A message of gratitude from the superintendent
Your work is vitally important and the service you provide is often made more challenging by variables you have absolutely no control over. This includes decisions made by “Mother Nature.” The impact of the heat has been overwhelming and unbearable. Your persistence and focus during these days has been nothing short of inspiring. We know that ice chests with water, fans, and less-than-effective portable AC units haven’t created the environment you and your students deserve; however, we hope that these efforts are an indication of our genuine care and concern.
A big “Drop in the Bucket” goes out to our team members who have adjusted their days, delayed other work and worked additional hours to deliver water, put together/deliver fans and find creative solutions to install portable AC units!
AC is most certainly a need that will be considered along with all other potential investments from our recent successful bond election. The process for investing these resources is lengthy; however, it will be very public and collaborative.
In the short term, know that we are exploring all options and ideas to support and protect you and will continue to provide the resources we have offered.
On behalf of the entire Culver City community, thank you for your extraordinary effortsunder such difficult and trying conditions.
Dave LaRose, Superintendent
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Parking Issue
Mr. Stiver’s letter to the editor brings up a good point. Grace Lutheran Church does not have its own parking lot. But you know who does? The residents of Farragut Drive. Those homes appear to have driveways and garages. Given that their properties have builtin parking, and Grace Church does not, why would any resident think they should have exclusive use of street parking? Of course residents have a right to use street parking like anyone else, but to propose a monopoly on it when they already have parking on their own property strikes me as unfair, and not very neighborly.
Andrew Leist
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Agape Church’s Parking Policy
Since Jozelle Smith is a member of Agape International Spiritual Center, she knows that Agape’s goodneighbor- parking policy, unlike that of the Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, includes providing its members with both on-site and off-site/off-street parking. In order not to flood the neighborhood, Agape shuttles its members to and from services. Perhaps, Mrs. Smith can educate Ken Smith as to what Grace’s good-neighborparking policy should be. If Grace would practice what it preaches (be kind to your neighbors), this nuisance could be resolved. Over the years, I have suggested this simple off-site/off-street parking solution but have been repeatedly rebuffed by the Church.
• Church’s Bad Faith
Why would the Church not do as Councilperson Jim Clarke wisely suggests—“do a good faith effort to seek off-site parking”? Recently, Mr. Smith told me that Grace does not need off-site parking because they can park on Farragut Drive on Sundays. Hopefully, he will have a change of heart.
Why would the City Council wish to revoke its multiple resolutions over a 32-year period that granted permit-only parking to the residents of the 10700 block of Farragut Drive without first determining what the Church’s efforts, if any, have been to ameliorate its scarcity of parking space? So far, the Church has not set forth one fact as to what its alleged situation is and/or who caused it. 100 percent of Farragut households have signed a Petition opposing Grace’s “Petition” to strip us of our permit-onlyparking status due to the overwhelming intrusion of cars onto our street. No Culver City Council has ever attempted to modify once- granted parking restrictions on any other street in Culver City. Does the location of Grace Church have anything to do with it? It is beyond belief that the City Council is even entertaining the Church’s disingenuous request.
• Culver City, Listen-up
Culver City residents listenup… today its Farragut Drive; tomorrow it could be your street.
• Complaint for a Public Nuisance
Ken Smith, a senior official of the Church, publically admitted that its members flood every space on Farragut during 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Sunday. That activity does not have to be illegal to be a public nuisance.
Paulette Greenberg
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Culver City, Listen-up
I have been a resident of Culver City since 1983, and a member of Grace Church since 1994; I have been its Administrator since 2010.
The Church’s request to the City Council is to reconsider the parking restrictions on Farragut St., which currently is by permit only Monday through Friday from 8am to 10pm. We are requesting that it be changed to 2-hour parking 8am to 10pm, Monday through Friday.
During the day, the change in parking restrictions would be most helpful for Meals on Wheels which uses our facility Monday through Friday 9am to 1pm, and the small Scouting groups that meet mostly in the afternoons. It would also alleviate parking issues during the twice yearly church Yard Sales (the proceeds of which enable us to offer free, non-religious, after-school programs M-F during the school year, and scholarships to needy families for camp daycare during the summer. These programs are open to all in the community.) Its greatest benefit would be in the evenings for 12-step programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous, and for Monday night’s Grace Diner (a free weekly meal for the poor and hungry of our community — “our neighbors in need”) that meet in our facility. As we have done for many, many years, we would continue to encourage attendees to carpool, use public transportation if possible, or utilize the Julian Dixon Library parking lot. I am saddened to see the heated discussions in your paper regarding the Church’s request. We are proud of our proven track record of community service in Culver City and I hope that the rhetoric will subside to allow the interested parties to find common ground for the good of those in need.
Thank you,
Marina Tidwell