Sister Cities Cultural Day comes to the Grove

Color and culture filled The Grove on Sunday at the 2008 Sister Cities Cultural Day.

Japanese drummers, Indian folk dancers and Lithuanian ballroom dancers from St. Casmir’s Catholic parish in Los Angeles performed throughout the afternoon Sunday at the fourth annual Sister Cities Cultural Day at the Grove.

The performances were sponsored in part by Councilmember Tom LaBonge, President of Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc., a non-profit organization.

“This festival brings the wonderful folk dancing and music and brilliant costumes from Sister Cities across the globe right to the heart of Los Angeles. It is a lot of fun,” said Councilmember LaBonge, President of Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc.

A photo gallery of the event will be posted shortly.

Preserving Art Murals

Councilmember LaBonge is fighting to preserve and protect fine art murals throughout Los Angeles.

Councilmember Tom LaBonge, frustrated with the graffiti and damage to beloved public murals throughout Los Angeles, pressed several city departments to come up with new regulations for the creation and preservation of fine art murals.

“Art brings intelligence, comfort and joy to the people,” the councilmember said. “I want to preserve and protect the murals that are a vivid part of the life of our city, and establish a better system for considering the creation of new ones.”

Currently, the creation and maintenance of murals on private property is governed through the City’s sign regulations in the zoning code. This has given rise to unintended consequences. In many cases, new signs cannot be created and the validity of existing murals is called into question. Emerging artists are denied the opportunity to create important new works of art and the cultural endowment of art murals is slowly being lost.

To address this problem, the councilmember introduced a motion directing the Department of Planning to work with the Cultural Affairs Department, the City Attorney’s Office and the Department of Building and Safety to come up with creative solutions to the protect murals and consider applications for new ones. The councilmember spoke before the Council’s Planning and Land Use Management committee, where his motion was aired on May 27.

“I’m for art and fine art murals. I feel passionately that city code should address them separately from commercial signs,” the Councilmember said.

Mexico City Philharmonic Concert-June 6

Councilmember LaBonge presents a loaf of his signature pumpkin bread to Mauricio Camps, Coordinator of International Affairs for the Office of the Mayor of Mexico City.

Councilmember Tom LaBonge announced the Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra’s debut performance at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The concert was co-organized by the Los Angeles-Mexico City Sister City Committee, whose member Steven Loza composed the featured piece of music.

The concert, on Friday, June 6 at 8 p.m., will feature a repertoire of master composers Carlos Chávez, Arturo Márquez, José Pablo Moncayo and Silvestre Revueltas. Led by Maestro Enrique Diemecke, the philharmonic will also premiere UCLA Professor Loza’s América Tropical—a piece interpreted by Los Angeles Opera mezzo-soprano Suzanna Guzmán and accompanied by a narrative and multimedia imagery created by UCLA Professors Jose Luis Valenzuela and Judy Baca. The presentation will feature a Mariachi concerto by Los Camperos de Nati Cano and a narration for Amèrica Tropical by actor Edward James Olmos.

América Tropical is inspired by the educational and artistic work of muralist David Alfaro Siquieros in Los Angeles during the 1930s. The press conference was held on Thursday, May 29th on the steps of the Disney Concert Hall, 111 S Grand Ave.

“This concert represents the best of what the Sister Cities program offers – relationships between people advancing the cultural achievements of their cities," said Added Councilmember LaBonge, President of Sister Cities of Los Angeles. "This will be a great event for all Angelenos.”

The Sister Cities Program was created in 1956 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to strengthen partnerships among U.S. and international cities. The premise was that personal relationships fostered through Sister City affiliations would increase trade, cultural exchange and mutual understanding and lessen the chance of international conflict. Los Angeles began its Sister Cities program in 1959 with Nagoya, Japan, and now includes 25 Sister Cities on six continents.

Veterans Honored at Hyperion Bridge

Councilmember Tom LaBonge invites the public to join him in honoring the nation’s veterans by noting the American flags raised along the landmark Hyperion Bridge. The historic bridge was constructed in honor of World War I veterans and spans the Los Angeles River between Silver Lake and Atwater Village. “We ask that all Angelenos pause to remember and thank those who’ve served our country with distinction,” said Councilmember LaBonge.

The Councilmember allocated about $2,000 for the installation of 30 flags along the historic bridge through revenue generated by advertising on transit benches and kiosks in the Fourth Council District. The flags will fly in commemoration of the Fourth of July and September 11th and will remain in place until September 28, 2008.

“I wanted to show my personal gratitude to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country,” the Councilmember said.

CD4 Community Congress

About 150 residents attended Councilmember LaBonge's second quarterly Community Congress of 2008 at the Friendship Auditorium on May 21st.

“Information is knowledge is power,” the Councilmember said. “Our great city is facing a number of important challenges right now. The public should have the opportunity to hear from their public officials, ask questions, and make their voices heard.”

The town-hall style meeting lasted about two hours. City officials discussed the 2008-2009 City Budget, land use issues, public safety and emergency preparedness.

City Budget News

I am happy to announce that we’re closer to our goal of saving park ranger and park maintenance jobs; keeping library doors open and their shelves stocked; maintaining funding levels for re-paving streets and sidewalks and enforcing illegal sign and newsrack ordinances. I want to send special thanks to Councilmember Bernard Parks, chair of the Council’s Budget and Finance Committee, and committee members Wendy Greuel, Jose Huizar, Bill Rosendahl and Greig Smith for making this happen.

Because of a national economic downturn, the City of Los Angeles faces declining revenues. Mayor Villaraigosa's budget proposal to the City Council, therefore, included many cuts in personnel and services. The City Council worked to identify $97 million in revenue above the funds accounted for in the Mayor’s proposed budget, and some core services and positions have been proposed for restoration by the Council committee.

During the Committee's budget hearings, I fought for restoration of the following budget items and was joined by a strong voice from the community:

● Sidewalk improvements (restoration of the 50/50 program)

● Funding for illegal sign enforcement and newsrack inspectors

● $3.2 million for the Department of Recreation and Parks rangers and maintenance AND

● Library Sunday hours and $1.5 million for additional materials

Each item has been restored in the Committee’s proposed budget.

The full Council begins its budget deliberations on Monday, May 19th at 9 a.m.

Thank you for staying in touch with me throughout this important process so that I could make sure your voices were heard.

Councilmember LaBonge Moves Green-Roofed Fire Station Forward

FS 82 Rendering provided by L.A. City Bureau of Engineering

Hollywood residents will think green when they hear fire alarms now that the Los Angeles City Council has granted environmental clearance for the first fire station in Los Angeles with a living green roof.

The new 32,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art station will replace the current Station 82 on Bronson Ave., which at just 5,500 square feet, is over-crowded and has antiquated systems. Councilmember Tom LaBonge, who has championed this project from its inception, said final designs for the project are expected to be completed by the end of this summer.

“This is about public safety and providing the best possible fire response to Hollywood and the Hollywood Hills,” the Councilmember said. “This station will provide easy access for trucks. It will also be big enough to house the equipment needed to address the complex needs of both the Hollywood Boulevard theaters and the wilderness of Griffith Park. The green roof and sustainable elements are an added bonus.”

The capacity of the new three-story station will be a dramatic improvement over the existing station. The old fire station, which will be renovated and re-used for community use and equipment storage, houses six firefighters. The new station will have the capacity to house 16 firefighters per shift. The $30 million fire station is being funded through the Prop F General Obligation bond, approved by voters in November, 2000.

The new fire station, designed by RRM Design Group, will feature a variegated roofing system that will capture and treat rainwater on-site before it is piped to the storm drainage system. The roof garden will also keep the building cool and help save energy. These and other features will qualify the building for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design or LEED certification through the U.S. Green Building Council. Since 2003, all Department of Public Works’ newly designed and constructed projects of 7,500 square feet or more must be LEED-certified.

Council unanimously approves LaBonge tourism initiative

The Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved Councilmember Tom LaBonge's resolution to encourage international tourism to the U.S. through support of the Travel Promotion Act of 2007. This pending federal legislation, H.R. 3232, sets up a non-profit organization to create funding for an international marketing campaign to promote urban and rural destinations from around the United States and welcome foreign visitors to the U.S.

"I want to do what I can to help tourists from around the world visit our dynamic City of Los Angeles," said Councilmember LaBonge, president of Sister Cities of Los Angeles, Inc., a non-profit corporation. "International tourism is good for the country and great for Los Angeles. I hope that the city's support for this legislation motivates Washington to adopt it soon."

Official positions of the City of Los Angeles with respect to pending federal legislation must first be adopted as a resolution by the City Council. H.R. 3232 responds to a decline in overseas travel to the U.S. post-9/11. While the number of global overseas travelers has increased by 35 million since 2000, the U.S. has welcomed 2 million fewer overseas visitors.

This legislation enables establishment of the non-profit Corporation of Travel Promotion to promote international tourism. The $100 million cost is comparable to the foreign tourism promotion budgets of several other countries. The corporation would be funded jointly through passenger fees and contributions from the private sector of the tourism industry.

"Tourism is the second largest industry in Los Angeles and during these trying economic times, it's important to encourage our international visitors to come to LA and stay in our great hotels, go to our unique attractions and get entranced in the whole LA experience," said Mark Liberman, President and CEO, LA INC. The Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau. "The City Council's support of HR 3232, The Travel Promotion Act of 2007, is important to help grow tourism in the United States and will help strengthen LA's economy."