Here's all about Councilmember Garcetti's

10 Issues for Neighborhood Councils in 2004

Councilmember Eric Garcetti, CD13, made a presentation at the Alliance of Neighborhood Council meeting on July 17th.

Although he spoke mainly on the benefits of the newly proposed Inclusionary Zoning ordinance (covered elsewhere on this website), Eric also offered his list of 10 issues he believes should be priorities for Neighborhood Councils in 2004.

Councilmember Garcetti also gave out a website address as well as instructions on how to receive his regular E*News (electronic newsletter, delivered by email) from CD13.

He said, "I hope this inspires newsletters for every district. There are a couple of others, but there is little regularity to them and they are such an important part of communicating with our constituents."

We couldn't agree more ...

Here are Councilmember Garcetti's 10 issues:

10 Issues for Neighborhood Councils in 2004

1.	Expand decision-making power for neighborhood councils
	·	Advocate for a portion of the public works improvements to be determined by neighborhood councils
	·	Involve neighborhood councils in planning and land use process

2.	Support public safety
	·	With half the number of police officers per person in Los Angeles, we have an historic opportunity to double the number of police officers on patrol in this city with a half-cent sales tax initiative this fall
	·	We must be tough on crime and tough on the sources of crime: this hires more police officers, while boosting our gang intervention programs with youth

3.	Clean our water and environment
	·	While we still have bacteria, trash, and waste in our rivers, urban lakes, ocean and beaches, the federal and state government have mandated compliance with 67 different clean water provisions
	·	This fall, we will have the opportunity to clean up our water with a bond on the city ballot that would invest in neighborhood-based water improvement projects that will preserve water and our local drinking supply, clean our beaches, and improve neighborhood parks
	·	Take a stand on our Renewable Portfolio Standard (green power generation by DWP), the revisions to the landscape ordinance and the heritage tree ordinance

4.	Pass comprehensive business tax reform in Los Angeles
	·	Los Angeles needs to show it means business. Our gross receipts tax is too high, too arcane, and too unfair
	·	Back the Garcetti-Greuel package for twenty-five to fifty percent reduction of the gross receipts tax in Los Angeles
	·	Back the proposal to exempt businesses with gross receipts under $100,000 from our city business tax

5.	Develop a housing policy that works
	·	We must plan for our growth, or else our growth will plan for us
	·	Infrastructure funding should go with new developments
	·	Develop a policy that addresses all parts of the housing spectrum, and that considers inclusionary housing, a permanent source of funding for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, and policies that cut red tape

6.	Improve communication from and with the Planning Department
	·	We should help fund more planning positions, a paperless record system for all planning files, and insist on a strong, clear, neighborhood notification system for neighborhood councils regarding land use cases

7.	Get young people involved
	·	Young people in this city are critical to our success
	·	Ensure that you have a youth committee on your neighborhood council and work with local high schools to bring students on to your board (leadership and social studies classes are a great place to start)
	·	Hold a citywide neighborhood council youth summit, as CD13 will be doing this fall for the neighborhood councils in CD13

8.	Develop a training curriculum
	·	As neighborhood councils empower community leaders, we must have a citywide curriculum that helps to give them the tools to understand how city government works
	·	CD13 worked with the Planning Department to develop Planning 101, but we also have a Government 101, a Housing 101, and we have graduated eight classes of our Grassroots Neighborhood Leadership Institute

9.	Combat graffiti
	·	Having spent a week with the mayor of San Jose, who reduced graffiti by 97 percent in his city, we developed UNTAG (Uniting Neighborhoods To Abolish Graffiti) with Chief Bratton and the Department of Public Works, a two-year project to reduce graffiti by 50 percent in CD13
	·	After the recent killing of a graffiti paint-out worker, Councilmember Villaraigosa and CD13 are looking at its citywide applicability
	·	Visit http://www.lacity.org/council/cd13/untag.htm for more information

10.	Give Neighborhood Councils the communications tools they need
	·	Refine the Early Notification System
	·	Consider electronic alert system that works across multiple platforms (phone, pagers, emails) for both routine and emergency communications
	·	Standardize and make available web space for neighborhood council sites

---

for more information contact Councilmember Garcetti 213-473-7013 or visit www.cd13.com Sign up for his regular E*News at: http://www.lacity.org/council/cd13/cd13optin.htm or visit the archives at: http://www.lacity.org/council/cd13/c13nps1c.htm .