This afternoon, in a special agenda item, the City Council heard public comment and voted 12-0 to accept the City Attorney's and Mark Ryavec's settlement terms with the Coastal Commission.
This was expected. Rosendahl led them all in thinking that all concerns of all Venice residents were being met in this settlement agreement. He assured his colleagues that he was providing programs to address the homeless, though gave no specifics nor how they would fit into the trial period. A few councilmembers asked questions about how the homeless would far with the limited number of 24 hour parking lots that will be changed per the agreement. One asked why see this to trial - no response to that one.
But we still have time - albeit only 7 more days - to change the tide. Write your letters to the Coastal Commission. Come to the meeting, speak if you can, or just come to show that Venice cares about beach access and how all people are treated. That compassion and enforcement of the law can be mutually applied in Venice; that we can protect our residents and provide for the homeless and poor by other means. Not something that places a burden on all and interferes with access to the beach for everyone but some of the means that are being designed now.
And certainly not with a settlement agreement that ties the hand of the one agency that is mandated to protect the coast. Be there next Thursday and tell the Commission that you support them in their job and encourage them to not accept the terms of settlement.
Venice Action Alliance is made up of residents of Venice who work together to solve community problems. Our objectives include maintaining Venice as a vibrant, inclusive and diverse community. Venice Action believes in combining prudent, appropriate and compassionate law enforcement with workable solutions that benefit the community and its residents while avoiding the further and gratuitous victimization of people who find themselves down-and-out in this difficult period of time.
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