costume contest, and inviting Tom LaBonge to speak & judge the costumes. Also looking into whether fundraising is possible for the benefit of the park. Also looking at the possibility of a second picnic in March 2004. Joel Fischer asked the N&E Committee to bring the details of the 10/26 picnic event to the September Board meeting.
Agenda Item 8: Board Member Comments
Norma Foster spoke on her efforts to help insure that street closure notices and filming went smoothly in her neighborhood (Gower-Primrose area).
Agenda Item 9: Community Calendar
Russ Brown distributed updated versions of the community calendar.
Agenda Item 10: Public Comment
John Farion of Hollywood Community Action Network asked that public comment on non-agenda items be moved to the beginning of the meeting. He believes that the wait for the public to speak on non-agenda items is too long.
He distributed notices from LAHSA (LA Homeless Services Authority) that called for nominations to the LAHSA Advisory Committee Board.
Agenda Item 11: Adjournment
Motion to adjourn approved by Board.
finalized version adsfjhasdfds
