Two Will Sing the National Anthem at the Will Rogers Races on July 4

Posted on June 30, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

Every year, before the starting gun goes off for the Will Rogers 5/10K Race on Alma Real, runners are treated to a National Anthem singer. Race organizers have announced that this year’s Fourth of July event will feature two local talents, Kate Hassett and Sierra Solum.

KATE HASSETT

This will be Hassett’s second time performing for a local crowd. She did the honors at the Pacific Palisades Baseball Association’s Opening Day ceremonies in 2014. Her brother Jack, who is now a pitcher on the New York University baseball team, was a player and her father Jim was a coach.

Hassett has also sung the anthem at UCLA and at Harvard-Westlake, where she attended high school.

She grew up in Pacific Palisades and participated in the Kids Fun Run when she was 18 months old.

She started singing in first grade, and as a third grader, she told her parents she wanted to try opera.

She auditioned and was accepted into the National Children’s Chorus. A leading children’s choir of 800 choristers, between the ages of five and eighteen, the nonprofit is divided into a junior and senior division.

The chorus regularly appears at the Hollywood Bowl with the LA Philharmonic, at Disney Concert Hall and at Carnegie Hall.

Hasset said, “Through the Children’s Chorus, I was able to take a deeper dive into classical music. During that time, I learned music theory and conducting.”

The organization has conductor training partnerships with programs at USC and the Manhattan School of Music and has partnerships with the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and UCLA.

Even while singing with the choir, which included three European tours, Hassett continued to take private lessons.

Her song of choice for “karaoke” night is “It’s Shallow” by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper. But if a request is made for a classical number, she sings “Ave Maria,” which is the first classical song she performed.

During the pandemic, Hassett switched her interest from performing classical music to visual arts. This fall she will attend the School of Art Institute in Chicago to focus on painting.

She performed improv while at Harvard-Westlake—and she hopes to continue that interest in the vibrant comedy scene in Chicago.

The Hasset family, which includes Jim, Jackie, Jack and Kate, won the Fourth of July home decorating contest in 2012 and 2016.

 

SIERRA SOLUM

Sierra is a veteran of the Will Rogers Run, beginning when her dad Mike pushed her in a stroller as he ran the 5K. “I have done the race several times on my own,” said the Corpus Christi School rising eighth grader.

Although she has performed the National Anthem at a school assembly, this will mark Sierra’s first public performance of that song. Asked what the biggest challenge might be on the 4th, she said, “The size of the audience.”

Routinely, between 2,500 and 3,000 people descend on the course on Alma Real, and the Kids Fun Run attracts hundreds of kids and parents.

Solum is active in theater, having participated in the CATS theater program in Rustic Canyon and has just finished performing in a production of “Grease.” She said that she likes to perform because, “I get a thrill from acting and providing entertainment to the audience.”

This summer she is attending a beach volleyball camp and also an enrichment camp at Louisville High School. And she loves to read.

One of her favorite books is “Six of Crows” because “I love the character relationships.” The fantasy novel follows six characters and is set in the city of Ketterdam, which is inspired by Dutch Republic-era Amsterdam.

Solum said that in the future, “I would like to learn to play the guitar and piano.”

In the meantime, make it over to the start of the Kids Fun Run, about 9 a.m., and listen to Solum sing the National Anthem.

The family, including dad Mike, mom Jennifer and younger sister Kaia, have actively supported the Palisades Americanism Parade Association and are members of Corpus Christi Parish.

 

 

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Councilman Mike Bonin’s Westchester Security Measures

Posted on June 30, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

Barbed wire fencing has gone up around Councilmember Mike Bonin’s office in Westchester to keep transients out.

Circling the News printed a photo of a homeless person living in the entryway to City Municipal offices in Westchester. The transient makes it impossible for residents to go see their Councilmember Mike Bonin or to use the Westchester Community Room.

But even if residents could access the office, a security guard does not allow any residents into the building, which is paid for by taxpayers.

One resident wrote about the situation, “Words have not been invited to describe my despair and anger.”

Now, there’s an update. Work is being done around the office site, located at Westchester and Sepulveda.

Fencing has now gone up in the parking area behind Bonin’s office, including barbed wire. A worker explained to a resident why it had been put up. “There is an aggressive homeless person” living at the front.

Other security measures being installed include key card access to the front and back doors on the building. There will be an electric motor on the parking gate where city vehicles are parked—including key card access.

There will also be cameras in seven locations around the building. A worker responding to a query from a resident said that the measures are for safety.

But this work does not address the safety of the public, who still must deal with transients near the senior center, in the parking lot, or near the library.

One resident wrote CTN, “when this work is done, Bonin, his staff, and their cars will all be very safe and very secure. Neither Bonin nor his staff will have to be near any homeless person in the park.

CTN has now contacted Bonin’s spokesperson Naomi Goldman on June 19 and June 28 to ask who is paying for the gates, the fence and the cameras. There has been no response. If we receive that information, we’ll update readers. CTN also asked Goldman on June 17 if Bonin was considering discretionary funding for the Pacific Palisades Taskforce on Homelessness, but haven’t received a response to that question either.

The Westchester Library parking lot is a hazard for library goers and senior citizens.

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OBITUARY: Dale Van Vlack, 99; Legion Member, Aerospace Engineer and Golfer  

Posted on June 30, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

Dale Edgar Van Vlack, a 51-year resident of Pacific Palisades, passed away on June 18 at age 99.

Dale and his twin sister Gail were born on April 26, 1923, in Rapid City, South Dakota. Family on their father’s side moved to Southern California in the 1920s. During the Great Depression the remaining members of the family followed them west.

Dale enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1942 and served as a radioman in the Pacific Theater during World War II. During his service he was selected for the Navy’s V-12 college training program and was sent to Stanford.

After the war, Dale attended USC and earned a degree in aerospace engineering, graduating in 1950. He was recalled to active duty during the Korean War.

With his military service completed, Dale worked for 25 years as an aerospace engineer at Hughes Aircraft Company, where he met his future wife, Nancy. They were married at the Palisades Presbyterian Church on July 23, 1960. They raised two daughters, Kat and Kristin.

In his later years, Dale kept active helping with the family business: The Village Store, a women’s clothing store that opened on Antioch Street in 1948 and closed in 1998. He and his wife Nancy supported the Village Green, which was built in 1973 across from their store.

“Dad was one of the original members of the Village Green committee,” said his daughter Kristin. “He always helped put the Christmas lights on the trees.”

Dale was one of the first members at the Spectrum Club gym, where he would exercise regularly well into his 80s. He also enjoyed weekly golf outings with local businessmen, who over the years included Bob Dickey, Ed Jacobson, John Harrington, Vince Mangio and Wally Miller.

“Dad and his golf buddies played every Thursday and liked to try out new courses,” said Kristin. “They would always end the day with a nice dinner — and dessert! They had so much fun.”

An active 26-year member of the American Legion, Dale often volunteered his time at Post 283 and at the V.A. campus, especially assisting with the lunches served to veterans. He and Nancy enjoyed the Big Band dinner/dances organized at the Post for many years by Emil Wroblicky.

In addition to Nancy, his wife of 63 years, Dale is survived by daughters Kristin and Kat, and grandchildren Tyler and Alex Hill.

A public memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. on July 9 at Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church, 15821 Sunset Blvd.

 

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“Dr.” Nealon Named Ex-Honorary Mayor

Posted on June 29, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

Comedian and actor, Kevin Nealon is racking up the honorary titles. He was given an honorary doctorate by his alma mater Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut, in May.

He was honorary mayor of Pacific Palisades from 2016-2017.

After being chosen as mayor, he was asked to serve as Grand Marshal in the 4th of July parade – and then, he was even asked to be a judge in the home decorating contest.

When he received the hometown honors in 2016, he told reporters that he felt honored. “I don’t know what’s coming next,” Nealon said. “Honorary mayor, grand marshal — crossing guard?”

Now the Palisades Americanism Parade Association has just feted the comedian with a new title “ex-honorary mayor.”

Nealon will ride in this year’s 4th of July parade. Although no one is sure what the official duties are for an ex-honorary mayor, it’s apparent Nealon will give them the same full attention he did when he governed Pacific Palisades.

After he became mayor, he told Conan O’Brian on O’Brien’s late night show that he planned to get tough on the drug problem here “specifically, the rampant use of Botox. And he promised to rid the town of those who forget to bring their own.”

Crime and homelessness also had him concerned. People were forgetting to take their own shopping bags to the supermarkets and “There’s a homeless problem, married men cheating on their wives and losing their homes. I want to stop this,” he said. (The O’Brien segment can be viewed on YouTube.)

Nealon created and hosted “Hiking with Kevin,” which has more than 100 episodes on YouTube. In it, he interviewed celebrity friends on hikes around the Santa Monica Mountain trails. His guests have included Adam Sandler, Conan O’Brien, Caitlyn Jenner, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tiffany Haddish and Courteney Cox.

PAPA has promised Nealon that he will not have to hike the parade route – but can ride in a car.

Born in St. Louis, he was mostly raised in Bridgeport, Connecticut. His father worked for a helicopter company. And from the time Nealon was six until he was 10, the family lived in Germany, where he learned to speak the language fluently.

“I learned how to swim in Greece, ski in Austria and argue in Italy,” Nealon said, in an earlier interview with CTN’s editor.

He is also a gifted artist, but not formally trained. “I’m a doodler. When I fly in planes, I sketch the person next to me.”

Nealon said he learned how to draw on his own. “There were two framed caricatures of my mom and dad on my bedroom wall, and I used to study them. When I was in Germany, I saw a sketch of a soldier on a napkin, and I practiced drawing it.”

He draws caricatures of his celebrity friends, which he often posts to his Instagram. A book will be released this October, I Exaggerate: My Brushes with Fame,  featuring his caricatures accompanied by his musings on how he knows the person or an experience he had with them (@kevinnealonartwork).

Growing up, however, “I always wanted to be a musician,” said Nealon, who plays guitar. After seeing the movie “Deliverance,” he also taught himself to play banjo. “I was too intimidated to sing on stage but started going to clubs and telling jokes.”

After Nealon received his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Sacred Heart, he moved to Los Angeles, hit the comedy-club circuit and soon appeared on Johnny Carson and David Letterman.

He heard from his pal, Dana Carvey that Saturday Night Live producers were looking for another cast member. After auditioning, he was hired and from 1986-1995, he anchored the Weekend Update and created the muscular fitness experts “Hans and Franz” with Carvey.

Nealon made his film debut in the 1987 romantic comedy, Roxanne, with Steve Martin and has starred in more than two dozen comedies.

This summer he is on tour around the country. Visit: kevinnealon.com.

Kurt Cobain                                                    Jim Carrey                                     Garry Shandling

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The Yogurt Shoppe Will Sponsor Kids on Bikes

Posted on June 29, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

The bike decorating contest last year had many great entries, such as this family effort.

The Yogurt Shoppe will continue its decade-long tradition of sponsoring the “Kids on Bikes” in the July 4th parade. Owners Christine and Adam Wolfson encourage kids to “have fun and be creative.”

Participants are encouraged to decorate their bikes/scooter and come to the parade assembly point for “Kids on Bikes” at 1 p.m. on July 4th to enter the contest.

All judging will take place between 1 and 1:15 pm at the parade start location (in front of Pali Elementary at the corner of Bowdoin and Via de la Paz). Four lucky winners will earn a $50 gift card valid at any The Yogurt Shoppe store.

To participate, a wavier must be signed and handed to contest organizers before the parade. click here

This waiver is needed to participate in the contest and to march in the parade. Parents are asked to accompany children along the parade route. Helmets are required and water bottles suggested. Kids and their guardians/parents may leave the parade at any time along the route.

Generally, Kids on Bikes is one of the first entrants in the parade after the sky divers land to start the parade. Watch for them as they zoom down the streets.

First place last year went to these participants.

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Eric and Joshua Preven Take First with Political Commentary

Posted on June 29, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

The Preven brothers, Joshua (left) and Eric took first place in political commentary.
Photo: Betsy Annas

Eric and his brother Palisadian Joshua Preven took first place in Political Commentary at the 64th Annual SoCal Journalism Awards Gala on June 25 in Universal City.

The piece “The Pandemic Should Not Be Used as a Pretext to Muffle the Voices of the ‘Inconvenient Public’” appeared on City Watch in February 2021.

The Prevens have won L.A. Press Club awards for articles they co-wrote for The Intercept and CitywatchLA, and are advocates for greater transparency in local government. They can be followed on Twitter @PrevenReport or reached by email at ThePrevenReport@gmail.com. 

The winning article is printed below:

LA GOVERNMENT … SHORT ON TRANSPARENCY–According to the Congressional Research Service, as we’ve noted before, the U.S. House of Representatives has met behind closed doors four times during the past 190 years—in 1979, 1980, 1983, and 2008.

That’s about one closed session per half-century.  By contrast, the LA City Council and the LA County Board of Supervisors average about one closed session per week. Congress managed to keep its debate open during both World Wars. All it takes to send our local leaders into the bunker is a chat with County Counsel and a department head performance evaluation.

This coming week the Board of Supervisors has canceled its regular open meeting at Tuesday 9:30 a.m. and replaced it with a special closed session. Since the pandemic started this has become their regular practice.

The City Council, under Council President Nury Martinez, has indefinitely canceled Friday meetings and decided to limit the total time for public comment from its 4 million residents to 35 minutes, that’s including general public comment and any comment on agenda items.

The County, with 11 million residents, has reduced by half the number of open public meetings it holds to two a month and inexplicably has limited general public comment to just 60 minutes total, including general public comment and comment on agendas that often contain more than 60 items.

There is simply no way to sign up at the county, other than to give your name to an AT&T operator, but the Brown Act explicitly prohibits that. And good luck getting through. Neither the city nor the county, despite many requests for transparency, have made clear how they pick and choose who gets to speak. Many critics feel intentionally deselected. Why would the executive officer or city clerk voluntarily call up a harsh critic?

The city council and Mayor Garcetti, despite a high court finding a “pattern of conduct by the City at special city council meetings in violation of the Brown Act,” on a motion by Paul Krekorian, cut to just 60 seconds the amount of time afforded to those who made the journey down to City Hall to address their representatives.

The city and Metro Board have finally agreed to be shown on a Brady Bunch grid on Zoom during meetings, but not the supervisors.  It’s very exciting to have five little queens leading our county but it’s important that our leadership be visible during meetings.

The pandemic should not be used as a pretext to muffle the voices of the “inconvenient public”—an necessary ingredient to a vibrant democracy.

By limiting the agendas and denying general public comment the current meeting schedules of both of these entities does not add up to “sound discretion” to reasonably “maximize transparency and access” to public meetings, as the governor’s order requires.

The board argues that it receives thousands of letters weekly that will be made available to the Supervisors.  Sheila Kuehl, sometimes described as a progressive icon, is on the record. “The first amendment requires that you (the public) be able to speak, not that we are forced to listen.”

Often, public comment is about speaking out to the press, other members of the public, the FBI.   Mitchell Englander is facing 14 months in federal prison for lying to federal authorities about a pay to play investigation at City Hall and Jose Huizar will be tried over the summer. Public input has been critical.

So, what is the public to do? The County DA’s public integrity division is perpetually looking into Brown Act violations, but on August 19, 2020, the head deputy wrote “we are aware of no authority allowing this office [of public integrity] to “instruct the Board Chair to resume weekly board meetings forthwith”… “Therefore, we cannot take this action.” Where does our newly elected District Attorney George Gascon stand on all this?

A general public comment is often the last gasp opportunity to redress grievances. That critical moment being replaced with a Special closed session is unacceptable. It denies the public the opportunity to speak about items that are ‘generally’ under the board’s jurisdiction, but not itemized on its agenda?

Lawsuits are certainly another way to direct powerful entities to be better citizens, but even if one invests the time and money to sue and prevail, as some of us have done, the agencies spend a seemingly endless supply of taxpayer funds litigating behind a “revolving” closed door.  And if you ask during a public comment how much the county or city is spending on such litigations, you very likely find yourself getting cut off and admonished that “you’re disrupting the meeting.”

The county and the city should both resume meeting regularly and devote the commute time that they may be saving to hearing from more constituents, virtually.

 

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Jennifer Garner Selected as Grand Marshal

Posted on June 28, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

By BERNICE FOX and SUE PASCOE

Actress Jennifer Garner, whom many Pacific Palisades residents consider a “hometown” girl, will be Grand Marshal of this year’s Pacific Palisades 4th of July Parade.

One of her fans summed it up perfectly. “Does anybody else watch Jennifer Garner and think, ‘that’s who we all should be?’ She is the most likable person on Earth. Lovely.”

Like other locals, Garner and her family often are among the spectators watching the annual Palisades 4th of July parade from the curb. This year as Grand Marshal, she’ll be driven along the route.

This will not be Garner’s first parade of the year. In February, she rode through the streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts as Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year.

The Associated Press reported, “Despite the frigid temperatures, Garner, 49, was all smiles as she waved to the hundreds of spectators along the parade route.”

Hasty Pudding organizers said they chose Garner not only for her acting career, but also for her record as a philanthropist and entrepreneur. She combines both philanthropy and entrepreneurship as co-founder of the organic food company, Once Upon a Farm. The company’s pouches of blended vegetables and fruit with bright labels are aimed at kids. Now her company is donating an amount from each sale towards meals through one of Garner’s favorite charities, Save the Children USA, where she’s a board member.

With her down-to-earth appeal, Garner is the face of Once Upon a Farm. On the company’s Twitter page, she’s sometimes pictured in the fields of her grandmother’s farm in Oklahoma or seen talking up the product from her own kitchen.

It’s in that kitchen that she hosts her online Pretend Cooking Show. What started as a fun way to showcase her cooking skills has turned into a full-blown Instagram series with 11.7 million followers. And she and her show recently partnered with KitchenAid.

During the show, Garner’s relatability is on full display as she hums while she cooks, inadvertently drops things and sometimes struggles with ingredients.

She’s also the face of Neutrogena – a gig she’s had for at least 15 years. And she pitches Capitol One credit cards, just like Pacific Palisades Honorary Mayor Eugene Levy and his two actor kids, Sarah Levy and Dan Levy.

Garner grew up in Charleston, West Virginia, the middle child of three girls. Her father worked as a chemical engineer and her mother was a homemaker and later an English teacher at a local college. Once in a while, her mom will be on the Pretend Cooking Show by phone.

Jennifer Garner was raised Methodist, going to church every Sunday and attending Vacation Bible School. She once said that she and her sisters were not allowed to wear makeup, paint their nails, pierce their ears or dye their hair. Garner also has raised her three children in a local Methodist Church.

Garner studied theater at Denison University in Ohio, before moving to New York City. There she worked in the Roundabout Theatre Company and supplemented her income by working as a hostess in a restaurant on the Upper West Side.

She made her screen debut in 1995 in a TV movie called Zoya.

A few years later, Garner was married. And with then-husband, Scott Foley, she moved to Radcliffe Avenue in Pacific Palisades in the early 2000s. The couple split amicably in 2003, and the divorce was final a year later.

They had met on Felicity, when they played boyfriend-girlfriend during her three guest episodes. Garner’s fame took off when she starred on the hit series Alias. Garner can thank Palisades High graduate J.J. Abrams for creating both Felicity and Alias.

Alias ran from 2001 to 2006, with Garner starring as Sydney Bristow, a double agent for the Central Intelligence Agency. She won a 2002 Golden Globe award for best performance by an actress and a 2004 Screen Actors Guild Award for an Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series.

Her film career then took off and she landed roles in Catch Me if You Can (2002), Daredevil (2003) and 13 Going on 30 (2004).

She was married to actor Ben Affleck from 2005-2018. They have three children.

Garner continued to achieve commercial success with performances in the comedy-drama Juno (2007), in which she was nominated as Best Supporting Actress by the Online Film Critics Society and by the Gold Derby Awards for her heart-wrenching portrayal of a wife desperate to adopt a baby while her marriage is collapsing. She also appeared in the romantic comedies Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009) and Valentine’s Day (2010).

In the 2013 film Dallas Buyers Club, the actors, including Garner, were nominated together by SAG for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

David Edelstein of New York magazine said about her performance in Dallas Buyers Club: “It’s not a well-shaped role, but I’ve gotten to the point where I’m happy to see Garner in anything. She’s incapable of phoniness.”

Her most recent film, The Adam Project, was released in March. It reunited her with Mark Ruffalo. The two had worked together 18 years earlier in 13 Going on 30.

She has a number of projects coming up, including these two TV series: The Last Thing He Told Me and a reboot of Party Down.

Garner continues to balance the needs of her family, even as she’s one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actresses.

In 2013, she testified before the California Assembly Judiciary Committee in support of a bill that would protect celebrities’ children from harassment by photographers.

In 2014, Garner spoke in support of a “No Kids” policy, which was adopted by many media organizations and forbids publication of photos of celebrities’ children. Two sections of the state’s civil code were amended to place limits on how the paparazzi can intrude on celebrities’ lives.

In a lighter vein, Garner and her family have purchased their Christmas trees from the Palisades-YMCA lot. In a hilarious video on Instagram in 2019, Garner explained that a Christmas tree had just been delivered to her house, and it was just a smidge taller than the one she thought her family had chosen.

Starting with a close-up of Garner, the camera zooms out and a massive evergreen is revealed.

This past December, Garner hosted In Performance at the White House: Spirit of the Season for PBS alongside first lady Dr. Jill Biden.

Garner’s 50th birthday was this past April. She shared a clip of a pre-birthday surprise on Instagram, that she calls “a doozy.” Her childhood idol, Donny Osmond, showed up where she was sitting at a café in the Brentwood Country Mart.

The two hugged and Osmond presented her with a cake that read, “13 going on 50,” a nod to her film, 13 Going on 30. They then went on to sing a duet before a clearly overwhelmed Garner covered her face with a napkin. As of this writing, that clip has been seen more than 24-million times.

J.J. Abrams of both Felicity and Alias, was quoted in a 2016 Vanity Fair story talking about Garner.

“I don’t remember having more fun working with anyone than I’ve had working with her. She’s smart-funny — she makes you want to be funnier and smarter, and you know that when you throw the best you’ve got her way, she’ll make it better. No one’s perfect. But no one’s Jen Garner.”

Organizers of the Pacific Palisades 4th of July Parade are proud to have Jennifer Garner as this year’s Grand Marshal.

 

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Official Parade Program Will Come out this Week

Posted on June 28, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

The 4th of July official parade program, sponsored by the Palisades Americanism Parade Association (PAPA), will be in mailboxes this week.

Advertisers know that the money they spend in this publication goes to PAPA, a nonprofit that produces the parade and fireworks. Other local 4th of July publications do not donate to PAPA and this community event.

A big thank you to the people and businesses who support the nonprofit.

If a resident wants to know the parade lineup, it will be in the center of the official program.

This year’s program cover is a copy of a painting by Katie O’Neill.

One of the most talented artists in Pacific Palisades is O’Neill, who grew up here. Her paintings capture the local beauty of the ocean, the Santa Monica Mountains and the local community. This is her fourth year creating a cover for the Palisades Americanism Parade Association program.

Katie taught art in Malibu for 15 years, before returning to the Palisades in 2011. She has a studio at 15330 Antioch, where she paints and offers art lessons. Visit: oneillsfineart.com or call: (310) 459-1039 or email: [email protected].

 

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Lawns May Be Replaced through Rebate Program

Posted on June 27, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

BY REECE PASCOE

If a resident is thinking about redoing one lawn, because of drought restrictions,  take a look at the Turf Replacement Program, offered by the LADWP. It is one of the many water-saving, energy-savings programs offered by this agency.

The program was brought to our attention from a reader who wrote, “LADWP has been emphasizing its turf replacement program. This program pays a rebate to homeowners for replacing grass in their front, back or side yards with California native plants and rock garden features etc. However, one of the requirements of this program is to cover most of the beds and soil with mulch (decomposed granite, rocks or pebbles don’t qualify).”

The reader questioned using mulch in high wildfire severity zones. He said he had brought it to the attention of LADWP, but that they can’t provide any exemptions to the requirements.

LADWP likes to use the word turf as a synonym for grass/lawn. It does not mean “AstroTurf” or synthetic grass, which is environmentally unfriendly (see the box below).

It is not the LADWP that offers the program, but the Metropolitan water district. “Funding levels are comprised of a base rebate provided by Metropolitan Water District and possible additional funding by participating water agencies.”

It is a little confusing, but the Metropolitan water district is the main proponent behind the program. The LADWP is also offering the same program, but with a little difference on the rebate.

One could conceivably apply to both agencies.

The LADWP program offers $3 per square foot replacement, with a minimum size of 250 square feet. The maximum size that qualifies is 5,000 square feet for residential properties.

That program also offers $3 square foot for commercial properties with the minimum size of 250 square feet, with the maximum size 50,000 square feet.

The LADWP program also offers $1 a square foot for commercial properties with a minimum size of 50,001 square feet – with a maximum of seven acres.

The Metropolitan Water District program offers $2 per year for 250 square feet to a maximum of 5,000 square feet.

The 250 square feet must be grass “turf” and although the minimum is 250. If a resident has less, the entire lawn must be removed to qualify.

To receive the money, one must apply and receive approval, which reserves funds for the project. There are many requirements to this program, and a resident should read the full list.

One requirement includes planting three trees per 100 square feet in the project area

The city is giving free trees. All one has to do is apply online and in 8-10 weeks they will be delivered, there is a limit of seven trees per household.

Before planting, know that turf-looking grasses or invasive plants do not qualify even if they are drought tolerant or California natives.

The ground has to be permeable to air and water, no bare soil and no synthetic turf is allowed. There are many other stipulations to this program such as on-site inspections.

The DWP site explains three ways to remove a lawn: chemical, manual and by using mulch click here.

The most effective is the mulch method and is achieved by cutting the grass very short, watering it, putting cardboard or newspapers on top. A layer of fertilizer or manure is placed atop of the cardboard. Then mulch is applied on top. (Also, one will have to create a mote to help with water run-off.) This process will take three to eight months depending on various factors. There are five-minute videos that explain the whole process step by step.

One reason mulch is a good idea is that the city is offering it free. One can pick it up at any of the 10 sites or have it delivered. The delivery option is based on a first-come, first-serve basis and there are a few requirements.

After the lawn is gone, one can choose drought tolerant landscaping, from an authorized plant list, and there is an approved set of guidelines. There are many pictures of lawns to help guide one in the landscaping process.

DWP responded to CTN’s questions about using mulch and said that agency partnered with L.A. Sanitation and Environment and L.A. Bureau of Street Services.

DWP spokesperson Ellen Cheng wrote in a June 22 email “LASAN creates high-quality mulch from the green waste collected from homes across the City. StreetsLA creates high-quality mulch from tree pruning operations.”

She was asked about mulch being a fire hazard. “LADWP encourages the use of mulch to help retain moisture in the soil, suppress weeds, keep the soil cool, and make the garden bed look more attractive.”

Regarding brush clearance Cheng directed us to the LAFD site. “Cut vegetation may be machine processed (chipped) and spread as ground cover (mulch) so it does not exceed three inches in depth within 30 feet of structures and no more than six inches in depth 30+ feet from structures/buildings. Machine processed/chipped material shall not be placed within 10 feet of combustible fences or road surfaces.”

 

 

Artificial Turf Not the Answer for Lawn Replacement

Artificial turf uses polyester which is made through a chemical reaction involving coal, petroleum (from crude oil), air and water.

Artificial turf has many problems assisted with it, making it counterintuitive to being eco-friendly.

Yes, one does not need to water the artificial turf and that is a big reason for sales especially in arid climates. Though one may think that they are doing right by Mother Earth the truth is it will do more harm in almost all circumstances.

The amount of plastic used in making it is staggering.

One can’t recycle the plastic used in artificial turf.

The plastic pellets used with some Astro turf escape into the environment. (If you have ever played on turf, you know your shoes are filled with the pellets, socks covered in the plastic grass.)

Installation is a problem due to the concrete foundation and drainage needed to be set up.

The “island effect” means the turf soaks up the heat and retains it. It makes ground like an oven. A 90-minute soccer game in 100 degrees, is about 10-20 deg hotter on the turf, shoes start to melt.

The island effect is a big problem in big cities raising the temp during the day, because roads buildings and plastic Astro turf retain the heat throughout the night.

If you decided to get rid of a lawn, turf is not a great environmental choice.

 

 

Posted in Environmental | 2 Comments

Giving A Beach Day to Kids Who Have Never Had One

Posted on June 27, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

Mercedes (left) and Vanessa Pellegrini of Vittorios Ristorante accept a check from Auxiliary member Joanna Curtis (right) to help sponsor beach day for kids who have never gone.

Vittorio Ristorante & Pizzeria, the Sons of the American Legion and American Legion Post 283 Auxiliary is teaming up with Claris Heath to offer a beach day on Saturday, July 23, for kids who live in the Lost Angeles area, but have never gone.

Claris Health, a community-based nonprofit that has been serving the community since 1976 offers health services, screenings and social services referrals to communities, such as Leimert Park, Vermont Harbor, South LA, Hollywood, Echo Park, Inglewood, Long Beach, Compton, Watts, and Lynwood.

The idea for a day at the beach came from Vittorio owner, Vanessa Pellegrini, who every December hosts a special luncheon and provides gifts for less fortunate children and teens.

She said that the chaperones told her about an incident on the bus ride to last year’s luncheon, which was held at the restaurant on Marquez.

The kids, who were from Lynwood, were on a bus to the Palisades for the December luncheon. As the bus came out of the McClure tunnel, “The kids on the right side of the bus RAN to the left side because they had NEVER seen the ocean. Apparently, the yells and screams were deafening!

“When the administrators and the rest of the holiday crew heard this, we were in disbelief,” Pellegrini said. “How could you live 10 miles away from the Pacific Ocean and never go?! Crazy for us since we see it every day and take it for granted, but for them…a spectacular event. Truly humbling….and from this story and incident came our call to action.”

The idea was pitched to Claris, who was on board, but then the challenges started.

“We found out that not only most of the parents/guardians not have a car, but a majority didn’t have a license or even know how to drive,” Pellegrini said, noting the reason the kids had never been to the beach, started to make sense. “The bus takes you to Santa Monica, but it’s quite a trek, and well, bringing the family and a picnic basket may prove to be too much for families who are barely putting food on the table.”

It became apparent a bus was needed and money raised. The bus will hold 100 and priority will be given to those who have never been to a beach.  Parents will be invited, and waivers will have to be signed.

Volunteers will set up games and there will be a tent for First Aid and a nurse on duty. Pellegrini would like to give all the participating kids a backpack that includes a beach towel, sand toys, sunscreen and water.

The restaurant will donate lunches to the volunteers and bring extras for families who forgot or need lunch/snack/drinks.

If a resident would like to help Pellegrini, the Auxiliary and the Sons, give these kids a day at the beach, contact her at Vittorios Ristorante & Pizzeria, 166646 Marquez Avenue. (310) 459-9316.

Posted in Community, Kids/Parenting | 2 Comments