A Celebration of Venice
The 22nd Annual Abbot Kinney Festival was a huge success. Hundreds of people converged onto Abbot Kinney Boulevard for a day of food, fun, and laughter and to celebrate 101 years of the Venice community.
Venice was founded on July 4, 1905 by Mr. Abbot Kinney, a prominent real estate entrepreneur, tobacco mogul and world traveler. Mr. Kinney wanted to build a town reminiscent of Venice, Italy and set out to create "Venice of America". He envisioned a seaside resort town complete with amusement parks, entertainment, and other tourist attractions- the "Coney Island of the Pacific."
101 years later, Venice serves as more than an entertainment destination; it is an historic community bursting with an eclectic mix of people and culture. The Abbot Kinney Festival celebrated the heritage in Venetian style- underground bands performed before cheering crowds, unique shops offered one-of-a kind designs, and delicious foods filled the air with exotic aromas. It was truly a party!
Venice is a unique place that deserves a celebration that reflects its heritage and diverse community. The Abbot Kinney Festival did just that.
-Bill
Friday, September 22, 2006
Abbot Kinney Festival
This festival celebrates 101 years of the Venice community, which was founded by Mr. Abbot Kinney. This event is more than a festival, it is a party! Taking place on Abbot Kinney Boulevard, from Main Street to Venice Boulevard, the event features 2 stages of live music, dancers and performance artists, a children's court, an art pavilion, 3 food areas, and over 300 vendors. Admission is free!
For more info, please go to www.abbotkinney.org or contact (310) 396-3772.
I hope to see you there! If not, check back next week, I'll tell you all about it.
-Bill
New Diabetes Care Center Opens in Marina Del Rey
The Diabetes Care Center will offer education classes, nutritional and exercise prescription, personal consultation and support groups to help individuals manage their diabetes. Classes are aimed at educating the public about the complications of diabetes and how to properly control the disease.
As a diabetic, I understand the importance of managing diabetes in order to live a healthy life. The Centinela Freeman Diabetes Care Center improves the health of our community by providing tools to control this serious disease.
I encourage you to take advantage of this facility. According to the American Diabetes Association, 20.8 million Americans, about 7 percent of the American population, have diabetes. Unfortunately, about 6.2 million people are unaware that they have the disease.
To learn more about the Diabetes Care Center, please visit www.centinelafreeman.com.
-Bill
FlyAway Remote Check-in Service
I am excited about the new remote check-in service that LAWA has introduced for the FlyAway service that connects LAX to Van Nuys and Union Station. This great new service will allow travelers to check their luggage and get boarding passes at remote check-in centers before catching a non-stop bus to the airport that takes only 45 minutes, even during rush hour.
With this new program, the FlyAway bus service will be an even better alternative to driving and parking at LAX. We've all experienced the traffic headaches, parking fees, and long check-in lines at LAX, but now we can skip all that with the FlyAway bus. After a quick ride on the bus, you can go straight to your departure gate, and your bags will be handled for you. This new program is another example of our city working to ease traffic gridlock and improve the quality of life for commuters and air travelers.
I really like this new program and I want you all to give it a try. Watch for more FlyAway bus routes coming soon, and for more info on this great new program, visit the Los Angeles World Airports website at www.lawa.org.
-Bill
Friday, September 08, 2006
Prop O
Given how lucky we are to embrace the Santa Monica Bay, the quality of our waters is a significant issue for our district, and a priority for Bill. It's also a priority for the citizens of Los Angeles, who in 2004 overwhelmingly approved Proposition O- a $500 million general bond measure to help the city of Los Angeles clean up the polluted storm water that flows to our rivers, lakes, and beaches. Storm water runoff caused by rain, irrigation, and other water sources carries tons of trash and dangerous bacteria from our streets directly to our rivers, oceans and beaches, without treatment.
On August 18th, we moved closer to improving our water quality when the City Council approved seven Prop O projects, two of which are in our district and aimed directly at improving water quality. These two projects will help to address Federal Clean Water Act standards, called "Total Maximum Daily Loads", or TMDLs, which are the maximum amount of a pollutant that the water body can receive and still meet water quality standards.
The first of these projects is an upgrade of eight low flow diversion (LFD) facilities to divert dry weather surface runoff to the Hyperion Treatment Plant for treatment. The Council funded this project at $5.98 million (design only). Currently, these LFDs operate during the summer months from April to October, but will eventually operate year round for dry weather flows. Upon completion of the City’s eight LFDs upgrade, 100% of the dry weather flow will be diverted to the sanitary sewer for treatment at the Hyperion Treatment Plant. This will eliminate 100% of the bacteria, oil and grease, metals, and other pollutants that are currently being discharged to the Santa Monica Bay during year-round dry weather flow. (Projects are currently being analyzed for treating wet weather flow.)
The second of these projects was funded by the Council in the amount of $13.3 million and is comprised of three components, two of which (below) are in CD11:
- The first is located within the Venice area and will create shallow, landscaped depression basins to infiltrate storm water through the creation of 20 tree wells. Pollutants are removed by a number of processes and the filtered runoff can either be allowed to infiltrate into the surrounding soil, or be discharged to the storm sewer system.
- The second component of this project is at the Mar Vista Recreation Center. The project will divert dry weather flows and the “first flush” from the Sawtelle Channel to the adjacent Mar Vista Recreation Center and Park. Two acres on the east ball field will be retrofitted to divert flow from storm drains and a cistern will be built, providing for water reuse through irrigation. A smart irrigation system will also be built, which will water the fields only when weather and soil properties indicate irrigation is necessary.
Stay tuned for more Prop O projects that may come our way in the near future!
-Deborah Weinstein
Environmental Deputy
