Local Leaders Make Final Plea to Keep Area Together

carried a 20-pound box of 107 emails to the Los Angeles City Hall to give the Los Angeles City Council Redistricting Commission on the last chance she has to offer public comment.

“The people of Studio City have been trying to give their input and I don’t believe that your commission has seen this,” she said, giving stacks of 21 copies to each of the people charged with revising the city districts and presenting them to the City Council.

“This is a travesty, please fix it,” said Sarkin, the vice president of the Studio City Neighborhood Council.

In a recent draft of the district lines, all of Studio City was put in Council District 2. However, the latest draft, which lops Toluca Lake off and puts it back in Council District 4, also takes part of Studio City with it. 

In fact, 98 percent of Studio City is in District 2, and 2 percent (an estimated 677 people) will be in District 4.

In their latest redesign, 29 of the 95 Neighborhood Councils are divided into two or more districts. Two districts (the Downtown and the Van Nuys Neighborhood Councils) are divided between three districts, like Studio City was for the past 10 years.

Of the 27 neighborhoods divided between two districts, only Studio City has as small a section as 2 percent left in another district. Some are more evenly divided, or split in half between districts.

Sarkin and others protested that they want to be connected to another district, and wanted to fight against Universal Studios expansion.

 “Universal is across the street from Studio City,” she said.

A group of local activists, including Judy Price, Irene DeBlasio, Miki Henderson, Lana Shackelford also attended the meeting downtown, which was also televised live. Bob Anderson of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association, asked that Sherman Oaks remain in tact either in Council District 4 or 5.

Peter Hartz of the Toluca Lake Homeowner's Association and Steve Hampar of the Toluca Lake Chamber of Commerce were both in attendance last night and spoke during public comment in favor of the new CD 4.

Irene DeBlasio said,  “Stop chipping away at us. Put us all whole in Council District 2.”

The commission must rework the borders to get it ready to submit to the City Council on March 1. The city council must pass it by July 1.

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