Holidays In the Bend Get Off To A Good Start With Caroling and a Party

An enthusiastic group of singers, some on foot and some on horseback, gathered at the huge eucalyptus tree by the Bean Field last Sunday night and set out to bring a little seasonal cheer to Portuguese Bend. 

Horses and their riders sported glowing red and green holiday lights, (battery operated of course),  while carolers carried flashlights,  candles and song books. The musical group wandered down Sweetbay, turned on Narcissa,  and wound up at Five Points before  the horses grew impatient and the singers grew chilly and winded. 

After the horses went home, carolers, riders and other residents gathered at Dottie and Howard Towle's home for some conversation accompanied by hot spiced cider, hot spiced wine, cookies, brownies and figgy pudding, compliments of Gigi Greene.

It was a terrific way to get reacquainted with neighbors not seen for a while, and to meet some folks who are new to the neighborhood. If you missed it, you missed out. 

Thanks to Howard and Dottie Towle, who opened their home for the evening, and Gigi, thanks to whom we now understand why all those singers have, for years, been demanding, "Give us some figgy pudding, right now." Everyone there had a great time.

BTW: The dessert was excellent and Gigi has been kind enough to share the source of the recipe, for anyone who wants to give it a try: http://adventurouswomenblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/make-real-figgy-pudding.html

As for a repeat performance, the group probably could cover more of the Bend next year if some helpful resident would provide transportation for the singers: a tractor hauling hay, an open-back truck, or even a sleigh/wagon would work very well. The horses seem to manage very well on four legs.

Now, on to the Arty Party.

Topic of the Month: Safety in Portuguese Bend

We're spoiled.

We are used to leaving our garages open, our cars unlocked and our front doors unlatched. We hike the hills and stroll the streets at all hours and never give safety a thought. We've always done it that way.

Well...here's a news flash for you. This ain't Mayberry anymore.

Over the last few months, Portuguese Bend residents have reported assorted burglaries, identity theft resulting from mailbox burglary, and one scary incident involving a young teenager and an overly-friendly truck driver. Some of these have been solved (at least one thanks to the video cameras at the Narcissa gate).

Board Seeks Possible Solutions

These incidents have been the topic of discussion at the monthly board meetings, and last month board members promised to look into various solutions such as locked mailboxes and the cost of local security companies.Other options included a full-time gate guard, a part time gate guard, more frequent changes to the gate code,  changing the hours when the gate requires a card and setting up a neighborhood watch program.

After all the discusion, most people agreed on one thing:  Your safety begins with you. That means:

• Lock your doors
• Lock your garage
• Lock any cars in your driveway (and don't leave anything valuable inside.) 
• Tell youngsters not to talk to any strangers, even if they ask for directions. 
• And finally, report any suspicious activities to a board member.

Sheriff Will Speak at July Meeting

The July 11 Board Meeting will feature a visit from a local sheriff who will address the topic of community safety.  If you are concerned about this, (and who isn't?) this might be a good time to turn off the TV and attend the Board meeting. It begins at 7 p.m. at Ladera Linda. First thing on the agenda is the Architectural Committee meeting. Once that's over, the regular meeting will begin.

New Faces on Board and Architectural Committee

Other updates to Board business over the last couple of months: Mike Cooper, who recently ran for re-election to the board, resigned one month after the election. The board did not ask for nominations for a replacement but simply named Joan McClellan to fill unexpired portion of the two year term. Also, Tim Vaughn resigned from the Architectural Committee and Joe Oliver was named to replace him.

No one has been named to update the community web site. Anyone interested in taking on that task should contact Board Chairman Tim Kelly.

Art Tour Here?

Last month, representatives from the Palos Verdes Art Association, which sponsors an annual homes tour,  addressed the meeting about their desire to make Portuguese Bend the site of their homes tour next year, April 14-15, 2012. Board members mentioned that visitors would need to be bussed into the area to reduce traffic, and PVAC representatives agreed to that. Other details remain to be worked out. Board members did not make a decision but said they would discuss the issue.

Also mentioned at the June meeting was the difficulty of walking around the neighborhood, particularly now that there are so many construction vehicles in the area. Some residents commented that it would be possible to walk around if the mandated three or five foot setbacks in front of each house were enforced.  Board members noted that this is difficult to enforce fairly and consistently but several community members Gordon Leon, Suzanne Hoffman and Lynn Petak volunteered to walk the community and try to spot problem areas and suggest solutions.

Also discussed: a revision to the Architectural Standards to cover building of homes on hillside lots. This will be a long, drawn-out process but Gordon Leon volunteered to work on the wording for this. It was suggested that he also talk to Jim Knight about the issue. Both Leon and Knight are members of the RPV Planning Commission.

Roads ... and what needs to happen to them

Finally, there was the issue of roads and access control. This includes:

• Finishing unfinished road work (budget problems here)
• Dealing with speeders and those who fail to stop at stop signs
• Installing speed bumps at stop signs (board members will get a price on this but noted that speed bumps may not interfere with water flow)
• Striping the streets. This must be done to keep our insurance current. 
• Access control: a construction truck demolished the wall at the Narcissa gate. Inasmuch as there had already been talk of remodeling and widening that gate area, this topic is open for discussion. As of last month, Board Member Suzanne Black- Griffith was waiting to hear from the truck driver's insurance company about payment for the damage.

Hope to see you tomorrow at the Board Meeting.

About Your Headlights...

Some of us like to talk a walk at night in Portuguese Bend. Yes, we know it's dark in Portuguese Bend when the sun goes down. But we're out there anyway.

We're walking dogs.

We're looking at the stars

We're just enjoying a cool, quiet stroll.

And we understand that those of you who are driving in the Bend after dark usually turn on your bright lights, so you can see where you are going. That makes sense.

But common decency, as well as common sense, would seem to dictate that when a driver with brights on, sees a pedestrian out for an after-dark stroll,  the driver TURNS THE BRIGHTS OFF! Otherwise, you blind the pedestrian! (And make them very angry as well.)

Judge Turns Thumbs Down on Enstedt Suit; Building Can Continue

There's no need to repeat what the Daily Breeze has already said. Just read their story here.

Appeal anyone ?

Court Decision Delayed Again! Maybe Tomorrow?

According to a huge story in Tuesday's Daily Breeze, today was supposed to be the day for a final Los Angeles Superior Court ruling on the last gasp of all the chaos surrounding development of the 16 so-called Monks lots in Portuguese Bend.

No such luck.

But don't give up hope. 

According to Breeze Reporter Melissa Paymer, who's on the story like white on milk,  the decision has been delayed until Friday.   

Basically, the court is set to rule on whether the 16 lots now under development should be included in the upcoming Zone 2 EIR. A preliminary decision indicates that things look bleak for the anti-development folks. For more details, click the links up above and read the Breeze stories.

As for the EIR,  RPV Associate City Planner Kit Fox says we'll see the draft Zone 2 EIR some time this month. Don't hold your breath. When this all started, Fox said the EIR would be done before the first building permit was issued!

Election Results: PBCA Returns Incumbents to Board; RPV Voters Turn Thumbs Down On Charter City

Residents of Portuguese Bend voted to return the only two candidates running for the board to their positions for another two years, at Tuesday evening's sparsely attended meeting at Ladera Linda Community Center. Tim Kelly received 100 votes, Mike Cooper received 89 votes and there was one write-in for another resident.

Meanwhile, in Tueday's RPV election, voters voiced a resounding "NO" to the idea of becoming a charter city in Tuesday's election. According to the LA City clerk's office, the vote was 4634 "no" to 1790 "yes."

Whether this is a reflection on our electorate's confidence in our city council, which was overwhelmingly in favor of the change, or simply a fear of becoming another Bell, isn't clear at this point.

What do you think?

Related articles

• Bell election: Voters recall embattled council members and elect new representatives (latimesblogs.latimes.com)

Jim York Is Back and So Am I

I am so far behind with this blog that I feel as if I'm in the middle of a horrible nightmare ...you know the one...it's the end of the semester and it's the day of the final exam and you haven't been to the class all year and you don't even know where the class meets!

But the headline on the front page of Monday's Daily Breeze woke me up, so here we go again.  

If you missed it, it says, "Developer Decides to Farm Pristine Peninsula Land." Anyone who has walked around the big white gate across from the Equestrian Center, and has Point View in the last year knows that this isn't particularly news. Jim York has had avocado trees and a vegetable and herb garden up there for ages...but, wait...there's more.

If you check the RPV website, you can find the details of his proposed project, for which he is seeking a Conditional Use Permit. His plan includes:

• 17.5 acres of organic avocados
• 1.5 acres of citrus and avocados
• 8.5 acres of vineyards
• 2.5 acre non-commercial 9-hole golf course with two greens and traps that will not have any employees. It will not be open to the public, nor will it have regular operating hours and will have no clubhouse. Play will be limited to daylight hours.
• And last but not least, an Event Center, planned as an ancillary use of the property (see note below), for no more than 30 events a year including fund raising and charity events, private parties, public and community events, weddings and wedding receptions, corporate parties, outdoor conferences and educational events. (That means one event every third week if he uses it year 'round, or at least two a week if he doesn't rent the place out during the six months of what we, in California, refer to as winter. (Time of rain, wind, mud, heavy jackets, etc.)

Quick explanation: Ancillary use is the important term here. York can't get a Conditional Use Permit for a stand alone Event Center on property zoned residential.  But it turns out, under city zoning regulations, he can build a golf course on the property and he can call the Event Center ancillary to the golf course, and then it's legal!

According to the plan, attendance at Event Center events would be limited to 300 people, not including event staff, security/safety personnel, etc., with an occasional special charity event that could generate up to 750 people. Hours of operation will be from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Way down at the bottom of this proposal, we find this interesting paragraph:

Miscellaneous – To improve on-site circulation and access, the proposal includes legalizing an after-the-fact roadway segment that was paved to provide a secondary access to the site from the Narcissa Drive gate.  Further, a new paved roadway is proposed to provide main access to the property via Palos Verdes Drive South.  The after-the-fact roadway is a 700-foot segment constructed of impervious asphalt; while the new main roadway is currently an unpaved dirt road measuring 1,880-feet in length, and is proposed to be paved with impervious asphalt.

This is very hard to understand in light of the judgement against James York and Long Point Associates in 2001 in which the Hon William G. Willett ruled in the case of Portuguese Bend Community Association Inc. vs James York, York Longpoint Assoc. Limited Parntership, et al.,  Judgment dated July 27, 2001 that:

Page 3, Number 4, line 14:

YORK LONG POINT, and it's successors, shall have the right to use the Portuguese Bend Roads for maintenance and all lawful purposes of the YORK LONG POINT property, so long as such use does not allow use of the Portuguese Bend Roads by members of the general public.

The italics are mine. And thanks to Claudia Gutierrez for providing a copy of the Willetts ruling. 

If someone can explain to me how York plans to have public events at Long Point and get access to the site from the Narcissa gate, I'd like to hear it.

But wait, there's more!

Check the agenda for the January 18 RPV City Council meeting (that's tonight folks!) and you will find that Item 6 on the agenda is the award of a contract for services to prepare a Mitigated Negative Declartion for the proposed Point View Agriculture, Golf Course and Event Garden Master Plan Project. This will cost $64,707, which amount Mr. York has ponied up to start the development process. The proposed contract, with interesting background and details on the project is here.

 Be sure to check the map of the proposed project here.

But wait, there's even more!

Item 4 on the Agenda is as follows: Adoption of Ordinance No. 517, to create a Ministerial Process to adjust the landslide moratorium boundary line. This is the second reading of this proposed ordinance; if the council adopts it Tuesday, will take effect February 17, 2011. 

This is the item that Jim York was talking about in the Daily Breeze article, when it said:

York is also hoping to see a new ordinance approved Tuesday that would enable him - and other landowners - to request removal of portions of their property from a 32-year-old city building moratorium instituted over concerns about landslides.

The change would allow the boundaries of the landslide moratorium to be moved if an applicant could provide scientific evidence to the city's geologist that the existing lines are inaccurate. There's already a process - the subject of a lengthy lawsuit that the city lost - to get individual properties exempted from the moratorium for specific construction plans.

The new process would be broader and would not require building plans. It would give the city geologist the authority to adjust the boundary without a public hearing.

If the line that York desires is eventually granted, about 13 more acres of his land would be developable, for a total of nearly 47 buildable acres.

Overseer for the Point View Project is Senior Planner Eduardo Schonborn. You can call him at (310) 544-5228, or email him at eduardos@rpv.com

The City Council meets tonight, Tuesday, January 18, at Hesse Park, 29301 Hawthorne Blvd., at 7 p.m. If you have anything to say about all this, this meeting is the place to say it.

If you want to keep updated on this issue, subscribe to the appropriate city listserver group here.

One last note:  During the next week, I'll be doing a little backtracking on this blog, discussing what I know about what's happened at the last few PBCA Board Meetings, what's happening on the Zone 2 Environmental Impact Report, and a bit of local art news.

If you have anything you think our neighbors should know, be sure to email me.