On October 31, 2019, the County Department of Agricultural Commissioner/Weights and Measures (ACWM) detected two Peach Fruit Flies (PFF), a major agricultural pest, in Granada Hills. In response, the ACWM will be implementing eradication efforts to prevent the growth and spread of the pest infestations, and protect backyard fruit, community gardens, and California’s commercial agriculture.
The eradication effort will include the use of an attractant to lure the flies to a “bait station”. Specifically, small spots of bait will be squirted onto street-side tree trunks, with approximately 600 such bait stations placed about eight feet up on trees. The flies feed on the bait and are killed by a small amount of natural pesticide in the bait. These activities will be occurring this month, and possibly extend into December, and will take place in parts of Granada Hills, Porter Ranch, and Northridge as shown in the map below.
Residents with questions about this or any exotic pest can call the California Department of Food and Agriculture Pest Hotline at 1-800-491-1899.
LADWP customers interested in transforming their lawns to drought-tolerant landscaping have a free resource in the form of hands-on workshops offered by LADWP’s Turf Replacement Program. The free workshops tach customers how to remove turf, grade soil for capturing rainwater, and the step-by-step process to create sustainable landscapes in their own yards.
LADWP’s residential customers are now eligible to receive $3 per square foot rebate for up to 5,000 square feet of turf removed (up to a potential $15,000 in rebates!).
The North San Fernando Valley Bus Rapid Transit Project will Move Forward into Environmental Review
Thank you to all who attended Thursday’s Board meeting and provided feedback. Metro’s Board of Directors received and filed staff’s recommendation to begin the environmental review for the project. The feedback received at the meeting will continue to help shape the project.
If you were unable to attend Thursday’s Board meeting, the meeting minutes and audio of the meeting will be available here.
Next Steps
Metro will continue engaging stakeholders as the process moves forward and we will keep you informed of all upcoming meetings. Metro looks forward to seeing everyone at the Latino Expo and Dia de los Muertos Festival at Panorama Mall today, October 26.
As of LAFD’s 7 am update this morning (Friday), the Saddleridge Fire is 68% contained and has burned almost 8,500 acres.
Please note that Limekiln Canyon Park and O’Melveny Park remain closed for the time being. Please do not enter these parks until they are re-opened in the next few weeks.
Please take the time to double check that you have signed up for emergency notification systems:
The City Council adopted the Home-Sharing Ordinance (CF 14-1635-S2) in December of 2018. To prevent the wholesale conversion of homes into rental properties, the legislation establishes a regulatory framework to restrict short-term rentals to one’s primary residence. The Home-Sharing Ordinance requires hosts who wish to engage in short-term rentals to register with the City and post their registration number on all advertisements. Further information on eligibility requirements and host responsibilities may be found on the City Planning Department’s Home Sharing webpage.
Eligible hosts may now apply to the program through the Home-Sharing Online Registration Portal. The City will begin enforcement of the Home-Sharing Ordinance on November 1, 2019. Anyone who continues to engage in or advertise short-term rental activity after November 1 without posting an approved registration number will be in violation of the Home-Sharing Ordinance. Sign up here to receive email updates on the Home-Sharing Program.
Los Angeles City Planning will be holding several Home-Sharing Program Information Sessions throughout October and November. Please fill out the RSVP form on the session you would like to attend: http://bit.ly/LAHomeShareRSVP
More Info For additional information, please contact:
Home-Sharing Unit Department of City Planning – Development Services Center 201 N. Figueroa Street, 5th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90012 (213) 202-5464 24/7 Complaint Hotline: (213) 267-7788 [email protected]org
If your mobile phone service provider is AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, or Verizon, you can now report spam texts by forwarding them to 7726 (which spells SPAM). A report will be automatically made to your carrier, who will handle it from there.
Neighborhood Councils sponsor family-friendly festivities throughout the year, and especially during the holiday season. Now that Halloween is coming up, here’s a quick overview of how to look up events sponsored by your local NC.
Click the button below to open our Citywide list of Councils, and select yours to open your NC’s EmpowerLA webpage. At the top right of that page, you’ll see a link to the NC’s full website, where you’ll be able to see news about upcoming events and also get onto their mailing list to get news sent to you directly.
Residents & businesses impacted by the Saddleridge Fire: get recovery help & resources from the city, county, state, and other agencies now through Saturday October 26th at the Sylmar Recreation Center, 13109 Borden Ave, Sylmar, CA 91342. Hours are 8am-4pm Sat/Sun and 9:30am-7pm Mon-Fri. Get help replacing lost records, filing insurance claims, applying for disaster assistance & info on cleanup/repair/rebuilding. Get full details by clicking below.
Metro Board Report on the North San Fernando Valley Bus Rapid Transit Project Available Online
Metro’s staff report and agenda for the North San Fernando Valley Transit Corridor Project is now available on the Metro Board page. You are encouraged to check out Metro’s blog The Source article for more information.
The Board meeting will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, October 24 at the Metro headquarters located at One Gateway Plaza, Los Angeles 90012 in the third floor Board room. All Board meetings are open to the public. Links to watch the Board meeting live in English and in Spanish can be found here: https://boardagendas.metro.net/
Next Steps
Metro will continue engaging stakeholders as the process moves forward. They will be at the Latino Expo and Dia de los Muertos Festival at Panorama Mall on Saturday, October 26.
Contact Metro
Thank you again for your participation in the North San Fernando Valley Transit Corridor Project.
All Metro meetings are held at ADA accessible facilities. Spanish translation will be provided. Other ADA accommodations and translations available by calling 323.466.3876, at least 72 hours in advance.
Se encuentra disponible en Internet el informe de la junta de Metro sobre el proyecto del autobús de tránsito rápido del norte del Valle de San Fernando
Se encuentra disponible en Internet el informe de la junta de Metro sobre el proyecto del autobús de tránsito rápido del norte del Valle de San Fernando El informe del equipo y la agenda de Metro para el proyecto del corredor de transporte público del norte del Valle de San Fernando ya se encuentra disponible en la página web de la junta de Metro. Lo invitamos a visitar el artículo del blog de Metro llamado The Source para obtener más información.
La reunión de la junta se llevara a cabo el jueves, 24 de octubre a las 10:00 a. m. en la sede de Metro ubicada en One Gateway Plaza, Los Angeles 90012, en la sala de la junta en el tercer piso. Todas las reuniones de la junta están abiertas al público. Los vínculos para ver la reunión en vivo en inglés y en español se encuentran aquí: https://boardagendas.metro.net/
Le agradecemos, nuevamente, por su participación en el proyecto de autobús de tránsito rápido del norte del Valle de San Fernando.
Todas las reuniones de Metro se llevan a cabo en instalaciones accesibles conformes a la ADA. Se brindará traducción al español. Se encuentran disponibles traducciones y otras adaptaciones conformes a la ADA, llamando al 323.466.3876 con, al menos, 72 horas de anticipación.
The 15th Annual Granada Hills Street Faire was a huge success for the community. Thousands of people walked the four block stretch on Chatsworth St. in the Granada Village. There was good food, Entertainment, Oktoberfest, Classic Car Show and over 150 different vendors to choose from. Just a wonderful day for all!
Mobile users in LA County now have the ability to send text messages to 9-1-1, giving hearing and speech impaired residents, or those in situations where it is too dangerous to dial 9-1-1, and making noise could put their life in jeopardy, a potentially lifesaving option. Read more »
Thousands of residents were able to return home as the Saddleridge Fire reached 41 percent containment.
As thousands of people returned to their homes and firefighters appeared to get the upper hand on the 7,965-acre Saddleridge Fire in the Northern San Fernando Valley, questions turned to the events Thursday night that sparked the deadly blaze in Sylmar.
Los Angeles Fire Department officials are investigating reports that the blaze began at the base of an electrical transmission tower. Southern California Edison opted not to shut off the power lines during the Santa Ana wind storm in the Sylmar region that has endured three catastrophic wildfires within 11 years.
The Los Angeles Times interviewed a Sylmar couple that said they watched flames burn at the base of the transmission tower from their second story-window. They called the fire department, but by the time the first engines arrived, the flames had spread rapidly. Edison officials cautioned against a rush to judgement. Read more »
The Saddleridge Fire is just 19 percent contained, but tens of thousands of people were allowed to return home Saturday.
Tens of thousands of evacuated Porter Ranch and Granada Hills residents are now able to return home even though the massive Saddleridge fire continues to rage, destroying dozens of homes and blackening more than 7,542 acres. Authorities lifted evacuation orders Saturday as the blaze reached 19 percent containment.
Gov. Gavin Newsom had declared a state of emergency for Los Angeles county (and Riverside county) where at least 31 homes have been damaged by the blaze and 100,000 people were forced from their homes since Thursday. The declarations free up local and state resources to aid in the firefighting effort.Police spent the night escorting residents back into their homes for five minute intervals, allowing them to collect the vital belongings they were forced to leave behind due to the fast-moving fire.
The Saddleridge Fire has created dangerously unhealthy air quality over a huge chunk of the Southland, which continues to pose concerns.
Officials said the blaze was 19% contained as of Saturday morning — which remains the latest update — and was burning in the areas of Sylmar, Granada Hills and Porter Ranch. Read more »
California officials evacuated roughly 100,000 people from their homes as a wildfire plows through the northern edge of Los Angeles, authorities said Friday.
The fire has burned more than 25 homes and 23,000 residences are ordered to evacuate, officials said. The fire began Thursday night and went on for over 7 square miles as of early Friday, Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas said, according to The Associated Press.
Ten percent of the fire has been contained, AP noted. The evacuations came as the state’s public utility company began shutting off power to prevent sparking a wildfire.
Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) cut off the power to 513,000 northern California homes and businesses Wednesday, with thousands more set to lose power. Additionally, California’s wind-swept terrain and dry grass is a tinderbox.
The Woolsey Fire was one of two wildfires that burned through Ventura County and Los Angeles County in 2018. The two blazes scorched tens of thousands of acres, reports that year show. More than 80 people were killed in the Camp Fire, which ripped through the northern part of the state at approximately the same time as Woolsey.
College and elementary school students across northeastern San Fernando Valley will not have school Friday due to the Saddleridge Fire.
The massive Saddleridge Fire threatening communities in northeastern San Fernando Valley prompted the closures of colleges and elementary schools throughout the region.
The LAUSD School Closures:
Castlebay Lane Charter School, 19010 Castlebay Lane in Porter Ranch;
Danube Avenue Elementary School, 11220 Danube Ave., in Granada Hills;
El Oro Way Elementary School, 12230 El Oro Way in Granada Hills;
Haskell STEAM Magnet, 15850 Tulsa St., in Granada Hills;
Knollwood Preparatory Academy, 11822 Gerald Ave., in Granada Hills;
Porter Ranch Community School, 12450 Mason Ave., in Porter Ranch;
Van Gogh Charter School, 17160 Van Gogh St., in Granada Hills;
Kennedy High School, 11254 Gothic Ave., in Granada Hills;
Rinaldi Adult School, 17450 Rinaldi St., in Granada Hills;
Granada Hills High School, 10535 Zelzah Ave., in Granada Hills;
Bert Corona High School and Bert Corona Charter School in Pacoima;
Frost Middle School in Granada Hills;
Jane Addams Continuation High School in Granada Hills;
North Valley Military Institute in Sun Valley;
Montague Charter Academy in Pacoima;
Valley International Preparatory High School in Chatsworth;
Magnolia Public Schools 1,2,5,7; and — all three Valor Academy Charter Schools
Fenton Avenue Primary Center and Elementary Charter School in Pacoima;
Fenton STEM Academy Elementary Charter;
Fenton Charter Leadership Academy;
HighTech Los Angeles Middle School in Van Nuys;
Ivy Academia Charter in Woodland Hills;
Valley Charter elementary and middle schools in Van Nuys.
Discovery Charter Preparatory School #2 in Sylmar;
James Jordan Middle School in Winnetka;
New Academy Canoga Park;
West Valley Occupational Center in Woodland Hills;
Vaughn Next Century Learning Center in San Fernando
College Closures:
Los Angeles Pierce College,
Los Angeles Mission College
Los Angeles Valley College,
California State University, Northridge
No closures were immediately reported at College of the Canyons or The Masters University in Santa Clarita.
Southern California Gas Company officials shut down the Aliso Canyon storage facility as a precaution due to the fire threat Friday.
The Southern California Gas Company’s Aliso Canyon storage facility has been evacuated due to the Saddleridge Fire, authorities said Friday.
“All SoCalGas Aliso Canyon storage facility staff are safe, and the facility has been evacuated by fire officials,” utility spokesperson Melissa Bailey said in a statement.
“L.A. (city) Fire and L.A. County Fire have multiple fire engines and personnel fighting the fire in and around the Aliso Canyon facility,” Bailey said. “There is no known damage to our facility at this time.”
SoCalGas maintains a “detailed and systematic” brush-clearing program around its facilities to minimize the chances of a brush fire affecting storage wellheads, Bailey said.
“We do not anticipate any damage to our storage wellheads due to the fire,” Bailey said. “Once the facility evacuation is lifted, crews will assess any damage to the facility.”
Bailey cautioned residents whose natural gas service was shut off not to try to turn it back on themselves.
“Only a SoCalGas technician or certified contractors are authorized to operate the natural gas service shut-off valve,” Bailey said. “We urge customers to continue to report suspected gas leaks by calling 1-800-427-2200 or 911 after evacuating the immediate area.”
John S. Lee’s Inauguration & Swearing in Ceremony was held on Saturday 7th, 2019 at the beautiful Oakridge Estate 10-acre park in Northridge. It was a wonderful hot event and over 400 people showed up to support CD Twelve’s new Councilmember.
To promote local emergency planning during National Preparedness Month, L.A. Controller Ron Galperin today released a new online resource map of emergency services and programs funded by the City of Los Angeles that will help families and communities prepare for unexpected natural disasters.
Check in on your neighbors and elderly loved ones as this heat wave creates “a dangerous situation in which heat illnesses are possible.”
Summer is almost officially over, and it’s going out on a dangerously hot note. Weather Service officials issued a heat advisory for the Los Angeles region, warning of “a dangerous situation in which heat illnesses are possible.”
Residents in the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys and the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains should be particularly comfortable as Friday’s temperatures were expected to top 104 degrees in some valley neighborhoods. Temperatures inside vehicles parked in hot weather “can quickly rise to life-threatening levels” even with windows left open, meaning people and pets must not be left in such vehicles, warned the National Weather Service.
The advisory will be in effect from 11 Friday morning until 7 Friday evening, the National Weather Service said. Read more »
