New group forms for Village area
Two neighborhood associations for the same area?
FOUNDING MEMBERS AND OFFICERS at the first LUNA event. From left, back row: Chris Shanley, Auriell Spiegel, Dave Cavalier, John Holloway and Sam Uretsky. Front row: Sarita Singh, Annie O’Rourke, Georgea Fenady, Clelia El Adl Clemens (seated), Todd Clemens, Dennis Boyle, Natalie Irby, Maggie Peña and Keith Johnson.
A new neighborhood association has formed in the area, Larchmont United Neighborhood Association (LUNA). The group held an open house on Feb. 2 in the parking lot of Hancock Homes at the corner of Larchmont Boulevard and Rosewood Avenue.
Anyone from the area was welcome and the lot was filled with over 100 people throughout the morning. Neighbors congregated to talk about concerns, meet in person and just enjoy the community under sunny skies. The event was abuzz with excitement and enthusiasm for the new group.
LUNA became a reality in January with Sam Uretsky as its president. Many founding members and board positions are filled by people who were active in their own micro neighborhood organizations, such as Lucerne Arden United, North Plymouth Coalition and various neighborhood watch groups, as well as the Larchmont Village Neighborhood Association (LVNA).
At the get-together, LUNA had sign-up sheets for various committees. According to Uretsky, by the end of the event, “The sign up sheets were full. There is a lot of enthusiasm for this new group; they are eager to build community.”
The LVNA is the original neighborhood association that has represented the area for decades. The two are presently coexisting associations for the same area.
Two associations?
The boundaries for both organizations are Melrose Avenue to the north, Beverly Boulevard to the south, Wilton Place to the east and Arden Boulevard to the west. Additionally, LUNA wants to be involved with Larchmont from Beverly to First Street.
The formation of LUNA came as a surprise to Charlie D’Atri, president of LVNA for the last 20 years. He said, “Uretsky is phenomenal, a wonderful organizer and was on the board [of the LVNA] until December of 2024.”
D’Atri continued, saying he’s disappointed with the way things went down. “I love the energy, but it’s never good for a neighborhood to have two organizations representing the same area.” He specified that it causes confusion when dealing with the council office, city departments and neighbors. D’Atri would like to work things out with LUNA.
Neighbor’s perspective
Clelia El Adl Clemens, a founding member of LUNA, moved to Lucerne Boulevard from France in 2013. In France, she knew all her neighbors and wanted the same here. She made it a point to meet them, create community and work to improve her neighborhood. Through her efforts, she met Uretsky.
Suzi Yoonessi, also of Lucerne, is very inspired by the new organization and all that they do for the neighborhood. “I’m very excited for this group, for its spirit and I believe in them as a team,” she said. She’s already become one of the many paying members. When asked about LVNA, Yoonessi replied, “LVNA hasn’t figured out how to activate [the community]. I just don’t know what they’ve done.”
GOWER NEIGHBOR Brianna Favazza signs up to participate in LUNA.
Their differences
Uretsky claims during his four-and-half years on the board of LVNA there was never an election, they have very few members, and, in his opinion, there wasn’t an appropriate amount of money spent on the neighborhood.
He feels strongly that the area “needs an active and proactive neighborhood association. This area deserves better.” He feels LUNA is a better representation of the neighborhood.
In response to Uretsky’s claims, D’Atri says LVNA spent thousands of dollars on lawyers to oppose the initial plans for a building out of scale with the neighborhood at 507 N. Larchmont Blvd. D’Atri also claims the LVNA had elections during Uretsky’s tenure on the board and would have welcomed him becoming more involved.
Category: News
