North Westwood Neighborhood Council recap – Dec. 5

The North Westwood Neighborhood Council is the official neighborhood council representing Westwood Village and UCLA to LA City Council. Council meetings are open to the public and held monthly. The next meeting will be held on Jan. 9 in Weyburn Terrace from 7-10 p.m.

Comments by public officials

• Jasmine Shamolian, a field representative for Councilmember Paul Koretz, said Koretz has been planning to make changes to the Westwood Specific Plan to reduce vacancies. Shamolian also said Koretz is proposing bridge housing for homeless students and veterans at the Chabad House on Gayley Avenue.

• Erin Schneider, a field deputy for Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, said her office is expanding the bridge housing site on the Veterans Affairs campus. The addition is slated to open in February and will include 100 additional beds for veterans.

Discussion

• Council members discussed a proposed 16-story residential development on Hilgard Avenue. Representatives of the project said they are still considering the pricing and number of beds, and they are currently projecting 231 beds at a monthly rate of $1,000 to $1,100 per bed.

Motions

• The council approved the nomination and appointment of noncouncil members into several committees. Furkan Yalcin, a fourth-year political science student, was appointed to the Community Activities and Projects committee. Dallas King, president of Bruin Entertainment Network, was appointed to the Community Activities and Projects committee and Outreach and Communications committee. Joey Russel, a third-year political science student, was appointed to the Land Use committee. Ajwang Rading, president of UCLA’s Black Law Students Association, was appointed to the Budget and Finance committee. Sheehan Parker, a UCLA student affairs advisor, Abdallah Daboussi, a senior administrative planning and policy analyst at UCLA Transportation, and Jeffrey Rollman, a doctoral student at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, were appointed to the Transportation and Safety committee.

• The council also approved the appointment of council president Michael Skiles and vice president Gabriela Meza to the Transportation and Safety committee. Councilmembers Ashraf Beshay, Ryan Snyder, Christian Green and Grayson Peters were appointed to the Land Use committee.

• The council also approved the formation of a Standing Committee on Homelessness and appointed council Secretary Chantelle Eastman as committee chair.

• The council motioned to set future meetings in Weyburn Terrace. Councilmembers took into consideration the meeting dates of other Westwood governing bodies and approved the next meeting for Jan. 9. The council also asked Skiles to set subsequent meeting dates on the fourth Wednesday of every month.

• The council appointed Andrew Lewis as their Westside Regional Alliance of Councils representative. The alliance brings together Westside Los Angeles neighborhood councils including those of Westwood, Brentwood and Palms.

• The council approved Skiles, Meza, Eastman and Wren Reynolds to write Community Impact Statements, which are official positions adopted by a neighborhood council on issues pending before LA City Council. Only five members of the council are allowed to write an impact statement.

• The council motioned to change their election date to May 16 to accommodate their voting populations and approved election worksheets to send to the Los Angeles City Clerk’s office. They also approved having a poll translator for Spanish-speaking individuals. The council also allocated $4,000 for their election preparation. Several councilmembers said the funds should be spent on direction signs leading to parking and the polling station.

• The council approved removing the alcoholic beverage control conditions for Rocco’s Tavern, effectively allowing Rocco’s to have live entertainment and dancing. The approval also allowed Rocco’s to open their windows until 10 p.m., which they were previously not allowed to do because of sound disturbance concerns.