Hazardous Tanks to Come Down in San Pedro

Westway Tanks in San Pedro

I recenlty received the unanimous support of my City Council colleagues to approve a settlement with Westway Terminal Corporation (Westway), moving the liquid bulk tank farm away from residential San Pedro and making room for the long-awaited waterfront promenade.

I believe that Westway is a dangerous business, which houses flammable liquids, and should not be located so close to our San Pedro neighborhoods; even more so since 9/11.  Additionally, the current location interferes with our plans to fully redevelop our waterfront for commercial and recreation use.  If we want to build a world-class promenade and attract visitors, Westway must be moved.

At my insistence, the Port of Los Angeles began negotiating relocation for Westway in 2001.  A few weeks ago, the City Council approved a settlement of $17 million to Westway and gave the company 18 months to relocate.  The settlement money will be paid with Harbor Department revenue, not taxpayer money.

This really is a great settlement  for San Pedro.   We are reclaiming our waterfront and also making our community safer. 

ReOpening of Dana Strand Public Housing Development in Wilmington

Councilwoman Hahn & Mayor Villaraigsa with kids of the new development

We recently had yet another great day in Wilmington.  We opened the first phase of the brand new housing located where the public housing developlent Dana Strand once stood.

We have done a lot in Wilmington over the past six years, but perhaps one of our greatest accomplishments is the redevelopment of the Dana Strand. 

Looking at the beautiful new development, it is hard to believe that Dana Strand was once so dilapidated that it had become a magnet for crime. When we demolished the old development, we sent a message that this type of activity will no longer be tolerated in Wilmington.  The new development is a new beginning for the community.

In redeveloping Dana Strand, we are building an entire neighborhood at once.  In addition to the housing, both rental, for sale and senior housing, we are also going to be building a Life Long Learning Center and open park space.  We are creating a neighborhood.

With Hawaiian Avenue Elementary right next door, I envision a joint-use agreement where the seniors living in the new homes will mentor the young students.  We are also in talks to allow the Wilmington Boys & Girls Club to conduct after school programs on site as well.

The community of Wilmington has been waiting a long time for this day.

Don't forget to visit our website for regular updates, announcements and information: http://www.lacity.org/council/cd15/

                                                                          Summer 2007
Reggie the Alligator Makes His Zoo Debut!

Reggie the Alligator made his debut at the Los Angeles Zoo on August 9.  It was a great event with Harbor City residents, local school kids and Zoo visitors, all there when he was released into his very own exhibit at the front of the Zoo.

A few days later, Reggie lived up to his reputation as a fugitive alligator and escaped from his enclosure. I am sure that Reggie simply wanted to explore his new home at the Zoo and introduce himself to his neighbors; or maybe he was heading back to Harbor City.  We all know that Reggie is a very smart and elusive gator.  It took us almost 2 years to catch him and I would expect nothing less than at least one escape.                Councilwoman Hahn &  Zoo Camp kids 
                                                            and counselors  welcome Reggie
Zoo officials recaptured him quickly and he is in his enclosure awaiting visitors daily.

San Pedro Welcome Park Complete

 It has really happened.  The first phase of our long awaited San Pedro Welcome Park is complete.  The park, complete with grass, decorative stone, Completed Welcome Park                                         trees and bushes, is open to the public.  The flag poles on Gaffey Street have also been moved to the park. 

Welcome Park has been one of my top priorities since I was elected.  We finally have a proper gateway into San Pedro that truly reflects how great this community is.  We said we would have this park done before the end of the summer and thanks to the hard work of our Recreation & Parks workers, it is. The park is now officially open and I look forward to properly thanking the community and Jim Hussey at a dedication later in September.

The new park, in conjunction with all of the work that CalTrans is doing at the 110 off-ramp at Gaffey, will be a huge improvement for San Pedro.  First impressions are lasting impressions and our new park will finally give the right impression of our community.

Update on Anti-Gang Ballot Measure

We have all seen the headlines lately.  More young people are dying because of gang violence in Los Angeles.  We are losing the war on gangs.  Over the past 20 years we have arrested more than 450,000 people, yet today there are twice as many gang members and 7 times as many gangs as when we started.  Chief Bratton said it best when he said "We cannot arrest our way out Councilwoman with Charlen Lovett, mother of Cheryl Green             of this."

When 14-year old Cheryl Green was killed in my district in December while she stood outside with her friends at 3:30 in the afternoon, it was the last straw for me.  Since then I have been working to find a way to fund our missing piece of the war on gangs--gang prevention, intervention, job training and after school programs.

I am moving forward with putting a measure before voters in February that would raise $30 million annually to go only toward programs that work.  I believe that people all over the City are tired of gang violence and will support a $40 a year parcel tax to fund programs that will really make a difference.  This is the only way we will ever be able to end gang violence in Los Angeles.

Building New Gates at LAX
 
I received the unanimous support of my City Council colleagues last week to move forward with building at least 10 new gates for international travelers at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) by 2012 at the latest.  I have been pushing Councilmembers Hahn & Rosendahl with the big Airbus A380     to do this in order to accommodate the newest generation of large planes, like the new Airbus A380, as well as to keep LAX up-to-date.  The new gates will be built as a new mid-field concourse at the west side of Tom Bradley International Terminal; and will allow us to serve big planes, which are quieter and more fuel efficient--which benefits the communties around the airports.

Several months ago, I joined Mayor Villaraigos in breaking ground on a $800 million renovation at Tom Bradley Terminal.  At the groundbreaking I realized that were making this huge investment without including one new gate.  That is when I started to push to move forward with a plan to build these new gates--gates that have the support of the business community and of the surrounding communities.

Some people have chosen to see this modernization as expansion.  That is not what it is.  This renovation and building of gates is really essential if LAX is going to provide our passengers with a safe and updated airport.  We must improve our airport if we are going to remain competitive with other airports and these new improvements are all part of a settlement that was reached with local communities which caps the capacity of the airport.   

Additionally, Los Angeles is the prominent destination for international travelers and tourism is the second largest industry in the City.  We must maintain our airport so that we can remain the gateway into the nation.  These new gates will help us to do just that.

Proudly serving the communities of San Pedro, Wilmington, Harbor City, 
Harbor Gateway, Watts & Athens on the Hill.