PXP Oil Field

Posted by Antoine Durr on September 10, 2007
Posted in: PXP Oil. Leave a comment
The County is in the process of composing their Environmental Impact Report (EIR), the first public draft of which should be released between  October and November 2007.  If you haven’t yet done so, you can visit http://planning.lacounty.gov/spBH.htm to get a complete overview, and especially download the Meet-and-Greet PowerPoint PDF, which nicely explains all the terms surrounding this EIR process.  Prepare yourself that when the draft of the EIR is released, there will be a 60-day comment period.

Your CCNA board is actively monitoring any documents released by the County, and has responded to each one from a legal standpoint.  We consider it crucial that they recognize the needs of residents of Culver Crest.  While the County’s intentions are good, issues seem to consistently fall off the back of the document.

Hillside Damage on Tellefson Road

Posted by Antoine Durr on September 10, 2007
Posted in: Hillside. Leave a comment
GOOD NEWS- PART 3.   There was a special Culver City Council Meeting held Thursday night, August 30, in order to award the hillside repair contract to Malcolm Drilling.  It was approved by the City Council and the work should commence by October 1.  The project is moving forward and the steel to reinforce the hill has been ordered.  The job will take approximately 100 working days, which should bring it to March 2008 to complete.   Let’s all hope it is so.

The completed hillside will have supports, both wood and concrete on three levels.  The concrete wall will be flanked by two sets of wood pilings, drilled approximately 45 feet into the ground.  The damaged property will more than likely have to be accessed from the top (Cranks Road) as well as the bottom but there are no plans to store equipment and materials there.  Regarding the house on Cranks the city now owns, a study is being done to determine whether it has to be razed or if it can be taken down and if so, whether to move it and put it back once the work is complete.  There is considerably more value to the property with the house on it, of course, but it may be too costly to move and return it.  Tellefson Road will remain closed as it will be needed for a staging area and for storage of equipment used on the job.  The rainy season might hamper some of the work being done, but unless it is an unusually heavy rainy season, it will not stop the work from being accomplished.

Regarding the FEMA money, the Office of Emergency Services (OES) has sent a letter to FEMA, which is a necessary procedure.  This letter recommended that FEMA accept the appeal from Culver City and to allow the time extension needed to qualify the city for funds.  While FEMA does not have to comply with the OES recommendation, Culver City is cautiously optimistic that it will receive funding from FEMA.  

Culver City Sewer Project

Posted by Antoine Durr on September 10, 2007
Posted in: Sewers. Leave a comment
As many of you already know, especially those who use Cranks and Northgate, the C.C. sewer project is well underway.  These streets have been torn up and new sewer pipes have been installed.  These two streets will eventually be ground down and resurfaced, probably before the end of the year.

The timetable for the balance of the sewer project is as follows:
Whitburn- between Overland and Drakewood       September 17 thru September 28
Flaxton- between Overland and Drakewood   October 1 thru October 16
Drakewood- between Ranch and Flaxton         October 17 thru October 30
Flaxton- between Drakewood and Youngworth     November 1 thru November 6
Eveward- between Bernardo and Ranch       November 7 thru November 16

Theses streets will be closed to through traffic but local residents will be allowed access to their driveways.  There may be temporary blockage while workers are working directly in front of a particular house but the inconvenience will be short.  The residents of these streets will receive notice of this potential inconvenience at least 2 days in advance of the work starting on their street.

Roadword Delayed / Resurfacing

Posted by Antoine Durr on September 10, 2007
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The traffic safety roadwork on Ranch Road has been delayed partially due to the sewer line repairs taking place on the Crest.  However, we will be receiving some of the balance of the project in the coming weeks.  For example, posted advisory speed limit signage will soon be installed on Ranch Road.  Also, there will be a double yellow stripe marking lanes up and down the curve at the top of Ranch Road along with the raised street deflectors.  In addition, other new striping will soon be done on Ranch as well as surface painted stop signs.
There will also be a resurfacing project on the corner of Ranch Road and Overland Avenue.  This will smooth out the bumps at that corner.  Then the street will be realigned to make approaching that intersection safer.  If you have thoughts about how that intersection could be improved, please send your suggestions to culvercity99 (at) aol (dot) com or attend the meeting that the city will soon be announcing that will address this project.  
According to studies taken by the Culver City Engineering Department, the new red curbs have resulted in an improvement in safer driving conditions.  The rest of the project will provide even greater safety for residents and guests.

4th Annual Culver Crest Halloween Party

Posted by Antoine Durr on September 10, 2007
Posted in: Announcements. Leave a comment
The Saturday night before Halloween, October 27th, the CCNA will join Leslie Ekker in staging our annual Halloween Fest on Lugo Way.  ALL ARE INVITED.  Bring something for at least six people to eat, as food is always a la carte and pot luck.  Festivities commence at 6 pm.  There will be fun, delights, scary stuff, decorations and gosh knows what all.  Look for the flyer a few weeks before the party that will be distributed throughout the Crest.

If you can volunteer to set up decorations, tents and stuff, please contact Howard Lichtman at 310-202 8001.  It will be greatly appreciated.

Notice of General Meeting

Posted by Antoine Durr on September 10, 2007
Posted in: Meetings. Leave a comment
NOTICE OF GENERAL MEETING 
WEDNESDAY, September 19, 2007 6:30 P.M. at the El Rincon School Cafetorium
 
NOMINATIONS / NOMINATIONS / NOMINATIONS
 
It’s that time of year again, and your Board of Directors is up for re-election at our upcoming November meeting.  This year, nominations for the Board of Directors will be of the open nominations variety.  Any person running will have to be nominated in open assembly at our September 19th meeting, and seconded.  This means that each candidate will run separately for office, and the nine persons receiving the most number of votes will sit on the Board.  At this meeting, anyone may nominate any member of the Culver Crest Neighborhood Association to run for a seat on the Board of Directors (officers are chosen by the Board after the election).  Any person over 18 years old living on the Crest or owning property on the Crest is eligible to be a member.  Dues are not required to be a member as they are voluntary.  The actual elections will occur at the November 28, 2007 meeting. 

We anxiously invite anyone with an urge to help their community to step forward and seek a seat on the Board. 

In addition, we have invited the candidates for the upcoming Culver City School Board Election to meet our residents.  Please come and meet your candidates for this important election to be held in November.  Other topics to be discussed at this General Meeting will include the Hillside Repair, the Culver City Sewer Project, update of Neighborhood Watch activities, the West L. A. College berm issue, and any topic or issue brought up by our members.
 

Proposed Development Along Sepulveda

Posted by Antoine Durr on July 28, 2007
Posted in: Development. Leave a comment
This project, proposed to run South on Sepulveda from Sawtelle to Slauson and Jefferson, has generated a great deal of controversy.  The City has established an oversight committee known as the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) and one of its members is our own CCNA Board member, Howard Lichtman, who is an architect and well qualified to comment on the project.  On June 27th, the CAC held a meeting with Culver City residents.  Bob Champion presented his latest project proposals, including renderings and daylight analysis studies.  
 
Many citizens vocalized their discontent with the project, raising concerns over increased traffic, school population enrollment increases, need for additional city services, and the very real possibility that Culver City would lose its small town feel and the mom and pop type businesses that currently occupy that stretch.
 
By the end of the evening, the CAC recommended to the C.C. Redevelopment Agency that the Champion Development project be put on hold and that the City Planning Division needs to develop a Sepulveda Blvd. Corridor Specific Plan that will re-examine and re-zone this area to reduce the allowable building height and consider reducing the allowable units per acre.  The current zoning allows for a 56 foot tall building with 65 residential units per acre.  Obviously, much more to come on this issue.
 
Your CCNA Board has yet to take a stance on this issue as we are waiting to see what concrete proposals will be offered before weighing in.  If you have any thoughts, we’d love to have you express them directly to us

L.A. Sewer Project

Posted by Antoine Durr on July 28, 2007
Posted in: Sewers. Leave a comment
There is another sewer project beginning shortly.  The City of Los Angeles has funded a project to rehabilitate the sewers that run under West Los Angeles College and south under the Crest, running past Fox Hills Mall and used by the Crest Neighborhood.  The project is a clean out and then a replacement of the lining, intended to upgrade service and any noxious odors.  This restored sewer line will last for the next hundred years.  
 
The local service access point will be near the entrance to West Los Angeles College in the maintenance parking lot.  A 16’ sound wall will be constructed around the project and the new haul road (temporary and later permanent access road) will be used for construction traffic.  While it is anticipated that this project will take place almost entirely underground, it will still require some 5 large trucks per day to haul away the detritus of decades needed to prepare the tunnel for the new liner, which will consist of concrete and plastic.  The project is expected to take some three years.  The City of Los Angeles has committed that there will be no interruption of service and will not cause any other inconvenience including noise, traffic or odor.  The project is projected to last through 2010.

Local Sewer Repair Started

Posted by Antoine Durr on July 28, 2007
Posted in: Sewers. Leave a comment

Culver City has commenced its repair of our local sewers.  The initial phase of this work is scheduled to be done on Smiley, Commonwealth and Blackwelder.  As the project progresses, the crews will begin work on the Crest  streets.  Construction on the Crest is due to start in mid July 2007.  The City intends to send out notices to those residents directly affected by the work.