Meet Your Neighbors at Montecito Heights Block Party Tomorrow from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Join me and meet Northeast LAPD Capt. Bill Murphy, local LAPD officials, neighbors and business owners at the Monte Vista Block Party on Saturday, Nov. 21 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The event, on Monte Vista between Avenues 52 and 53, will feature free food, live entertainment and children's activities for the whole family. I look forward to seeing you there!

Saturday, November 21, 2009
10 a.m.— 2 p.m.
Monte Vista between
Ave 52 & Ave 53

Community Meeting on Albion Park Project this WEDNESDAY

Councilmember Ed P. Reyes invites you to weigh in on the City's recent acquisition of the Albion Dairy site, a six-acre parcel adjacent to the Los Angeles River, that we envision as a future community park.

Join Reyes on WEDNESDAY, Nov. 18, at 6:30 p.m. at the Downey Recreation Center for the first of three neighborhood meetings to learn more and share your input. Refreshments and snacks will be provided.

For more information or questions, please contact Marisol Salguero at (213) 485-0763 or marisol.salguero@lacity.org

Reyes Helps Spanish-Speaking Cyclists Get Safer Commute

Mario Rodas, 24, just got a new bike yesterday. Mario, of Westlake, is one of countless residents who pedal through congested City streets day and night to get to work. Many ride bikes out of necessity because they can't afford a car. Today I was happy to hand Mario, and many other Spanish-speaking cyclists, free helmets and bike lights, thanks to a $25,000 grant from Kaiser Permanente to the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition. After the event at a Day Labor Center(1600 Shatto in the Home Depot Shopping Center) near MacArthur Park, I spoke with cyclists about the importance of bicycle safety and how to weigh in on the City's Bicycle Plan Update. The safety of our City's bicyclists, especially in my district, is just as important as that of our drivers and pedestrians. Thank you for working with me to help make our City safer.

Reyes Helps Spanish-Speaking Cyclists Get Safer Commute

WHEN: Monday, November 9 2009, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

WHERE: Day Labor Center
1600 Shatto at Wilshire and Union
(Southeast corner of Home Depot Shopping Center)
Los Angeles CA 90017

PARKING: Fifteen complimentary parking spaces located in the lower level of The Home Depot parking
garage (accessible via ramp located off Wilshire directly in front of The Home Depot
store)

WHAT: With the increase of cyclists sharing the road with motorists and the recent daylight saving time change, there is a greater need for cyclists to be visible and to use safety equipment. Many of the cyclists are Spanish-speaking immigrants who rely on bicycles as their primary form of transportation because they cannot afford to own cars. Many are riding during early mornings or nights without lights and helmets and are not aware of traffic laws that can make their commutes safer.

"Countless residents traverse the City’s congested streets daily to get to work,” said Reyes. "Many do so more out of necessity than recreation. The safety of our City’s bicyclists, especially in my district, is just as important as that of our drivers and pedestrians. We need to do everything in our power to ensure their safety. That’s why programs like this are so important.”

To address that need, Kaiser Permanente has provided a $25,000 grant to the Los Angeles
County Bicycle Coalition. The grant will fund more bike safety supplies such as bike lights and helmets for the day laborer cyclists. It also enables LACBC to further its mission to bring together the diverse bicycling community in a united mission to make the entire L.A. county region a safe and enjoyable place to ride.

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Reyes, Federal Fish and Wildlife, Bring Wilderness to Pico-Union School

November 6, 2009

Contact: Monica Valencia/Reyes (213) 280-0740, monica.valencia@lacity.org
Mary Loquvam/Audubon (323) 664-1294, maryloquvam@laaudubon.org

Councilmember Ed P. Reyes will join hundreds of K-5 students, families, Audubon and Los Angeles Unified friends tomorrow, Saturday, November 7, to transform a Pico-Union school yard into a lush ecosystem of oak woodland, vernal pools, and grassland just blocks from the 10 freeway. The event will take place from 10 a.m.-Noon at the Leo Politi Elementary School yard, 2481 West Eleventh St., Los Angeles, CA 90006.
"Together we are transforming 6,000 square feet of school yard into an urban oasis in Pico-Union, one of the most park poor communities in Los Angeles," said Reyes.
Reyes will join about 400 people to plant native oak and sycamore trees, wild grasses and plants, helping to protect and restore Coastal Sage Scrub, a plant community unique to Southern California that has been drastically reduced due to urbanization.
Los Angeles Audubon helped Leo Politi secure a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service School Yard Habitat Grant of $18,000 for the project. The School Yard Habitat Program is a new one for the Fish & Wildlife Service and Leo Politi is the program’s inaugural school in Southern California, and a model for other schools in Los Angeles.
Leo Politi Elementary lies in the Pico-Union neighborhood, one of the City’s densest neighborhoods. Yet since its construction in 1991, the school has emerged as an urban oasis for its 818 pre-K-5 students, their families, the community, and hundreds of birds-some resident, some migratory. The 8-acre campus is home to more than 200 trees and the planting of trees has been part of the school’s culture since ground was broken.
The school’s vision is one which began with its namesake, Leo Politi, a Caldecott Award winning author of children’s books. When Leo moved to L.A. in the late 1920s, he embraced the city’s multiculturalism, children, history, flora and fauna. Leo focused his artistic eye on the City’s urban parks and the wonders found within them. The school seeks to fulfill Leo’s dream of making this city a peaceful, safe and happy place for its youngest citizens-a place where their imaginations can run wild and where they can explore all the wonders of the natural world.

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Bicycle Plan Update Meeting TONIGHT in Highland Park

I will be holding a Bicycle Plan Update public meeting tonight in northeast Los Angeles in response to a great interest from you in making L.A. more bicycle-friendly. Join me tonight at Ramona Hall, 4580 N. Figueroa St., in Highland Park to learn about, and weigh in on, the City's Bicycle Plan. Tamales and refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Jill Sourial at (213) 473-7001, or Jill.Sourial@lacity.org, or visit http://www.labikeplan.org/.

Northeast Los Angeles (Highland Park)

When: Wednesday, November 4, 2009, from 6-8 p.m.

Where: Ramona Hall, 4580 N Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA 90042

Information: www.labikeplan.org