Newsletter: The Media Messenger

Summertime in the Media Districts

It's summer in Hollywood and it's greener than ever before! That's because it's been nearly a year since the BID planted nearly 300 trees throughout the district, through the LADWP's Trees For A Green LA program. In addition, 84 trees were planted on Highland Avenue as part of the Highland Gateway Project, almost two years ago. These trees are also growing and creating a better pedestrian environment in the area. The success rate for the planted trees has been very high overall, with a minimal amount of trees showing signs of severe stress. TruGreen Landcare, Inc maintains the trees weekly under the BID's supervision. If you have any concerns or want to report trees that need to be trimmed, please contact Devin at 323-460-4770.

Tipu trees (left) such as these planted on McCadden were installed last summer with help from LA DWP and LACC (Los Angeles Conservation Corps). Chines Pitache (right) were planted nearly two years ago on Highland Avenue.

Ballots Sent Out

After several weeks of collecting petitions to form the next phase of the BID, the City Clerk's office verified that the required amount of signed petitions were obtained to call for a Prop 218 vote. The ballots were then mailed out to all property owners in the current BID and the expansion area. The ballots contain the owner name, parcel number and address of the property, and the amount of the annual assessment.

The Management Plan and Engineers Report were mailed with the ballot. Please return your ballot to the City Clerk in the envelope provided as soon as possible.

If you did not receive your ballot, please contact Devin at 323-460-4770.

Olympic Torch Visits the Media District

NBC4's Fred Roggins carries the Olympic Torch through the eastern edge of the Media District, traveling southward on Vine Street, heading for Dodger Stadium. Others who carried the torch include Ellen DeGeneres, Sylvester Stallone, Ryan Seachrest and Tom Cruise, as well as several Olympians. Photo by Devin Strecker

On March 25, 2004, the Olympic Torch was lit near the Temple of Hera in Ancient Olympia, Greece. It left Athens on June 3 and embarked on a 35-day world tour, starting with Australia; then heading on to Japan, South Korea, China, India, Egypt, and South Africa. It crossed the Atlantic Ocean heading to Brazil and then Mexico. On June 16, the torch was in Los Angeles; home of the 1932 and 1984 Olympics. From there it traveled across the United States and Canada before returning to Europe, ending on July 9 in Athens. Actor Sylvester Stallone was the first to carry the torch through Los Angeles after it arrived from Mexico and was handed off my Mayor Jim Hahn. The opening ceremony of the 2004 Olympics will be on Aug. 13 in Athens. The games of the XXVIII Olympiad will be broadcast this year on NBC television.

Media District Briefs

- One of the services provided by HMD Security is removing people who are loitering, sleeping, trespassing or aggressively panhandling from the businesses within the Media District. The Media District and HMD Security need to have a Trespass Letter on file to continue to provide the service. This authorization will allow HMD Security and/or LAPD to enter your property 24/7 to remove trespassers. Please contact HMD Security at 323-871-4150 or 213-216-6100 to sign a Trespass Letter or if you need assistance getting someone off your property.

- As reported on page one, ballots were sent to all property owners, including the Management Plan and signed Engineers Report. A copy of these documents is on file in the HMD Office.

- The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce will address the city's controversial Inclusion-ary Housing Ordinance at a luncheon on Wed., July 28, noon, at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, 7000 Holly-wood Blvd. For reservations or more info, please call 323-469-8311. Councilmembers Eric Garcetti and Ed Reyes introduced the ordinance in April 2004, which would require developers of new market-rate housing of five units or more to include up to 20 percent of the units for very low, low and moderate-income households. The City Council is scheduled to make a decision on the ordinance in mid-August.

Security Patrol Keeping Crime Down in the District

At the June Business Watch Meeting, LAPD Hollywood Division Senior Lead Officer Vince Aguirre thanked the Hollywood Media District's Security Team for helping reduce the amount of theft from vehicles, as well as other crimes. HMD security has been working in cooperation with LAPD. The removal of the benches from the bus stops at Santa Monica and Highland has decreased the amount of incidents occurring at these locations. If you have any security issues or needs, please contact Ken Nakano, Securitas Project Manager, at 323-871-4150

Benches were removed from the bus stops on Santa Monica at Highland.

HMD Calendar

Business Watch Meeting
When: Thursday, July 8
Time: 12:00 pm
Where: Hollywood Community Room, 6501 Fountain. (at Wilcox)
Topic: Drug Dealers in Hollywood
Call 323-460-4770 to RSVP for lunch

HMD Board Meeting
There is no board meeting in July

Graffiti Paint Out Agreement

Your consent is necessary to obliterate graffiti at your site. The Hollywood Beautification Team, through the city, will assist in the acquisition of free paint for your property or paint out graffiti using your paint.

Please make sure that your business or property has a signed Agreement on file. For more information or an Agreement, please contact Devin at 323.460.4770.

June Activities Report

Questions or Comments

Feel free to contact the Hollywood Media District using the following contact information:

Hollywood Media District
1304 North Highland Avenue #200
Hollywood, CA 90028
Phone:  323.460.6322
Fax:  323.460.6488
www.mediadistrict.org

Executive Director: Mary Lou Dudas
MDudas@pacbell.net

Assistant: Devin Strecker
Devin77@pacbell.net
323-460-4770

Hollywood Media District Field Office
6775 Santa Monica Blvd. #2A
Hollywood, CA 90038
Phone:  323.871.4150
Hours:  7am - 12am, Mon-Sat

Hollywood Beautification Team
6775 Santa Monica Blvd. #2A
Phone:  Phone 323-463-5180
Hours:  7am - 4pm, Mon-Sun

Security Supervisor: Ken Nakano
kenneth.nakano@securitasinc.com

Hollywood Media District Property Owners
Association Board of Directors

Carol Cassella, President - RenMar Studios
Jeff Anthony, Vice-President - Iron Mountain Film & Sound
Larry Curtis, Secretary - Consolidated Film Industries
Jack Fleming, Treasurer - Advanced Digital Services
Fred Anawalt - Anawalt Lumber Company
Morton Lakretz - The Crossroads
Tim Mahoney - Hollywood Center Studios
Michael Malick - Marcus & Millichap
Jacques Massachi - Ori Service Center
Albert Sweet - Al Sweet Development
Gene La Pietra - Arena Cafe
Ana Ramirez - Television Center
Don Robertson - Honda of Hollywood
Brian Scane - The Paladin Group, Inc.
Ron Stein - Crest NationalFilm & Video
Eliza Thorne - Seward Film Vaults
Ferris Wehbe - Hollywood Little Red School

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