Culver City Observer -

• WLAC Liaison Committee - The first meeting of the West Los Angeles College / Culver City Liaison Committee meeting was held at City Hall on November 1.

Committee Members (from right to left) include Council Member Thomas Small, Council Member Göran Eriksson, WLAC Vice President of Workforce Education Mark Pracher, City Manager John Nachbar, and WLAC President James Limbaugh. The Committee discussed its goals, which include finding ways to expand partnerships between WLAC and the City in order to enhance economic and academic opportunities, as well as quality of life in Culver City.

• Halloween Visitors – The City Manager’s Office received a special visit on Halloween from trick-or-treaters from Happyland Preschool who came to City Hall.

City Clerk’s Office

• Election Day is Coming! - Be sure to go to the end of the ballot to vote on Culver City Ballot Measures CW, CA, CB, and CD! For more information on all of the City's ballot measures, please go to the 2016 Ballot Measure Information page on our City website. For more information on Measure CW-the Clean Water, Clean Beach Parcel tax, please visit the Measure CW section of our website.

Fire Department

• Culver City Firefighters Grow Mustaches for Men's Health Awareness – "Movember" is a month-long campaign geared toward raising awareness and funds for men’s health. The funds will help save and improve the lives of men and their families affected by prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health problems. To donate, visit the Culver City Fire Department’s Movember Page.

• Culver City Firefighters Donate $1,000 to Breast Cancer Charity – Culver City Firefighters donated 100% of the proceeds from October’s CCFD Pink T-Shirt sales to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Culver City Firefighters thank the Culver City community for purchasing pink CCFD T-Shirts, which amounted to a donation of approximately $1,000 to help find a cure and support individuals and families battling breast cancer.

On October 28th, Firefighters from Fire Station 2 were photographed on Good Day LA’s Firehouse Friday with Rick Dickert.

• Daylight Saving Time Reminder – Daylight Saving Time ended on Sunday, November 6. The Culver City Fire Department reminds you to check your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Smoke alarms should be replaced every 10 years. To find out how old a smoke alarm is, look at the date of manufacture on the back of the alarm. Make sure you know how old all of the smoke alarms are in your home.

Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department

• Winter Wonderland Camp – Winter Break is coming and we have a solution for your childcare needs. The City is offering a two-week camp for youngsters ages 5 – 13. Campers will enjoy days filled with exciting activities such snow show races, gingerbread condo making, crafts, sports, field trips and more. Space is limited. Pick up your registration packets at the Registration Office beginning on Monday, November 7. Registration begins on November 19 for Culver City residents and November 26 for non-residents. The cost is $135 per week for resident participants and $166 per week for non-residents. Hours are 9 am to 6 pm. Week 1 of Winter Camp runs from December 19 to December 23, and Week 2 runs from December 26 to December 30. Extended care is available from 7 am to 9 am for an additional $26. For more information, please contact the Registration Office at 310-253-6650.

• Veterans Memorial Complex Rental Operation – The Veterans Memorial Building will be open for rentals on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve this year. Rental inquiries may be made via vmc.booking@culvercity.org or by calling 310-253-6625. More information on specific VMB rooms is available at http://www.culvercity.org.

Police Department

• International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference – From October 15 through October 18 Assistant Chief Allen Azran attended the International Association of Chiefs of Police Annual Conference and Exposition in San Diego. Each year the conference provides law enforcement executives from around the world with educational programs, keynote speakers, community building special events and the largest collection of tactical equipment and technological solutions for law enforcement. Assistant Chief Azran attended several of these sessions and engaged in open dialogue with various police leaders and executives from around the state and country.

Public Works Department

• Culver City Recognized at Cool Planet Awards Ceremony - The Cool Planet Awards Ceremony celebrates Southern California Edison’s business customers and their commitment to installing energy efficiency projects, participating in demand response programs, and implementing environmental and greenhouse gas management systems. Culver City was recognized for its outstanding Environmental Leadership in Energy and Carbon management with an Honorable Mention in the Government & Institutional category. Mayor Jim B. Clarke was on hand to accept the award on behalf of the City at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California.

• City Reduces Water Use by 35% - To address six years of continuous drought in California and as part of the City’s Water Conservation Plan, the City modified or replaced nearly 300 water fixtures in 24 City buildings that resulted in reducing water use by 35%. The analysis measured water use from July-September 2016 and compared it to the same period in 2015. The Water Efficient Fixtures project included the installation of low-flow aerators on faucets, waterless urinals, high-efficiency shower heads, water efficient toilets and dual-flush valves (for solid/liquid waste).

• Nearly 40 New Parking Spaces Recovered in Fox Hills Residential Neighborhood – The Engineering Division has been working with the Board of the Fox Hills Neighborhood Association to improve the quality of life for the residents, particularly in the area of traffic and parking. Staff is working on several components of an upcoming project, including the installation of new bike lanes, speed feedback signs, possible new marked crosswalks, and a future study to determine if speeds can be reduced on Green Valley Circle and on Buckingham Parkway.

Recently, in acknowledgement of the high density of the neighborhood and the growing need for on-street residential parking over the years, the Monterey style parking layout was removed in late October. The Monterey style parking layout is where two adjacent parking spaces are separated from the next adjacent pair of parking spaces by an 8-foot segment of red curb. When this layout is distributed throughout a neighborhood, a significant length of curb is dedicated to red curb segments separating pairs of parking spaces. These spaces are also delineated by parking tees.

A part of the Fox Hills Neighborhood’s residential on-street parking did not use the Monterey style layout. It was observed that the use of parking spaces in these segments, compared to where Monterey style was installed, was more efficient. More cars were parked without causing vehicles parked in between two cars to be landlocked. Residential neighborhoods, with the previous exception of the Fox Hills Neighborhood, do not have Monterey style parking.

The removal of Monterey parking in the residential streets of the Fox Hills Neighborhood resulted in the recovery of nearly 40 additional parking spaces.

• Culver Connect Construction Status Update November 4, 2016 - Culver Connect is Culver City’s municipal fiber open access network. It will facilitate providing high speed quality broadband service to the City’s business community, the Culver City Unified School District, and the municipal government. Construction of Culver Connect began in August. Much progress has been made on the Culver Connect Fiber Optic Project, and the City appreciates the community’s support and patience of the construction activities. The North Ring conduit construction is substantially complete. In the next few weeks, until the end of the year fiber cable will be installed in existing and new conduits. The overall construction of the North Ring is reported as approximately 85% complete. Construction of the Central Ring is also underway with approximately 25% of the conduit construction completed. The Central Ring involves a greater impacts to the City streets and impact to traffic. Weekend work is being performed where necessary in order to minimize the impact on the public. This work will continue into the first quarter of 2017. The South Ring is slated to begin conduit construction in the first quarter of 2017. Overall the Project is approximately 25 percent complete. The Project is on time and within budget. The City is striving to make the network available ahead of schedule. The project is continuing to maintain the momentum that was established in the initial stages of the project. Interested Culver City businesses and commercial property owners are encouraged to complete the Customer Interest Survey at http://www.culvercity.org/culverconnect. City staff will contact those completing the survey when the network is operational. For additional information, please contact the Culver Connect information line at (310) 253-5525.

• Golden State Water Construction - On Saturday, November 5 the northbound lanes of Duquesne Avenue, from Jefferson Boulevard to Lucerne Avenue, was closed. Golden State Water Company’s Contractor conducted reconstruction of the northbound lanes of Duquesne Avenue, due to a recent water line break. Changeable messages signs alerting motorists to use alternate routes were posted. Residents south of Lucerne Avenue will have access to their residences. The driveways to the Transportation Department and City of Angels Vets will be closed and access will only be from Jefferson Boulevard.

Transportation Department

• Rideshare events in Southern California Continuing to encourage citizens to “share the ride,” the transportation department participated in Rideshare Fairs including the Los Angeles DWP Employee Fair on Thursday, October 27. Staff was on hand to answer questions and pass out information to attendees curious about Culver CityBus routes and services. The event was well attended with staff promoting the value, benefits and joy of ridesharing using Culver CityBus!

• Linwood Howe Field Trip – On Thursday, October 27 Culver CityBus partnered with CCUSD to provide transportation for Linwood Howe Students to attend a special performance by the CAL Band. 82 Students and their chaperones were provided with TAP cards and rode Line 7 from Culver City High School for the experience. Culver City High School hosted the CAL Band so they could get some practice time in before their big game against USC #CULVERPRIDE!

• Limited Edition Centennial TAP Cards – While Supplies last! Centennial TAP (Transit Access Pass) cards now available for $2 at either of its two physical sales locations. Come Visit in person at our City Hall or Transportation offices. Cards only available while supplies last. Get yours today!

Image, courtesy of the Culver City Historical Society, shows the 1922 Culver City offices.