The Nachbar Report
City Manager’s Office
Cultural Affairs Foundation – At the second architectureTALKS fundraiser for Vets Auditorium last week, there was a discussion and tour with Steven Ehrlich, founding partner of Ehrlich Architects, and Whitney Wyatt, his lead project manager on the Kirk Douglas Theatre. Thomas Small was moderator as the challenges of converting the former Streamline Moderne Culver Theatre into the 300-seat Douglas were reviewed.
A third architectureTALKS is planned for Sunday, June 7, featuring wHY creative director Kulapat Yantrasast.
Community Development Dept.
Maple Block Meat Co. – A permit has been issued for a new Texas-style BBQ restaurant, 3973 Sepulveda Blvd.
Westfield Culver City – Permits have been issued for two new retail stores, Kids Foot Locker and Adidas.
Mega Pizza & Grille – A permit has been issued for a new restaurant, 11028 Washington Blvd.
Block Grant Program – The city’s Block Grant project submission and request for funding for fiscal year 2015/2016 were transmitted five weeks ago.
Fire Dept.
Captain’s Academy – Chief David White participated in the 28th annual Los Angeles Area Fire Chiefs Assn.’s Captain’s Academy as the main facilitator and presenter last week. The Academy is for prospective and new fire captains from agencies throughout Los Angeles County. It provides attendees with an opportunity to hear directly from many different chiefs on a range of topics. Classes focused on leadership, relevant laws, change management, problem solving and customer service. Students learned about the current challenges in the fire service and the role fire captains play in fostering positive outcomes for the communities they serve.
Simulator Training –For one week, members of the department underwent extensive simulator training provided and funded by the Los Angeles Area Regional Training Group. Training focused on incident management and command procedures. These simulations enable participants to develop skills to effectively manage fires, multi-casualty incidents, and hazardous material spills. Personnel learned to assign and control resources, quickly adapt to changing situations, and work seamlessly with other agencies.
Ready, Culver City – For the past three years, the department has participated with various city stakeholders in “Ready, Culver City,” a community disaster resilience pilot project sponsored and funded through the County. In an effort to create a disaster-resilient Culver City, “Ready Culver City” used its grant funding to offer five free CPR and first aid training opportunities. Trainings will take place through May.
Parks, Recreation and Community Services Dept.
Performing Arts Grant Program – Overtone Industries will present Spontaneous Combustion Choir on Sunday at 3 in the Rotunda Room of the Vets Auditorium. The choir will perform and invite the audience to participate in the collaborative creation of spontaneous music. Singers of all levels are welcomed to join this pay-what-you-can event. www.overtoneindustries.org.
Spring Camp – Just 4 Kids Spring Day Camp registration is open. Spring Camp will feature field trips to Mulligans Family Fun Center and a trip to Knott’s Berry Farm. Spring Camp is two weeks, March 23 – April 3. Registration will remain open until March 23.
Parent Orientation – Spring Camp Parent Orientation will be held on Thursday, March 19, at 6:30 at the Teen Center. Parents and campers will be given a 30-minute overview, camp rules, camper conduct and discipline policies, field trip rules and the payment schedule for camps.
Special Guest – The Teen Center recently welcomed a special guest, Keta Meggett, the founder of Team Bully Buster. Ms. Meggett started the non-profit organization which provides various outlets to youth who have been victims of bullying. She told her story and gave the youths tools to deal with bullying. www.teambullybuster.org/.
Giant Egg Hunt – Pre-Easter, the Giant Egg Hunt, in conjunction with the Kiwanis Club, will be Saturday, March 21, 9:45 to 1 at Vets Park. The free event features arts and crafts, games, two bunny photo booths.
Kindergarten at Senior Center – The annual visit from Willows Community School brightened up the Senior Center one recent day. Students recited a poem, introduced themselves to Senior Center members, and danced in a conga line throughout the lunchroom.
Uhl Be Honored – Senior & Social Services specialist Darren Uhl received a Citation award from the Assn. of Workforce Professionals, Los Angeles Chapter, for exceptional service to customers and outstanding contributions to the workforce development system during 2014. His nomination moves forward to the statewide competition, where awards will be presented at a May 1 luncheon in Fresno.
Valentine’s Day Party – Thanks to the volunteers from Sony’s SEAD, Sony Employees of the African Diaspora group, for their assistance at the Senior Center Nifty Nineties Valentine’s Day Party. Volunteers help in escorting seniors, handing out valentines, serving lunch and socializing with party guests.
Volunteer Fair – City staff member Jill Thomsen and Fiesta la Ballona Committee member Randy Arizmendiz attended the second annual Volunteer Fair at Culver City High School to recruit volunteers for Fiesta la Ballona, Aug. 28-30. Volunteers are the backbone of the Fiesta. For volunteer sign-ups, see www.fiestalaballona.org/volunteersignup.aspx.
Nutrition Program – The Senior Nutrition Program at the Senior Center received the Silver Thermometer Award for its Home Delivered Meal Program. The award recognizes the employees and volunteers who meet the highest standards in serving safe food.
Police Dept.
Chiefs Conference – Capts. Ron Iizuka and Allen Azran attended the state Police Chiefs Conference and training symposium hosted by the city of Riverside. This conference included presentations regarding current issues facing California law enforcement.
Student Safety – Lt. Jason Sims met last week with Culver City High School students to discuss the importance of student safety.
Public Works Dept.
Sustainability Tour – CSUN Urban Planning graduate students and faculty member Kaizer Rangwala recently toured sustainable highlights in Culver City.
The tour began in early Saturday morning at the City Hall courtyard with students learning about the Energy Efficiency programs to improve city facilities. Marc Costa from the Energy Network discussed the fine details of municipal energy efficiency with the group.
Next the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan and evolution of walkability for Culver City was shared with the group, followed by a walking tour of the innovative, yet fundamentally logical, use of rain gardens along the Ballona Creek. Mark Abramson from the Bay Foundation provided policy background at the commercial side of the creek on Pearson Street. This is where the Bay Foundation conducts monthly rain garden detail work. He explained how this project success story has proven essential to mitigating pollutants and keeping them out of the groundwater.
Storm Water Treatment Train Project – The city has completed a multi-faceted approach to help enhance water quality in Ballona Creek, beaches and coastal waters by implementing several projects. Funding was provided through Prop. 50 funds, awarded by the state Water Resources Control Board, as recommended by the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission.
Culver City’s Stormwater Management Program is comprised of a series of Best Management Practices all working together to prevent pollutants originating in the city, such as trash, automotive fluids (oil, gasoline, antifreeze), and chemical wastes (paint, pesticides, fertilizers) from ending up on Santa Monica Bay beaches and in coastal waters. The completion of this project ensures Culver City’s compliance with limitations on trash pollution in Ballona Creek. However, extensive work (and expense) is still needed to address other limits such as bacteria, heavy metals and toxics. Culver City continues to work with other jurisdictions that empty into Ballona Creek and the Marina del Rey harbor to develop a plan for a series of projects to move toward full compliance with storm water pollutant limitations that are already or soon will be in effect.
As part of the Treatment Train Project, Culver City successfully completed the following projects to either prevent pollutants from reaching the Creek or to help cleanse storm water runoff before it flows into the Creek.
Healthy Homes Campaign – The city is partnering with the Energy Network to launch the “Culver City 100 Healthy Homes Project,” which provides rebates to assist property owners in making energy efficient home upgrades. Community members can learn more about the program by attending a free informational workshop, Wednesday, March 18, 6 to 7:30, at the Vets Complex Garden Room.
The workshop will inform residents of the benefits of upgrading their homes to be more energy efficient, and offer information about available rebates and financing to help make upgrading easier. The meeting will include basic building science, such as the steps to take before adding solar to a home, and information about how homes use and lose energy. Complimentary refreshments and prizes will be provided. Attendees should RSVP for the workshop at www.tenres.com/CulverCity
The Energy Network is administered by Los Angeles County and funded by California utility ratepayers under the auspices of the Public Utilities Commission. For more information, contact the Energy Network at 877.785.2237 or email homeupgrade@theenergynetwork.com.
Energy Efficiency – The City Council has approved contracts with three vendors to install lighting, mechanical and energy management control system upgrades at various city facilities. Public Works has executed the contracts with the vendors and issued notices to proceed. The lighting upgrades will be completed by the end of April, the mechanical work by the end of June, and the energy management control system by the end of September. The program is estimated to save the city $1.8 million in energy costs over the life cycle of the project.
League of American Bicyclists – The League of American Bicyclists recognized the city with an honorable mention as a Bicycle Friendly City in 2014 and 2012. The city received high marks for the large number of daily bicyclists and the adoption of a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. As a result of the recognition, the city was selected as one of 100 cities to participate in a site visit from the League at no charge. The site visit included an overview of the city’s accomplishments in bicycling, an eight-mile bike ride within the city and finally a followup discussion about ideas and recommendations from the league. These recommendations were aimed at improving the bicycle and pedestrian vitality within the city. A “Share the Road” message was the theme of the meeting with the focus on achieving a healthier, safer, more active and sustainable environment for the people of Culver City.
Free Bike Events – Culver City Walk & Rollers are hosting community events through the city’s Safe Routes to School Program:
Bike Safe, Bike Smart Family Workshop
Sunday, March 15, 2 o’clock to 4
Culver City Middle School, 4601 Elenda St.
Leadership Program Workshop – At Saturday’s workshop at 12 noon in the School District offices, Culver City Walk & Rollers will be looking for community members seeking an active role in the Safe Routes to School Program. The workshop will include sessions on:
Background information and resources for future opportunities
Basics for teaching safety skills
Promoting the program and future activities
Guidance in building a sustainable program at your school
How to host a successful pedestrian or bicycle safety event
CicLAvia Aug. 9 – The City Council approved a resolution to apply for grant funds from Metro to host an open streets event in 2015. Partnering with the City of Los Angeles and CicLAvia, the city submitted a grant application and was successfully awarded $453,600 to host a “CicLAvia – Culver City meets Venice” open streets event. CicLAvia is a non-profit organization that began its events in the City of Los Angeles and have attracted more than 100,000 participants during their open streets event.
The event will be Sunday, Aug. 9, 9 to 4, at no charge to participants. During this time, portions of Washington Boulevard, Washington Place, Culver Boulevard and Venice Boulevard will be shut down to vehicle traffic, welcoming bicyclists and pedestrians to explore the city and participate in a space that is normally dominated by automobiles. The end points of the route will be the Culver City Expo Station and Windward Circle at Venice Beach. The entire route is 6.22 miles.
The route in Culver City will transition to Venice Boulevard at Centinela Avenue. The City will have two hub locations for water stations, entertainment and other planned activities. Over the next few months, CicLAvia will conduct outreach to residents, businesses and organizations involved in anticipation for the event.
Sewer Main Update – Phase 4 of the citywide Sewer Main Rehabilitation Lining Project is underway. This project consists of 17 miles of sewer main rehabilitation using trenchless lining technology to minimize construction impacts to the public. Completion target is December.
The contractor will clean and inspect the sewer mains in the coming months. The sewer rehabilitation work usually takes one day to install, during which sewer service may be impacted. Additional advance notice will be distributed by the contractor several days prior to actual sewer lining work. Typical construction hours are from 8 to 5, Monday through Friday. Occasional nighttime work may be necessary at certain locations.
Traffic Impacts for Resurfacing on Washington Place and Sawtelle Boulevard –
Street Improvements on Washington Place
A construction contract has been awarded for a Public Works street improvement project along Washington Place between Frances Avenue and Zanja Street. Completion target is this month.
Improvements include pavement reconstruction, street resurfacing, new ADA curb ramps with truncated domes, sidewalk reconstruction, handicap accessible pedestrian push buttons.
Re-Striping Traffic lanes, crosswalk, and bike lanes will be completed by Tuesday.
Street Improvements on Sawtelle Boulevard
A construction contract was also awarded for a Public Works street improvement project along Sawtelle Boulevard between Braddock Drive and Culver Boulevard, and between Washington Boulevard and Washington Place.
Improvements include street resurfacing, local repairs of deteriorated pavement areas, new ADA curb ramps with truncated domes, handicap accessible pedestrian push buttons and new traffic striping.
Heavy traffic delays are anticipated along northbound and southbound Sawtelle Boulevard due to intermittent lane closures through Friday. The contractor will maintain one lane open in each direction at all times.
Re-Striping Traffic lanes, crosswalk, and bike lanes will be completed by Tuesday.
Direct all inquiries for both projects to the Construction Foreman or the City’s Construction Manager noted below:
Contractor
Bryan Granados, Construction Foreman
All-American Asphalt
951.757.8157
City of Culver City
Tom Marnocha, Construction Manager
Christian Ott, Construction Inspector
Interwest Consulting Group
714.386.8289 / 818.270.0047
Construction Updates
Golden State water will continue their water main replacement on Le Bourget Avenue between Farragut Drive and Culver Boulevard, and on Revere Place. The construction is expected to continue for three weeks including restoration of the street.
Golden State Water will continue their water main replacement on Patom Drive between Berryman Avenue and Sawtelle Boulevard, and on Patom Drive between Culver Park Place and Diller Avenue, a one-week project.
Golden State Water will begin new water main and fire hydrant installations on southbound Centinela Avenue between Green Valley Circle and Bristol Parkway.
AT&T will be installing conduit under the sidewalk between The Vera Café and City Tavern on Culver Boulevard. They will be doing work on the Washington Boulevard side of these businesses and accessing the manhole in the street on Washington Boulevard. Completion due tomorrow.
Time Warner Cable will be installing a new utility pole in the alley adjacent to Selmarine Drive. New cable will be hung on several poles on Selmarine Drive, Corryne Place and in the alley.
Mr. Nachbar, the City Manager, may be contacted at john.nachbar@culvercity.org