Tenants Fight Back Against Eviction Threat at Lincoln Place
By C.V.
Beck
SUPERFICIALLY, LOOKS GOOD ON PAPER
BUT...in real life, throwing people away because they are either past their peak
earning years, (and therefore, financially all used up) or retired, or tired, or
seniors or disabled, or “workforce” families with children, is a
stinking thing to do!
Lincoln Place was made for the World War II
veterans and their families to have a “home” to come home to after
the “Big War” because there had been a wartime housing shortage,
which apparently does continue to this day. (Now, why is that?)
Ask Frieda Marlin about this housing
shortage and what her family had to endure, she’ll tell you all about it.
She’ll also tell you about how her family had to move from Brentwood to
Lincoln Place when the current rash or is it an epidemic (?) of destruction of
affordable housing to be replaced by “high ticket,”
“high-end,” “luxury housing” – when what they
really mean is “unaffordable,” “not-worth-it” cheap
crap, rabbit warrens being made out of decent, sturdy, basic housing stock or
“luxury” replacements which are substandard crapola being only built
to last about 20 years, with no maintenance, not even “deferred” in
the picture. See, it’s cheaper to let it fail, than to have a program of
planned maintenance and replacement.
It’s odd to me to see the
“dissing” of Lincoln Place continue at the same time that 50’s
style modern remodeling – from the ground up, continues to replace the
50’s style traditional or modern perfectly serviceable, still good for
– at least another 100 years – housing all around us. What is
disappearing also is the open space, the green grass, the flowers, trees and
little bits of wild space. This is being replaced with “to the lot
line” development or redevelopment, simultaneously taking away from what
the people next door had, the sunlight, air, warmth, shrubbery, bushes, plants
and nature, birds, bees, butterflies habitat-- GONE, almost
overnight.
On November 23rd and 25th
there were two demonstrations about Lincoln Place, a unique treasure of Venice.
The demonstration on Nov. 23, attended by about 50 people from Lincoln Place and
the surrounding neighborhoods, at the intersection of Lincoln Blvd. and
California Ave. and was vigorous and enthusiastically supported by Venetians of
all stripes, spots and polka-dots! All were shouting in support of preserving
Lincoln Place as well as the residences as promised and required by the
City’s Vesting Tract qualifying conditions. (Usually referred to as
“Q” (Qualifying) conditions, as insiders-only really knew what this
meant and I am so glad now I finally found out.) I do believe it is important
from now on to refer to “QUALIFYING CONDITIONS” as just that...the
conditions qualify the project, one with the other,
inseparably.
On Friday, the day after
Thanksgiving, another strategic demonstration was held at City Attorney Rocky
Delgadillo’s home in the Arlington Heights area of Los Angeles for about
three hours. Approximately 35 residents and supportive neighbors of our
world-famous Lincoln Place Garden Apartments, (finally, after so much work by
people who really love and care for this place, it is now a California Historic
Resource), found it necessary, unfortunately, to interrupt Delgadillo on a
family holiday, in order to get his attention, prompting him to do his duty, as
required in his job description, of “enforcing the law.”
After much “sturm und
drang,” yelling and shouting, marching and displaying of signs and tents
in the now apparently de rigeur “dog and pony show” necessary to get
our pols to do their jobs...he finally came out.
(I heard this later, I had left as it
was getting dark and cold.) Others reported that, after a goodly period of
discussion with Sheila Bernard, President of the Lincoln Place Tenant’s
Association, Laura Burns, resident and negotiator, and joined by Amanda Seward,
attorney and negotiator, that Delgadillo has now decided to make an effort to
restart the negotiations between all the parties involved to ensure the
“qualifying conditions” of the Vesting Tentative Tract approval are
enforced as required by the law. Whew! More to come, no doubt. Stay
tuned!
Posted: Mon - December
5, 2005 at 09:19 PM