Published in the San Fernando Valley Business Journal:

By Mark Madler Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Residents of the Hollywood Hills came to the Van Nuys Airport Citizens Advisory Council on May 3 seeking advice on how to deal with noisy helicopters.

The three residents said that helicopters used by tour operators buzzing the Hollywood sign and for movie and television filming has made life unbearable in some sections of the Beachwood Canyon and Bronson Canyon neighborhoods.

Because of how the canyons are shaped, the rotor and engine noise from the low flying copters becomes louder in certain areas, the residents said.

"It has escalated as the tour industry has gotten more vibrant," said Fran Reichenbach, president of the Beachwood Canyon Neighborhood Association.

Calls to tour operators revealed that helicopters flights originate from Van Nuys, Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, Whiteman Airport in Pacoima, and Camarillo Airport, said Olivia Duke, one of the residents appearing before the council.

"Unless something is done now it is only going to get worse," Duke said.

The council, while sympathetic to the plight of the residents, had little advice to give the residents other than to contact Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge, who represents the area, and agencies responsible for aircraft activity.

The council did refer the complaints to a committee headed by member Wayne Williams that handles issues involving helicopters.

You can help by reporting noisy helicopters. According to Len Kruger in the Noise Complaint office, and the Los Angeles World Airport website (LAWA.org), this number is considered their Community Response Line at 800 560-0010.

Reps from the Beachwood Canyon Neighborhood Association, the Oaks Assn and others will be attending the monthly meetings of the VNACA to continue the dialog until positive changes can be realized in our hillside communities.

Fran Reichenbach

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Coming Soon to Amazon.com

Readers will recognize Mary Mallory as a leading member of the Daily Mirror's "brain trust." She's a photo librarian at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and in her spare time, she has been writing a book about Los Angeles history that will be released May 16. Mary says:

My book is an Arcadia Publishing book detailing the history in photographs of the neighborhood of Beachwood Canyon originally known as Hollywoodland. 

Hollywoodland extends from 2690 N. Beachwood Drive up towards Mt. Lee and the Hollywood Sign (this was originally in Hollywoodland before being donated to the Department of Parks and Recreation in 1945).    The book details the early history of Beachwood Canyon, the construction of the development, amenities, histories of many of the homes and architects, a history of the Hollywood Sign, listings of famous residents, and a chapter on movies filmed up there. 

It is based on Hollywood Heritage's S. H. Woodruff Collection (one of the developers of Hollywoodland) and other Hollywood photograph collections, photos from Bison Archives, the Margaret Herrick Library, me, and others, and all profits got to Hollywood Heritage. 

I made the suggestion to the HH Board, on which I serve, that we should try to do something with the Woodruff Collection, and since I made the suggestion, I got to do it.  I've always wanted to do a book, and especially one on Hollywood history. 

I learned so much about the architects, homes, and residents.  It was fun, but I continue to research.  I just walked most of it Saturday trying to get photos of the original homes, trying to identify homes with photos we have. 

Click here for a preview or to make an early purchase:

http://www.amazon.com/Hollywoodland-Images-America-Mary-Mallory/dp/0738574783/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1304353642&sr=8-1#reader_0738574783 

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Last Saturday, April 30, 2011, Upper Deronda formed its first ever-formal Neighborhood Watch. David Schafer was chosen as the Block Captain. The neighbors are working together to report times when their driveways are blocked or generally when that part of Deronda is blocked. They are focused on quality of life issues and for them, the gridlock and general overcrowding of their street is their greatest challenge.

If your street does not yet have a neighborhood watch program in place, please consider forming one. Let us know if you would like assistance doing that. Write to us at BeachwoodCanyon.org and put Neighborhood Watch in the subject line. Someone will contact you right away.

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