I hope this newsletter finds you well. Thanks very much to Neighborhood Council leaders around the City giving us feedback on the new checking account and events review system. It’s been very helpful, and I really appreciate everyone’s suggestions on how to make not only your work easier, but ours as well. If you haven’t had a chance to weigh in, you can do so online until October 31st.
We are also in the process of streamlining our EmpowerLA.org website as well so folks can find the information they need. As a first step, we’ve revamped the Funding portion of our website and have implemented a suggestion from several board members – the creation of a Forms page with a tab on the front page and this newsletter so you can find all of the most updated forms for the Department. We’re working on new Bylaws and Community Impact Statement templates now so they will also be going on the Forms page when they are complete at the end of this month.
I had a great time last Saturday getting around to the East, Central and Valley regional Budget Day sessions with Neighborhood Empowerment Advocate Taneda Larios attended the South’s meeting. I was impressed at the thoughtful discussion in each of the areas about the City budget and the potential solutions proposed. A huge thanks to our Neighborhood Council Budget Advocates for taking on the planning and execution of the sessions and to the Mayor’s Office for working with them to provide the City’s budget and survey information for discussion. In between the Budget Day meetings, I was able to moderate a great advocacy panel at the Neighborhood Housing Services Symposium where not only did we have Reseda Neighborhood Council President Kevin Taylor on the panel, but Neighborhood Council members from Park Mesa Heights, Sun Valley Area and Eagle Rock in the audience, too.
On Wednesday, I stopped by the City Councils Rules, Elections & Intergovernmental Relations Committee’s town hall on election reform at the Van Nuys City Hall. Van Nuys Neighborhood Council and the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils co-sponsored the event. I was pleased that City Council President Herb Wesson invited VNNC Executive Officers, Howard Benjamin and Jeanette Hopp, to sit around the horseshoe with Councilmember Jose Huizar and him as they listened to the presentation and public comment. After that, I walked next door to the Braude where our great funding staff, Kathleen Quinn and Mario Hernandez, were conducting a Funding Training and Town Hall while Armando Ruiz, Betty Wong Oyama and Jessica Pua were doing the same in our downtown office.
I think it’s pretty neat that nearly every day of the month, there is something involving Neighborhood Councils going on in LA. This weekend, for instance, the Neighborhood Council Budget Advocates, Congress Planning Committee, Neighborhood Council-LADWP MOU Committee and LANCC are meeting tomorrow. On Sunday, Del Rey Neighborhood Council will be celebrating Del Rey Day, while Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council will be participating in the Sherman Oaks Street Fair.
If I don’t see you this weekend, have a great one!
Best,
Grayce Liu,
General Manager
Department of Neighborhood Empowerment aka EmpowerLA
