HOLMBY NEWS
June 4, 2021
From the Holmby Westwood Property Owners Association, serving the Holmby Westwood community since 1960.
1. Important: Westwood Village – PLEASE READ
2. HWPOA Board Meeting – Video Conference
3. HWPOA Voicemail
4. UCLA Graduation at Drake Stadium
5. State Housing Bills – SB 9 and SB 10
6. Discover Lawn Bowling at Holmby Park
7. Summer Camp at Westwood Rec. Center
8. Coming Soon – New Restaurant at the Hammer Museum
9. HWPOA Communication and Ad Policy
10. Resident Ads
11. HWPOA Contact Information
1. IMPORTANT: WESTWOOD VILLAGE – PLEASE READ
OPPOSE Councilmember Koretz’s
Second Motion to Amend the
Westwood Village Specific Plan
The City Planning Dept. released a draft ordinance to amend the Westwood Village Specific Plan. The Westwood Village Improvement Assoc. (WVIA) sent an email last week asking that you send Councilmember Koretz a letter of support. Every Westwood homeowner group finds these last minute changes to the Plan damaging to the character of the Village.
We are asking you to tell the Councilmember “NO” to these additional amendments. They have not been analyzed and there has been NO community outreach.
Holmby Westwood, the 3 other homeowner associations, the Westwood Neighborhood Council, Westwood Community Council, and the WLA Chamber supported the first motion to:
- Revise the definition of food use to include fast casual restaurants.
- Remove the requirement of the number of food uses per street.
- Allow parking requirements to be reduced to City code.
We gave our support to the first motion. However, out of nowhere, Councilmember Koretz slipped in a 2nd motion that makes dramatic changes that were never analyzed nor discussed with the community. The new motion:
- Removes the CAP on the number of food uses thus changing a basic goal of the Plan to insure a “balanced mix of uses.” It should be removed from consideration.
- Removes from our Design Review Board (DRB) its review of signage thus allowing plastic, neon, etc. signs rather than carefully designed and approved signs. We support reducing the fee and process time for the applicant but oppose removing the DRB from oversight.
- Removes any guarantee that the Village will have sit-down restaurants.
- Allows unlimited uses on the ground level (office use) that go dark after dusk thus deadening the pedestrian experience.
- There are inconsistencies with Design Review Board Procedures that have not been analyzed.
Local businesses absolutely need help and that is why we supported the Councilman’s first motion to amend the WV Specific Plan.
The new motion removes sound planning principles from the Plan and leaves Westwood Village vulnerable. Other communities in LA that have suffered through the pandemic have not abandoned the guidelines or Plans of their business centers.
Click the link below to oppose any addition to the original motion.
Submit a Letter of Opposition – CLICK HERE
Thank you for protecting the character of Westwood Village
so that a balanced mix of uses can be maintained
and our Village can prosper.
For more details on LA City Planning’s recommendations, please see the draft ordinance.
2. HWPOA BOARD MEETING – VIDEO CONFERENCE
On Tuesday, June 8 at 7:30 PM, the HWPOA Board of Directors will hold its monthly meeting. Due to social distancing restrictions, the meeting will be a video-conference held online via Zoom. Please click here to see the agenda.
Members of the community are welcome to join the Zoom call. Please let us know if you plan to attend and we will send you the link to access the video-conference. Email Dana at hwpoa@aol.com.
3. HWPOA VOICEMAIL
Due to technical difficulties with our phone carrier, the HWPOA voicemail is currently “out of order”. Please do not leave a voicemail. If you need to contact us, please send an email to hwpoa@aol.com.
We apologize if you left a voicemail and did not receive a response. Unfortunately, we never received the message. We are working on fixing the situation and hope to have the voicemail up-and-running again soon. Thank you.
4. UCLA GRADUATION AT DRAKE STADIUM
In addition to hosting virtual commencement ceremonies, UCLA has announced plans to offer in-person events recognizing graduating students in the Class of 2021.
The primary UCLA 2021 Graduate Celebration will take place at UCLA’s Drake Stadium. The Drake Stadium events will begin on Thursday, June 10 at 9:00 a.m. and run through Tuesday, June 15 at 6:00 p.m., with extended hours on Saturday and Sunday.
Each graduate participating in the Graduate Celebration will have the option to invite a maximum of two (2) guests to share the experience. There won’t be live commencement addresses, but there will be a video message from the Chancellor.
More info.:
https://www.commencement.ucla.edu/
5. STATE HOUSING BILLS – SB 9 AND SB 10
You may have heard about the push to create density in housing by allowing the State to take over zoning in our communities. Many State legislators say it is immoral to have just one home on a lot, so they would eliminate R-1 zoning as they push to pass Senate bills SB9 and SB10. The need for affordable housing is real and there are other ways of addressing it.
This short video explains the reality of these bills AND HOW DETRIMENTAL THEY ARE TO OUR HOMES AND NEIGHBORHOOD.
VIDEO – How Housing Bills will Affect Neighborhoods
Please watch and call or write your Senators to oppose these bills. They need to know we will not sit back and let them pass these bills.
If you would like further information please contact Bettina O’Mara at 310-266-6670 or read further information at LivableCalifornia.org
Sample letter to our Senators:
To: scott.wiener@sen.ca.gov; senator.bates@senate.ca.gov; senator.caballero@senate.ca.gov; senator.caballero@sen.ca.gov; senator.cortese@senate.ca.gov; senator.mcguire@senate.ca.gov; rosilicie.ochoabogh@sen.ca.gov; senator.skinner@senate.ca.gov; senator.umberg@senate.ca.gov; senator.wieckowski@senate.ca.gov; odette.overton@sen.ca.gov; Erin.Riches@sen.ca.gov; Alison.Hughes@sen.ca.gov; Cicely.Chisholm@sen.ca.gov; senator.allen@sen.ca.gov
Dear Honorable Senators:
I am a homeowner in Westwood/Little Holmby and I am writing to urge you to OPPOSE SB9 and10. This is what the bills contain:
SB9 – allows 4 market-rate homes where 1 now stands (up to 6 units, if developers use a hidden “two-step” that volunteer attorneys spotted). SB 9 is the beginning of the end of homeownership in California.
SB10: Opens all neighborhoods to unchecked demolition and speculation, letting any city council enact a bizarre ordinance that tosses out CEQA to allow 10-to-12-unit luxury apartments on streets near transit “corridors”.
These bills overturn voter initiative, have no environmental protection, does not take into account inadequate infrastructure and ignores the fact that zoning should remain a local issue.
Please oppose SB9 and SB10.
Sincerely,
HOMEOWNER NAME AND ADDRESS
6. DISCOVER LAWN BOWLING AT HOLMBY PARK
After the year of pandemic, happy times are here again! The Holmby Park Lawn Bowling Club has an upcoming Open House event:
LAWN BOWLING OPEN HOUSE
Holmby Park
Saturday, June 12, 2021
10:00 am
FREE REFRESHMENTS & BOWLING LESSONS!
All Holmby Hills – Westwood area residents are invited.
- Easy to learn
- Inexpensive
- Healthy exercise
- Free equipment
HOLMBY PARK LAWN BOWLING CLUB
(continuously operating at Holmby Park since 1927)
Website: losangeleslawnbowling.com
7. SUMMER CAMP AT WESTWOOD REC. CENTER
Registration is now open for Summer Play L.A. 2021 at Westwood Recreation Center:
8. COMING SOON – NEW RESTAURANT AT THE HAMMER MUSEUM
From Eater LA:
Chez Panisse Legend Alice Waters Opens First Restaurant
in Los Angeles This Fall
Legendary chef Alice Waters is opening a restaurant in Los Angeles soon. The project will be Waters’ first new restaurant in decades, after opening the seminal Berkeley restaurant Chez Panisse.
While Waters’ new restaurant does not yet have a name, Eater has confirmed that it will land at the Hammer Museum, part of UCLA’s sprawling campus in the Westwood neighborhood.
To read the complete article, click below:
https://la.eater.com/2021/6/3/22517492/alice-waters-chez-panisse-los-angeles-opening-new-westwood-hammer
9. HWPOA COMMUNICATION AND AD POLICY
Please direct all comments, questions or issues regarding the Holmby News to hwpoa@aol.com.
Ads for plumbers, housekeepers, garage sales, etc. will be posted in the weekly News. Emergency situations such as lost and found pets, traffic alerts and similar situations will be published during the week as received.
When placing an ad, please send to hwpoa@aol.com for the Holmby News moderator to review. Responses to ads should be directed to the ad placer, not to HWPOA.
10. RESIDENT ADS
TRUNK SHOW – ANATOMIE
ANATOMIE women’s sportswear line private trunk show in Little Holmby today through June 8. I will be offering 15% off your first order! This line of pants, tee shirts, and jackets are the perfect clothes for these times! Casual and comfortable, yet more stylish than wearing your exercise clothes. These are meant to be worn out and about! “Designed to fly,” they are wrinkle free, don’t need to be dry cleaned, weigh next to nothing and the fabric is SPF 50! Sizes XS – XL. There are also some pieces that are great for golf or tennis! Today and Saturday are the “store” will be open from 10-4 and a rep from Ana Katarina jewelry designs will also be here with that collection; no appointment is necessary. Sunday – Tuesday by appointment only. Text, call or email me for the address or additional information: Denise Barta (310) 721-2500; dzbarta@aol.com
11. HWPOA CONTACT INFORMATION
HOLMBY WESTWOOD PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC.
P.O. Box 49180
Los Angeles, CA 90049
310-470-1785
Email: hwpoa@aol.com
Web site: www.holmbywestwoodpoa.org
Pay Membership Dues: https://squareup.com/store/hwpoa
You Are Invited . . .
- To attend our monthly Board Meetings*
- To let us know your concerns about our community and your ideas about how we might work to improve it
- To become involved in our Association.
*Board Meetings are usually held the second Tuesday of each month. Please confirm prior to attending.