January 25, 2013
Empower LA Newsletter header

General Manager's Update 


I hope this newsletter finds you well. I'm really excited because Barker Khorasanee, the consultant we brought on to review our Funding Program, has finished his assessment and will be working with us to create a plan of action to hopefully implement a new system starting July 1, 2013. The goal is to provide Neighborhood Councils easy access to their funds with proper oversight supported by our small staff. I think we will all be thrilled if we never have to deal with a demand warrant again! More details to come soon so Neighborhood Councils can provide feedback as well.

 

The Board of Neighborhood Commissioners will start the review of the Plan for a Citywide System of Neighborhood Councils tomorrow with a town hall of several Neighborhood Council pioneers who helped form the Neighborhood Council system. Thank you to the volunteers who have stepped up and offered to be on the standing committees for the upcoming months. Please remember that the town hall and all future committee meetings are open to everyone so you're all very welcome to come and participate in the next evolution of Neighborhood Councils.

 

If I don't see you tomorrow, have a safe and relaxing weekend!  
  
Best,

                                  

Grayce Liu, 

General Manager

Department of Neighborhood Empowerment  

 

Empower Yourself.   

Empower Your Community. 

Empower LA.

    



L.A.'s neighborhood councils
flex their muscles

 

A recent fight over a proposed $3 billion bond issue for street repairs illustrated the growing influence of neighborhood councils in Los Angeles city government, as they exerted enough influence to keep the measure off the ballot for now.

The success in that case represents an evolution for the councils, which at their inception a dozen years ago were seen as potentially powerless because they held no real voting authority in city matters...

 

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LOOKING BACK: A History of the Neighborhood Council Movement

 

Fifty-five Neighborhood Councils reached their 10th anniversaries in 2012 and over the next several months, another twenty-two councils will join them in celebrating a decade of empowerment and civic leadership. A decade is a long time in activist years and the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners is embarking on a journey...

 

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Mayor's Office to release the 2013 Los Angeles Budget Challenge
next week!

 

Every year, Neighborhood Councils are invited to present to the Mayor an annual list of priorities for the City budget. To facilitate this process, the Mayor's Office creates a budget survey with input from your Neighborhood Council Budget Advocates. This year's budget survey will be released next week...

 

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Free Phone Numbers for NCs

 

The telephone is one of our most powerful and effective tools for communicating and they are everywhere. We carry them with us, they sit on our desks, they hang on our walls, and they are an important element in any Neighborhood Council communication strategy...

 

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Future of Volunteering in LA Survey

 

On MLK Day of Service, Angelinos from all walks of life engaged in activities to benefit others. In that spirit we invite you to be part of one of our community's most game-changing activities in 2013.

Your participation in an important on-line survey will help shape LA's volunteer and service landscape for years to come.  We're looking for input from nonprofit, business, government, education and other community leaders, as well as from individual volunteers...

 

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Studio City Gets Its Subway 

 

After years of lobbying to make sure that the station on the metro Red Line include "Studio City," the Metro Board of Directors approved it Thursday.

The Metro Red Line Universal City Station will now be known as...

 

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News from Field Operations 1.25.13 

 

Ethics Training on February 21st! I hope you are well and staying warm and dry in this weather. The Department's field division has been working on the transition of Neighborhood Council assignments to our Neighborhood Empowerment Advocates (NEA). We are expecting to...

 

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Funding Update 1.25.13

 

IMPORTANT DATES / DEADLINES

* January 31, 2013 - 2nd Quarter P-Card Reconciliations Due
* February 28, 2013 - Treasurer's Training
* May 15, 2013 - Last Day to Submit Complete Demand Warrants and Neighborhood Purpose Grants

Treasurer's Trainings...

 

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2010 Bicycle Plan - First Year of the First Five-Year Implementation Strategy Project Traffic
and Safety Review

 

The City of Los Angeles will hold several public hearings, regarding the 2010 Bicycle Plan - First Year of the First Five-Year Implementation Strategy (proposed projects) in accordance with California Public Resources Code (PRC) �� 21080.20.5 (b)(2). In September 2012, Governor Brown signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 2245 to exempt...

 

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African American Heritage Month Poster Contest for all K-12 Students in L.A. County - deadline 2.8.13

 

Contest participation requires the creation of an original artwork, by selecting a pioneer from the suggested list below. In your art work depict the impact your selected "pioneer" had on history and/or your everyday life...

 

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I'm a Budget Advocate Volunteer

 

I am not an expert in finance or government accounting but volunteered to be a Budget Advocate this year because I believed there was an opportunity to represent the needs, concerns, and dreams of my community (Hollywood Area) in the city budget creation process. We have real and pressing issues that...

 

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UPCOMING 
 EVENTS
 
Neighborhood Council
Plan Review and Reform Initiative Launch
 
Sat, Jan 26
9:30am-12noon
 
Ron Deaton Auditorium
LAPD Admin. Bldg
100 W 1st St

LA 90012

 

 
Chronology /
Work Plan:
 
January 1-15
Working group members appointed; initial documents distributed

January 16-31
Opening meeting
and workshop: "Looking Back: The Neighborhood Council Story in Los Angeles"
(joint event with panel on NC history)
Working groups choose co-chairs and secretaries/reporters

February 1-14
Session I: Stakeholders
key issues: factual basis stakeholders / live, work, own property definitions

February 15-28
Session II:
Elections and Boundary Adjustment Policy key issues: should city clerk be involved in NC elections / election outreach

March 1-15
Session III:
Department of Neighborhood Empowerment / Board of Neighborhood Commissioners
key issues: duties and powers / general manager and commission selection process

March 16-31
Session IV: 
NC funding / grants
and donations

April 1-15
Session V:
The Brown Act
key issues: Brown Act vs. sunshine ordinance / posting policy

April 16-30
Session VI: 
Education and leadership development

May 1-15
Session VII:
The work of neighborhood councils
key issues: Early Notification System / monitoring delivery of city services

May 16-23
Closing meeting
(joint session): "Looking Ahead:
The Future of Neighborhood Councils in 
Los Angeles"

May 24-31
Draft report preparation

June 1-15
Draft report comment

June 16-30
Final report for commission consideration

July 1
Report submitted
to city council
 
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NC Budget Advocates Meeting
 
Thur, Jan 31
7:00 p.m.
 
Braude Constituent Service Center Community Room
6262 Van Nuys Blvd
Van Nuys 91401
 
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Contact Us
Phone: (213) 978-1551
Fax: (213) 978-1751

Our New Address:
200 North Spring Street
20th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90012