Neighborhood rallies for Save Beverly Fairfax at block party
The 300 block of North Sierra Bonita Avenue was abuzz on Sun., Oct. 13. Neighbors were chatting over free donuts; children were holding giant lollipops in one hand and balloon animals in the other; and dozens of dogs, big and small, were present. Giant balloon bouquets welcomed everyone to the Save Beverly Fairfax annual block party, where neighborhood conviviality was the order of the day.

ALLIE MAYES and Chad Sullivan were on Sierra Bonita Avenue for the party with their son Wyatt Sullivan, 3, waving his elephant balloon.
There were plenty of activities to entertain the more than 200 in attendance, with a spin art station, a fill-your-bag-with-candy bar, a truck offering free coffee and donuts, a table of pale blue Beverly Fairfax caps for the taking, balloon animals made to order, a step-and-repeat banner for a colorful, balloon-trimmed photo op, a raffle with prizes donated by local restaurants and businesses and a dedicated space for pooches to quench their thirsts and chow down on doggie biscuits.
Dale Kendall, president of Save Beverly Fairfax, looking delighted with the turnout, had a few things on his mind. “I would like to see more safety in our area. To protect and preserve our historic district and surrounding area — that’s our mission. But our new campaign is to have our historic streetlights restored. They were removed in the early 1970s. We have a petition here for people to sign.”

SWEET CHOICES at the candy bar confronted Alfie and Ona Campbell.
Community concerns
Residents of the Beverly Fairfax Historic District, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, told the Larchmont Chronicle about their love for the community and their concerns. “We’ve lived 10 years in the neighborhood,” said Sam Azulay. “I like the diversity. I love the walkability to restaurants, parks and shopping, but I’m not enjoying the crime and homelessness.” When asked what she thought about the planned Television City expansion, which is expected to impact the area, Azulay offered, “I love that they’re developing the city, but the plan that they have is disrespectful to the neighborhood. I have a lot of concerns.” Her husband Jon Azulay stated, “It’s good for employment.”
Cheryl Humphreys is worried about the expansion’s effect on traffic. “We are not looking forward to the through traffic that will clog up the streets.”
“I have been working with CBS [regarding the expansion] for many years,” Kendall stated. I still feel it’s too big for our residential area because of the size and the height, but mostly the traffic. I feel that it’s irresponsible for the city to approve a project that size for our neighborhood, which is already in gridlock traffic.”

STEPHANIE RITTER displayed her spin art
masterpiece.
Katy Yaroslavsky, who represents the Beverly Fairfax community as City Councilmember for District 5, spoke to the crowd, inviting people to contact her office if they wanted to talk about sidewalk repairs, fixing streetlights, trimming trees or public safety, explaining, “Our job is to make the city a more habitable, kinder, healthier, safer place for all of us.”

AZULAY FAMILY, from left: Milan, 9, with parents Sam and Jon and dogs Olive (golden) and Enzo (white).
More on TVC
Addressing the issue of Television City’s plans, she stated, “It has been there for a very long time. The current owners have come up with a plan to revitalize it. My job is to make sure that we’re supporting our local economy. The biggest driver of our local economy is the entertainment industry. I support that. My job is also to represent all of you and make sure the impact of the project is mitigated and the positives are accentuated.”
After noting that there was still an opportunity to weigh in before the project comes to the City Council’s Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee, Yaroslavsky assured those in attendance, “We will have the best traffic mitigation plan in the city. It will be enforceable. We’re going to make sure that heights along Beverly and Fairfax are lowered, and we’re going to make sure that it’s safe and well-lit and provides a lot of jobs for Angelenos.”

COUNCILMEMBER Katy Yaroslavsky and Dale Kendall, president of Save Beverly Fairfax, both spoke at the event.
Yaroslavsky also enumerated to the Chronicle some specific means to mitigate the expansion’s negative impacts on traffic: “Shuttles from the Metro, car sharing, bicycle lanes, transportation improvements in the neighborhood. For example, cars leaving CBS can’t go straight out of the gate into the neighborhood.”
Category: Real Estate