TERA invites you to a visioning meeting for Colorado Boulevard on next Thursday, August 8th from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Eagle Rock City Hall (2035 Colorado Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90041).
As our community continues to engage with Metro regarding improved transit service for Eagle Rock, TERA would like to take a moment to refocus and reflect on our shared aspirations for our ‘Main Street.’ As the neighborhood moves forward, how can we design Colorado Boulevard to benefit all Eagle Rockers? How can we communicate these ideas to Metro and the City of Los Angeles to best utilize available funding to make our dreams of a more walkable, green, sustainable, transit-accessible, and small business-friendly street a reality?
Not long ago, TERA helped lead a community collaboration to envision a Colorado Boulevard that better served our neighborhood. The thoughtful input that we all provided for Take Back The Boulevard helped develop a visionary plan for Colorado Boulevard. Take Back The Boulevard continues to be an important guide for our vision moving forward.
As new opportunities emerge, we hope you can help us to continue to refine our collective vision for Colorado Boulevard, not just to improve the street but for the long-term health of Eagle Rock as a whole.
Please join us on Thursday August 8th at Eagle Rock City Hall for a conversation focused on Colorado Boulevard to share your ideas for what we would like to see from Metro’s upcoming project on the street. RSVP here: http://bit.ly/teracb
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Homelessness Update
You’ve probably heard that the results of the 2019 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count are in. The count reports that 184 unsheltered people live in Eagle Rock, up 38% from 133 people in 2018. That’s more than three times the 12% rate of increase in Los Angeles County overall. While most of Eagle Rock’s homeless neighbors live in RVs or cars, the share of those in tents or on the street grew substantially this year.
So, if it seems like things have gotten worse and our neighbors are more frustrated, that’s understandable — and that’s why it’s so critical for us to continue advocating together for solutions. There are currently no emergency shelters, temporary housing, permanent supportive housing, or regular services offered to the homeless population in Eagle Rock.
Now, TERA and the Housing & Homelessness Committee of the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council (ERNC) have our own survey results to share. Based on community input, mobile showers and safe parking have emerged as the most highly-supported solutions among Eagle Rockers. More than 70% of respondents to our survey ranked mobile showers as their #1 or #2 priority, and 50% selected safe parking as one of their top two solutions. These were followed by service access centers, temporary bridge housing, and permanent supportive housing.
This information was solicited from more than 200 community members who attended meetings hosted by the ERNC and TERA in August 2018 and May 2019. Attendees provided feedback through an open-ended mapping exercise followed by a preference survey, as well as through dialogue and Q&A. To view the complete survey results, click here.
Survey responses indicate that the Eagle Rock Recreation Center parking Lot, located at 7560 N. Figueroa Street , is the most supported location for temporary services such as mobile showers and safe parking, followed by the Eagle Rock Plaza mall parking lot. For temporary bridge housing, the vacant St. Barnabas Church, located at 2109 Chickasaw Avenue, and a Southern California Edison-owned lot on Scholl Canyon Road received the most support.
So, what’s next for our efforts? TERA and the ERNC are asking City and County officials to identify feasibility, funding, partners and next steps needed to implement the most-supported solutions in the community’s preferred locations. We’re encouraged that Councilmember Huizar has already introduced a motion calling on City departments to study St. Barnabas as a potential bridge housing site for 12 families, but much more is needed to see results.
TERA and the ERNC will continue to promote dialogue and advocate for solutions around homelessness in our community, and volunteers are welcomed on the ERNC’s Housing and Homelessness Committee. Interested individuals may contact Chloé Renee Ziegler, chloe.renee.ziegler@eaglerockcouncil.org.
With your help, we will continue to promote dialogue and advocate for solutions around homelessness in our community. Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or suggestions, and stay tuned for more follow-up.
Additional Resources on Homelessness:
For City of Los Angeles Proposition HHH information, visit hcidla.lacity.org/prop-hhh or lamayor.org/HomelessnessTrackingHHH.
If a homeless individual needs outreach and on-site assessment for services, submit a request to the Los Angeles Homeless Outreach Portal at LA-HOP.org. For medical, mental health, or other emergencies, call 911.
To report non-emergency crime or illegal activity, call LAPD at 1-877-ASK-LAPD.
Report trash and encampments to 311 or myla311.lacity.org and/or install the My 311 app on your cell phone . For encampments located on the side of a freeway or off-ramp, report to CalTrans.
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Slow Yosemite Initiative
On October 6, 2017, a car crash on Yosemite sent two Eagle Rock High School students to a hospital, with one of them suffering a concussion and a fractured knee. We will soon reach the two year anniversary of the horrific crash. Thankfully no crash on Yosemite has since grabbed headlines, but dozens of crashes continue to happen regularly and the imminent risk of danger remains. It is for this reason that TERA started 2019 by collaborating with old and new partners to raise the profile of safety on Yosemite Drive through a new initiative called “Slow Yosemite.” Modeled after the success of previous TERA streetscape initiatives Take Back The Boulevard and Rock The Boulevard, Slow Yosemite is a partnership with Council District 14, Eagle Rock High School, Rockdale Elementary, and the ROCK Community Center aimed at making Yosemite safer and more pleasant.
Our local school principals and Slow Yosemite steering committee members Stefani Williams and Mylene Keipp explain the importance of this initiative succinctly:
“The 1.6-mile stretch of Yosemite Drive between Eagle Rock Boulevard and Figueroa Street is on the City’s High Injury Network (HIN) and includes hundreds of residences, three public schools (K-12), churches, a recreation center, public park, small businesses, and a senior residence facility. Our kindergarten through senior high students, staff, and community members need Slow Yosemite to create safer passage for all!”
We are pleased to announce that TERA will host an open house and community kick-off at The Rock Coffee House (4808 Townsend Avenue) on Saturday, July 27th to officially introduce Slow Yosemite from 11am to 12:30pm. We invite the community to attend, learn more about the initiative and share some thoughts about how we can make Yosemite Drive safer. Following the launch, TERA will continue to host a series of neighborhood meetings and workshops throughout the year to develop a community-driven vision for a safer Yosemite that better serves local needs.
For those eager to get a preview of Slow Yosemite, TERA will have a booth at the July 4th firework show at Eagle Rock Park (scheduled for June 30 at 5pm) with informational flyers and you will have an opportunity to meet some of the steering committee members. We encourage anyone with interest in making Yosemite Drive safer to email us at president@TERA90041.org.
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BRT Update
I am delighted to bring you the latest TERA update. I would like to lead with what has been a lively topic of discussion for many Eagle Rockers over the last few weeks: Metro’s proposed North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project and how it may affect Eagle Rock.
Metro presented to the TERA board in November 2018 on project goals and options. At that time, Metro explained that two proposals were being studied, one route primarily along the 134 freeway and one route primarily along surface streets. As far as Eagle Rock is concerned, this meant either routing the line along the 134 freeway and bypassing the neighborhood or running it along Colorado Boulevard and serving our commercial corridor.
Fast forward to June 18, 2019, Metro representatives presented to the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council’s (ERNC’s) Planning and Land Use committee where they reported having recently competed an Alternatives Analysis (AA). The AA Report concluded the 134 Freeway route would produce lower ridership, miss key connections, and not sufficiently meet project goals. As such, the AA Report recommended a primarily street route be pursued in the draft environmental impact report (EIR). Again, with respect to Eagle Rock, this means running the BRT along Colorado Boulevard. The AA Report also identified three potential stations in Eagle Rock– one at the Eagle Rock Plaza, one at Colorado/Eagle Rock, and one at Colorado/Townsend. The discarded freeway option would have provided zero stops in 90041. However, beyond this, not much is said about what this would actually look like. Attendees at the ERNC meeting asked many detailed questions but received very few answers from Metro.
Many expressed a great amount of frustration due to the lack of specifics and a lack of renderings. Would we have to give up our bike lanes? Would Metro look to the Colorado Boulevard medians where trolleys once ran to repurpose the space for dedicated bus lanes?
Given the nature of social media and speculative reporting, some mistakenly have interpreted Metro’s lack of details as the agency prescribing modifications to Colorado Boulevard and withholding key information from the public. However, Metro did not provide any definitive answers because the release of the AA Report represents the beginning, not the end, of what will be a robust and open process inviting community input. The simple truth is that Metro is only starting to prepare various specific design options that will be guided by public input. Now is not the time to raise pitchforks, but instead to raise ideas, long-term aspirations, and areas of concerns.
TERA has used its voice and exercised leadership for Eagle Rock in similarly controversial projects and developments of the past. This will be no different. TERA has every intention of actively engaging Metro, participating in the EIR process, submitting thorough comments at every stage, engaging our elected officials and leveraging our highly engaged residents, stakeholders, and businesses to ensure that Metro does right by Eagle Rock.
We find Metro’s goals of increasing transit access, improving regional mobility, reducing transportation costs, and easing commutes as not only worthy but necessary. TERA has long valued complete streets, promoting alternative transportation, environmental sustainability and supporting our local businesses. We have worked hard to not only espouse these values but to act upon them through specific improvements and projects, such as Take Back The Boulevard (TBTB). When TERA first championed TBTB, the skeptics said it would hurt business. Now, almost six years since the Phase 1 of TBTB was implement – consisting most visibly of bike lanes and new crosswalks with flashing lights – we have seen new businesses thrive alongside and neighborhood institutions.
The tremendous work and planning that went into TBTB over the many years – and what it has done to transform the boulevard – is precisely why we must insist that Metro’s BRT project is done in a manner that complements the community’s vision for Colorado Boulevard. We will hold Metro accountable, and given the agency helped fund TBTB, we are confident they have every interest in avoiding impractical or incompatible elements that run counter to our vision and what we have come to know and love about Eagle Rock’s beautiful small town feel. Consistent with our values, we will support increased transit access on Colorado Boulevard but only in a manner that works for our unique neighborhood.
Our TERA board and members are residents who walk the boulevard, run the boulevard, roll along the boulevard, bicycle on the boulevard, and yes, ride the bus on the boulevard. We are committed to the idea that boulevard is for everyone. As is often the case, the devil is in the details and we will be ready to delve into them to protect the integrity of our neighborhood and fight for a better, more sustainable Eagle Rock of tomorrow.
We look forward to collaborating further with you and look forward to sharing key updates.
Greg Merideth
President
Metro invites you to a community meeting here in Eagle Rock regarding the North Hollywood to Pasadena Transit Corridor. Come out and learn about the project and provide your input.
Click here to read more about the project:https://www.metro.net/
And, watch a video about the project here:https://www.dropbox.com/s/
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Sleeping Bag Drive
Help others by participating in the 2018 Northeast L.A. Sleeping Bag Drive benefiting Recycled Resources for the Homeless. Come out and donate sleeping bags, blankets, toiletry kits and warm clothes to the Eagle Rock City Hall, Sunday, August 26 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
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Board of Public Works Town Hall
Please attend a town hall-style meeting on all things Public Works. It promises to be very informative.
On November 15 th 2017, The Eagle Rock Association (TERA) sent a letter to Council District 14 requesting the City address known and on-going traffic safety issues on Yosemite Drive. That letter was prompted by a horrific car crash one month prior that sent a student to the hospital. It is now seven months since that letter and no indication the City will do anything to substantially improve conditions along the corridor for the thousands of residents and students that interact with the street every day. The fundamental issue on Yosemite – a street design that favors car speeds over pedestrian safety – remains unchanged. As the one year anniversary of the aforementioned crash approaches, TERA urges immediate action so that students and residents alike need not fear being struck during the simple act of crossing the street or exiting one’s driveway.
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Taco Bell Update
At its hearing on July 25th, the East Los Angeles Area Planning Commission approved revisions to the Taco Bell site project at Colorado Boulevard and La Roda Avenue as part of a compromise that Nader Ashoori (the owner) reached with The Eagle Rock Association (TERA). The compromise reflects important changes to the site’s redesign and includes pedestrian safety enhancements, redesigned vehicular circulation, robust landscaping, and additional trash receptacles.