Lincoln Place Tent City Update


By C.V. Beck

We still "hang-in" at Tent City (corner of Frederick and California, Wednesdays and Saturdays, weather permitting)...on tenterhooks, in fact. We have been waiting for a fabulous, positive conclusion to the mediations, originally scheduled to conclude this past Friday. However, the mediations are not yet completed and will be going forward some more in May.


Our councilperson, Bill Rosendahl and his deputy, Mark Antonio Grant, stopped by April 22 to see us after being at a rally at Oakwood Recreation Center, where there were " a lot of angry people" who were upset at hate mail from an Oakwood resident about other Oakwood residents, which was sent to Police Chief Bratton, LAPD.

Bill and Mark brought us some water and shared peanuts with us and the "Alvins," our Tent City mascots. Bill said he was "hopeful" and I hope he is right. The squirrels are fine, fat and happy, greeting us enthusiastically, every day we are there. They have gotten used to us and we, to them. (If only the different groups in Venice could do the same...)

I ran into "Philly" (not his real name) outside St. Joseph's Thrift Store and asked how he was doing. He told me he'd been at Centinela Freeman Regional Medical Center Marina Campus (the new, unpronounceable name for the old Daniel Freeman Hospital) where they had kept him in a room by the nurse's station for 4 days. "Philly" commented to me about the poor quality of care and that he had then left there, apparently against medical advice and returning to Brotman Hospital, where he felt care was better. His leg has now cleared up.

People continue to drop by, ask how we are doing, sit for a few and have some munchies, sign petitions and take away hand-outs. Some have said they "can't believe you are still here!"...

We did not have a Vigil April 30 as we were at the Lincoln Place Spring Fling II, presented by Erin Grayson and Dennis Wilson. A rough cut of Erin's documentary about Lincoln Place, "Venice Lobotomy" was shown in the evening outside on one of the walls of the buildings. Mark Antonio Grant had stopped by on his way to a Lakers game and was given a token "Thank You" acknowledgement for Bill Rosendahl, signed by all the residents of Lincoln Place for their appreciation of all his work on our behalf.

The Vigils will continue at 1:30 pm this Sunday with a mystery guest. Why don't you stop by and see us?

Posted: Mon - May 1, 2006 at 06:41 PM          


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