Councilman LaBonge's Weekly Newsletter

[The information below was provided by the Office of Councilman Tom LaBonge. It has been edited for brevity.]

California High Speed Rail Getting Up-To-Speed

The Los Angeles City Council this week unanimously approved Councilman LaBonge's resolution, calling on state legislators to release Prop 1A funds that are earmarked for the California High Speed Rail project.  The resolution also supports the revised CHSRA business plan, which lops about 30-billion dollars off the cost of the total project, which is designed to link Los Angeles and Anaheim with San Francisco aboard trains cruising at 220 miles per hour, making the trip in about two and a half hours.  The Obama Administration just put extra pressure on the California Legislature, threatening to pull the plug on $3.3-billion dollars in federal grants to start a so-called "Bullet Train" if state lawmakers don't act by June to appropriate the state's share of the funding.
Read more at tomlabonge.com

Salvation Army: 125 Years Serving Los Angeles

Councilman LaBonge was on-hand to help mark the 125th Anniversary of the Salvation Army in Los Angeles.  It was May 8th, 1887 when a small, but determined group of Salvation Army officers and congregants gathered on the corner of Temple and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles to hold the organization's very first open-air meeting in the City of Angels.  After marking the 125th Anniversary during a ceremony at the Nokia Plaza LA Live, Salvation Army officers and volunteers fanned out in a "Caravan of Hope" in a fleet of vehicles filled to the brim with supplies, thanks to the support of AEG and FedEx.  The much-needed supplies were delivered to people in need all over southern California.  Last year in Los Angeles, the Salvation Army provided more than 800-thousand nights of shelter, served more than 1.8-million meals and welcomed more than 190-thousand children, teens, young adults to its youth centers.

Honoring the 1st Responders to the Griffith Park Fire ... 5 years later

Councilman LaBonge this week hosted a reception at the Greek Theater to mark the Fifth Anniversary of the Griffith Park Fire of May 2007, welcoming scores of first responders to share a meal and memories of those difficult days.  Representatives from the Los Angeles Fire Department, LAPD, General Services Police, Department of Recreation and Parks and members of several community groups attended the event, which was meant to thank everybody involved in the response to the blaze for their teamwork and sacrifice during what could have been a far greater disaster.  Councilman LaBonge said the way everybody worked together to protect lives and property is a blueprint for how to respond to disaster now and in the future.  Thanks to all those who helped keep our community safe.

Los Angeles River 5K Fun Run/Walk makes a splash

Hundreds of runners and volunteers swarmed over the banks of the Los Angeles River in the Los Feliz-Atwater Village Area on May 6th for the inaugural LA River 5K Fun Run/Walk.  The course took runners along the LA River Bikeway, along the sandy-bottom portion of the river and back over the Sunnynook Bridge to the finish line.  Councilman LaBonge and his staff organized the first-ever "River Run" and look forward to expanding it in the coming years.

The Los Angeles Zoo sets April attendance record
The Los Angeles Zoo set an attendance record for the month of April with more than 215,000 visitors.  That's the highest attendance for the month of April in over 20 years.  Zoo officials attribute much of the attendance spike to the opening of the LAIR (Living Amphibians, Invertebrates and Reptiles).  LAIR features more than 60 species including Chinese giant salamanders, Mexican giant horned lizards and green mambas.  For more information on the Los Angeles Zoo, call 323.644.4200 or visit the LA Zoo website.

airberlin lands in Los Angeles with the first non-stop flight to LAX

airberlin flight AB7023 landed at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday, May 11th on its Maiden non-stop flight from Berlin to Los Angeles.  Councilman LaBonge was there to greet the flight at LAX, as were two LAFD water-cannon, trumpeting the arrival with a water-curtain, creating a hydro-arch for the Airbus A330-200 on the tarmac.  Starting May 11th, airberlin will offer three nonstop flights per week from Los Angeles to Berlin and three further flights from Los Angeles to Dusseldorf, airberlin's second hub in Germany.

Ellen K gets a Star on the Walk of Fame

Councilman LaBonge celebrates with radio personality Ellen K from KIIS FM during the ceremony awarding her a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  No star ceremony is quite complete without a city proclamation and a loaf of pumpkin bread from the Monastery of the Angels, presented by Tom LaBonge.

Upcoming Events

DWP Community Meeting
Councilman LaBonge and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power invite you to get information on the DWP's proposed water and power rate-hikes at an informational meeting open to all, on Tuesday, 
May 15th, 2012
630pm - 830pm
Aviva Center & high school 
7120 Franklin Avenue
Hollywood, CA 90046


LAPD Medal of Valor Ceremony
The Los Angeles Police Department held its Medal of Valor Awards ceremony, honoring officers for outstanding bravery in the line of duty.
Click here to see the honorees

Share the LaBonge Email Newsletter with your friends
If you have a friend or family-member or neighbor who might like to subscribe to the LaBonge News, forward this to them and have them contact todd.leitz@lacity.org to be added to the subscriber list.

Stay connected with Hollywood Patch throughout the day on Facebook and Twitter. Subscribe to our free daily newsletter for email updates.