(Unfortunately, as of the date we go to press, they are a little behind on their updates.) The updates include the name and telephone number of the College’s ombudsperson (Bob Miller – 310-678-6917) who should be contacted with any complaints, comments or questions. They also provide a link to a site that gives sound volume readings from the three sound monitors that have been installed in Culver Crest. (http://www.atsconsulting.com/WLAC_Data/).
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The word REPAIR is capitalized because it’s now a reality. We no longer have to ask when is it going to happen. Now the question is, “When is it going to end?” The original estimate was this month but because of technicalities, mostly brought on by the City of Los Angeles, the completion won’t be until June 26th. However, all roadblocks have apparently been removed (no pun intended) and I’m not talking about the roadblock on Tellefson. That will remain closed until the end of the project because of equipment movement.
The EIR (Environmental Impact Report) release date has yet been moved again, this time to June of 2008. Mike Bohlke, County Supervisor Yvonne Burke’s “right hand man” promises that it will be “enormous!”
EIR is short for an Environmental Impact Report. It is a document which states what the potential impact would be of a given project. Each project has its own particular set of impacts on the neighboring environment, but the impacts most often looked at include noise, air quality, visual impact, traffic, etc.
The EIR will also contain mitigation measures to constrain the impacts to tolerable levels. When an EIR is released to the public, it is called a Draft EIR. The public then has a finite period of time to comment on it. These comments are then reviewed and (hopefully) reworked into the next draft of the EIR, called the Final EIR. The spacing and timing of the drafts and comment periods of an EIR are legislated by the California Environmental Quality Act, also known as CEQA (pronounced “see-kwah”).
Finally after preparation of the Final EIR and preliminary hearings by the Planning Commission, the EIR is wrapped up and presented before the County Board of Supervisors for approval. It is at this presentation that the public has one last chance to comment on the EIR’s contents and adequacy.
It is important to remember that the EIR is just a study document. Its purpose is to inform the public and the decision makers of the ramifications of their proposed decision. It has no teeth after the project is approved. The EIR informs the public about what special individualized changes should be made to better regulate a proposed project. When a project is proposed, the project’s plans, whether they be for the expansion of a college, the development of a building, or the formulation of zoning laws for future oil drilling, are first studied in the EIR to determine what kinds of impacts should be anticipated and how to reduce those impacts to tolerable levels. Thus, if no one comments or complains about what the EIR reveals, then the plans which have been studied will seem ready for approval. This is why an EIR is so important: it is your opportunity to influence the scale and scope of a particular project.
Elections are held at the last general meeting of the year. Anyone can nominate you, as long as someone ‘second’s your name. Elections are always for all nine board seats, though lack of nominees may result in a vote for the slate of candidates.
The CCNA has general meetings about once per quarter. Our Fall/Winter meeting usually has elections for board members. Click here for our calendar.