More than 99% of the people who are dying from COVID are among the unvaccinated. These deaths are preventable.Please encourage everyone you know to get vaccinated. The COVID-19 pandemic is not over and sadly cases are rising in Los Angeles. Once again LA County requires everyone- vaccinated and unvaccinated- to wear masks inside public places. When everyone wears a mask indoors it not only reduces everyone’s risk of both getting and transmitting the virus, it helps prevent non-vaccinated people from carelessly or intentionally going maskless at a time when their doing so is not only endangering their own lives, but is literally prolonging this pandemic and the devastation that goes along with it.
Since the start of the pandemic, my office has given away over 30,000 masks. If you are in need of an extra mask, we can provide you with one. Please email [email protected] to reserve yours today.
It’s our shared responsibility to stop the spread of the virus and help to save lives. By getting vaccinated you are doing your part toward ending this pandemic and moving toward recovery. To find a vaccine site near you, please click here or call 833-540-0473. While the City’s mass vaccination sites are closed, vaccines are now widely available at pharmacies and through health care providers. Also, the City and my office are focusing on delivering vaccines directly including a new effort to have a vaccine brought to your home if you are unable to go out to get one. If you are homebound, please contact my office at 818-774-4330 or [email protected] to schedule an in-home appointment.
This week’s newsletter includes important updates on renter protections, pedestrian friendly improvements, and more. If you ever have questions for me, please do not hesitate to email me at [email protected] or call 818-774-4330.
Even before the pandemic local housing costs were extraordinarily high and too many Angelenos were on the brink of homelessness. That is why Councilmember Blumenfield is proud to have strongly supported and voted to approve a bold and meaningful ordinance enhancing renter protections - specifically by preventing harassment of tenants.
The ordinance defines tenant harassment as willful conduct directed at tenants that cause detriment or harm without legal purpose. Examples include:
· Failing to perform necessary repairs, or follow standards to minimize exposure to toxic materials.
· Reducing or eliminating services required by a lease, such as parking spaces.
· Threatening physical harm.
· Misrepresenting the need to vacate.
· Coercing a renter to vacate with one-time payments.
· Refusing to accept lawful rent payments.
· Disclosing or threatening to disclose information about a tenant to the government to get them to vacate including immigration or citizenship status.
Please know that COVID-19 related protections continue and supplement the anti-harassment actions noted above. For example, the City’s eviction moratorium prohibits landlords from charging interest or late fees for late payments due to COVID. This eviction moratorium protects tenants with unpaid rent due to COVID-19 until August 1, 2022.
If you receive an eviction notice during this period, please file a complaint by calling (866) 557-7368 or online or seek legal assistance at Stay Housed L.A. Further, to get answers to your particular situation, you can consult with one of the region’s housing advocacy or legal aid organizations which partner with the City as part of LA Represents for pro-bono legal assistance. To access LA Represents please visit https://corona-virus.la/LARepresents.
In preparation for a new and updated Sidewalk and Transit Amenities Program (STAP), StreetsLA is giving the public the opportunity to see and provide feedback on proposed new bus shelters and technology features. The public displays of proposed shelters will give Angelenos a chance to see how they look in the real world and provide comments about the design--including comfort of seating, concerns about loitering, brightness and distraction from digital signs, and other issues.
Please visit the displays in front of Blumenfield’s District Office at 19040 Vanowen Street this Friday, July 23 and Saturday, July 24 from 12pm-10pm. Your feedback will be used to negotiate with the winning contractor on the features to incorporate into the next generation of bus shelters so that the City of Los Angeles has shelters that are customized and designed to meet the needs of Angelenos.
Pedestrian safety, especially for our children walking to school, is a priority of Councilmember Blumenfield. He listened to the needs of the community and during the latest budget hearings advocated for an increased number of Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT)’s crossing guards for local Valley schools.
LADOT is hiring an additional 138 crossing guards Citywide to enhance the safety of students, specifically those walking and cycling in school zones, while also increasing the visibility of their presence to drivers. Currently, the number of crossing guard requests exceeds the number of available guards. Given limited resources, crossing guards will be assigned to locations where they can provide the greatest benefit to children crossing, while reducing risk of collisions. Council District 3 schools in the City’s Crossing Guard Program include: Blythe St, Fullbright Ave, Garden Grove, Melvin Ave, Serrania Ave, Sunnybrae Ave, Sutter, Tarzana, Vanalden Ave, Welby Way, Winnetka, and Woodland Elementary Schools. For more information and to apply to be a crossing guard, please click here.
To assist nonprofits, schools, and senior organizations in his district, Councilmember Blumenfield sets aside a limited amount of funds each year to provide special bus transportation to events or outings. He does this to encourage groups that might otherwise have access issues to take advantage of educational, cultural, and recreational opportunities in the area.
For example, an elementary class might take a field trip to a local museum, or a senior citizens group may want to attend a musical performance. If you would like to be considered for a bus donation from Councilmember Blumenfield this year, let us know six weeks in advance and sign up at blumenfield.lacity.org/bus.
Recently Councilmember Blumenfield helped bring Rec and Parks' Universal Play Program to Lanark Park and kicked off a city-wide series of low-cost youth sports clinics hosted by USA Field Hockey in the lead up to the 2028 Olympics. The Universal Play Program helps local kids experience new sports and will host many more over the coming months. This is part of his ongoing effort to increase local park programming and bring new opportunities for youth to explore non-traditional sports.
Blumenfield continues outreach to homeless individuals throughout the district. He was joined by Pastor Kathy Huck and volunteers in promoting services and handing out frozen water to the unhoused during the latest heat wave. He also did outreach with LAHSA workers who are working hard to make sure that all of CD3’s homeless are offered shelter. As the Cabin communities have recently opened up, there are many homeless people who are currently transitioning from the streets to the cabins.
This week's photo from the Los Angeles Public Library's archives is from the Valley Times on May 21, 1963. Hall of Fame Dodger and Valley native Don Drysdale gets a golf lesson at the Woodland Hills Country Club from two year old Mark Dowaliby, son of PGA pro Mike Dowaliby. Learn more about this photo here.