City Manager's Update

November 9, 2012

City Clerk’s Office

· Finance Advisory Committee - Pursuant to the creation of the Finance Advisory Committee by the City Council on October 22 the City Clerk’s Office will begin advertising the vacancies on the new Committee. Because of the upcoming holidays, the application period will be open until January 17, 2013 so that any interested applicants have plenty of time to apply. The City Council’s consideration of appointments is tentatively scheduled for February 4, 2013.

Community Development Department

• Burger King – Plans have been approved for a tenant improvement to the Burger King restaurant located at 10812 Jefferson Boulevard.

· Westfield Culver City – Work is completed at ECOSWAY, a nutrition/supplement store; the Olive Garden Restaurant; and Call It Spring, a new jewelry store. Plans have been submitted for a new food kiosk - Potato Corner.

· Zinga – A permit has been issued for a new yogurt shop located at 4114 Sepulveda Boulevard.

· Culver Lofts, LLC – A permit has been issued to demolish and renovate a future restaurant located at 9810 Washington Boulevard.

• 4043 Irving – The project is approximately 45% complete, on schedule and on budget. The project is scheduled for completion in May 2013.
• Jazz Bakery – Staff met with Jazz Bakery to review the new conceptual plans and to review the project’s progress. The Jazz Bakery requested an extension to March 31, 2013 to submit a final scope of development and other project related items.
• Nordstrom Rack - The retailer will relocate from the Promenade at the Howard Hughes Center to Westfield Culver City. The new 37,675-square-foot store is expected to open in fall 2013.
• Legado Companies - A community meeting was held on Tuesday, October 23, at Café Surfas regarding the proposed mixed-use development project located at 8770 Washington Boulevard. Approximately 25-30 people, including property owners, businesses and residents, attended the meeting. The applicant presented an overview of the proposed project which includes a 5 story mixed used development with 31,240 square feet of ground floor retail, 115 residential units at the upper levels, and two levels of subterranean parking.

Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department

· Administration – Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director Daniel Hernandez recently met with community members who have shown an interest in donating various amenities to our City parks. PRCS staff is currently working with the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission in finalizing a brochure to be used to assist individuals that are interested in donating amenities by listing needs in park locations as well as their costs.

· The Teen Center – The Teen Center has recently invested in an electronic system that will allow members to use a barcoded membership card instead of daily sign-in sheets. The new membership card system will go into effect on January 22, 2013, which is the beginning of the second school semester.

· Teen Center Tutoring – Once again, this year’s partnership with the UCLA Bruin Corps allows the Teen Center to offer free tutoring to Teen Center members. Currently, 75 students visit the Teen Center every day with 10 – 15 students receiving free tutoring. Tutoring will continue throughout the school year.

· Youth Empowerment – The Youth Empowerment group assisted with the Disabilities Awareness Halloween Carnival held at the Senior Center on October 21. The next event is the Heal the Bay Beach Clean-Up Day in Santa Monica on Saturday, November 17. Participating students are planning a busy and productive year, hoping to volunteer once a month in the Culver City community as well as surrounding areas.

· CCARP – The Culver City After School Recreation Program (CCARP) at Culver City Middle School is pleased to announce that the UCLA Bruin Corps will once again offer tutoring services to the CCARP Middle School students. The UCLA Bruin Corps’ mission is to increase the literacy/language arts and math skills of students in Middle School so they perform above basic skill levels or at the proficiency level for their grade. UCLA tutors will be providing tutorial assistance to students in small groups as well as one-on-one tutoring 1 – 2 times a week at the Middle School Library during the CCARP Program.

· Parks & Playgrounds Program – This month marks the four year anniversary of the Parks & Playground’s Drop-in Program. Since its inception in 2008, over 17,000 participants have taken advantage of the program. The most recent fiscal year shows an increase of 18% in Drop-in Program participants over the previous year alone.

· Parks – New tennis court windscreens were installed at Syd Kronenthal Park as part of the facilities improvement upgrades at all parks. This completes the courts’ upgrade project of new surfacing, striping and nets.

· Kaizuka Japanese Garden – Parks Division staff recently met with the Kaizuka Sister City contingent at the Garden. The Mayor of Kaizuka and guests were extremely pleased with the condition of the Garden, the bonsai trees, the newly planted cherry trees, the dedication plaque, and to see the waterwheel and stream in full operation.

· 2012 Culver City Performing Arts Grant Program – The Los Angeles Doctors Symphony Orchestra will present a free concert on Sunday, November 18^th at 3 pm in Veterans Memorial Auditorium. Former Los Angeles Philharmonic principal oboist David Weiss will guest conduct, and the concert will feature Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Opus 68, Antonin Dvorak’s Symphonic Dances, Opus 46 (Nos. 1, 3 and 8), and the world premiere of Orbit: A Symphonic Fantasy by Karim Elmahmoudi, composer-in-residence for the Los Angeles Doctors Symphony Orchestra. Reservations may be made by calling (323) 364-4826 or emailing LADSO at info@ladso.org.

Police Department

· Lindberg Park Neighborhood Watch Meeting - On October 25 members of the Police Department attended the Lindberg Park Neighborhood Watch. The meeting also included guest speaker Battalion Chief Chris Syverson who gave a presentation on the Fire Department’s duties and responsibilities.

· Identity Theft and Financial Elder Abuse Presentation - On October 29 Detectives met with the residents of Rotary Plaza and gave them a presentation on Identity Theft and Financial Elder Abuse. The presentation was well received and helpful to the attendees.

· Tilden and Tellefson Neighborhood Watch Association Meeting - On October 30Lt. Iizuka met with the Tilden and Tellefson Neighborhood Watch Association for its first official meeting of a revitalized Neighborhood Watch. The meeting was also attended by Vice Mayor Cooper, Councilmember Clarke and Todd Tipton. The meeting was well attended and hopefully the beginning of a very successful Neighborhood Watch program.

· Walk n’ Roll Wednesday -Members of the Police Department’s Traffic Bureau participated in the Walk n’ Roll event on November 7 at the El Marino Language School. More than 250 students walked or rode bicycles to school and learned about traffic safety.

Public Works Department

· Sewer Lining Project – The Engineering Division has advertised for bids for a citywide sewer line rehabilitation construction project. Trenchless construction technology has been selected as the method to rehabilitate the sewer mains with minimum disruption to the public. Instead of excavation and replacement of the existing sewer main, the lining process provides for the insertion of a special liner material inside the existing pipe. The liner is then heated or cured-in-place to the inside of the pipe. The new liner creates a watertight, smooth surface within the existing sewer main pipe that is structurally sound and long lasting.

Based on recent sewer video inspection, most of the sewer mains that will be rehabilitated are located along the rear property line easements where they are difficult to access and maintain.

· American Public Works Association Award for the Sepulveda Boulevard Widening Project - The Sepulveda Boulevard Widening Project has been selected to receive a 2012 Project of the Year Award from the Southern California Chapter of the American Public Works Association. This award recognizes public agencies for outstanding capital improvement projects and public works programs.