[Editor’s Note: For further details on this subject, see culvercity.org/agendas regarding tonight’s 7 o’clock City Council meeting in Council Chambers at City Hall.]
Over the past few months, there have been a number of clandestine meetings held among the city of Culver City, West Los Angeles College and several representatives of the adjacent neighborhoods.
We received the results of these meetings just this past Friday afternoon in the form of a “Settlement Agreement” that is being discussed at tonight's City Council meeting.
The parties to this agreement are West Los Angeles College and the city of Culver City. None of the neighborhood associations are included, but their best interests are being determined.
While we think the city is on the right track and there has been some progress made in solving the issues the neighborhoods are having with the college, significant matters still need improving and are very important to us.
Particularly noteworthy is that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was agreed to in 2005 with the college.
Neighbors of the college have been completely ignored and, in fact, deemed obsolete in the proposed environmental impact report that the college is attempting to get approved.
In addition, there is no discussion in the Settlement Agreement about the problem of college students parking on residential streets adjacent to the campus, among other issues still open and unresolved.
We welcome the city’s continued support and urge that further progress be made before the approval of an agreement. The college is trying to rush this past the residents in spite of the City Council making it crystal clear that their approach needed to change. This was voiced at a recent Council meeting where terms such as terms “outrageous” were used in defining the action the college is taking.
This agreement has been presented to the City Council, and Council members will be discussing it at tonight’s 7 o’clock meeting.
We want to encourage the City Council to direct staff to work further with the neighborhood associations and consider their input.
It is imperative that our neighborhoods band together to get the provisions pertaining specifically to our neighborhoods included in this agreement. If not, the college will continue to ignore, overrule, manipulate and, at best, provide empty promises on matters that are in our best interest. We need to get the city to understand our issues and include them in this agreement.
Please join us tonight at City Hall. Voice your opinion on this matter or just to be there to show support of our neighborhoods concerns.
Mr. Bauer, President of the Culver Crest Neighborhood Assn., may be contacted at culvercity99@aol.com
