Person Stabbed, Killed Near Orlando/Oakwood

One person was stabbed to death at around 1:30a (5/17) in what appears to be the result of a unknown dispute between two persons.  The incident occurred in the area of Oakwood Avenue and Orlando, west of Fairfax and just east of La Cienega. LAPD sources say that this was not a random act and not gang related.

LAPD Wilshire Sets Date, Location for Melrose Area Town Hall Meeting

The LAPD Wilshire Division lead by Captain Eric Davis and Senior Lead Officer Art Gallegos have revealed plans for a "Town Hall Meeting" to take place on Wednesday, May 30th @ 7PM at the National Council For Jewish Women's Center  - 543 North Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036.

The focus of the meeting will be to address recent troubling crime trends that include two area rapes.  Concerns about the operation and expansion of sober living facilities and nursing care homes will also be a topic.

Click here to download the official flyer of the LAPD Town Hall Meeting

If you have a concern or issue related to crime in our area, you are encouraged to attend.

UPDATE: Two Armed Robberies Hit Area - 5/14 Vista Near Waring 11:30p, 5/16 Willoughby and Gardner 12:30am

Crime Alert - Rape Occurs in Area

BREAKING :

A Rape was reported late Tuesday 5/15 or Early Wednesday 5/16 (around 12:30am) in the area around Melrose and Poinsettia Ave. LAPD Wilshire is investigating the crime and more details will follow. If you have any information about suspicious activity in that area on these particular dates or have security surveillance systems that may be of use to the LAPD, please contact LAPD Wilshire Detectives at (213) 922-8205.

Senior Lead Officer Update - Your Community Police officer

From the Desk of Senior Lead Officer Art Gallegos - Basic Car 7A1 - Published May 10, 2012

LA Times... "Near Melrose, A National Healthcare Predicament Plays Out" Story Reveals Plans For New Care Facility Proposed on Sierra Bonita Ave.

 

By Alexandra Zavis, Los Angeles Times
Mon May 7 2012 12:00 AM
"If you're lucky, you'll find something around $3,500," said Majid Ali, a 57-year-old acupuncturist whose mother has Alzheimer's. "More often than not it's $6,000 to $7,000 per month and up."

It took Ali two years to find the right place for his mother and her sister, who is deaf. Even with long-term care insurance policies, some facilities were too expensive. Others didn't provide the specialized dementia care his mother needs.

A social worker suggested he visit the homes operated by Raya's Paradise Inc., which proposed the Sierra Bonita facility. Ali's mother and aunt now share a room in a Mediterranean-style house with lush landscaping and homey cooking smells wafting from the kitchen. There are weekly exercise classes, and an accordion player drops by to serenade the residents.

"They're far better," Ali said. "My mom has moments of being more lucid.... My aunt is a bit more sociable. She has other people to talk to."

Los Angeles County is one of six in California where low-income seniors who would otherwise be in nursing homes can use their Medi-Cal benefits to help pay for such care.

But the program is expected to serve only about 1,790 people this year, according to the California Department of Health Care Services.

Just 55 of the county's 1,356 licensed facilities participate in the program. Operators have been slow to sign on, saying reimbursement rates are too low.

Moti Gamburd, executive director of Raya's Paradise, said sharing staff and amenities at what already could legally be operated as two side-by-side six-bed care homes would help keep costs down. He could charge $2,500 to $5,000 a month and offer at least one bed to a low-income resident at half price, he said.

L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz, who represents the area, said the developer did not do enough to address neighborhood concerns about the facility. "I don't know how many of them you even want in one neighborhood," he said.

City planning officials believe the project could encourage other group homes in the area to expand.

"Such a precedent would incrementally begin to erode the low-density character and appearance of the area," Associate Zoning Administrator Lourdes Green wrote in an Oct. 4 decision rejecting the project.

Robert Cherno, a land use consultant hired by the developer, points to a city ordinance that allows people with disabilities to apply for "reasonable accommodation" to ensure equal housing access. His client should not have had to apply for a variance, a process that took nearly two years and cost $8,843.50, Cherno said.

Another city official agreed with Cherno on the applicability of the law but said in this case a larger facility was not needed to reduce housing barriers. Chief Zoning Administrator Linn K. Wyatt noted in a March 6 decision that the developer already operates five facilities in the vicinity.

Raya's Paradise has appealed the decision and filed a complaint with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing alleging discrimination by the city.

The conflict over where group homes should be allowed and how to control them has spread to City Hall. A controversial proposed ordinance would designate licensed care facilities with more than six beds as "public benefits," meaning they would no longer need special permits to operate in low-density areas if they meet parking, noise and other city standards.

But the same measure could create problems for some smaller homes that can now operate without city or state approval. A provision barring multiple tenant lease agreements in single-family zones could force many to shut down, according to advocates for the disabled.

Koretz said the city needs to find a way to crack down on problem facilities without interfering with ones providing valuable services.

On Sierra Bonita, some residents now wonder if opposing the Alzheimer's home was the best course. Like her neighbors, Rita Tateel had concerns about the project. Then she agreed to tour one of the other facilities operated by Raya's Paradise.

"I have to say what they did there is beautifully done," she said. "You can't even tell that it's a care facility from the outside." She started thinking of her 92-year-old mother-in-law.
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Melrose/Fairfax Ranks 5th, West Hollywood 7th in LA Times Property Crime Ranking

The Los Angeles Times today (4/5/2012) posted property crime data that shows the Fairfax/Melrose Corridor along with the City of West Hollywood as ranking high on a list of 200 neighbors from all over Southern California -- in terms of property crimes -- during a 6 month survey period.

The Melrose/Fairfax Area that the L.A. Times boundaries are La Brea on the east, Fairfax on the west, Willoughby/Romaine on the North, 3rd st on the south.

From the Los Angeles Times..

 

The rate of property crimes per 10,000 people varies widely among the more than 200 neighborhoods and cities policed by the LAPD and L.A. County Sheriff's Department.

This map and list show the rates from Sept. 5, 2011 to March 4, 2012, the most recent six months for which complete data is available for all areas patrolled by the departments.

Property crime is defined as burglary, theft, grand theft auto and theft from vehicle. Bear in mind that in areas with relatively low populations, a small number of crimes can generate a large per capita rate. For that reason, the chart below contains both per capita statistics and gross crime counts.

 

 

Late Night Fire Destroys Landmark Melrose Neighborhood Pub

Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a report of a fire at the Snake Pit Pub located at the corner of Melrose Avenue and Sierra Bonita. The interior of the old brick building was completely burned out. It apparently broke out at around 2 AM in the morning. Photo's below.

 

Issue of Recovery Homes Opening in Areas Finally Comes Before L.A. City Council

Dozens of people testified at a hearing Tuesday about a proposed Los Angeles ordinance that could effectively bar homes that take in veterans, disabled citizens and recovering drug and alcohol addicts from many residential areas.

The ordinance, which has been under consideration in several forms since 2007, elicited a strong response from residents who told a City Council committee that some group homes pose a hazard that could lead to an increase in crime and a decrease in property values.

"This is a public safety issue," Maria Fisk, a member of the Old Granada Hills Residents Group, said in an interview. "This is about crime and how it's affecting and terrorizing our communities and families in our neighborhoods."

But public policy experts and advocates for recovering addicts said the proposed law could force well-run facilities to close and lead to an increase in homelessness. Many testified that group homes have helped them get sober.

The committee did not vote on the issue because Councilman Jose Huizar had to leave after nearly three hours of testimony to attend another meeting. The committee will take up the ordinance at its next meeting.

Under one version of the ordinance, houses with two or more tenant lease agreements would not be allowed in the city's single-family residential areas without a permit. Currently, most group homes can open without prior approval.

Supporters say the requirement could help bring order to neighborhoods being disrupted by poorly run facilities. Councilman Mitch Englander, who represents a San Fernando Valley area with dozens of unlicensed boarding homes, said that some have up to 40 residents living in "deplorable conditions" and have prompted police investigations, including for lewd and lascivious acts.

But critics say the potential ordinance could be too restrictive and target the city's poorest residents, who can often afford only the cheaper rent at group homes.

"Our clients tend to have limited income," and group homes are often their least expensive and best option, said Reina Turner, a division chief with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health.

Others said the ordinance could have unintended consequences. For example, two or more college students who lease a house or elderly residents who rent out rooms in their homes could be affected.

The proposal also might make it harder to implement a cost-saving plan to shift nonviolent inmates from state prisons to community probation and housing programs.

About 6,000 prisoners have been released to the county Probation Department since fall. About 14% of them have no permanent residence, according to department officials, and they often live in group homes after they are released.

"This ordinance effectively cuts out a lot of the housing we have available to that population," said Peggy Edwards, project director for the Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership.
Apparently there are plans for this discussion to continue at the City Council meeting on 4/10. 
Stay tuned.

Melrose District To Get Neighborhood Market - Controversy Follows

Tesco, the parent company of the "Fresh and Easy" grocery chain will soon announce plans to open a new location in the heart of the Melrose District.

Plans call for a full sized "Fresh and Easy " to open at the southwest corner of Melrose Avenue and Gardner St, in a building that houses retail on the street level and it's own parking garage on the second floor. Tesco aquired the property for $8 million in October 2011.

Neighbors in the area welcome the news citing a need for businesses that cater to the local residential area and should help bolster plans for a Melrose Business Improvement District ("BID") currently in the works by area landlords.

However, recently an outcry developed over the premature closing of the parking garage that some neighbors complain has caused area street parking to be impacted greatly.  Others say that Gardner St. with suffer a noticeable increase in traffic to an already narrow thoroughfare. It's no secret that street parking is already a limited commodity in the Melrose area.

The parking garage was recently under contract for valet parking for many restaurants near the structure, now with the structure permanently shut down neighbors have reported seeing valet drivers parking patrons cars as far away as Waring Avenue to the north of Melrose.

No time frame has been given as to when this location may open as renovations are expected to take months but it's likely to be open before the end of 2012.