By Rosie La Briola
I support Christopher Patrick King for City Council in Tuesday’s election. As a 45-year resident, voter, and retired Culver City Unified School District employee, I take our city elections seriously.
Over the years, our City Council members have made tremendous strides in improving our community and making Culver City a terrific place to live. That being said, there’s always room for improvement. Chris King is the man with the vision and drive to do just that.
Chris King is taking an active role in supporting the fight to prohibit fracking in the oil fields above Culver City. Our city is also adjacent to the Inglewood Fault Line. After experiencing last week’s quake in La Habra, we don’t need to be told about the hazards of sitting on a fault line.
Although fracking and lateral drilling do not necessarily cause quakes, they do make the ground less stable when a quake does occur.
Our Baldwin Hills neighbors are already experiencing increased foundation and wall cracks that have been attributed to oil drilling. Although the city has explored oil drilling and fracking complaints, the Council seems to be taking a wait and see approach. Christopher King is continuing the fight to address these problems right now. Our health and safety aren’t issues that should ever be put on the back burner.
We have the rare opportunity to capitalize on the fact that Culver City is currently the end of the line for the Metro Rail, on the Westside of Los Angeles.
Christopher King plans to take advantage of this by setting up systems to entice Metro riders to frequent the businesses and restaurants in our revitalized Downtown, before the Metroline is extended into Santa Monica. This means increased revenue for our depleted city coffers, without having to raise taxes.
Over the past three years, I have worked closely with Christopher King, as a co-board member of our small non-profit titled Shoes for the Homeless. Through his dedication, enthusiasm and hard work, along with Dr. Ira Diamond, we have been able to collect and distribute over 11,000 pairs of gently used shoes to those in need, right here in our local area. Mr. King’s passion to help those less fortunate through philanthropy also extends to his work as Rotary Club President and as a member and president of the Culver City Homeless Committee.
I wholeheartedly support Mr. King for the City Council. New ideas and new approaches to solve lingering issues are what we need to keep Culver City vital.
Ms. La Briola, former principal of Lin Howe Elementary, of the best email address in Culver City, may be contacted at PigsFly@RosalindLa Briola.com
