December 10, 2015
I t's Your Venice -- Get Involved!
The Great Venice Toy Drive and Holiday Festival!

The Great Venice Toy Drive & Holiday Festival, a project of the Venice Neighborhood Council ("VNC"), Vera Davis McClendon Youth and Family Center ("Vera Davis"), and the City of Los Angeles is underway! The Great Venice Toy Drive & Holiday Festival is a two-part holiday event for Venice stakeholders. The first part is the toy drive. VNC and Vera Davis will collect new, unwrapped, non-violent toys at various locations in Venice through December 17, 2015. Then, on Saturday December 19, 2015, the VNC and Vera Davis will give the toys away to local kids, during a fun-filled day at Oakwood Recreation Center

Toys can be dropped off through December 17, 2015 at: 

(1)  Abbot's Habit, 1401 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
(2)  CaliSons, 2013 Ocean Front Walk
(3)  HUZZAH!, 2010 Lincoln Blvd.
(4)   Le Cellier Wine Bar & Restaurant , 417 Washington Blvd.
(5)  Oscar's Cerveteca, 523 Rose Ave.
(6)  Superba Food & Bread, 1900 Lincoln Blvd.
(7) the  VNC booth at the Venice Farmers' Market (Fridays from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.), intersection of Venice Blvd. and Venice Way, 
(8) the  VNC's Board meeting on December 15, Westminster Elementary School, 1010 Abbot Kinney Blvd. and
(9) Councilman Bonin's Westchester Office, 7166 W. Manchester Ave.
    (Make sure to look for the bin with the reindeer riding the bicycle!)

The toy drive will then culminate in a free holiday festival to be held at Oakwood on December 19, 2015 from 10:00 a.m. through 2:00 p.m. At the festival, children up to sixteen years of age present with a parent or guardian will be able to select a toy. (First come, first served.) Santa will be available for photos. Kids will be able to engage in arts and crafts or play on a moon bounce or in the snow. There will also be facepainting as well as a caricature artist and deejay. Food will be provided.
Interested in helping, donating, sponsoring, sharing an idea, or having a collection bin at your company/place of employment? Contact  [email protected] .

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Saturday!  LADWP Customer Service Saturdays

LOS ANGELES- The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) will hold Customer Service Saturday this month at four of its Customer Service Centers on March 14, 2015, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Event locations are the Van Nuys, Watts, West Los Angeles and Crenshaw Customer Service Centers..


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Tues., Dec. 15:  Your Board of Officers Meets

With Vice President Marc Saltzberg presiding, the Board will hear news about upcoming Neighborhood Council elections, the Great Venice Toy Drive (see article below) and various actions affecting our community, including development proposals recommended by the Land Use and Planning Committee and the Treasurer's monthly report.  

Local government and LAPD representatives will also provide updates on status of work in their respective departments and monthly law enforcement reports and issues.  

Please bring toys!  We are collecting toys for the Dec. 19 Great Venice Toy Drive and Holiday Festival; see the article above for further information.  

Date :   Tues., Dec. 15
Time :  7:00pm - 10:00pm
Place :  Westminster School Auditorium
           1010 Abbott Kinney, enter on Westminster
           Venice, CA 90291                      

All Venetians and stakeholders are welcome.  Refreshments will be served.

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Wed., Dec. 16: Countywide Park Needs Assessment Meeting

The County of Los Angeles is currently studying park and recreation facilities across the County, and the City of Los Angeles, to better understand how to improve, expand, and make parks more accessible. The County is in the process of assessing park needs in 189 "Study Areas" across the County, including 43 "Study Areas" in the City of Los Angeles and various adjacent unincorporated areas.

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El Nino:  Be Prepared!
Coastal Venice has been spared - so far - from flooding due to confluence of the Gulf of Alaska's northwest swell and a southwest swell causing high surf on our beaches.  
Be prepared!  Sand and sandbags are available at the following locations:
Fire Station 63 - Venice: Sandbags and sand
1930 Shell Avenue
Fire Station 5 - Westchester / Playa del Rey: Sandbags and sand
8900 S. Emerson Avenue
Fire Station 67 - Playa Vista / Playa del Rey: Sandbags only; 5451 Playa Vista Drive
Fire Station 62 - Mar Vista: Sandbags only; 11970 Venice Blvd.
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Heal Healthy at Home - Meals on Wheels West

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Public Safety Committee Helps Residents Stay Safe
The Public Safety Committee of the VNC has created pressure-sensitive "window clings" for residents to display on the inside of glass doors and windows. The clings are designed to warn away thieves and trespassers looking for homes to burglarize and to serve as a reminder to residents to remember to lock their doors and windows when they leave home. The clings are free to any Venice resident at our VNC Farmer's Market table or any official Neighborhood Watch Block Captains may request them by emailing [email protected].


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L.A. Department of Building and Safety has an App for That
The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety offers LADBS Go. An iPhone® and Android™ application that enables you to easily:
  • Request Inspections
  • Review Permits and Inspections
  • Report Violations
  • Find nearby Service Centers
  • Get the latest Wait Times for all our Service Center counters.      
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Venice Canals Footbridge Repairs Approved and in Progress
This work was originally requested 9 years ago! Everyone involved in working to make it happen thanks City Council Member Bonin and his team for their efforts in expediting the engineering and rounding up the funding.

                For more information and schedule detail, click here. . .              
Be a Hero to Our Homeless Heroes
"Homes for Heroes" is a program to engage our landlord community to rent to our veterans. The resource we are using to house our veterans is called the Veterans Assistance for Supportive Housing or VASH.VASH provide homeless veterans with a long-term rental subsidy and supportive services so that the veteran retains and succeeds in housing. The City has over 1,000 VASH vouchers to house homeless veterans in 2015.

For information on how you can be a Hero for Heroes, please contact Ms. Tina Estedabadi of the United Way's Homes for Heroes campaign at [email protected] or 213 808-6608.


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First Fridays:  Electronic Recycling at Farmers Market
Free of charge, and taking place every first Friday, the Electronic Recycling Solutions Truck will be onsite at the Venice Farmers' Market, 7:00am - 11:00am , 500 N. Venice Blvd. Venice, CA 90291.



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Receive Bi-Weekly City Planning Early Notification Reports
One way to avoid the surprise of sudden construction next door is to learn about it in advance.
You can make your voice known to the City and to building permit applicants before it's too late to appeal!

Sign up to receive the City Planning Department's bi-weekly email, which lists new applications filed for construction in Venice.  
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Your Venice Neighborhood Council Wants You!
The Neighborhood Council system is growing.  VNC is, too.  Learn more about us  here .

In addition to seeking new Board members and Committee Chairs, we are always looking for good people to serve on VNC committees.  

Now is the perfect time to get involved!  

For more information, contact  Mike Newhouse  or  Marc Saltzberg .              
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Venice Neighborhood Council
PO Box 550
Venice, CA 90294
310-421-8627