| Friday,July 18,2008- Breaking News! Avis Ridley-Thomas extends time period for response to the letter! The new deadline is August 4th. Thank you to all who participated in the Action Alert, you made it happen! As far as having Avis prepare an evaluation of the dialogue, we now have the documents in our possession, so we will just prepare our own! From Avis' email: "At the request of many Sunland-Tujunga Stakeholders, the Dispute Resolution program has agreed to extend the period of time for you and/or your organization to consider and respond to our request for your input as outlined in our July 14, 2008, letter. The new cut-off date will be MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2008." See what happens when we all work together? We're calling off the hounds... for now! Thursday, July 17, 2008- If it's Thursday, it's time to CALL Avis Ridley-Thomas! The direct number to her office is 213 485-8324 Even if you have already sent an e-mail, today is the day to speak with her. Please be polite, yet firm. No further discussions can even be planned until Avis completes her evaluation of the April 26th dialogue. The time limit to submit names for representation on any possible future discussions cannot be completed by her unreasonable time schedule. Wednesday, July 16, 2008- STA Action Alert Off To Great Start! Our e-mail inbox was flooded with copies of letters sent to Avis Ridley-Thomas today, so we can imagine how many she has received! Her response? "Thank you for your input. Your response has been forwarded to the mediate@lacity.org e-mailbox so that the lead mediator in this matter, Barbara Goldfarb, can review it and respond at her earliest opportunity." Later in the day, we received this response from her secretary, Yvonne Elias; "Ms. Barbara Goldfarb is the assigned facilitator and will be responding to you. Please forward any further correspondence to the mediate in box at mediate@lacity.org. Thank you." We have also left a phone message, but no reply yet. We feel that e-mails should still go to Avis & Yvonne and not into the general mailbox where they may not get read. Since Avis has imposed a Monday deadline, we don't have time to wait for her to perhaps read e-mail sent to the general mailbox. So please continue sending your e-mails to the two addresses provided in the Action Alert notice. Ms Ridley-Thomas is being unreasonable in requesting the community provide her with names on such a short notice, and the format of her proposed discussions are highly questionable. In fact, her claim that the community wants to continue discussions has many people scratching their heads! Keep Up the Great Work, Sunland-Tujunga! Thank you to all that have written her! Thursday is Day 2 of the Action Alert! You can read a sampling of the letters sent HERE! Tuesday, July 15, 2008- The Dispute Resolution Team Seeks More Talks! The DRT sent out letters and e-mails today to those who had participated in the "Sunland-Tujunga Dialogue" seeking to arrange new talks with community leaders. If you have not received a letter or email from the DRT, you can read it HERE. There are a few problems with trying to schedule any type of continuing sessions at this time. The main problem is that Avis Ridley-Thomas and the DRT have yet to complete their summary or analysis of the original "Sunland-Tujunga Dialogue" that occurred on April 26th. A summary is needed so that the community and Home Depot will have documentation and a true picture of what was expressed by the participants. We feel that Avis Ridley-Thomas must first complete her obligations before embarking on any new efforts to bring the parties involved together. In an email that Avis Ridley-Thomas sent to us in May, she said, "As I indicated earlier, all letters, e-mails, calls and materials generated from community members will be organized, catalogued, evaluated and delivered to the City Council office for your area as well as the County Department of Community and Senior Services, which administers the Dispute Resolution Programs Act grant funds which we receive. Once that process is complete it is possible to arrange a time to view the materials which we have compiled." (emphasis ours). The Council office has yet to receive anything from the DRT. Additionally, when the STA went to the office of the DRT to view the assembled documents, we found that there was no evaluation, and there was no record of the phone calls received by her office. This process is supposed to be public and transparent. If there was an evaluation, it hasn't been made public. We therefore insist that no further talks be planned until Avis Ridley-Thomas can provide us with an evaluation or summary of the April 26th dialogue. Another problem with the DRT intent for more talks is that they are only giving the community until July 21 to respond to their request for names of groups that should participate. This is too short of a window. The community should be given a more reasonable time period to respond to her request. After all, it is summer and people are busy with vacations, summer school, work, and other activities. What's the rush? Avis Ridley-Thomas has had since April 26th to finish her job, and has not yet completed the task she said she would do. She should, at the very least, allow more than a week for the community to fulfill her request. With this in mind, we are issuing an "Action Alert". Monday, July 14, 2008- Today's "Take Back L.A." Rally was a big success and a blast for all of us! Here is a montage of pixs! The press coverage is HERE, HERE, HERE, & HERE. Sunday, July 13, 2008- The Daily News has a story by Ron Kaye about Monday's "Take Back Los Angeles" Rally! Read it HERE. Friday, July 11, 2008- NHDC/STA chairman Joe Barrett is scheduled to speak at Monday's "Take Back Los Angeles" Rally. This event (see flier on front page) is being held at noon on the south lawn of L.A. City Hall. The event is sponsored by the Saving L.A. Project, and spearheaded by Ron Kaye, the former editor of the Daily News. Other scheduled speakers (so far) are Sandra Tsing Loh (NPR "the Loh Down", KPCC "The Loh Life"), Doug McIntyre, ("McIntyre in the Morning", 790 KABC) Jose Aguilar, (Boyle Heights Neighborhood Activist) Steve Barr, (founder of Green Dot Schools), and, of course, Ron Kaye (former editor of the Daily News). "Nothing but greed holds the power structure together and it will crumble in the face of a united community. Our elected officials are held hostage by the unions, developers and contractors who flatter their delusion of self-importance with the money that keeps them in office." -Ron Kaye We hope you can join us, on this Bastille Day, as we begin a movement to take the City away from the lobbyists, developers, and corrupt politicians, and put it back in control of the people where it belongs! Wednesday, July 9, 2008- Enjoy the Quiet before the Storm. And please take a moment to read the following interview with Stacy Mitchell, the author of "Big Box Swindle" HERE. Tuesday, July 8, 2008- Have you ever heard of the "Geoffrey Loophole"? Neither had we, until today. Home Depot knows it well, and appears to use it to avoid paying state taxes in many states, and as a tool to squash smaller competitors and "mom & pop" stores. Read about it HERE. Sunday, July 6, 2008- Parade Pixs HERE & HERE ! Abby has the story over at the STA blog HERE! Just an observation.....Home Depot's imaginary supporters were no where to be seen at the parade, (because, they are uh..imaginary??) and Home Depot did not enter a float or support the event, although they could have. Consensus Planning Group handles HD's PR work, but they must have been busy with something else... Also, Here are 2 stories that talk about the Sunland-Tujunga vs Home Depot Battle: CitywatchLA Ron Kaye/CityWatchLA Monday, June 30, 2008- Adventures With Avis! Today was our scheduled appointment with the office of Avis Ridley-Thomas, of the Dispute Resolution Program, to review all of the files from the Sunland-Tujunga Dialogue. We arrived (2 of us) promptly at 10am (the time of our appointment), and were told to take a seat in the lobby. At 10:25am, two uniformed LAPD officers came into the lobby, and were joined by the security guard, a facilitator, and Yvonne Elias, Avis's secretary. Yvonne then explained that we were going to be searched before being allowed to review the documents. The security guard apologized for having to put us through this and said it was "nothing personal". The LAPD waved their wand, as we stood with our hands in the air. The wand kept going off on Joe, so he was asked what was under his pants, what his shoes were made of, and did he have any metallic parts to his body? It was finally determined that the wand was reacting to the metal in the floor, so we were allowed to proceed. We were then led to a small conference room and the facilitator asked the LAPD to wait outside the door for a few minutes. We were pretty puzzled by this treatment and asked if this was normal procedure. The facilitator replied that it was unusual but did occur in some cases. When asked what warranted our being searched and guarded, he said it was because of a scuffle that broke out at the Sunland-Tujunga Dialogue. "Oh" said we. We told him that we were not involved in any scuffle, nor did we know anyone that had been involved, nor had we been able to find out if the incident even actually occurred. He said he understood but "You just can't be too careful these days". "And will Home Depot be searched and guarded when they show up for their appointment?" we asked. "Absolutely", he assured us. We all got a big nervous laugh over the ridiculousness of the situation and then we began to pour through the 1000 or so pages of documents assembled before us. One binder that was close to 3 inches thick contained all the e-mails, letters, and response forms that had been collected from people writing about their support or opposition to Home Depot. We discovered that out of the hundreds of communications collected, There were less than 20 in favor of Home Depot! Out of those less than 20, 4 were from the same guy! One was from a gentlemen in LA Crescenta who thought that a Home Depot in Sunland "...might actually improve circumstances by giving them (day workers), a centralized place to hang out so there wouldn't be so many tiny groups of them throughout a four mile stretch." A person who signed their name as Anonymous said that they had heard rumors of possible snipers should Home Depot be approved. Anonymous also said that "These people (the NHDC) who are running this campaign are vicious enough to retaliate against stakeholders like myself, and therefore, I am cautious about my involvement and prefer to remain unnoticed." Anonymous continues, "Home Depot will provide a safer location for these (day) workers to assemble in, which should be aesthetically pleasing to the residents as well." Another gentleman writes in support of Home Depot, " I would like to see hd move in as it will be very convent (sic) for all the mobil (sic) park people to shop there as well." Well, you get the idea. Just two quick things about the above comments; The NHDC has gone to extraordinary lengths to keep the day worker issue out of this battle. Our focus has always been on land use, safety, public school proximity, and traffic. Also, if anybody ever feels threatened or intimidated by anyone from either side, please contact the police immediately. We have never had any reports of this occurring, so let's just keep it that way. These type of rumors are often started by outside interests seeking to cause division in a community, so consider the source first. We have ordered a copy of all of the documents which we should have in the next few weeks, and we will share more with you at that time. UPDATE: Ron Kaye has the story HERE. Monday, June 30, 2008- The North Valley Reporter has a great story out about the LAUSD/Home Depot fiasco in it's current issue. The paper also has reports on the Oro Vista Wildlife Corridor, AB212, and lots more! Pick up a copy before they are gone! Friday, June 27, 2008- Campbell, California's Experiences With Home Depot! A Must Read HERE! Wednesday, June 25, 2008- More Bad Press For Agent Orange Remember Dakota Communications? They were the PR firm hired by Home Depot that brought in all the phony bused in paid supporters, the phony websites, and worked to label us all as racists. They are back in the news, as David Z reports at the LA Times, hosting a fund raiser for Mayor Villaraigosa. This story recaps some of their shenanigans while working for Home Depot. You can read it HERE. After all the bad publicity, Dakota was dumped by HD and replaced by Consensus Planning and Redgate Communications, who have thus far brought us last week's LAUSD/Home Depot fiasco! Also, CityWatchLA has a story on HD's environmental studies HERE. Believe us when we say that HD "voluntarily" submitting these reports likely has very little to do with addressing the community's concerns, but way more to do with protecting the "integrity" of their lawsuit against the City, should they decide to resume it. That's just our humble opinion, of course. Sunday, June 22, 2008- Pictures from Last Night's Joe For Sheriff Party can be seen HERE! Friday, June 20, 2008- Home Depot releases their own environmental studies and not surprisingly, they conclude that their store will have No Negative Impact on Sunland-Tujunga. You can read all 863 pages of their own studies for yourself HERE. Enjoy! Friday, June 20, 2008- Ron Kaye has a new story about the ongoing battle with Home Depot HERE. Thursday, June 19, 2008- Breaking News! Home Depot Responds to Cancellation Of Their "Open House", And apparently, It's all our fault! Read It Here. Our response to their response: We appreciate the courtesy of the LAUSD asking Home Depot to withdraw their application to use a public school facility to promote their business. Home Depot is more than welcome, and can certainly afford, to present an Open House in a private facility. We suggested this to the LAUSD in our correspondence. If Home Depot now has their environmental studies completed, and technical experts willing to discuss the issues with the community, then no one is preventing them from doing so, as long as they use a venue that does not conflict with the law, or if they arrange a meeting using proper channels through City agencies. It is unfortunate that Home Depot is blaming the STA for their own mistakes, creating a "hostile environment", and accusing us of preventing people from getting information. We'll continue to keep the community informed, and will always work towards creating a better Sunland-Tujunga. Thank you for your continued support! We'll see you all this Saturday Night at the Joe For Sheriff Dinner and Dance at the Elks Lodge at 6pm! See the STA site for all the details HERE. By the way, have you written your letter to the City yet? Go HERE for details. Thursday, June 19,2008- Joseph Mailander gives us a shout out today on his Street Hassle blog! HERE. Home Depot issues a press release today that fails to mention the LAUSD fiasco, but does manage to distort reality in an all new way. HERE. Thursday, June 19, 2008- Did You Enjoy The Ride? We hope everyone has had a chance to catch their breath over yesterday's extraordinary turn of events! Over the breadth of a few short hours, we saw the LAUSD draw a line in the sand in the defense of the issuance of permits to Home Depot. This was followed by Home Depot suddenly backing out of their planned "Open House" with no explanation. We'll probably never know what went on behind the scenes for this all to turn out the way it did, but we're just happy that, at least for now, our public school will not be used to promote Home Depot's business interests. Our special thanks go out to LAUSD Board Member Julie Korenstein and her staff for being so professional and understanding. We actually suspect that Ms Korenstein may have had more to do with stopping this event than she is letting on, so to Julie we send a big hug! To read a more detailed recap of this whirlwind week, visit the STA blog HERE. Thank You Sunland-Tujunga for standing together on this! This is the good that can come when we all work together! Wednesday, June 18, 2008- Breaking News! This Just In (5:30 pm)! Home Depot Drops Plans To Hold Open House at Mt Gleason School! We just received a phone call from LAUSD board member, Julie Korenstein, and she said that Home Depot has notified her that they are canceling their scheduled open house at Mt. Gleason School on June 24th! We do not know the details of why they are canceling their plans, but we'll try to find out more. More Later! What a day this has been! Wednesday, June 18, 2008- LAUSD Refuses To Revoke Permit! See Ron Kaye's Breaking Story HERE While we are waiting, we suggest that you read this new story from Ron Kaye about how the city works today, and how it should work. There is a mention of our efforts fighting Home Depot and the current LAUSD mess. Read it HERE. Joe has a new story about this today at Mayor Sam, HERE. Tuesday, June 17, 2008- At tonight's DAC meeting, the representative from Home Depot said that the June 24th Home Depot "Open House" would consist of "stations" that attendees could visit. Doesn't this sound more like a self promotional fair than anything resembling a public meeting? Let's hope the LAUSD comes to their senses and brings a stop to this before our public schools become convention centers for any corporation or business interest seeking to hawk their wares. Also, let's give Julie Korenstein and her staff a break from the phone calls and e-mails today. We think they deserve some quiet time to work this out. Thanks for all you do, Sunland-Tujunga! Monday, June 16, 2008- UPDATE: Mayor Sam has an excellent report HERE. If it's Monday, its time to contact LAUSD Board Member, Julie Korenstein, again! Julie Korenstein 213 241-6388 julie.korenstein@lausd.net Ms. Korenstein has expressed her support for our efforts and her concern for the negative impacts a Home Depot will have on our community and our schoolchildren, so please be nice. Just let her know that Home Depot using public school facilities to promote their business is in violation of the Civic Center Act, and that the LAUSD must revoke the permit that was mistakenly granted. We have sent our response to her along with many other City officials and hope to have this matter resolved soon. Home Depot is welcome to promote their proposed store at a private venue, and we hope that they will also step up and rectify this situation. Your phone call or email will make a big difference today, so even if you have already contacted her office once, please do so again. Saturday, June 14, 2008- Read the NHDC response to Julie Korenstein's letter HERE Read and respond to Ron Kaye's Update HERE. "I must inform you that the information given to you by the School Superintendent is incomplete and incorrect. The Civic Center Act within California's Education Code does not permit businesses, or their representatives, usage of public school facilities as Home Depot wishes to do. If the permit specifically states that Home Depot, as a business, is the entity making the facility request then the permit is illegal. Therefore, the permit given to them is illegal and must be revoked. I ask that you proceed with this immediately."-Stan Sugarman You can read the entire Civic Center Act HERE. Friday, June 13, 2008- From the Office of Board Of Education Member Julie Korenstein: "I received the following information from the Superintendent's Office: "The Civic Center Act mandated by the California Education Code provides that each and every public school is a civic center of the community in which the school resides. As a civic center, the members of the public and other organizations may meet and discuss any subjects pertaining to the educational, political, economic, artistic, and moral interests of the citizens of the communities. Therefore, Los Angeles Unified School District is mandated to uphold the civic center permit policy in a fair, neutral, and transparent process. The issuance or denial of an application for a civic center permit is not an indication of LAUSD's support or disapproval of a proposed use or activity. Whether a civic center permit can be issued is based on the intended use of or the activity. We cannot discriminate against applicants and we cannot make judgment determinations as to whether the applicant's purpose is worthy of the use of a school facility." As you may know, the District was very concerned about the original report and wanted a much more in-depth study done of the impact on the schools and the community. I wish there would have been something else we could have done. I share your frustration. Please make sure you are well represented so that your concerns can be heard." Respectfully, Board Member Julie Korenstein Board District 6 333 S. Beaudry Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90017 213.241.6388 Fax 213.241.8451 Thursday, June 12, 2008- Breaking News! LAUSD changes rules to accommodate Home Depot! This text above is from the LAUSD website that explains who can or can't rent out school facilities! This change was made today, weeks after the permit to Home Depot was granted. To see this change in full context: Go Here Just yesterday, the rule read as: Interestingly enough, the application to use school facilities still asks specifically whether the group applying is non profit. See question #2 HERE Unbelievable. Please contact the following two people and share your opinions: Julie Korenstein Board of Education 213 241- 6388 julie.korenstein@lausd.net Kathy Friedman kathryn.friedman@lausd.net LAUSD Civic Center Permit Office 818 587-4350 Read Ron Kaye's Story Excellent story about this HERE! Wednesday, June 11, 2008- Breaking News/Action Alert! Home Depot's June 24th Open House in Violation of LAUSD Rules! Home Depot recently sent out brochures to the community announcing an "Open House" to be held at Mt. Gleason School on June 24th. According to the requirements of the LAUSD/Civic Center Rules: "The major function of the Civic Center Permit Office is the issuance of the appropriate permit to allow for the use of school facilities in conformance with the California Education Code mandate and the Board of Education rules, which require that each and every public school facility be made available as a civic center to members of the community and non-profit organizations for supervised recreational activities, meetings and public discussions, when regular school activities are not disrupted. To qualify for a permit: A group must be non-profit. No money may be charged for admission, nor collected for goods sold. (exceptions exist-please call for requirements). The event must be open to the public." Home Depot is clearly not a non-profit, and this event, if it is allowed to proceed, will set a precedent for other corporations or developers to use public facilities to advance their business interests. The recent "Sunland-Tujunga Dialogue" was a City Attorney sponsored event. This "Open House" is an attempt by a corporation to use school facilities to promote their proposed store. Additionally, the application to use school facilities states; "Any form of announcement or advertising regarding activities held on school property for non school purposes must include the following statement: "This meeting is neither sponsored by nor is in any way connected with the Los Angeles Unified School District. If announcement is in printed form, statement must appear in equally large and prominent type". If you take a look at the brochure that Home Depot sent out announcing this "Open House", you will see that this required disclaimer appears nowhere on the brochure. Home Depot is not a non-profit and is not permitted to use school facilities to promote their business. We call upon the LAUSD to immediately rectify this issue and we urge you to contact the following people, in the next 24 hours, to voice your concern: David Brewer Superintendent of LAUSD 213 241-7000 Julie Korenstein Board of Education 213 241- 6388 julie.korenstein@lausd.net Kathy Freeman LAUSD Civic Center Permit Office 818 587-4350 Home Depot likes to ignore the rules, let's make sure they don't this time! Update: Mayor Sam has the story HERE. Monday, June 9, 2008- Home Depot Presents To Shadow Hills Property Owners Association! Those that were fortunate enough to attend tonight's meeting got to witness firsthand Home Depot's ability to avoid answering questions either through non answers or just by simply clamming up. They also got to witness Jeff Nichols, Home Depot's real estate manager, outright refusal to deal with several unresolved issues (including the bused in paid supporters, the labeling of our community as racist, the phony websites,etc) as well as truck traffic on Woodward, and hours of operation. STA member, Dean Sherer, (a CEQA expert, and longtime City Planner) assured the audience and Home Depot that their application and subsequent studies will be heavily scrutinized. Jeff Nichols also took the opportunity to dismiss those in attendance by saying that they were not representing the entire community. When pressed on this, and on why Home Depot had no supporters present, Mr. Nichols gave us the number of supporters they do have in our community of 60,000+. Mr Nichols finally admitted that they only have 200 supporters based on the positive postcards they have received. "Where are they?" someone asked. Really folks, You just must attend one of these meetings. It's entertainment at its finest! Tomorrow, Home Depot will present to the Chamber of Commerce at 11:30 am at Tierra Del Sol. We'll be there. Go To Next Page |
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A Photographic Review of the Scope of Work Home Depot has performed at the former K-Mart site. HERE |
| 4 Important Documents 1.NHDC Appeal 2.NHDC Appeal sup. 3.Zoning Admin decision 4.City Council Decision |
| Read the letter that astro-turf website StopRacismCa removed from their website after the June 7th Hearing! This "group" is headed by Daniel Haro, who claims to be an "ex" Home Depot PR employee. HERE. |
| Read the post on LatinoLA by another HD operative trying to convince readers that our issue with HD has to do with "racism". Then read the responses: Here & Here & HERE |
Sunland-Tujunga Businesses That Oppose Home Depot ( under construction, if we don't have you on this prestigious list , please let us know) Save My House Ferguson Music All Points Fasteners Writer For Hire Time To Explore Child Development Center Hot Springs Cabin Rentals Neuenswander Electric The North Valley Reporter Do It Center Foothill Hardware Merithews Hardware Mariosols Nursery Bountiful Gardens Tomi Lyn Bowling Realtor Meares Music, Inc. Image West Salon Century 21 Sweet Stampen Sunland Discount C & M Printing Tujunga Auto Sales Petes Auto Care Sunland Chiropractic The Foothill Paper Rise & Shine Cafe Options Carpet Cleaning Sunland Water Gardens Champion Building Supplies Armstrongs Nursery Family Nursery Creative Expressions Hawkeye Construction John Hastings, Contractor Carl Warner, Contractor INService, Inc Joselitos West Mi Casita Tim Van Pelt Plumbing AJ Masters Glass The Coffee Stop Commerce Deli Charles H. Sanford Plumbing El Mariachi Loco Apparatus Communications Old Towne Optical Quick Copies (thanks for the recent flier donations)!!!! Abby Diamond & Associates |
We are honored and very proud to be joined in our campaign by The Mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio R. Villaraigosa ?? (he said he supported us and then disappeared) L.A. City Councilmember Wendy Greuel SEIU Local 660 The STNC The Northridge West Neighborhood Council Jim Alger LANCC Senator Former LA Mayor, James Hahn The Foothill Trails District Neighborhood Council The SunValley Neighborhood Council NO HOME DEPOT Coalition NE Los Angeles The Mission Hills NC and most importantly, the good people of Sunland-Tujunga! |
| Newsflash!! Diary of a Campaign |
| Pixs From "Sunland- Tujunga Dialogue" HERE |
| A Community United, Can Not be Divided! Sunland-Tujunga, Shadow Hills, Lake View Terrace, Kagel Canyon, La Tuna Canyon |
| "To qualify for a permit: A group must be non-profit." |
| To qualify for a permit: A group must be non-profit.(Incorrect) Updated 6/12/08: The activity requested must be not for profit. |
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| Home Depot In The News! -HD stock takes another hit! -Merrill advises to sell HD |
| ACTION ALERT! Please contact Avis Ridley-Thomas at (213) 485-8324 or by fax at (213) 485-8916 or by e-mail at Avis.Ridley-Thomas@lacity.org We also suggest you cc your email to Yvonne Elias at yvonne.elias@lacity.org and to us at explodingsun@gmail.com You can also mail your letter to: STA P.O. Box 123 Tujunga, CA 91043 Please be polite, but firm. Let them know that no further talks can be planned until Avis Ridley-Thomas completes her evaluation and summary and delivers it to the office of Councilmember Wendy Greuel and to the community. ACTION ALERT! ACT NOW! |
