Great turnout on Roscoe east of Fallbrook. Thanks to all and the ELCO JROTC. photo credit -- Aida Abkarians
6900 Melba Ave SPECIAL EVENT AWARD 6707 Lederer Ave COUNCIMANS SPIRIT AWARD 23539 Schoenborn BEST COMICAL 22710 Vose Street BEST INTERACTIVE 8431 Pinelake Dr BEST INVENTIVE 6961 Darnoch Way BEST THEMATIC 7001 Vicky Avenue BEST SCARIEST HOUSE 8381 Maynard Ave BEST INNOVATIVE 23500 Justice Street BEST ANIMATION
WEST HILLS HALLOWEEN HOUSES ON DISPLAY RESULTS Sunday night October 24, Judges of the 3rd Annual Halloween Houses on Display Competition of West Hills viewed 34 exterior of homes and spent several hours afterward in discussion as to the winners of the competition. After discussing, scary clowns, ghosts, candy out of canons, a haunted tunnel, yoga skeletons and Dexter among the unique and creative displays this year, and struggling with a very difficult decision, they have determined the following people as the front-runners of this years’ event. In the SCARY CATEGORY First place goes to The Casey Family. Second Place is awarded to Jeff and Alicia Hannan, while Third Place is awarded to Lon and Oliafia Moeller. In the COMICAL CATEGORY First place goes to Elizabeth and Dodd Harris. Second Place is awarded to the Henley Family. And Third Place winners are the Marks Family. This year the Innovation Award is given in the Comical category to the Marks Family for their creative uniqueness and individuality. Please congratulate them and all of the entries as they are amazing. AND THIS IS A FREE EVENT that is sponsored by the Special Events Committee of the WHNC, and Councilmember John Lee of CD12. It is supported by Trader Joe's, Nuthin Bundt Cakes, Party City, and Olive & Fig Restaurant and Jazz Bar. (pictures by Huzaifa Mogri)
Dull, ugly and boring utility boxes standing prominently at all the major intersections. The West Hills Neighborhood Council is working with local artists to change that and brighten one more part of our already beautiful community. The first theme was traffic safety and Vision Zero LA. More to come and we have some surprises in store for you. The WHNC is looking for more artists who want to show off their talents. Information and application at www.WestHillsNC.org
The 2nd Annual West Hills Halloween Houses on Display was judged by impartial professionals to find the scariest and the most comical Halloween decor in West Hills. This annual event is the brainchild of the Special Events Committee of the West Hills Neighborhood Council. Gary D’Amico, Special Effects Award winning designer, Elliot Maggin, writer and storyteller of the Superman and Green Lantern fame, Rachel Reilly and Brendon Villegas, reality television stars and CD12 Councilman John Lee judged 32 houses and selected the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in the two categories. They saw houses that looked like a ride at Disneyland, a spooky cemetery, singing pumpkins, giant spiders crawling down the sidewalk and even flying ghosts across a front yard and much more. Sponsored by the West Hills Neighborhood Council and CD12, “the second year was an explosion over the first year” said Steve Randall and Myrl Schreibman, the co-chairs of the event. “The judges returned to home base after judging, saying that the creativity was awesome.” The houses were listed on the WHNC website and on West Hills California Facebook page for folks to visit and see some of the best decorated houses in West Hills. Hundreds of people, stopped by and or drove by the homes with their kids to make this Halloween Holiday a terrific one for the family. The event this year and was supported by Home Depot, the Halloween Costume Store, Party City, Green Thumb Nursery, Rock Paradise and Nuthin Bunt Cakes. The Special Events Committee is made up of WHNC Board members, Myrl Schreibman, Steve Randall, and Char Rothstein, Aida Abkarians, Faye Barta and Saif Mogri.
On January 21, 2020 the West Hills Neighborhood Council hosted the Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count for the West Hills Area. Thanks to all who volunteered and a special thank you to Shepard of the Valley Lutheran Church for providing a location for the deployment site. photo credits Thomas Booth, Aida Abkarians, Dan Brin. ----- Reflections from participants: Daniel Brin - "Thank you, Tom Booth, Olivia Naturman, Aida Abkarians, Marie Javdani, June Reiko Booth, Brad Vanderhoof and all of the many other volunteers who made this a night to remember. I have to admit... This was SO MUCH FUN! We cruised through the streets, alleys and parking lots of western and southern West Hills. We explored the depths of Knapp Ranch Park, the Bell Creek trail and El Escorpion Park as far as Gypsy Camp. We peered under bridges and into culverts. On this dark moonless night the stars shone as I hadn't seem them since the earthquake of '94. I always want to go to bed exhausted and tonight I got my wish." ----- Aida Abkarians - "Thanks to everyone who volunteered their time to be a part of the solution. To help, to fix and to open dialogue on what to do to make things better. Your compassion is truly appreciated." ----- Faye Barta - "Many thanks to all of those who attended the Homeless Count last night, sponsored by the West Hills Neighborhood Council. We are noticing that year after year we see familiar faces from previous yearly counts, but encouragingly, we also are seeing new faces to help with the count. The count is very important to all of us as citizens of the City of Los Angeles as well as of West Hills. Hopefully with yearly counts, we can figure out some promising ways to cure this ever-deepening problem." ----- Thomas Booth - “We come together once a year as a community to count our unhoused neighbors with the goal of bringing all inside. We share our humanity when we share our time in this way. See you all next year?” ----- Dana H. - "This was my 4th year doing the count, it has always been a worthwhile experience. Meeting the other folks is always great and it gives you renewed hope that members of the public can unite to create solutions to serious issues. The event has always been well run and the staff is always great. I know I will continue to volunteer every year and I encourage others to join me."
Thank you to the many people who turned out Saturday, January 18th for the West Hills Neighborhood Council Community Cleanup along Topanga Canyon Boulevard between Nordhoff and Parthenia. Your hard work really shows! And thank you to the WHNC’s Beautification Committee, chaired by Brad Vanderhoof and Faye Barta, for organizing these events, which are recognized and admired across the city.
January 2nd, the West Hills Neighborhood Council celebrated Mary and Robert Kuebler, who lead a team of volunteers in the community who have prepared thousand of lunches for homeless people. We also thanked Michael Goryachkovskiy, owner of Bagelicious in Platt Vilage, for supplying bagels to the effort. In addition, the WHNC presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Leslie Frankel, owner of the UPS Store at Platt Village, for her support in building a stronger community in West Hills.
A contest to determine the best decorated houses in West Hills. Categories were whimsical and scary with both individual and block awards.
The WHNC hosted a debate between candidates, Lorraine Lundquist and John Lee, for the special election to fill the councilmember seat in District 12. The event was held at the El Camino Charter High School North Campus on Shoup Ave. in West Hills. July 29, 2019 photo credits; Dan Brin, Mark Hovater
WHNC's biggest party of the year in partnership with LA City Dept. of Recreation and Parks, and the Canoga Park/Eest Hills Chamber of Commerce
The West Hills Neighborhood Council sponsored 2019 Homeless Count was a great success with about 60 volunteers driving every street in West Hills to get an accurate census of the population experiencing homelessness.
Fantastic turnout for cleanup along Victory and Fallbrook. We had so many wonderful volunteers at this morning’s West Hills Neighborhood Council Community Cleanup that we finished our intended tasks — cleaning up the gutters along Victory west of Fallbrook — much earlier than we expected. So we moved over to Fallbrook between Victory and Criswell and cleaned that up too! Thank you to the neighbors and students from; Reseda High School Naval JROTC, El Camino Real Charter High School, Hale Middle School, and all the other fine folks of all ages who came out and pitched in to beautify our community. As always, special thanks go to Brad Vanderhoof and Faye Barta, co-chairs of the WHNC’s Beautification Committee, for their leadership. And a special thank you to all who responded with words of encouragement on Facebook. Join us next month – location and date will be posted on, www.westhillsnc.org, when available.
We had so many wonderful volunteers at this morning’s West Hills Neighborhood Council Community Cleanup that we finished our intended tasks — cleaning up the gutters along Victory west of Fallbrook — much earlier than we expected. So we moved over to Fallbrook between Victory and Criswell and cleaned that up too! Thank you to the neighbors and students from; Reseda High School Naval JROTC, El Camino Real Charter High School, Hale Middle School, and all the other fine folks of all ages who came out and pitched in to beautify our community. As always, special thanks go to Brad Vanderhoof and Faye Barta, co-chairs of the WHNC’s Beautification Committee, for their leadership. And a special thank you to all who responded with words of encouragement on Facebook. Join us next month – location and date will be posted on, www.westhillsnc.org, when available. photo credits; Thomas Booth, Dan Brin, Anthony Brosamle
Honorees at the January 2019 WHNC Board of Directors meeting included: Terri Fox, Sandy Spees, Diane Pfeifer and Barabara Vasilaros from Foxy and the Hounds animal rescue; and newlywed Ivan Blume, who was thanked for his service as he leaves the Board and is moving out of the area.
A going away party for WHNC Board member Simone Best at the Homelessness Committee meeting -- December 17, 2018. We will miss you! photo credit Thomas Booth
Longtime WHNC Board of Directors member Ed Young receives an honor as he leaves the Board.
Thank you to the many folks � young, old and in between � who joined the West Hills Neighborhood Council�s �Paint the Hydrants� event today. The WHNC�s Beautification Committee deserves kudos � especially Olivia Naturman, Brad Vanderhoof and Tony Brosamle � for going above and beyond the call of duty in making this happen. � Dan Brin A wonderful turnout from the community, including students from #ElCaminoReal CharterHighSchool #KeyClub (http://ecrkeyclub.wixsite.com/d16w) - a longtime valuable partner of the #WHNC Beautification Committee. Also very special thanks to the amazing young men and women of the #ResedaHighSchool Junior #ROTC Program who showed up with twenty-five cadets to help make a difference in the community! Please check out and support their program online at - http://resedanjrotc.weebly.com. � Tony Brosamle Also very special thanks to the amazing young men and women of the #ResedaHighSchool Junior #ROTC Program who showed up with twenty-five cadets to help make a difference in the community! Please check out and support their program online at - http://resedanjrotc.weebly.com. � Tony Brosamle I�m glad this turned out to be an activity that would interest the community enough to come out and beautify West Hills. Hopefully, that interest will continue into the future, until all fire hydrants in West Hills have been re-painted! � Heidi Schabacker Manning Thank you, we had a great time!! � Mariska Mekking-Howell Such wonderful young people, who are they, a youth group, church group, Give them some press Mr. Daniel Brin, They Deserve it! � Frances Fitzpatrick I want to help next time. Looks like fun. Everyone did great � Nan Gari Hey Tony, You�re welcome! Great event by all involved. Two in one week. Pretty cool. TB � Thomas Booth The volunteers did all of the work! We miss you Phil!! - Olivia Naturman photo credits; Thomas Booth, Leo Kaufman, and Dan Brin
Thank you so much to the West Hills Neighborhood Council, their Homelessness and Education Committees for organizing this back to school collection. Mainly to our great and kind West Hills, Canoga Park and Woodland Hills community members for helping the less fortunate. Many of them anonymously supported us. GREAT PEOPLE with BIG hearts! ALL OF THIS WAS POSSIBLE THANKS TO ALL OF YOU. A big THANK YOU again and God bless you all. -- Esperanza Butler, West Hills Sunshine Club photo credits -- Dan Brin, Thomas Booth, Heidi Manning
Photos of the parade down Sherman Way. The West Hills float had grandkids, stakeholders, a guest from Reseda NC, and members of the WHNC. Photo credits: Dan Brin, Leo Kaufman, Joy Michele
Even on a rainy day the West Hills Community shows up to clean our streets supported by Bada Bing Bagels -- Myrl Screibman (photo credits; Myrl Schreibman, Dan Brin, and Anthony Brosamle)
Most of the Chatsworth Nature Preserve, the only nature preserve in the City of Los Angeles, is actually within the boundary of West Hills. The Earth Day Open House is the one and only day of the year this beautiful section of West Hills is accessible to the public. The City of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and the Santa Susana Mountain Park Association hosted the 2018 Chatsworth Nature Preserve annual Earth Day Open House on Saturday, April 7th. � The event drew approximately 1,200 guests, and featured an opening ceremony by Chumash leaders, guided hikes, interactive exhibits, exotic animals from rescue organizations, and much more. Photo credits; Leo Kaufman, Dan Brin, Thomas Booth
SpringFest 2018 Springfest is jointly sponsored by Los Angeles Dept. of Rec. and Parks, the Canoga Park / West Hills Chamber of Commerce, and the West Hills Neighborhood Council.
WHNC Board members attended an Open House at LA County Supervisor Shelia Kuehl's Calabasas office. Aida Abkarians, Simone Best, Thomas Booth, Bonnie Klea, Charlene Rothstein, Ron Sobel, Joan Trene, Brad Vanderhoof, Ed Young, and Joanne Yvanek-Garb met with the Supervisor, District Director Susan Ng, Field Deputies Blake Clayton and Leah Randall, and other community officials to discuss issues ranging from the homelessness crisis to the need for a community center.
The West Hills Neighborhood Council was recognized with a "Best of..." Award for Community Engagement in a Diverse Variety of Projects during the Spring Mixer of the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils in Studio City. March 7, 2018
On Saturday February 17th, the West Hills Neighborhood Council hosted a great community cleanup along Woodlake Avenue and Saticoy Street. Local residents, students, and board members from the WHNC filled 103 bags with debris and cleared some sidewalks that were unpassable (requiring pedestrians to make an unsafe detour into the busy street). We want to thank all our volunteers, including the amazing Reseda High School ROTC, Key Club members from El Camino Real, Chaminade students, and local residents who came out to help or stopped by to say hello during the cleanup. We also want to thank Badda Bing Bagels for donating bagels and cream cheese, and Starbucks for coffee. WHNC, of course, provided water to keep everyone hydrated, and this month, lemonade. For information about the next community cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Thomas Booth, Leo Kaufman)
Presentation on how to react in an active shooter situation, February 6th 2018, West Valley Christian Church. Photo Credits -- Anthony Brosamle, Mark Haberman, Dan Brin
Students from local elementary students created posters with a traffic safety theme. The artwork was displayed at Fall Fest, Shadow Ranch Park, West Hills, Oct 2017: and the Platt Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library, first quarter 2018.
The West Hills Neighborhood Council sponsored the LAHSA Homeless Count for the second year. Photo credits; Thomas Booth, Dan Brin, Anthony Brosamle
On Saturday January 20th, the West Hills Neighborhood Council hosted a great community cleanup along Platt Avenue and Highlander Road. Local residents, students, and board members from the WHNC came out on a beautiful Saturday morning to brave the tumbleweeds, better our community and beautify West Hills. This diverse group, ranging in age from 2 to 90+, was able to clear 84 bags full of weeds and debris from our streets. We want to thank all our volunteers, including the Reseda High School ROTC, Highlander Neighborhood Watch, and local residents who came out to help or stopped by to say hello during the cleanup. We also want to thank Badda Bing Bagels for donating baked goods to energize our volunteers. For information about the next community cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Faye Barta, Anthony Brosamle, Glenn Jennings, Victoria McDevitt, Ron Sobel)
In cooperation with The Church at Rocky Peak, West Hills volunteers and Neighborhood Council members tackled a variety of projects including; Fire Hydrant Painting, Free the Trees, Help Thy Neighbor, and the Roscoe Blvd. Cleanup. Photo Credits: Janine Ferraz, Anthony Brosamle, Thomas Booth
The West Hills 9th Annual Fall Festival on 10/28/17 was marvelous success with an estimated several hundred in attendance throughout the day. Former City Councilmember Joy Picus and current Councilmember Mitchell Englander joined members of the West Hills Neighborhood Council on stage to wish the community of West Hills a Happy 30th Birthday. The talents of the youngest West Hills generation were on display at the Vision Zero art contest for local elementary school students sponsored by the West Hills Neighborhood Council. With great live entertainment, a costume contest for the little ones, busy arts & crafts booths, games, a climbing wall, and even a roaming donkey in full costume, the West Hills Fall Fest was a day of family fun at the park. Thank you to our co-sponsor, the Department of Recreation Parks and their amazing Shadow Ranch Recreation Center team, all the hard-working volunteers, and the incredible vendors and performers for making this event a success. (Photo Credits: Tony Brosamle)
On Saturday October 14, the West Hills Neighborhood Council had a great community cleanup along Platt Avenue between Ingomar and Pomelo. Local residents, students, and board members from the WHNC came out on a beautiful Saturday morning to better our community and to beautify West Hills. This amazing group of about 25 was able to clear 79 bags full of weeds and debris from our streets. We want to thank all our volunteers, including students from St. Bernardine and El Camino Real, and local residents who came out to help or stopped by to say hello during the cleanup. We also want to thank Badda Bing Bagels for donating baked goods to energize our volunteers. We also want to give a special shout out to Vernie from Affordable Landscaping, and Joy and Cyndi Cruz who provided last minute help to transport our tools and make the cleanup possible. For information about the next community cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Anthony Brosamle, Daniel Brin)
In the evening, representatives of Christian, Muslim and Jewish groups gathered at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church in West Hills for a forum sponsored by the West Hills Neighborhood Council's Homelessness Committee, chaired by Tom Booth and Simone Best. A special guest was Kevin Taylor, representative of Mayor Eric Garcetti for the West Valley. A lot of the discussion centered on the bewildering number of agencies that address the many different aspects of homelessness -- women and families, veterans, mental health, emergency sheltering, drug addiction, etc. We learned that city, county, faith-based and nonprofit relief agencies are joining forced to simplify the choices for homeless individuals and their friends and families. One initiative, described by Tom Booth, is called "No Wrong Door," in which all services are accessible through a single address. We also learned how real progress is being achieved in addressing the extremely complicated issue of homelessness. I left encouraged that we have seen the worst of it. Working together, we CAN do this.
On Saturday September 23, the West Hills Neighborhood Council had a great community cleanup along Roscoe Boulevard between Fallbrook and Sale. Local residents, students, and board members from the WHNC came out on a beautiful Saturday morning to better our community and to beautify West Hills. This amazing group of about 30 was able to clear roughly 46 bags full of weeds and debris from our streets. We want to thank all our volunteers and local residents who came out to help or stopped by and said HI during our cleanup. We also want to thank Starbucks, and Badda Bing Bagels for donating food and coffee to energize our volunteers. We also want to give a special shout out to Reseda High School students who joined those from El Camino to help make the effort a success. For information about the next community cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Thomas Booth, Daniel Brin, and Anthony Brosamle)
On Saturday August 26 2017, the #WestHills community came together to improve the environment, support the LAPD, and raise awareness about the importance of kindness. Thanks in part to Esperanza Butler and the Jordan Strong Foundation, the community was able to freely dispose of trucks full of e-waste and unwanted documents for shredding. That's not all, Esperanza was also able to arrange that 50% of the recycling proceeds would go to support the LAPD Topanga Police cadet program. The turnout was so amazing that lines of cars stretched around the block from the Fields Market plaza, and the e-waste recycling company had to call additional trucks to handle all the drop offs. In addition, we had an amazing turnout for the West Hills Neighborhood Council's Homelessness Committee clothing drive which will go to support those that are homeless or at the brink of homelessness in our community. The West Hills NC was honored to have played a small role in the event from traffic control, to event assistance, and raising awareness about the importance of civic engagement in Los Angeles. Again, we want to sincerely thank our former WHNC board member and one of West Hills' MVP's Esperanza Butler for making this event possible and for including the Neighborhood Council. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
On Saturday August 12, the West Hills Neighborhood Council had a great community cleanup along Sherman Way between Shoup and Fallbrook. From local residents, leaders, and board members from the WHNC, everyone came out on a beautiful Saturday morning to better our community and to beautify West Hills. In total, this amazing group of roughly 30 people were able to clear roughly 40 bags full of weeds and debris from our streets. We want to thank all our volunteers and local residents who came out to help or stopped by and said HI during our cleanup. We also want to thank Starbucks, and Badda Bing Bagels donating food and coffee to energize our volunteers. We also want to give a special shout out to Sean McCarthy, Cameron Gil, and Mercy J Alpert from the Woodland Hills Warner Center Neighborhood Council, who showed up in force to help in difference in West Hills. Also, special shout out to Assemblymember Matt Dababneh for having the amazing staffer Cameron Gil join us at our event. We are so fortunate to have such great local residents and businesses in our community. For information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Mary Albrigo,Tom Booth, and Myrl Schreibman)
On Tuesday July 18 2017, the Los Angeles Department of City Planning, Southwest Valley Plans Division, held an amazing interactive tabletop event focused on gaining input on the future of zoning and development in West Hills. Your West Hills NC was there in full force with an outreach table and more working with our city planners to share thoughts and gain insights about development in our community. Thank you again to the the Los Angeles Department of City Planning for including the WHNC at the event and for creating such an amazing interactive to our community. For more information about the event, visit http://westhillsnc.org/readpost.php?news_id=289. You can also view a copy of a live stream video of the event at https://www.facebook.com/WestHillsNC/videos/. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
On Saturday, July 17, the West Hills Neighborhood Council battled and emerged victorious against overgrown vegetation and pine needles along Medical Center drive between Woodlake and the West Hills Hospital & Medical Center. Under the hot summer heat, roughly 35 volunteers from the WHNC's Beautification Committee, Galpin Ford, and West Hills residents came together to beautify West Hills. In total, we were able to clear around 80 bags full of vegetation and debris in about two hours! We want to thank all of our volunteers who came out to help, specifically Sarah Horvet and the entire Galpin Ford team. Without there kindness and generosity to the community, the event wouldn't have been as succussful as it was. We also want to thank Starbucks, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Badda Bing Bagels and Fields Market for donating ice, bagels, and coffee to energize our volunteers. For more information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit Badda Bing Bagels. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Sarah Horvet and Myrl Schreibman)
On July 15 2017, the office of Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering, and the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks had an amazing grand opening of the almost complete Woodland Hills Recreation Center pool! Members of the West Hills Neighborhood Council were personally invited by Councilmember Bob Blumenfield to attend the ceremony which is actually outside of West Hills. This beautiful facility is almost complete and should be fully open in the coming month but the public pool will be open to the community with extended operating hours. We want to thank the Councilmember and the many city departments and employees who made this happen, and for including the West Hills NC in the ceremony. (Photo Credits: Mark Haberman)
On Saturday, July 8 2017, more than 50 members of the West Hills and surrounding community came to the community room at the Platt Branch - Los Angeles Public Library, to discuss and learn about living with wildlife here in our community. Officer Dinh from LA Animal Services and Olivia Naturman, the West Hills Neighborhood Council Animal Services Liaison, spoke to a room packed of people, only standing room, sharing information about how we as a community can share and live with the environment and wildlife around us. We want to sincerely that LA Animal Services for coming out to our event and addressing the community, as well as our very own Olivia Naturman and Communications & Outreach Committee Co-Chair Simone Best for making this event a reality. In addition we want to thank the Platt Branch Library and the Los Angeles Public Library Department for allowing us to use the community room for our event. Lastly, we want to thank all those in attendance for coming to our event and caring about making our community a better place to live. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
On Saturday, June 17, the West Hills NC won back part of our community from the weeds and vegetation along the east side of Fallbrook Avenue between Victory and Vanowen. Under the hot summer heat, roughly 30 volunteers from the WHNC's Beautification Committee, the El Camino Real High School Key Club and other West Hills residents came together to beautify West Hills. In total, we were able to clear around 70 bags full of weeds and debris in about three hours! We want to thank all of our volunteers who came out to help. We also want to thank the Starbucks , Nothing Bundt Cakes and Fields Market for donating food and coffee to energize our volunteers. For more information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Tony Brosamle and Myrl Schreibmant)
On Thursday, June 8 2017, the West Hills Neighborhood Council's Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness Committee held an amazing community forum in partnership with LAPD Senior Lead Officers Slo Sean Brown and Slo Kari McNamee. With roughly 60 people in attendance, the event focused on debunking some of the myths circulating around the community regarding police presence to gang activity while also focusing on tips and tricks on how to combat crime, and neighborhood watch groups. We want to again extend our deepest thanks to both Sean and Kari an amazing job and for their participation, and we also want to thank the community for the great turnout and their willingness to prevent crime in our community. (Photo Credit: Daniel Brin)
On Sunday, May 28 2017, members of the West Hills NC and the West Hills Sunshine Club joined forces to decorate the WHNC float for the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce's 2017 Memorial Day Parade. Rolling up our sleeves, we got to work and transformed a seemingly ordinary truck, which graciously donated to us by Galpin Ford, to something truly amazing. Thank you again to all those who came out, including former West Hills NC board member Esperanza Butler from the West Hills Sunshine Club, for making our float one of the best at the Memorial Day parade.(Photo Credit: Daniel Brin & Esperanza Butler)
On Monday, May 29 2017, the West Hills Neighborhood Council was honored to once again be a participant and a supporter of the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce's 2017 Memorial Day Parade. Members of the WHNC and the community came out to ride on our float which was graciously donated to us by Galpin Ford, as we payed tribute and acknowledged the deep sacrifices our veterans make to make our community and country a safe and special place to live. Special shout out and thanks to Michael Fred Castro for providing the flags for our float, once again Galpin Ford for being an amazing community partner and supporter, Michael Sunderland for being our driver, and of course members of our armed services for serving our country! (Photo Credit: Daniel Brin, Myrl Schreibman, and Joy Michele)
On Saturday May 13, the West Hills Neighborhood Council had a intense but amazing community cleanup, tackling the forest of weeds that have built up on the center median islands along Valley Circle Avenue north of Victory Boulevard. Members of the community, including members from Troop 464 Page and Key Clubbers from El Camino Real High School, joined board members from the WHNC to beautify West Hills. In total, we were able to clear around 30 bags full of weeds and debris out of this center median island. We want to thank all our volunteers and local residents who came out to help. We also want to thank Starbucks, and Nothing Bundt Cakes for donating food and coffee to energize our volunteers. We are so fortunate to have such great local residents and businesses in our community. For information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Tony Brosamle, and Karen Osterheldt)
The West Hills NC again turns out in force with safety inquiries. The West Hills Neighborhood Council lived up to its reputation for activism at the April 26 2017 �Conversation with Councils� event hosted by City Councilmember Mitchell Englander at Ride On Therapeutic Horsemanship in Chatsworth. These semi-annual events enable Councilmember Englander to communicate with board members of Neighborhood Council throughout his 12th Council District in the northwestern San Fernando Valley. This time, the spotlight was on Ride On, a nonprofit organization that helps children with developmental issues through �horseback therapy.� Leaders of the Los Angeles Police Department, including Deputy Chief John A. Sherman, the new commanding officer of operations for the LAPD�s Valley Bureau, also were on hand. Representing the WHNC were board members Aida Abkarians, Simone Best, Tony Brosamle, Bonnie Klea, Steve Randall, Myrl Schreibman, Joan Trent and Ed Young. Steve, Simone and Myrl appeared to make an impact by asking hard questions about what can be done to address speeding and street racing in West Hills. Steve suggested placing unmanned police cars at areas where frequent violations occur. He also recommended additional programs about safe driving at high schools (a project spearheaded by WHNC board member Olivia Naturman) and commented about hold times often experienced when calling 911 operators. Simone asked about implementing the LAPD�s Volunteer Citizen Patrol program in West Hills and suggested that patrol cars drive through our parks at night in response to recent discoveries of discarded drug syringes. Myrl noted that he had been trying to get a representative from Traffic Division to attend a future meeting of the West Hills Neighborhood Council but was getting no response to his inquiries. This statement prompted Deputy Chief Sherman to promise immediate action. Yesterday morning, April 27 2017, Steve was informed by telephone that Traffic Patrol Officer James Hutchins will attend a future WHNC board meeting to answer questions. �West Hills Neighborhood Council ROCKS,� Steve says. We want to sincerely thank Councilmember Mitchell Englander, LAPD Topanga Police, and LAPD Valley Traffic Div for their continued support and willingness to work with Neighborhood Councils. (Text Credit: Daniel Brin) (Photo Credit: Office of Councilmember Mitchell Englander)
Thousands of visitors enjoyed a beautiful spring day at West Hills' 10th annual Spring Festival on April 15 at Shadow Ranch Park. The event, produced by the West Hills Neighborhood Council in partnership with the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks and Shadow Ranch Recreation Center, featured egg hunts for children, entertainment, an expanded variety of gourmet food trucks, vendors, police vehicles, a petting zoo, a climbing wall and, for the first time, a car show with more than 80 vehicles on display. Our thanks go to Coastline Motorsport's for organizing the car show, as well as our event sponsors, including Councilmember Mitchell Englander, the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce, Wendy's of West Hills and Woodland Hills, Vista Ford and West Hills Hospital & Medical Center. Simone Best and "Chipper" also made generous contributions. Key to the event's success were the park staff at Shadow Ranch and volunteers from New Life Church, Woodland Hills, Woodland Hills and Key Club. West Hills now looks forward to its next major event, the West Hills Fall Fest, on Oct. 28 at Shadow Ranch Park. For information about future events in West Hills, please join our mailing list by visiting http://www.westhillsnc.org/joinemail.php. (Photo Credit: Daniel Brin & Ophir Klainman)
On the morning of Tuesday, April 11 2017, political leaders and members of the community gathered at the intersection of Roscoe Boulevard and Jason Avenue to observe the first anniversary of the deaths of West Hills residents Pia and Erica Botz and their dog at the site. The event also dedicated the city�s first dual-signal pedestrian crossing, built with hopes of preventing future tragedies at the dimly lit intersection near Valley Circle Boulevard. Joined by friends and relatives of the Botz family as well as State Assemblymember Matt Dababneh and several board members of the West Hills Neighborhood Council, Los Angeles City Councilmember Mitchell Englander described his efforts to gain approval and funding for quick installation of pedestrian-activated amber lights integrated with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) embedded in the crosswalk pavement. Daniel Brin, president of the West Hills Neighborhood Council, which was an early advocate of the project through its Streets & Transportation Committee, noted in his remarks that �a crossing signal is a beautiful metaphor for all that a city does to keep its members safe as they go about their lives.� "Constructing these lights is an expression of our community coming together for the public good, and Councilmember Englander and his staff deserve our appreciation for their quick action to give focus for that imperative,� he said. We want to thank Councilmember Mitchell Englander and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation for making this a reality and for making ground breaking initiatives to improve the safety of our community.
On Saturday April 8 2017, the West Hills NC had another incredible cleanup tackling the forest of weeds building up on the center median islands along Platt Avenue between Victory and Vanowen. Members of the community from all walks of life including members from Troop 464 Page and board members from the WHNC to beautify West Hills. During the cleanup, we had local residents stop by and help one armed with a lawn mower the other in pajamas and a shovel. In total, we were able to clear roughly 30 bags full of weeds and debris out of this center median island. We want to thank all our volunteers and local residents who came out to help or stopped by and said hi during our cleanup. We also want to thank Starbucks, Pavilions, Nothing Bundt Cakes and Medical Center Dental Care for donating food and coffee to energize our volunteers. We also want to give a special shout out to Brad Vanderhoof and former WHNC board member Esperanza Butler for both helping clean this stretch later on in the day after the official end of the West Hills cleanup. We are so fortunate to have such great local residents and businesses in our community. For information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin & Karen Osterheldt)
On Sunday April 2 2017, the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power (LADWP) and the Santa Susana Mountain Park Association hosted the Annual Chatsworth Nature Preserve Earth Day Open House on providing the public with a rare opportunity to experience the natural beauty of the Chatsworth Nature Preserve and Ecology Pond. With nearly 2,000 community members in attendance throughout the day, the event featured a special Chumash and Tataviam Native American Tribal Blessing performed by tribe member Alan Salazar, live animal exhibits, informational booths from environmental and community groups, and two-mile guided walking tours around the Chatsworth Pond. Local residents and environmental experts provided tours to the public with historical background of the area, as well as facts about the animal and plant life in the preserve. Your West Hills Neighborhood Council was there in full force speaking with residents about local community issues and answering questions regarding our position on the preservation of the Ecology Pond. Special shout out and thanks to LADWP and the SSMPA for making this event possible and a resounding success. For more information about the event visit http://www.tellmeladwp.com/go/doc/1475/2920874/. (Text Credit: LADWP) (Photo Credit: Daniel Brin and Tom Booth)
On Thursday, March 30 2017, the Board of Neighborhood Commissioners celebrated the achievements of Neighborhood Councils at City Hall by presenting EmpowerLA Awards to those Neighborhood Councils that best achieve their mission to engage their local stakeholders with government and make their government more accountable and responsive to the needs of their communities. The EmpowerLA Awards were created to highlight the highest ideals of inclusiveness, non-discrimination, transparency, and independence for the Neighborhood Council system. The West Hills Neighborhood Council was nominated for our amazing strides to beautify and improve our through our monthly cleanups and other projects run by the Beautification Committee, and also our incredible communications program with the redesign of our website, our weekly community calendars that we send to thousands of residents, our excellent social media pages, and our monthly newsletter. Although we did not win an award, we are deeply honored to have been nominated and recognized for the hard work do in improving our community and hope to only continue to grow and thrive as we make West Hills an even better place to live. (Text Credit: EmpowerLA)
On Saturday March 4th 2017, the West Hills Neighborhood Council, Canoga Park Neighborhood Council, Office of Assemblymember Matt Dababneh and Office of Councilmember Bob Blumenfield had an incredible joint community cleanup along the north eastern stretches on Shoup and Saticoy. About 25 community volunteers removed 60 bags worth of trash from our streets. We also had a special visit from KABC7 News who were doing a piece on our Beautification Committee Co-Chair Reeyan Raynes for his amazing work in beautifying our community, as well as highlighting the amazing impact our cleanup does in West Hills. We want to thank all the volunteers who came and especially those from from El Camino Real Charter High School's Key Club and the West Valley Garden Club who worked hard to make our community look nicer! We want to also thank our local Ralphs market near Victory and Fallbrook for donating coffee and snacks to keep us warm and energized for the cleanup.Lastly, thank you to our amazing partners for a great event...we definitely couldn't have done it without you guys. For information about the West Hills NC Beautification Committee's next community cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Tom Booth, Daniel Brin, and Bob Brostoff)
Last Wednesday, 2/22/17, the city's Board of Neighborhood Commissioners (BONC) honored the West Hills Neighborhood Council on its 15th anniversary. Ours was the first Neighborhood Council in the Valley and the fourth in the entire city to incorporate. To commemorate all the years of hard work and people who have made our community thrive and flourish, our West Hills NC president Daniel Brin wrote an incredible must read article in City Watch Los Angeles that we strongly encourage to read by visiting www.goo.gl/Q8xX0R. We thank you for allowing us the privilege of serving such a great community and hope that we, with your help, can make West Hills an even more better place to call our home.It's our neighborhood, let's make it a community! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
On Tuesday, 2/7/17, the West Hills Neighborhood Council, Canoga Park Neighborhood Council, Woodland Hills Warner Center Neighborhood Council, West Valley Warner Center Chamber of Commerce, and the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce, hosted an amazing town-hall forum on one of the most important ballot measures in L.A.'s history. The room was filled with over 150 local residents, business owners, and community leaders interested in hearing from both the proponents and opponents of Measure S address their questions and concerns on the ballot measure. State Assemblymember Matt Dababneh was also present and highlighted the importance of civic engagement and applauded everyone's efforts in educating themselves more about the ballot measure. We want to thank our amazing partners for all their help and support in making this event happen. We couldn't have asked for a better team of people and organizations to work with or be part of the West Valley community. We also want to thank El Camino Real High School for hosting the forum and their community support. Thank you again to all those who participated and don't forget to vote! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
On the evening of Jan. 24, the Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count drew a large turnout from West Hills residents and friends who formed 17 teams to survey our entire community and record where homeless people are sleeping. The teams canvassed streets, peered under bridges, scoped washes and surveyed parking lots all over our community to help direct and guide future homeless service and outreach to those in our community. Homelessness Subcommittee Co-Chairs Simone Best and Tom Booth deserve praise for their hard work in organizing the count. Thank you to everyone who came out to help make West Hills a better place. (Photo Credits: Tom Booth and Daniel Brin)
On Saturday January 21st, the West Hills NC Beautification Committee had another unbelievable community cleanup with more then 50 people helping to beautify West Hills and removing 110 bags worth of trash from our streets. In fact, we had enough turnout to take care of two cleanup sites along Fallbrook Avenue and Saticoy Street in a single morning! We want to thank all the volunteers who came out including the Reseda Njrotc, the El Camino Real Njrotc, and the El Camino Real Charter High School Key Club who showed up in full force and worked hard to make our community look nicer!We want to also thank our local Ralphs market near Victory and Fallbrook for donating coffee to keep us warm and energized for the cleanup. For information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Tony Brosamle, Tom Booth, and Bob Brostoff)
A large delegation from the West Hills Neighborhood Council attended a gathering in City Hall on Jan. 14 to recognize community leaders and partners engaged in the City of Los Angeles� Clean Streets Initiative. During the meeting in the chambers of the city's Board of Public Works, Mayor Eric Garcetti honored Reeyan Raynes, co-chair of the West Hills Neighborhood Council's Beautification Committee, as one of three outstanding youths who have enlisted other young people, as well as adults, to participate in local beautification projects. In addition, the West Hills Neighborhood Council received a $1,500 grant recognizing its outstanding participation in the Clean Streets Challenge. The West Hills delegation was joined by Pastor Brian Morehead of the The Church at Rocky Peak, which has sent several hundred volunteers in recent years to assist in annual cleanup projects in our community. "Our success would not have been possible without our incredible partners from the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce, Key Club, the Church at Rocky Peak and local residents who contributed in making West Hills a model community for the rest of the city," said Raynes, who co-chairs the Beautification Committee with fellow WHNC Board Member Tony Brosamle. For information about the committee's monthly Community Cleanups and other initiatives, or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
West Hills showed its heart this morning at a rally and march for kindness and against bullying on 12/17/16. The event was organized by the El Camino Real Charter High School-Cool 2 B Kind club, in response to last week's unprovoked attack on 14-year-old ECR student Jordan Peisner directly across the street at the Platt Village shopping center. Jordan's dad, Ed Peisner, spoke movingly about the support his family received since the incident. City Councilmember Mitchell Englander was close to tears when he spoke of his experiences growing up in this area, attending Haynes Elementary and ECR, and being bullied himself as he walked along the Platt Village shopping center. Mitch was singled out because he was blind for a couple of years due to an illness. Immediately following the rally in the McDonald's parking lot, about 300 people crossed Platt at Victory, walked up the east side of Platt to Haynes Street and then marched back to the McDonald's. Kudos to the owners of McDonald's at 6433 Platt Ave and Wendy's for working together to make this event a success and to Joanne Littman for being the mistress of ceremonies. We also want to thank our wonderful Slo Kari McNamee and the rest of LAPD Topanga Police for keeping everyone safe. Lastly, we want to thanks to West Hills Neighborhood Council board members Aida Abkarians and Brad Vanderhoof, as well as Canoga Park Neighborhood Council President Corinne Ho for participating and showing support for Jordan Peisner, his family and everyone who participated in saying no to bullying. (Photo & Text Credit: Daniel Brin)
On Saturday morning, Dec. 3, the West Hills Neighborhood Council's Beautification Committee held its last monthly Community Cleanup for the 2016 year. We ended 2016 on a very high note clearing weeds and debris from the center island median on Platt Avenue between Highlander and Sherman Way. Members of the Kiwanis Club of Warner Center - Woodland Hills, El Camino Real Charter High School Key Club, Notre Dame High School High School, Food Forward, and members of the WHNC Board of Directors, among others in the community, joined us for three hours of focused work, and filled more than 25 bags worth of trash, weeds and other green waste.We want to thank everyone who participated for this great community cleanup and others throughout the 2016 for helping make our community a better place. For information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin and Tony Brosamle)
On Nov. 5, the West Hills Neighborhood Council, in conjunction with our partners at The Church at Rocky Peak, Key Club and the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber, organized a blockbuster community cleanup and beautification event that has made a lasting and visible impact on the West Hills community. This cleanup was our last project in competing for the Clean Streets LA Challenge, which uses grant funds to reward communities that take steps to resolve chronic community beautification issues like illegal dumping and street cleanliness. Hundreds of volunteers worked at six sites throughout our community, bagging approximately 230 bags of trash from our streets, schools and other public facilities. Our projects also included landscaping at the West Hills Post Office and Pomelo and Nevada Elementary Schools. Thank you to our amazing partners and volunteers who made this day a success! We also want to thank the U..S Postal Service for its incredible partnership with our community and Home Depot for donating hundreds of dollars� worth of plants for the project at the Post Office. Our efforts don�t stop there. We need your continued help in keeping our community free and clear from debris, trash and weeds by participating in our monthly community cleanups and our MyLA311 campaign. For details, visit our Beautification Committee website at http://westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. Thank you again and see you at our December community cleanup event! (Photo Credits: Ed Crowe, Tony Brosamle, Aida Abkarians ,and Tom Booth)
On 10/26/16, West Hills NC's Youth and Education and Public Health Committee held their second annual meeting with many honorary guests, Scott M Schmerelson , Los Angeles Unified School District Board Member, District 3, Vivian Ekchian, Superintendent, Local District Northwest, John Lee ,Chief of Staff to Mitchell Englander - Los Angeles City Councilmember, Yolanda Guerra, Instructional Director, James Brown, first aide and CPR Expert, and many of our amazing principals and dedicated teachers from West Hills elementary schools. The meeting was filled with useful information and reports on how to make our schools better for our children and community. Thank you for all those who intended and our wonderful Youth and Education Committee under the leadership of Aida Abkarians and Ed Young for making this event a success. (Photo Credit: Aida Abkarians)
The West Hills 8th Annual Fall Festival on 10/29/16 was marvelous succus with an estimate several hundred in attendance throughout the day. Although there was a little drizzle here and there, the fun continued and grew. From delicious food and great live entertainment, and from busy arts & crafts booths to inflatables, the West Hills Fall Fest was unforgettable day, filled with great long lasting memories. In addition, we were able to collect an mouth-dropping amount and clothing and food for our Homelessness drive to help combat this growing and unfortunate epidemic in our city. Thank you to our co-sponsor, the Department of Recreation Parks and their amazing Shadow Ranch Recreation Center team, our incredible volunteers from Key Club and Taft High School, as well as all our incredible vendors and performers for making this event a succus. Our next major and bigger than ever West Hills Spring Fest is fast approaching and will be here before we know it, so stay tuned for updates and make sure to save the date. (Photo Credits: Dan Brin & Myrl Schreibman)
"On Thursday [October 28, 2016], over 30 representatives from the ten neighborhood councils throughout Council District 12 took part in what has become a much-anticipated tradition in the North West San Fernando Valley � the Council District 12 Conversations with Councils. Designed to provide the CD12 neighborhood council membership the opportunity to expand their repertoire of information regarding relevant social and political issues and provide access to the respective City agencies and departments designated to address these challenges, this regular meeting has become a cornerstone in providing understanding of complex topics for our neighborhood council membership. The event was hosted by Operation Gratitude, a non-profit oganization dedicated to providing care packages for Military members and First Responders. The Neighborhood Council members were given the opportunity to make care packages expressing their appreciation to those who serve our nation and were treated to an engaging dialogue that touched upon keystone issues in the city involving the Department of Building and Safety and the Department of City Planning. Thank you to the General Manager of the Department of Building and Safety Frank Bush and Director of Planning Vincent P. Bertoni for an informative discussion of vital issues that affect our communities. A special thanks to Carolyn Blashek and her incredible staff for their time and commitment. It was undeniably a powerful event that will not soon be forgotten." (Text Credit: Office of Mitch Englander, Council District 12)(Photo Credit: Dan Brin)
As part of the Clean Streets LA Challenge, the West Hills NC held its October community cleanup in partnership with area Key Clubs and the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce on the northside of Roscoe between Fallbrook and Sale. Local residents, Key Clubbers from Taft, Sierra Canyon, and El Camino Real High Schools, WHNC board members, and our very own Slo Sean Brown, turned out in force to beautify West Hills. Thanks to the colder weather and donuts from SLO Sean Brown, we were able to clear more than 60 bags worth of trash, debris, and overgrowth allowing the community to once again walk comfortably down this stretch of Roscoe. we cannot thank those who volunteered and our incredible partners enough for all that they do for the West Hills community.For more information about the Beautification Committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php.(Photo Credits: Tony Brosamleand Tom Booth)
On 10/1/16, the Office of Councilmember Mitchell Englander their second annual drive-in movie night at Shadow Ranch park featuring the movie Grease. Over 200 cars and community members were present for a night of unforgettable fun. Your West Hills NC was there connecting with West Hills resident to address concerns and gain suggestions on ways we can create a stronger and better community. Thank you to Councilmember Mitch Englander and his incredible staff making this amazing event a success . To find out about future events like these visit, http://www.westhillsnc.org/joinemail.php(Photo Credits: Dan Brin)
The Los Angeles Congress of Neighborhoods brings together leaders from the city�s 96 Neighborhood Councils for a day of networking and education. Held yearly at LA City Hall, the event aims to help Neighborhood Council leaders obtain the tools and establish the relationships they need to build a successful future for their communities." Your West Hills NC was there in full force on 9/24/16 with 11 board members taking various workshops to find out how we can imrpove community and better imrpove our city's response to West Hills's needs. With over 36 total workshops to choose through, it was a great metling pot of ideas and definitely a source for new and exciting programs, opportunities, and services to bring back home. As always, the WHNC is committed to ensuring that your voice is represented at City Hall and please don't hesitate to contact us if you have questions, comments, or concerns about our community. We also want to give a special shout out Los Angeles Congress of Neighborhoods planning committee for making this event a success. Thank you. (Photo Credit: Daniel Brin)
More than 50 volunteers turned out on Saturday morning, Sept. 17, for the latest monthly Community Cleanup organized by the West Hills Neighborhood Council�s Beautification Committee. Among those pitching in to clear weeds and debris from the sidewalks and gutters of Platt Avenue between�Candlewood Way and Balmoral Lane were members of the Kiwanis Club of Warner Center-Woodland Hills, the El Camino Real and Taft High School Key Clubs, and members of the WHNC Board of Directors, among others in the community. In three hours of focused work, the crew filled roughly 60 bags worth of trash, weeds and other green waste.� �We want to thank everyone who came out and made this month�s cleanup another great success,� said Reeyan Raynes, who co-chairs the WHNC Beautification Committee with Tony Brosamle.� For information about the committee's next Community Cleanup project or to recommend a location, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php.� (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Tony Brosamle and Tom Booth)
Special shout out to the West Hills Sunshine Club for their incredible work with Mayor Eric Garcetti. Here is a brief overview of the Mayor's Welcome Home Project Event: "The West Hills Sunshine Club showed up in force yesterday at Mayor Eric Garcetti's Welcome Home Project event in Reseda. We joined other volunteers in the West Valley to sort items and fill gift baskets containing toiletries, kitchenware, bedding and cleaning products for newly housed people who had been living on the streets. The people at the MTO Shahmaghsoudi School of Islamic Sufism were delightful hosts. Mayor Garcetti and Councilmember Bob Blumenfield said a few words and spent lots of time chatting with our group and other volunteers" (West Hills Sunshine Club). Photo Credits: West Hills Sunshine Club
On September the 9th residents from both the communities of Chatsworth Lake Manor and West Hills came together to cleanup Valley Circle between Box Canyon and Chatlake Drive. It was a true sight to see as these residents worked along sides dangerous parts of Valley Circle to remove trash, bulky items, and other unmentionables from our streets. We want to give a special shout to Stephanie Elm who organized this cleanup and brought to communities together.
From our Neighborhood Council President Dan Brin: Last week I was invited to join a roundtable of Neighborhood Council presidents at City Councilmember Mitch Englander�s 12 at the District field office in Chatsworth. I was surprised when, in his opening remarks, Mitch singled out our West Hills Neighborhood Council�s monthly Community Cleanups as a �shining example� of neighborhood activism. Then I thought about it some more and concluded I shouldn�t have been surprised at all. Under the leadership of WHNC Beautification Committee Co-Chairs Reeyan Raynes and Tony Brosamle, our cleanup teams have grown in strength and numbers over the past year. Sometimes as many as 40 volunteers of all ages will show up to clear weeds, pick up trash and sweep the sidewalks of our community. No wonder the Los Angeles Daily News recently ranked West Hills among the cleanest neighborhoods in the Valley! This is just one way our West Hills Neighborhood Council serves as a �shining example� to other Neighborhood Councils across the city. As our group of presidents sat around the table in Mitchell Englander�s office, we talked about our biggest challenges. Homelessness was a challenge we all shared, but we also discussed the difficulties many Neighborhood Councils have in finding and keeping people to serve on their boards of directors. Some of them have trouble getting enough directors together to hold a legal meeting. This is not a problem in West Hills. Our board recently lost two of its 25 members when Esperanza Butler and Nicole Flessati resigned. We are sad to lose Esperanza and Nicole, but we won�t need to struggle to find candidates to fill their seats. Within two weeks of announcing the vacancies on Aug. 4, our ad-hoc Board Vacancy Committee received 12 applications from interested members of the community. (If you want to apply, visit http://westhillsnc.org/readpost.php?news_id=194) Now, as I write this, the number has grown to 18 � and the deadline isn�t until next Saturday. The WHNC�s Board Vacancy Committee, headed by Charlene Rothstein and Steve Randall, has its work cut out as it interviews all of the candidates and submits its observations to the entire WHNC board on Oct. 6. The board will then vote on which candidates will serve out the remaining terms of the two open seats. All of these candidates want to contribute to the energy and focus that makes our WHNC stand out among the 96 Neighborhood Councils in the City of Los Angeles. We have so many outstanding committees and subcommittees � Zoning & Planning, Environment, Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, Communications, Homelessness, Public Health, Youth & Education, Government Relations, Budget, Bylaws, Community Center/Senior Center, etc. � that it�s a constant challenge to keep track of their activities. Many, if not most, of their meetings are packed by board members and others in the community. We have plenty to learn from other Neighborhood Councils, of course, but we are justifiably proud of our WHNC and the people of West Hills. Our community is truly a "shining example" of citizen activism in the City of Los Angeles.
The West Hills NC had another incredible community cleanup this morning with members from the Kiwanis Club of Warner Center & Woodland Hills, El Camino Real KeyC lub, members of the West Hills community, and WHNC board members. This months project, we tackled mostly the east and part of the west-side of Valley Circle between Highlander Road the roughly Hartland Rd. near West Hills Baseball.During our cleanup, we had a surprise visit from Assemblymember Matt Dababneh who saw our cleanup on Mitchell Englander's news article and brought some popsicles and ice-cream sandwiches for our team. We had a great time talking and cooling off with the assembly member who came back from Sacramento hours before. As always, for more information on our next cleanup project or if you want to recommend a location for us to tackle next, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. Hope to see you next month! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Tony Brosamle)
Thanks to all the incredible volunteers from Galpin Ford and the West Hills community for participating in this morning's West Hills NC community cleanup on Sherman Way between Asman and the Bell Creek wash. We also want to give a very special shout out and thanks to Sarah Horvet from Galpin Motors who brought out the entire Galpin team. For more information on our next cleanup project or if you want to recommend a location for us to tackle, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. Hope to see you next month! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Tony Brosamle, Sarah Horvet)
Three officers of the West Hills Neighborhood Council � President Dan Brin, Vice President Charlene Rothstein and Treasurer Bobbi Trantafello � represented the community at Mayor Eric Garcetti�s backyard barbecue on July 5. They were among a select group of officers from Neighborhood Councils across the city invited to attend the first-ever event at Getty House, the mayor�s official residence in the Windsor Square neighborhood next to Hancock Park. After a meal of hot dogs (beef, turkey and vegetarian), potato salad and salads made with lettuce grown in vertical gardens at the site, the participants heard Los Angeles First Lady Amy Elaine Lakeland describe her efforts to encourage women and girls to take leadership roles in city life. As the key cultivators of grassroots civic participation, Neighborhood Councils are playing a significant role in creating a more equitable city, she said. In his remarks, Mayor Garcetti, discussed his �Back to Basics� initiatives to raise the quality of life in Los Angeles by improving street maintenance, trash pickups, mass transit and fire and police services. He also emphasized the importance of Neighborhood Councils in solving the daunting crisis of homelessness in the city. Garcetti�s top advisor on homelessness, Alisa Orduna, concluded the program by elaborating on the city�s multifaceted homelessness strategy and the Neighborhood Councils' role in its success. In a private conversation with Dan Brin, Mayor Garcetti said he was proud to see how well the San Fernando Valley was represented. The event concluded with the mayor and Grace Liu, general manager of the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment, posing for photographs with Neighborhood Council delegates from seven regions in the city.
On Monday 6/27/16, the West Hills NC had the privilege of speaking and presenting a certificate of appreciation at a ceremony at Orcutt Ranch. The honoree was Ben McDonnell, who spent two years restoring the 1927 greenhouse at the park for his Eagle Scout project. The event was attended by numerous members of the city and community including the president of the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks Commission, Council District 12 District Director Ron Rubine, our very own WHNC president Daniel Brin, and ABC 7 News. Thank you to all the members from the Parks Department, Council District 12, WHNC, and the McDonnell family for making this event a success.(Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
The West Hills NC had another super successful community cleanup as a result of the hard work from local neighbors and members from various groups such as the El Camino Real High School Key Club, the Kiwanis Club of Warner Center - Woodland Hills and Chaminade College Preparatory High School. We also want to give a very special shout out and thanks to our wonderful Slo Sean Brown who helped with our cleanup and provided traffic control to ensure the safety of our volunteers. This months project was mostly on the southwest side of Topanga Boulevard between Nordhoff and Parthenia. Daniel Brin, was also able to get weeds near vicinity of Nevada and Topanga to further aid in our efforts to Beautify West Hills. For more information on our next cleanup project or if you want to recommend a location for us to tackle, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. Hope to see you next month! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin & Tony Brosamle)
Citrus Sunday is an annual one-day event sponsored by LA City Council District 12 Councilmember Mitchell Englander, the West Hills Neighborhood Council, and other area community groups, that benefits struggling San Fernando Valley families each year by providing thousands of pounds of fresh citrus and other fruit. Were able to collect more than 1,200.00 pounds of fruit, 27 large boxes. We also co-hosted a fruit pick at Orcutt Ranch Horticulture Center and were able to collect more then 3600 pounds of a variety of citruses thanks in part to Key Club and El Camino Real Key Club president Jasmine Moheb. A special thank you to Bonnie Abel from Nothing Bundt Cakes for donating certificates for free Bundtlets. We also want to thank the West Hills Sunshine Club and specifcally Char Rothstein, Aida Abkarians, Esperanza Butler, and Daniel Brin for making this event a success. (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin)
Just in case you missed it, here are a few snapshots from our float at the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce 2016 Memorial Day Parade. Special shout- out and thanks to Michael Fred Castro for providing flags for our float, Galpin Ford for providing us a free truck, Michael Sunderland for driving the truck, and of course members of our armed services for serving our country. Have a great Memorial Day!
We had an extraordinary four-hour-long meeting of the West Hills NC last night, including presentations on the Zika virus, homeless relief efforts, zoning issues pertaining to de Toledo High School and the former Parkhill School site, and many, many funding requests. But for many in attendance, the highlight surely was a surprise appearance by hometown hero Donald E. Thompson, member of the LAPD's bomb unit, who was presented with the Presidential Medal of Valor at the White House on May 17. Officer Thompson was honored for his brave rescue of a man from a burning car on the 405 Freeway on Christmas Day, 2013. At our meeting last night, he showed his medal to the folks and answered questions. He also noted that the West Hills Neighborhood Council became the first organization to recognize him when we presented him with our Certificate of Appreciation early in 2014. In the background is Don's friend, WHNC board member Sandi Bell. Another highlight last night was presentation of awards to West Hills teachers Henlie Sakamoto, Colleen Ruanr, Laurie Anderson, Rosa Arroyo, Karryn Grossman and Judy Saut�. Presenters were members of our Youth & Education Committee, chaired by Aida Abkarians and Ed Young, and Ron Rubine, district director for Council District 12. Hope to see you next time. (Text Credit: Daniel Brin, Photo Cedits: Daniel Brin & Esperanza Butler)
The West Hills NC had another successful community cleanup as a result of the hard work from local neighbors, Sierra Canyon School Key Club, and Chaminade High School. Kudos to the WHNC's Beautification Committee for putting these events together. Today's project was mostly on the south side of Sherman Way between Highlander and Platt, but we also did some work on Highlander Road and Sherman Way across from the hospital. We also want to extend our gratitude to the office Mayor Garcetti for helping with our outreach efforts. For more information on our next cleanup project or if you want to recommend a location for us to tackle, visit www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. Hope to see you next month! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin & Tony Brosamle)
Members from the West Hills community, students from El Camino Real HS and Canoga Park HS Key Clubs, members from the Woodland Hills/Warner Center Kiwanis Club, and board members from the West Hills NC cleaned up Valley Circle and Roscoe boulevards in our effort to Beautify West Hills and promote the Clean Streets LA initiative. Thank you to everyone who came out and helped us with another successful cleanup. For more information about what the WHNC Beautification Committee does, visit http://www.westhillsnc.org/beautification-committee.php. We hope to see you next month! (Photo Credits: Daniel Brin, Antonio Mystic Bellissimo, and Tony Brosamle)
The West Hills NC held its in-person voting polling station on our last day of the WHNC 2016 Elections. Members from the West Hills community were able to cast, meet with the candidates, grab a bite, and vote at Shadow Ranch Park in addition to voting online in Los Angeles' first online election. Thank you to all the members of the WHNC and the public in our efforts to Empower LA.
Residents from the West Hills and greater Valley community attended a training session, at the Platt Branch Library, designed to teach and engage perspective block captains on how to better prepare themselves, their families, their neighbors, and community. By taking this training, these residents will be able to host Map Your Neighborhood training sessions on their own blocks. In addition, West Hills block captains will be receiving supply bags filled with emergency preparedness equipment to help their block organize and mobilize in an event of an emergency. Corinne Ho from the Canoga Park Neighborhood Council also was able to speak about Human Trafficking Project and LAPD's Topanga Division C-PAB. Thank to WHNC Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness Committee Co-Chairs Bob Brostoff and Esperanza Butler in their efforts to prepare West Hills for the next emergency or disaster. Don't forget to visit https://www.facebook.com/West-Hills-Public-Safety-Emergency-Preparedness-1518534755107935/ for helpful emergency preparedness tips and news.
The May meeting of the West Hills NC Board was truly a symbol of a united community. The night began with a packed room filled with residents, and numerous local, state, and federal representatives. Special guest Herb Wesson, CD10 Councilman and President of the LA City Council, as well as CD12 Chief of Staff John Lee swore in newly elected and reelected board members for their new terms as official city representatives of the community of West Hills. With each election cycle, the WHNC Board holds elections of its officers giving the Neighborhood Council Board members new opportunities to better our community. We would like to congratulate our unanimously reelected board officers and look forward to another great term: President: Dan Brin Vice President: Charlene Rothstein Secretary: Nicole Flessati Treasurer: Bobbi Trantafello Controller: Bob Brostoff We were then able to present Jacqueline Young, an outgoing board member and Co-Chair of the Education Committee, with a certificate of appreciation for her years of service to the community. Thank you for all that you and have done to make West Hills a better place for all of us. It was a true honor for the WHNC to present certificates of appreciation to three true community heroes. David Daily, Devin Coury, and Sandra Taylor were able to come to the aid of three members of the West Hills community who lost their lives crossing the intersection of Jason/Roscoe mid April. We thank you for your heroism and selflessness in this community tragedy. We also were able to recognize the outstanding achievements of 10 local educators from schools within the community. The WHNC Education Committee surveyed local schools to find school employees whose example, dedication, and educational commitment stood out. The honorees were nominated and selected by their peers and fellow staff members.Congratulations to the schools and their honorees: Hamlin Street Academy: Stacey Zavala and Cecilia Castillo Justice Street Academy: Laura Monterastelli Nevada Street Elementary School: Laurie Anderson and Collen Ruane Pomelo Community Charter School:Risden Parks, Rosa Arroyo, Henlie Sakamoto, Karryn Grossman, and Judy Saute. Thank you CD12 Chief of Staff John Lee for helping make these awards possible. To top it off, Herb Wesson was able to host a brief Q&A session regarding the proposed DWP reform effort coming before the City Council. Thank you Herb for your continued commitment to Neighborhood Councils and residents of Los Angeles, we can't wait to see you again!
On Wednesday, 3/23/16, over 30 representatives from the ten neighborhood councils from Council District 12, including your West Hills NC, took part in what has become a much-anticipated tradition in the North West San Fernando Valley � the Council District 12 and the Conversations with Councils. Designed to provide the CD12 neighborhood council membership the opportunity to expand their repertoire of information regarding relevant social and political issues and provide access to the respective City agencies and departments designated to address these challenges, this regular meeting has become a cornerstone in providing understanding of complex topics for our neighborhood council membership. Hosted by the Valley Relics Museum, which holds a vast collection of historical artifacts pertaining to the San Fernando Valley, the NC members were treated to an engaging dialogue that touched upon keystone issues in the city involving the Department of Street Services. Thank you to Councilmember Mitch Englander, the City of Los Angeles Department of Street Services, Director Nazario Sauceda, Timothy Tyson, Urban Forestry Division, Mark Simon, Street Maintenance Division, and Craig Shaw, Resurfacing and Reconstruction Division. A special thanks to Tommy Gelinas and his incredible staff for their time and commitment. It was undeniably a powerful event and one that will not soon be forgotten. (Text Credit: CD12 Photo Credits: Dan Brin & CD12)
Board members of the West Hills NC attended a facilitators training class for the Map Your Neighborhood (MYN) Program to Prepare West Hills. An instructor from the Red Cross taught us best practices on ways we can bring this program to West Hills. The program built around ways to make your immediate neighborhood more prepared in the event of a disaster similar to #CERT training. Thank you to board members Bob Brostoff and Esperanza Butler for making this possible!
The West Hills Neighborhood Council board hosted our counterparts at the Woodland Hills-Warner Center Neighborhood Council in a get-together on 3/30/16 at the Platt Branch Library. It gave us the opportunity to present a Certificate of Gratitude to the Woodland Hills NC for agreeing unanimously about a year ago to let us share jurisdiction over the library. Accepting the award were WHWCNC President Scott Silverstein and Vice President Dennis T. DiBiase. To the left of WHNC President Dan Brin in the picture are WHNC Vice President Charlene Rothstein and our good friend Corinne Ho, president of the Canoga Park Neighborhood Council. Why was it important for West Hills to share jurisdiction over this library? For one thing, state law requires that we hold all of our public meetings within West Hills' boundaries. Now we have a new location for our many committees to meet -- and that is valuable. The other reason is simply that every community should have a public library to call its own. Now we will be more motivated to help this library and its programs. It is so much fun to work with our colleagues in nearby communities. We all want to accelerate the efforts by all three Neighborhood Councils to develop projects to benefit the entire western San Fernando Valley. (Photo & Text Credit: Dan Brin)
Candidates for our WHNC 2016 Elections joined us and presented the community with their image in building a better West Hills. Questions and comments ranging from their thoughts on how to establish a community/senior center to their plans in building a more transparent West Hills NC made this community event active and eye-opening. Thank you again to all the candidates and members of the community who made this event a success!
Thank you to all our wonderful sponsors from the West Hills community for making this terrific event possible. This was by far our largest Eggstravaganza and best one yet! This wouldn't have been possible without our countless volunteers who worked tirelessly with setup, traffic control, booth operations, and much more. We hope you enjoyed this years event and we can't wait to see you next time. (Photo Credit: Danial Brin)
Thank you all our wonderful community volunteers who came out this morning for the month community cleanup event brought to you by the West Hills Neighborhood Council's Beautification Committee! More than 20 volunteers of all ages and belonging to several local schools and organizations (Kiwanis / KeyClub) were out for a few hours to clear 36 bags of trash and debris from West Hills streets @Saticoy & Fallbrook.
A delegation from the West Hills NC, including WHNC Public Works Liaisons Tony Brosamle and Reeyan Raynes, and NC President Dan Brin, joined Canoga Park NC President Corinne Ho this morning in a visit to the massive Hyperion Waste Treatment Plant at Playa Vista. Along with NC representatives from across the city, we heard briefings, tips, and much more from all of the department heads within the Bureau of Sanitation (BOS) on ways we can improve our community by working with BOS. We also visited the plant's new education center. (Photo Credits: Dan Brin and Corinne Ho)
Members of the the West Hills community and Key Clubbers from Taft ,El Camino, and Chatsworth High Schools' joined us and Board Members of the WHNC in our effort to beautify West Hills and tackle Operation Storm Drain. We cleaned up the east end of Fallbrook in between Victory and Criswell right across from the Fallbrook Mall. Thank you again to all those who participated.Hope that you can join us next month. (Photo Credits: Serena Duong, Daniel Brin, Michael Teitelbaum,and Esperanza Butler)
The West Hills NC assisted in our Prepare West Hills campaign by providing the community with educational resources on El Nino preparedness and free sandbags for West Hills community. We used over 10 tons of sand as and distributed hundreds of Sandbags. Special shout-out to LAFD CERT for assisting us in our event as well as to multiple other Los Angeles City Departments.(Photo Credits: Esperanza Butler, Mark Haberman, Daniel Brin, and Nicole Flessati)
Potential candidates for our #WHNC2016 Elections learned about the responsibilities of being a #WHNC board member, general elections information as well as some ways they can run a successful campaign. (Photo Credits: Dan Brin)
Thank you to all the members of the community and Board Members of the WHNC for helping beautify West Hills and tackle Operation Storm Drain.(Photo Credits: Nicole Flessati, WHNC Communication Committee Co-Chair)
MENU
