It’s the bi-weekly report from the City Manager’s Office with all the updates on Police, Fire, Parks and Recreation, Public Works and Transportation.
• Beacon Award – The City has been recognized with a Beacon Spotlight Award for Agency Energy Savings from the Institute for Local Government. The Beacon Award recognizes an agency’s holistic approach to addressing climate change.
Participating agencies are required to complete each of following five elements to win a Beacon Award:
1. Agency Greenhouse Gas Reductions
2. Agency Electricity Savings
3. Agency Natural Gas Savings
4. Community Greenhouse Gas Reduction
5. Activities in each of the Institute’s ten Sustainability Best Practice Areas
Culver City was recognized with a Beacon Spotlight Award for reducing its energy use by 17%. Mayor Jim B. Clarke and Council Members Meghan Sahli-Wells and Thomas Small received the award on behalf of the City at last week’s annual League of California Cities Conference.
City Clerk’s Office
• Election Day is November 8th! – Culver City’s Special Municipal Election is consolidated with the County of Los Angeles. Voters receive one ballot to vote on City, County, and state measures, in addition to determining the next President of the United States. Remember to Vote for the City’s following four ballot measures which will come at the end of your ballot!
Measure CW would establish a parcel tax to protect groundwater supplies, fund infrastructure improvements related to drainage and preserve open space. (Requires 2/3 of the vote for approval) www.cleanculvercity.com
Measure CA would amend the City Charter to change authority over the Fire Chief and Police Chief from the City Council to the City Manager.
Measure CB would prohibit anyone who has resigned from the City Council from running for the City Council for two years following their resignation.
Measure CD would give the City Council the authority to determine the dates of regular City Council meetings.
For more information about Culver City’s ballot measures, please go to our website.
Fire Department
• Paramedic Graduation – Congratulations to Firefighters Stephen Lovas and Grant Harris on their completion of Paramedic School. They participated in the Paramedic Training Institute’s six-month program. The program includes over 1,100 hours of work comprised of lectures, labs, hospital based clinical studies, and a field internship.
• Culver City Firefighters Wear “PINK” – Culver City Firefighters continue to wear pink to support those whose lives have been touched by breast cancer. Join them and show your support by purchasing a CCFD breast cancer awareness T-shirt. Through October 31st, pink T-shirts in men’s and women’s sizes are available at Fire Station 1 (9600 Culver Boulevard) for $15 each. 100% of the T-shirt sales proceeds will go directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
• Halloween Safety Tips – As you prepare for Halloween this year, the Culver City Fire Department wants you to keep a few safety tips in mind to ensure a fun time for all.
• Purchase costumes made of flame resistant or flame retardant material.
• Provide children with glow sticks or flashlights to help them to see and to be seen by drivers. Decorate costumes and bags with reflective tape or stickers.
• Remind children to cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks. Look left, right, and left again before crossing. Walk; do not run across the street.
• Keep decorations well away from all open flames and heat sources.
• It is safest to use a battery-operated candle or glow stick in jack-o’-lanterns.
• When driving, slow down and be especially alert in residential neighborhoods. Children are excited on Halloween and may move in unpredictable ways.
More safety tips are available at www.culvercity.org/fire.
• California Great Shake Out – On October 20th, City Staff and local schools participated with 10.5 million Californians in the Great ShakeOut. At 10:20 am, City Staff practiced how to drop, cover, and hold on. Staff then evacuated from their respective buildings taking with them their assigned emergency backpacks and met in pre-designated meeting places.
• CERT Training – Culver City Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) will offer Refresher Skills Training for Current CERT Members in March 2017 at the Culver City Fire Department Training Facility. Sign up for one of the following classes by visiting www.culvercitycert.org/train/refresher-skills-training:
Saturday, March 11, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (District 1)
Saturday, March 18, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (District 2)
Saturday, March 25, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (District 3)
The training will cover the skills taught in the Basic CERT Training, without lectures. Two Basic CERT Training courses will be offered in 2017—one in June 2017 and the other in October 2017.
• Daylight Savings Time Reminder – Daylight Savings Time ends Sunday, November 6th. The Culver City Fire Department reminds you to check your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Smoke alarms should be replaced every 10 years. To find out how old a smoke alarm is, look at the manufacture date of on the back of the alarm. Make sure you know how old all of the smoke alarms are in your home.
Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department
• Culver City Volunteer Opportunities – There are many upcoming volunteer opportunities in the Culver City community. For more information and to find out how you can volunteer, please contact Jill Thomsen in the volunteer office at 310-253-6722 or by email at [email protected]. Habitat for Humanity has a project build in Culver City scheduled for February 2017. For those interested in volunteering for this project, Habitat for Humanity has an online sign-up process. The minimum age for this opportunity is 16, and the online process takes about 15 minutes so please allow yourself time to complete the sign-up process. Access the Habitat site by going to http://habitatla.volunteerhub.com/SignIn.aspx and creating a profile. Habitat for Humanity will also be having an outreach meeting on Thursday, October 27th from 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm at Culver City Presbyterian Church at 11269 W. Washington Boulevard, at the intersection of Globe Avenue.
• Veterans Memorial Complex Rental Operation – The Culver City Unified School District will be presenting its annual performances and events in Veterans Memorial Building, while the Robert Frost Auditorium is being renovated. The first performance will be a Fall Music Concert presented by Culver City High School’s Academy of Visual and Performing Arts (AVPA) on Thursday, October 27th at 7:00 pm. For more information, please visit the AVPA website at www.avpa.org.
• Parks, Recreation and Community Service Commission Highlights from October 12th – The Commission: 1) Received updates from the Ad Hoc Subcommittees and representative appointees to various outside Associations and City Committees; 2) Conducted another in a series of planning discussions regarding Community Conversations – Topic #7, which has a new working title: “Growing Up In, or Attending School in Culver City: A Continuing Conversation on Culture and Race”, and is tentatively scheduled for February 7, 2017; 3) Reviewed and made recommendations regarding upcoming agenda items to be considered by the Commission and its Ad Hoc Subcommittees; and 4) Adjourned to the Special Meeting of Saturday, October 22nd for the Commission’s Annual Tour of Culver City Parks and Facilities.
Police Department
• “Coffee with a Cop” – On Thursday, October 13th, the Police Department hosted a “Coffee with a Cop” community event at the new Starbucks at 6150 Slauson Avenue. The event was a great success and attended by many local community members as well as by Council Member Meghan Sahli-Wells. Plenty of officers from the Department were present and exchanged ideas and thoughts about law enforcement with many of the attendees.
• Fox Hills Neighborhood Watch & Community Forum – Also on October 13th, at 7 pm, Lieutenant Sam Agaiby attended the Fox Hills Neighborhood Watch meeting at the New Song Church LA, 5875 Green Valley Circle. Lt. Agaiby spoke to a group from the Neighborhood Watch Program about current crime trends, safety tips, as well as the many ways the Police Department reaches out to the community for the sake of building trust and friendly partnerships.
• Safe Routes to School Program – During the weeks of October 17th and the 24th, our Police Officers participated in the annual “Safe Routes to School Program”. The program helps educate students on the enforcement of the rules of the road for pedestrians and bicyclists around all schools within the Culver City Unified School District. The goal is to promote traffic safety for students that walk, bicycle and roll to and from school.
Public Works Department
• Culver City in Line for Future Grant Funding! – Staff attended Thursday’s Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission (SMBRC) Governing Board Meeting. Councilmember Meghan Sahli-Wells (representing the Westside Cities Council of Governments as an Alternate Board Member) also attended. At this meeting, SMBRC’s staff presented its recommendations for project award for this current (and last) round of Prop 84 projects.
This latest round was for one-half of the amount allocated to the SMBRC – $9 million. Ten qualifying projects totaling requests for over $17 million were submitted. Of these ten qualifying projects, five were recommended for funding including Culver City’s Culver Boulevard Infiltration/Retention Regional Project at a funding level of $3.3 million! After hearing the SMBRC’s staff report, the Board unanimously approved staff’s recommendations – meaning that Culver City’s project is now recommended to the State Board for funding. The final decision will be up to the State Board, and the City is optimistic. The City should have final word in about one month. (Prop 84, the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006 was approved by California voters on November 7, 2006 and allocates $90 million to the State Water Resources Control Board for coastal water quality improvement projects. Of the $90 million, $18 million was made available to the SMBRC for projects that protect the Santa Monica Bay and coastal waters.)
• Culver City’s Urban Forest Master Plan Award from Southern California ASLA – Culver City’s Urban Forest Master Plan was the recipient of a merit award recognized by the American Society of Landscape Architects – Southern California Chapter. The Master Plan was submitted by the City’s consultant on the project, Artecho, on behalf of the City. Since being adopted by the City Council on March 28, 2016, this is the second award for the newly adopted Master Plan. On August 10, the City received recognition from the California Urban Forests Council at its annual conference under the category “Astounding Urban Forestry Project Award”.
Transportation Department
• Sustainability week at Santa Monica College – was celebrated from October 17 to 21, 2016. On Tuesday October 18th, the Transportation Department participated in a Sustainability Resource Fair. 64% of SMC students get to campus by alternative modes. They know that a bus, train, carpool, bike or walk saves money and reduces the stress of driving and parking. The Transportation Department encouraged students to take transit as a truly sustainable way to get around. Staff was on hand to answer questions and pass out information to attendees curious about Culver CityBus routes and services.
• Job Fair – On Friday, October 21st, the Transportation Department joined Human Resources to participate in the 4th Annual Fall Classic Hiring Spree. The event, held at Los Angeles City College, was attended by over 5,000 job seekers and employers. Staff was on hand to answer questions and distribute information to attendees curious about working with City of Culver City.
• The Transportation Department is pleased to announce the successful completion of the annual California Highway Patrol (“CHP”) inspection! – The team has successfully passed the rigorous and very important CHP inspections for 26 consecutive years!!!
The CHP annually inspects the transit bus and paratransit bus fleet for technical deficiencies, operational safety, maintenance records, operator time cards, DMV Pull notices and the drug & alcohol programs for compliance over a three day period. A Bi-Annual Inspection of Terminal (BIT) is also performed for the refuse vehicle fleet inspecting the same criteria as the transit bus fleet. However, due to the 20 plus year record of compliance, CHP performed an inspection of records.
This is a wonderful Department achievement. The positive outcome is an excellent testament to the dedication and team effort for the statutory compliance necessary to operate a public transit operation. Special acknowledgement and thanks go out to the following people for their outstanding contributions and dedication to this effort: Fleet Services Supervisor, Dean Familton; Fleet Services Supervisor, Andy Eckert; Transit Operations Manager, Samantha Blackshire; Human Resources Analyst, Amy Webber; and Administrative Secretary, Teri Calandrino.
• Limited Edition Centennial TAP Cards – While Supplies last! – Centennial TAP (Transit Access Pass) cards now available for $2 at either of our two physical sales locations. Come Visit us in person at our City Hall or Transportation offices. Cards only available while supplies last. Get yours today!
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