Boulevard Sentinel, 1 July 2012 — Page 13
July 2012
ftoiilo ref Sentiriel ©20//
page 14
Day T ri PPGr this Sum mcr? If you 're looking for a getaway that is quick and cheap, try popping down to San Pedro, and Ports '0 Call. The Battleship Iowa (pictured) is scheduled to open to visitors this week. Enjoy the day, take a Harbor Cruise and have a nice meal. For an even closer and cheaper trip, jump on the Gold Line and visit the New La Plaza de Cultura YArtes, Downtown, next to the old La Placita church. This new museum rivals any in California for telling the story of California as well as the story of Latino culture and politics in California. It’s cool and squeeky clean and everything is brand new. Make sure you have at least 2 hours, or you'll be disappointed.
Dear Editor In the May Boulevard Sentinel, Editor Tom Topping reported on the troubled situation at the Reflections at Yosemite senior apartment complex and the meeting I organized on April 25th. The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles has implemented a program called Shelter Plus Care at our apartments, moving in chronically homeless who also have a disability or dual disability, such as drug addiction and mental illness. A little more than a year ago, without any advance notice, HACLA began moving in residents of the Shelter Plus Care program to the seniors only Reflections complex. At the April 25th meeting, long time senior residents aired their complaints to HACLA and the John Stewart Company, which manages the complex for the city. I and other senior residents related the disturbances, confrontations, violence and criminal acts committed by some tenant members of Shelter Plus program, and how frightened we are as a result. HACLA and the management team promised to step up enforcement of lease violations, including evicting one particular tenant who generated the most complaints, and create a safer environment. Los Angeles Police Department Senior Lead Officer Craig Orange strongly advocated that HACLA and the management company should hire private security for the complex, a suggestion tenants strongly supported. Now, two months after the meeting, the most problematic Shelter Plus Care tenant is still at the complex despite the promises from HACLA and the property
manager that they would "aggressively" seek eviction. In early May, a long time tenant was repeatedly stabbed by a guest of this same problem Shelter Plus tenant, and another long time tenant was stabbed in the hand when she intervened to help. SLO Orange has seen to it that LAPD increased patrols of the complex, even patrolling on foot himself whenever possible. HACLA and the rental management company, however, failed to take any action whatsoever to increase security until the end of June, when they finally hired a private security company to patrol during specified hours a couple of nights a week. So, on June 27th, tenants of the complex joined together to form the Reflections at Yosemite Tenants Union. Tenants at the organizing meeting agreed that a stronger voice was necessary to get help, and the best way to do that was to join together and speak as one voice. The RAY Tenants Union is actively seeking support and endorsements from other organizations and individuals. The RAY Tenants Union wholly supports the concept of offering permanent housing options to the chronically homeless, together with adequate support services including immediate intervention to provide program members the best chance for success. For every program member who continues to abuse drugs and/or alcohol, there are many who do not. Unfortunately, that one program member who is abusing drugs creates a danger for every tenant, and brings others to the complex who also create a danger for every tenant. The RAY Tenants Union also believes that common sense alone should tell HACLA and the City of Los Angeles that housing
Shelter Plus Care tenants in a seniors-only facility, where there are no on-site services for program members and where program members' lifestyles are almost certainly going to be at odds with the long time senior residents, is a recipe for failure. It creates a dangerous and uncomfortable environment for everyone living at the facility, and because there are no immediate intervention services available, program members are cheated out of their best chance for success.
The RAY Tenants Union believes that taxpayers' funds should be intelligently used to maximize success of government aid programs. HACLA is obviously not doing that, and every taxpayer should object to the way HACLA is implementing the Shelter Plus Care program. The senior tenants of Reflections at Yosemite deserve better than to have their lives endangered and turned upside down. And the program members of Shelter Plus Care deserve a second chance that offers them
the best support options for success. If you agree and would like to offer your support and lend your voice, or you live in a different complex where HACLA is improperly implementing this program and would like our assistance, please contact the RAY Tenants Union at (323) 9829796, or by email at RAY.tenantsunion@yahoo.com. Richard Oliver, Steering Committee Reflections at Yosemite Tenants Union
A Beautiful Fusion of Science & Nature
Gke Gardsn „ ,.SM §paT
/;/Mention this Ad and RECEIVE $10 OFF Your Stone Crop Facial (60 Minutes, normally $89)
This Spring, Nourish and Revitalize Your Face with Our: Stone Crop Facial Harness the natural lightening properties of Stone Crop to hydrate and revitalize pigmented skin.
ORGANIC SKIN CARE: FACIALS | MICRODERMABRASION | CHEMICAL PEELS | WAXING
Tanis
Jennifer
323.344.8259 TheGardenSpaT.com Estheticians Tanis Rhines & Jennifer 251 I Colorado Blvd. | Eagle Rock, CA 90041
Pathways Child Development Center
Child Care & Early Idueatioira Services in iEagle Reck
Lic#198013501
• Full-Day Care 7:00am - 6:00pm • Toddlers: 18 months & up • Preschoolers: 3-5 years • Special Needs Services Available ODREA DIXON, Director odixon@pathwaysla.org (323) 982-3025 4824 Eagle Rock Blvd. (5 blocks south of Colorado Blvd.) Serving the Eagle Rock community since 2007