Save The Venice Post Office

Ask Janice Hahn to help

 As our likely next Congress–member, she will have the power to stop the sale of our historic post office.

 Email or call Janice Hahn. She will likely win the runoff election, July 12, for Congress. 

Send an email to Elaine@JaniceHahn.com.

or 

Call Janice Hahn at 323-338-4441

Ask your friends & neighbors to do likewise.

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Which Post Office Do You Want?

• Our historic post office with an equally historic mural inside.

or

• A barn of a building (the annex) that was falling apart when Safeway abandoned it 30 years ago.

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Save-the-Post-Office

By Jim Smith – June Beachhead

Why would anyone want to sell our 72-year-old historic post office? The officials at the US Postal Service claim that it is because the quasi-public organization is in deep financial trouble. The USPS currently is $8 billion in debt. It estimates the sale of the Venice Post Office could bring in $4.8 million, a drop in the debt bucket.

The USPS wants to close 2,000 of its more than 31,000 post offices, and cut mail delivery to five days per week. A major part of the problem, like many businesses, is employee health care. This could easily be eliminated by implementing single-payer health care, which is not employer based. In addition, the postal service says it over-contributed $75 billion to federal retirement. A reversal of this account could save the post office for the foreseeable future, while it comes up with a plan to deliver vital communication services such as first-class mail, and to reclaim more of the lucrative overnight mail and package express market, which critics say it gave away because of political pressure.

The Postal Service, as it now exists, is Nixon’s parting shot to an ungrateful nation. It is neither public nor private, but incorporates the worst features of each. It has an impossible mission of delivering mail to a large part of the globe while making a profit. Its current deficit is made worse by a lasting economic depression that has cut its business significantly. In addition, it gave away most of its most lucrative business -– overnight mail – to corporations. The Postal Service doesn’t have a business plan to speak of and is taking its deficit out on the public by cutting services and selling off valuable property, like the Venice Post Office.

A rational business plan for the postal service may include getting rid of many of its brick and mortar post offices, but it makes little sense to begin with the highly visible “legacy” post offices that are historic. The Venice Post Office is a symbol of our community. Its looming presence gives our community the status of a town, not just a wide place in the road.

Read the whole story at:

http://bit.ly/iOd7qi

 

Town Council meeting on Vera Davis Center and Post Office – June 16

The next meeting of the Venice Town Council will be as follows:

6:30pm – Housekeeping items, announcements

7pm – Vera Davis Center – Save the services at the VDC!

8pm – Venice Post Office – Save the historic building as the Post Office

Location: Vera Davis Center

All Venetians may speak and may vote.

Petition to Save Vera Davis Center Services

Petition-VERA-DAVIS

Save the Vera Davis Center services

The Venice Town Council will meet at follows on this topic:

7pm Thursday, April 21
Vera Davis Center
610 California Avenue

Please join us in this effort to keep services to the low income and jobless at this location.

Venice Cityhood Meeting

The Venice Cityhood Committee meets:

7-9 pm Friday, October 22
at 533 Rialto Avenue
(one block west of Abbot Kinney Blvd.)

Why Cityhood?

• Decisions should be made at the local level (Venice)
• L.A. wants to gut its zoning code, say L.A. Neighbors United – www.laneighbors.org
• L.A. dictates rent increases in spite of zero inflation (cpi) – http://bit.ly/cOX341
• Venice libraries, parks, beach, streets and social services suffer with no end in sight due to L.A.’s budget crisis.

Who would benefit?

• Venice residents, 70% of whom are renters.
• Venice businesses who would see their fees stay in the community.
• Venice home owners who would likewise see their property taxes put to use in their community.
• Venice artists who would have a city government friendly to the arts.
• Venice social service organizations who would no longer have to compete with agencies all over L.A. for needed funding.

How do we get started?

• Join us on Oct. 22 and subsequent committee meetings.
• Lend your expertise in research, law, accounting, communications, graphic design and outreach. No skills will be turned away.
• Tell your friends why we need cityhood. Get them involved!

Venice becoming the city imagined
A city like no other city on earth
–Philomene Long

Venice Cityhood – Powerpoint/Keynote Presentation

Here is the slightly modified presentation made at the kickoff meeting on July 25, 2010 at our old city hall.

Venice Cityhood

Venice Cityhood Committee Sign-up

Here is the pdf of the sign-up sheet for those wishing to become active in the Venice cityhood campaign.

I_support_cityhood_petition

Actions of the July 1, 2010 Venice Town Council

At the VTC meeting of July 1, 2010 at the United Methodist Church Auditorium, the following took place:

1. OPDs – The body celebrated the Coastal Commission decision denying permit parking in Venice. The VTC had been a strong opponent of OPDs.

2. Modification to the Town Council Rules: The body voted to modify the Rules to elect co-chairs/facilators and a secretary annually, as follows: The Town Council shall elect two co-chairs/faciliators and a secretary at it November meeting each year. Those elected will hold office in the following year. If this modification of the Rules goes into effect prior to the November meeting, the Town Council shall elect two co-chairs/faciliators and a secretary to hold office until the following year.

3. Co-sponsor the meeting on Venice Cityhood at the old Town Hall, July 25. Approved.

4. Endorse a memorial at Venice & Lincoln to the Japanese who were sent to concentration camps from there during WW2. Also send a letter. Approved.

5. File an Amicus brief in support of Fabiola Wright’s suit against oversized buildings that block views. Approved. See http://freevenicebeachhead.wordpress.com/2008/07/01/july-2008-what-do-we-see-when-we-look-out-our-window-are-we-doomed-to-see-only-mcsheds-and-blank-walls/

Note: The Amicus brief has since been accepted by the court.

Venice Town Council meets June 7

The independent Venice Town Council is meeting at 7pm Monday, June 7 at the Methodist Church Auditorium, 2210 Lincoln Blvd.

The topic will be how to fight against permit parking (Overnight Parking Districts, OPDs) that Los Angeles is attempting to impose on us. The motiviation for the permit parking is to evict those who live in RVs from Venice.

If you can’t come on Monday night, please come to the Coastal Commission meeting on June 10. OPDs are item number 14 on the agenda. It’s at the Marina del Rey hotel, 13534 Bali Way, MdR (same place as last year).

The Town Council is a democratic organization of Venetians that is not affiliated in any way with the city of Los Angeles. Please support it with your presence on Monday.

For more information on the current threat to Venice, see:

http://freevenicebeachhead.wordpress.com/2010/06/01/rv-residents-under-gun-stick-showdown-is-june-10/

http://www.NoPermitParkingInVenice.com

See you Monday!

Venice Town Council bravely meets on Friday the 13th

The Venice Town Council meets

7pm, Friday the 13th

at the Methodist Church Auditorium

2210 Lincoln Blvd.

(A delicious vegetarian meal will be available at 6:30pm for a suggested donation of $5)

Suggested Agenda Items:

1. Election of a Chair/facilitator and Secretary/recorder.
2. What should be done with the Venice PO annex? The U.S. Post Office has announced that they are going to be asking for bids for the property at the Circle to Rivera. If we can keep it public, it could be used for homeless services, parking, etc.
3. All things OPD. Now is the time to get involved if you don’t want permit parking on your doorstep.
4. March 3 city election – consideration of endorsements and non-endorsements. Candidates for all city offices, community college trustees and Board of Education are running. What have they done for Venice, and what should we do for them?
5. Update on pending lawsuits over the police invasion of Oakwood last Feb. 19. It was one year ago that police went on a rampage in Oakwood, knocking down doors and terrorizing senior citizens. People are standing up against this injustice. What can we do to help?

The Venice Town Council is a community-based organization open to all residents on an equal basis. Everyone can speak, and everyone can vote. A quorum of 20 people is necessary to conduct business, take positions and institute action. Please come and participate in this meeting.