LAist Writes About City’s Grant Money Strategy For Warner Center Transit
You know, here is the reality. I live in Warner Center. There is no traffic problem that requires a “mass transit” solution. The only traffic issue that exists, in my opinion, is around the intersection of Victory Blvd. and Topanga Canyon Blvd. My guess is that it could be fixed with some street widening, creative lane manipulation, etc. I don’t see how a people mover, or any of that nonsense is needed. Save the money for real light rail in LA, but wait, that will never happen because – correct me if I’m wrong – but I’m under the impression that we are stupidly required to spend the same amount of money on buses that we do on rail due to some idiotic proposition. And since light rail is much more expensive to construct, we simply end up with a ridiculous amount of bus routes and very little rail. Hence, the “busway to nowhere” A/K/A Orange Line Extension to Chatsworth which is about to begin full swing construction along Canoga Avenue. Just about every business along the path has been torn down at this point. Hopefully I can photo-document some of that. But, seems like they’re all pretty much gone at this point.
If the day arrives where I have to take both a bus and a train to work, I encourage one of the readers of this site to please shoot me in the head. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration.
It’s been a topic for some time now. The Warner Center in the West Valley is one place that could use a local circulator, perhaps a “people mover,” some believe. Three years ago, 300 residents came out to work towards an integrated transportation network for the Woodland Hills neighborhood and now, with state money available via grants, Los Angeles wants in.
Today, the L.A. City Council approved a grant application for $180,000 to “study the feasibility of an internal transit circulator, including the potential for light rail in the Warner Center” (we’d wager that a street car might be a better fit). Caltrans has a total of $3 million available to local entities for community based transportation.
The center is one of the few accomplishments of L.A.’s “Centers Concept,” which was a 1974-adopted plan to build dense areas around city connected by transit. It never fully came to fruition, but the Warner Center today is home to a handful of skyscrapers, malls and the Orange Line and 750 Metro Rapid bus route.
See the attached links for interesting/historical reference articles about the Orange Line Extension and Canoga Avenue right-of-way and properties.
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Joe Montana Does Interview From Pierce College… About Brett Favre?
Joe Montanta says, "I like money."
Well, in what has to be one of the strangest quasi-local news items I’ve seen in a while, Retired NFL Quarterback and Hall of Famer Joe Montana resurfaced in the media today. Apparently, he was shooting a commercial at Woodland Hills’ Pierce College filming a commercial for Skechers (yesterday?) when he made time to do an interview about Brett Favre.
I can’t remember the last time Joe Montana was relevant, but apparently he said, in essence, that Brett Favre just delays and stalls on his announcements that he will be coming back for another season because he is a lazy old bastard who doesn’t want to go through training camp. I suspect the reason is more likely that Favre wants to put some time between his announcement that he is returning and the last time he completely choked in a huge game – again.
WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. — Joe Montana says he’s confident Brett Favre will be making another comeback — just before the start of the NFL season, like he’s done the last two seasons.
Montana, at Pierce College filming a television commercial, said he believes it’s only a matter of time before Favre returns to play for the Minnesota Vikings, the team he led to the NFC Championship Game last season.
Favre has remained undecided on his plans for the 2010 season.
“He says he’s not sure [about playing] because he doesn’t want to go to training camp. He’s smart,” Montana said. “I’m sure he already has that agreement with them. Nine chances out of 10 they already know and they’ve already had this whole conversation and they should just let everybody know because they know he’s going to come back.
“He knows he’s going to come back, but the reason they don’t say anything is because he doesn’t want to go through training camp,” Montana said. “If he didn’t have to go through training camp, his decision would already be made, but he should know by now going to training camp isn’t going to be hard. They’d never make it hard on him.”
Montana said Favre’s familiarity with the offense and the talent around him will make the transition from Favre’s couch in Kiln, Miss., to the football field seamless, even if Favre comes back in time for the final exhibition game.
“It’s easy once you know an offense and have been there for so many years,” Montana said. “All you really need is a couple quarters in a game and to get hit a couple times to get back in tune. You can get a lot of the other stuff in practices. It’s just getting used to that movement and feel of the game. You can easily do it if you’ve played enough years.”
While Montana, licking his fingers before firing spirals to extras on the set of a Sketchers commercial, said he wishes he could still suit up on Sundays, he said he never considered a comeback after his retirement 15 years ago. He added that he always wished he could have played a couple of more seasons the way Favre has.
“Anyone who has played the game, once you get away from it, you always want to try and find a way to get back,” Montana said. “You wish you were still playing but you know physically, unfortunately, it’s impossible. I can run a 4.5 in the first 20 yards but that’s it.
“I never even thought about coming back after I retired,” he said. “I wished I would have stayed and played a year or two but once you get past that point and retire there was no way I could have done it.”
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Woodland Hills Resident And Former Warrant Frontman Jani Lane In Legal Trouble
It’s funny because I was once with a friend of mine at Ralphs on Topanga Canyon Blvd & Ventura Blvd when he pointed this guy out to me. His quote, “That guy’s a mess.” I’m told he is a frequent shopper at that Ralphs, along with Michael Clarke Duncan who I’ve seen there numerous times. I’ve also seen Duncan at The Baker and Whole Foods. I’ve also seen Lou Diamond Phillips at Ralphs a couple of times. Okay, now I’m babbling.
Former Warrant frontman Jani Lane was a no-show for two recent court appearances, and now there’s an active bench warrant out for his arrest, according to reports. Lane was scheduled to appear in a Los Angeles court on Feb. 23, a date stemming from his 2009 DUI conviction. Lane was expected to prove to the judge that he’s finished alcohol classes and community service.
But Lane was nowhere to be seen. So the judge rescheduled the hearing for Feb. 24, giving Lane a second chance before a warrant was issued. Of course, Lane didn’t make it to the rescheduled court date either. So now he’s considered a wanted man.
TMZ.com reached out to Lane’s lawyer, who claims his client’s been in the hospital and won’t be able to make it to court until next week. Lane was arrested last June after he allegedly hit a parked car in the Woodland Hills area of Los Angeles. He was detained after refusing to submit to a sobriety test and pled no contest to one count of misdemeanor DUI a month later.
A month before his arrest, Lane was on ‘The Johnny Dare Morning Show’ and discussed his path to sobriety, saying, “It’s just a matter of deciding you’re done, in my opinion. I mean, that probably oversimplifies it, but really — really and truly — you have to go, ‘You know what? I’m done with this. I don’t like feeling like this, I don’t like living like this.’ And it’s also nice to get the creativity back, which is impossible to flow when you’re unconscious.”
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Passenger Causes Havok On MTA Bus In Woodland Hills
Of course this happened at the nexus of the degenerate universe here in Woodland Hills, the corner of Topanga Canyon Blvd and Ventura Blvd. Follow the link to ABC7 for some video coverage.
WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. (KABC) — LAPD officers responded to a call of a L.A. County Sheriff’s deputy involved in a fight with a suspect in Woodland Hills.
LAPD officers responded to a call of an L.A. County Sheriff’s deputy involved in a fight with a suspect in Woodland Hills.
A suspect was taken in custody and an ambulance was requested at the scene.
The fight occurred near the intersection of Ventura Blvd. and N. Topanga Canyon Blvd.
Eastbound traffic on Ventura Blvd. was slow, but westbound traffic was at a standstill due to multiple police cars and fire engines on scene.
The suspect was subdued by at least six to eight officers, then strapped face-down to a gurney and loaded onto an ambulance. The suspect could be seen repeatedly banging his head on the gurney.
Traffic was expected to be affected till at least 6 p.m.
The suspect was confirmed as a bus passenger. MTA bus service was affected on the Ventura Blvd. route.
According to MTA spokesman Jose Ubaldo, MTA bus line 161 was traveling from Canoga Park to Thousand Oaks at 4:57 p.m. A male passenger inside the bus was reportedly harassing a female patron. The bus driver stopped the bus and called for deputy assistance.
The suspect gave the deputy a hard time when he arrived. The deputy called for more assistance. During a scuffle, someone used pepper-spray inside the bus, and the bus driver was hit, according to Ubaldo.
The suspect was treated by paramedics on scene and transported to a hospital.
The bus was cleared of passengers due to lingering pepper-spray inside.
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NBC Los Angeles Reminds Us That Woodland Hills Ice Is Closing Sunday Feb 21
Woodland Hills Ice (Dec 14, 2010 File Photo)
This is actually a little sad because it feels like I have been covering Woodland Hills Ice ever since I started this blog. They’ll be back next year, but you have only until this Sunday to get your local ice skating fix, that is, until next November.
Build it and they will come — even if it’s outdoors in summer-like temperatures. Mr. Sun is happily beating down on a surface not natural to our semi-arid desert.
Welcome to Woodland Hills Ice, located in the parking lot of the mall at Topanga Canyon and Erwin Street.
A fixture since Thanksgiving, the rink is now seeing renewed interest, despite the 80 degree temperatures.
“It was the first time when I actually had to wear sunglasses and sunscreen to go ice skating,” said skating instructor Tami Tarmow.
Business is brisk, and it doesn’t hurt that there’s a great, big promotion on TV called “The Winter Olympics.”
“I noticed a couple of people here last night at about 11 p.m. skating around like the speed skaters,” said Matt Pszonak, general manager of Woodland Hills Ice.
Woodland Hills Ice opened last November and is billed as a winter wonderland in the heart of the West San Fernando Valley.
The outdoor rink features more than 7,000 square feet of real ice, along with instruction, skating exhibitions and shows.
But if you want to spin and jump like an Olympic champion you have to hurry, Sunday, Feb. 21, will be the last day to skate.
Public session are held:
- Monday – Thursday: 2 p.m. – 10 p.m.
- Friday: 2 p.m. – 12 a.m.
- Saturday: 10 a.m. – 12 a.m.
- Sunday: 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Prices include skate rental and unlimited skate time: Child (12 and under), $11; student/senior, $13; adult, $15
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ABC7 Trailer Sign Coverage From January 27th’s Broadcast
I had a chance to watch this segment (see above) on ABC7 last night, and I must admit it was really uninformative. They tell you there is a dispute, and it’s about trailers, but they never really get to the legal basis for the standoff. Basically, you have the trailers and the underlying notion of a disagreement on whether Los Angeles’ law about parking of unattached trailers is legal or not. The trailer owners treat them as vehicles, therefore the 3 day maximum parking duration in one place rule applies. However, there is a specific ordinance treating trailers as something other than a normal vehicle, and thereby prohibiting them from being parked on city streets entirely.
Now, the video never really gets that information to you about what exactly the legal component of the dispute is, other than residents don’t like them and the people that own them say they’re legal. They get a little lost on Dennis Zine and the cartoon character-esque cowboy hat wearing proprietor of Lone Star Security Bruce Boyer. It seems at the core of the trouble there is a disagreement on the state laws vs local laws on the issue.
Dennis Zine may be able to act as though he’d like to appease upset residents on the issue, but since the city does not seem to be busting hump to tow trailers, there must be some debate at the administrative levels regarding the validity of the the city’s trailer parking laws. You’d figure if they could be constantly towing them and collecting the fines they would, as the city is beyond desperate for cash.
LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Mobile billboards: they’re popping up everywhere. Viewers told Eyewitness News it bugs them when these ads park in front of their homes or apartments.
They’re popping up all over the place, advertising anything from attorneys to alarm companies to tarot card readers. These mobile ads are very visible — and to some, very annoying.
“We’ve received hundreds of complaints. The number one complaint I get in my district is mobile billboards,” said L.A. City Councilman Dennis Zine.
Eyewitness News received a number of e-mails complaining about them as well. Viewers say it’s just more clutter on the roads, and it bugs them when these advertisements are parked in front of homes and apartments and stay there for days.
“People are fed up with them,” said Zine. “They are vandalized, they turn over in the wind. They are a real nuisance in the community.”
There is even a dispute about what to call them: “mobile billboards” or “trailer signs.”
Some don’t want to call them trailers because they fall into a different category according to the vehicle code.
“The issue is: Am I obeying the law? And I am obeying the law,” said mobile billboard proprietor Bruce Boyer.
Boyer is the owner of Lone Star Security. He has dozens of billboards all over the San Fernando Valley. He’s one of several companies that use the mobile ads. He says he gets several parking violations every day.
“The city says you can park here,” said Boyer. “My vehicle is no more clutter than your news van is.”
The main complaint the city gets is that these billboards are left on a street for days. The state vehicle code and local regulations allow any vehicle to stay parked on a road for 72 hours. But after that, if they’re not moved they can be cited or even towed.
“What the individuals do is they move them. They move them a few feet,” said Zine. “They don’t have to move them any great distance. They’ll move them a couple of inches. And they’re basically irritating the neighborhoods.
The city of Los Angeles changed its laws and banned unhitched trailers. Boyer, who’s suing the city, protested by putting billboards right next to some of those signs.
“I have a license plate. The state of California says I can operate on any street or highway in the state. I have every right that everybody else does,” said Boyer.
City officials say they’ve heard your complaints and will use them in their fight to eliminate the signs. For now the battle of the billboards continues on our streets and in court.
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ABC7 To Air Segment On Trailer Signs Wednesday At 11PM
Lone Star Security Sign
An astute reader, 911jason, comments:
Just saw a promo for Eyewitness News on channel 7, they’re doing a story on these mobile billboards Wednesday, January 27th at 11pm. They showed brief clips featuring Dennis Zine and a guy wearing a cowboy hat, who I’m guessing is the Lone Star Security guy.
I indeed saw the same promo, and will try to tune in tomorrow to catch the segment. In my January 23rd post on this subject, another commenter pointed out that it is illegal to park detached trailers in the city of Los Angeles, which I confirmed on the LADOT’s website:
Parking an unattached semi-trailer on any street is prohibited, except for semi-trailers used for carrying personal property or for recreational purposes.
Note from Girard: A semi-trailer is any trailer that requires the support of a towing vehicle to carry it’s weight. These sign trailers are semi-trailers.
It’ll be interesting to see what, if anything, the segment reveals. In the teaser, they showed a shot of a sign exactly like the one I photographed on Saturday (above).
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