Rates to be Lowered in Metered Lots

via the Eastsider LA

It looks as though the rates for parking in several of Echo Park’s public lots will be decreased in the near future. According to The Eastsider LA:

The following lots will be affected:

Lot 643: 1147 Echo Park Ave., Echo Park, CA 90026
Lot 662: 1152 Lemoyne St., Echo Park, CA 90026
Lot 663: 1146 Logan St., Echo Park, CA 90026
Lot 676: 1146 Glendale Blvd., Echo Park, CA 90026
Lot 679: 1711 Sunset Blvd., Echo Park, CA 90026

The rates will be decreased from $1.00/hr to $0.25/30 min; and the daily maximum rate will be decreased from $4.00 to $2.50 for 10 hours, with the exception of Lot 643. Lot 643 will have a maximum rate of $1.00 for 2 hours.

Sweet! Maybe now we’ll see fewer FAIL-ed meters! Honestly, I’d rather just put a quarter in the damn thing and not have to worry about getting a ticket.

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Lotus Festival Rumored to Return

Militant Angeleno is reporting that the Lotus Festival will indeed return again despite another year of, well, a lotus-less lake. Last year the Lotus Festival was canceled due to budgetary cuts, and instead turned into the first Echo Park Community Festival.

According the Militant Angeleno blog, L.A. Lotus Festival, Inc. filed the paperwork for the event, which is scheduled for the weekend of July 10-11, 2010. While this year’s festival won’t coincide with the blooming of the lotus flowers (once the largest bed outside of Asia) since the flowers have stopped growing, it will as always be a great opportunity to celebrate the Asian/Pacific Islander culture, eat some food, and enjoy fireworks.

This may be the last chance for a Lotus Festival before the Echo Park Lake Rehab project shuts down the park in April 2011; hopefully the revived lake will bring the lotus flowers back!

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EPIA General Meeting Agenda

The Echo Park Improvement Association General Meeting
Thursday, April 1st, 2010 at 7:00 pm
Barlow Hospital, Williams Hall, 2000 Stadium Way

Here’s the agenda, provided by Darren Hubert, EPIA President, via email:

  1. Welcome and Introductions
  2. Council District 1 & 13 reports
  3. Northeast & Rampart Police Reports
  4. Select Patrol
  5. Echo Park Chamber of Commerce – business update / downtown EP
  6. Elections – committee update
  7. Treasurer report
  8. Neighborhood Issues committee report (NIC)
    1. Barlow Hospital
  9. Unpermitted Flea Market at EP Lake – continued talk
  10. Approval of Minutes from February meeting

Reports/Announcements:

To make an announcement, sign a card when you come in, giving your name and topic.  Cards are collected and given to the moderator.

  1. Next meeting on May 6th – featured topic –Drought tolerant landscaping and edible gardens.  Various presenters

Adjournment.

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Sunday: Human Rights March in Echo Park

On Sunday, March 28 at 2:00 pm at the Echo Park Lake, Cuba’s Ladies in White are leading a “march of solidarity” to bring awareness to human rights issues in Cuba.

According to the Roots of Hope website, the event will include some celebrity supporters of the cause:

Join Academy Award Nominee Andy Garcia, comedian & actor George Lopez, celebrity blogger Perez Hilton and hundreds more in a march of solidarity with Cuba’s Ladies In White – the mothers, daughters, wives and sisters of Cuban prisoners of conscience – and all those who struggle for peaceful nonviolent change in Cuba.

Everyone involved in the march is encouraged to wear white.

The Miami Herald has also a detailed article on the Ladies in White and its cause.

If you have any questions, please contact Cubans In LA at cubansinla@gmail.com

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Recent Car Break-ins in Echo Park

From a resident on the the Echo Elysian Forum:

In the past week we’ve had at least four car break ins that I’ve noticed plus my own car. We are in a strange pocket of EP – our streets bound the small portion of Elysian Park, Lilac Terrace and a small section of Montana and Elysian Park Drive. Coupled with that fact is the ongoing back and forth between LAPD and Parks about who patrols our area. And we’ve had a lot of gang tags. Personally, we call everything in we can, but I’m not sure if everyone in our area does the same.

We’re heading into Dodger season worried more about safety and far less about parking. We can handle parking. But we need a police presence in EP. When I first moved here 7 years ago we had patrol car cruising around that we saw at least twice a day.

Most of all I just want to warn my neighbors to take everything out of their cars that can be seen (phone chargers, loose change, any sort of portable electronics) and to call everything into NE division that happens – don’t just shrug your shoulders, say “it’s Echo Park” and move on… we deserve a safer neighborhood. I’m not talking Beverly Hills… I’m just saying we should be able to park on the streets and not have a 100% chance of break ins.

For you folks out there, the non-emergency phone number for the police is 877-275-5273. The direct line for the Northeast Division is 213-485-2563

There’s also the Echo Park Security Association, they have a meeting coming up on March 28 where you can find out how to get the group to patrol your neighborhood.

Be safe everyone!

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Be On the Alert for “Scammers” At Your Doorstep

From Captain Bill Murphy in a Northeast community newsletter sent out this afternoon:

Hello, just wanted to update everyone on a problem that has been occurring in Silver Lake and possibly Franklin Hills. A male Caucasian, in his 20s, has been going door to door asking for donations. He uses different pitches to try and get residents to give him money. One of these is that he is a member of the USC Baseball Team and he is collecting money for the team to attend an upcoming baseball tournament. Another is that he grew up in the area “don’t you know my parents?” then requests a donation to assist him to pay for his schooling. Anyway, whatever the pitch is you should be cautious. He begins by being very charming but when it becomes evident that the residents are not going to give him money – he becomes agitated. To date, we have not heard that any of the incidents have escalated beyond this. There were rumors flying around regarding him pushing residents, etc… but we have no reports that this ever occurred. He appears to simply be a scammer seeking donations door to door.

Also, some residents are worried that his actual purpose is to “case” their home for a future burglary or distract them so another person could steal from them. While it is possible that he is casing – I do not believe that this is the case. Generally, suspects who case an area do not want to bring attention to themselves. They are there to quietly select targets. The last thing they want to do is go door to door getting into arguments with residents – it bring way too much attention on them. And I do not believe he is committing distraction burglaries either. We have no reports of this and all the information I have simply talks about him being by himself trying to solicit donations.

An alert witness wrote down a license plate of a vehicle he may be using. We are working this up and I have placed extra officers in the area. We should be able to find him and find out what he is up to (book him if we can). The acts that he has committed so far (aggressive solicitation with fabrication) amount to low-level misdemeanors.

Here are some strategies to use on people seeking donations at your door:

1. DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR if you do not know who’s there.

2. Do not give any personal information whatsoever during the conversation.

3. Do not become engaged in a long discussion – they are good communicators and want to break you down to get a donation.

4. If the person persists, tell him to leave literature about his cause and you’ll take a look at it – be polite – but tell him you have to go.

5. Call LAPD Northeast Area (213) 485-2563 if you see him or he comes to your door. My officers will be alerted to this problem.

Thanks Bill

26152@lapd.lacity.org

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The many facets of the Echo Park Lake swap meet

Picnickers and swap meet vendors

In the past month or so, we have received letters from residents commenting on the weekend swap meet surrounding the Echo Park Lake. Other community blogs have highlighted similar complaints and comments about the legality (or illegality) of the swap meets. We thought we’d take this opportunity to break down some of the issues that have come up in letters to us, other news blogs, and recent community meetings.

Parking:

  • From fellow Echo Park resident Marysa: “ I just got back from running in Echo Park for the first time in a month and realized why I have been unable to park anywhere near my Logan St. apartment on Sundays. The half-baked swap meet that was on Park has now exploded down to the light house on Echo Park.  I can dig that people are trying to make a buck but I think it’s ruining the peace of being there. All jokes about the park aside, there is a large number of people I see on a regular basis who use the park for healthy purposes. It’s a shame to see our park get taken over by commerce.” Parking around the lake has been a frustration, especially as residents like Marysa have to fight crowds to park on her own street in front of her own house.  One suggestion has been to issue Parking Permits to people that live around the lake. However, this process can take a couple of years and a LOT of community organization (efforts the past few years surrounding Dodger Stadium are a good example of this).

Overcrowding:

  • In addition to the parking problems, some residents feel the Park is being overcrowded because the swap meet has expanded so far along the park edges. It is indeed a little difficult to navigate through the north-east portion of the lake. Just last weekend vendors were stretched along nearly the entire north side and along the east side just past the boat house. As Andrew Garsten, EPIA Chair of the Neighborhood Issues Committee, wrote in the latest EPIAn Ways newsletter, the swap meet is “displacing any possibility of using huge sections of the park for normal use like a quiet stroll or a picnic.” For residents like Mr. Garsten, the issue is really about people who live in Echo Park who don’t have the luxury of a back yard and who use the Lake because they need the park.

Read more

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“Home invasion” last night in Angeleno Heights

The LAPD needs your help in identifying suspects in a home invasion last night in Angelino Heights. The suspects, who were posing as police officers, also attempted to rob the family after knocking on the front door of house located on the 900 block of White Knoll Street.

Thankfully, no one was injured and nothing was taken from the family’s home.

After opening the screen door, “the uniformed suspect threw a clipboard on the floor then grabbed the 55-year-old woman by her throat and threw her to the floor,” said Lt. Paul Vernon, commanding officer of LAPD’s Central Detective Division.  “Her 21-year-old son intervened and the suspect threw him to the ground as well.”

According to the blog post, “The suspects were described as Hispanic men between 30 and 40 years old.  Only one wore a long-sleeve, blue security uniform.  The other wore a black sweatshirt and green pants.  The suspects drove away in a black Infinity or Highlander SUV.”

If you have any information, please call robbery detectives at 213-972-1244.  During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7.  Anonymous tips can also be called into Crimestoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477) or by texting 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone.  All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.”  Online tips may be placed at www.LAPDOnline.org, by clicking on “webtips” and following the prompts.

Click here to read the entire LAPD blog post about the incident.

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Echo Park BID at City Council committee today

From an LAist article published today, titled: Watch Out Drunk Hipsters, Echo Park Might Get a Security Detail

A proposal to create a Business Improvement District (BID) in Echo Park heads to a City Council committee (.pdf) this afternoon. Submitted by Councilman Eric Garcetti in January, it “would serve the local business community by providing increased security, homeless services, beautification, and streetscape maintenance. Establishment of the BID is expected to revitalize the local economy and is a positive step towards neighborhood renewal.” Not everyone is on board, though. The Eastsider LA spoke to one business owner that was not too happy. “I can’t stand the idea of rent-a-cops harassing our street vendors, our homeless, our cholos and our drunk hipsters. It’s just not needed,” the owner said.

It’s probably not the “drunk hipsters” who have to worry – what do you think of “increased security” in light of the Echo Park Lake swap meet issues?

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GEPENC Unofficial Election Results

The Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Action Coalition is proud to announce that 20 of the 20 candidates that were members of the coalition were elected by the neighborhood. The election took place on Saturday, March 20th as part of the Region F sets of neighborhood council elections conducted by the City Clerk.

The “unofficial” results are as follows:

President (Vote For 1)
Lester Quijano: 55
Jaime C. Salazar: 61
José Sigala: 190
Write-In: 5

First Vice President (Vote For 1)
Francisco Torrero: 201
Write-In: 8

Read more

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Monday: Echo Park Advisory Board meeting

We had posted last week about the Echo Park Advisory Board Meeting that was supposed to take place on Monday, March 15, but “due to a typo on the posted agendas,” the meeting was canceled. The next meeting information is as follows:

Echo Park Advisory Board Meeting: Monday, March 22, 2010 at 7:00 pm

Echo Park Recreation Center 1632 Bellevue Avenue

The Echo Park Advisory Board is currently recruiting from new Board Members. If you are interested, please contact Cassandra at cassandra.bruno@lacity.org

Here is the agenda if you are interested in attending Monday’s meeting:

Read more

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GEPENC Elections Tomorrow

The Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Council (GEPENC) Elections are tomorrow – Saturday, March 20, 2010.

You can vote at the Central City Action Committee at 534 E. Edgeware Road from 2:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Here’s a run-down of the candidates:

Chief Information Officer: Lisa D. Baca, Mo Najand

President: Lester Quijano, Jaime C. Salazar, José Sigala

First Vice President: Francisco Torrero

Treasurer: Gustavo Moreno

District 1 Representatives: Dinora E. Ventura, Efren Mojarro Jr.

District 2 Representatives: Agustin Cebada, James D. Lopez, Nora Elieth Sanchez, Justin G. Mcinteer, Jeremy R. Mann, Cheryl L. Ortega

District 3 Representatives: Juan Godinez, Connie M. Acosta

District 4 Representatives: Leonel A. Ledezma, Yolande Beckles, Stephen H. Stickler

District 5 Representatives: Jeffrey G. Kontorovsky, David Lugo, David “Rockello” Rosen, Phyllis M. Daugherty, Erlinda L. Sorati, Jorge L. Prado, Patricia R. Mendoza

Read more

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Los Angeles Marathon to Start at Dodgers Stadium

Don’t expect to go anywhere this Sunday morning, as Echo Park is going to be the starting point for the Los Angeles Marathon. Aside from the actual marathon on Sunday, Dodger’s Stadium will be hosting the Los Angeles Marathon Expo on Friday, March 19th (from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm) which all of those thousands of marathon runners will have to visit in order to pick up their numbers and swag. Saturday, March 20th is the second day of the expo as well as the Los Angeles 5K.

The Los Angeles Marathon will begin at 7:24 am on Sunday, March 21st. Road closures will begin at 5:00 am and go until 10:00 am. It looks like the route goes down Elysian Park then heads east on Sunset before curving around and going back up Temple and Bellevue to Glendale. The route then runs up Glendale and past the lake before hitting Sunset again and going west.
View 2010 LA Marathon Course in a larger map

Regarding parking for the event, the Manager of Neighborhood Relations for the Dodgers says that “all-day parking is not allowed on the Stadium and all participants are being discouraged from parking in the immediate community. Additionally, the Department of Transportation will be posting signs prohibiting event parking around the Stadium.” Let’s just hope the runners take advantage of the shuttle bringing them to Dodger’s Stadium from Santa Monica.

It sounds like I’m complaining about this, doesn’t it? As if I’m ever out of bed before 10:00 am on a Sunday anyway. But honestly, good luck to all the runners! It’s gonna be painful, but you can do it! As for the rest of us? If you’re willing to wade through a sea of people, you could totally walk into the expo on Friday and Saturday and score some free PowerBars, water bottles, t-shirts and bananas.

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Echo Park Restaurant and Business News

New restaurants:

  • Vietnamese Restaurant is taking over what used to be Par Paint on Sunset and Lemoyne.
  • Mooi Raw Vegan restaurant: We haven’t forgotten about this space, and have contacted the restaurant to find out when their opening might be. We will keep you posted!
  • As reported earlier this year, a Little Caesars is taking over the old Pioneer Chicken on Echo Park Blvd. Looks like things are finally coming along as they hung a vinyl banner out front and are putting up display menus inside.

Ongoing/Weekly Restaurant Specials

Other new news

  • PETA West Coast Headquarters (thanks to Bob Barker) on Sunset between Alvarado and Mohawk
  • Echo Park Country Outpost launches online store.
  • El Prado bar is now open early on the weekends, starting at 2:30 pm
  • Bus service between Union Station and Dodger Stadium is back for 83 games this year

Closed 🙁

  • Sirens and Sailors closed their storefront, but their online store is still open.
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New Electronic Signs on Sunset in Echo Park

New electronic sign on Sunset & Portia

One of our readers emailed us on Thursday asking, “What’s up with the sign being put up on Sunset and Portia?” As it turns out, the electronic traffic sign is one of two – the other (according to the Eastsider today) on Sunset and White Knoll Drive. Eventually the signs will have “Echo Park” displayed above the electronic sign.

No word about what what exactly the signs will read when whey are up and running, but most electronic signs of this nature warn drivers about traffic delays, incidents, and special events. Lets hope they don’t encourage Dodger Stadium goers to turn up residential streets instead of continuing along the main drag.

LA DOT photo via The Eastsider LA

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