May 2009 Archives

 The Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance (WANA) is playing host to a Bike Safety Rodeo and Fair, Saturday,May 30 at Lafayette Elementary School, 2445 Chestnut Avenue from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.. Entrance onto the school property will be at the corner of 25th Street and Chestnut Avenue next to the auditorium.

 Among the events will be the bike rodeo (registration at 10 a.m.) with a bike skills course, snail races, helmet fittings (with free helmets for kids with bikes) and a safety inspections
 

Riders can also learn safety maneuvers such as how to make  quick stops and turns, how to keep an eye on traffic, avoid hazardous situations and traffic courtesy.

 There will also be a variety of information booths opening at 11 a.m.

 

      More than 1,500 residents, family members and students are expected Saturday, May 16, at the annual carnival at Lowell Elementary School, 5201 E. Broadway, in Belmont Heights from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m.

      Admission is free and proceeds benefit the school's PTA program.

      ``Peace, Love & Lowell'' is the theme of the event with rides, games, silent auction, live music and activities for all ages. Local acoustic rock musician /lawyer Rudie Dane will perform, as will the Millikan High drum line and the Wilson High drill team.

      Among the activities are an obstacle course, an inflatable slide, a giant slip-and-slide, karaoke, and a baseball throw, which require carnival activity tickets that will be sold on site. A display of gift baskets, put together by each classroom, will go to the higher bidder during a silent auction.

      An In-N-Out Burger truck will be parked on the playground, selling cheeseburgers, hamburgers and grilled cheese sandwiches with chips and beverages.

 

Belmont Shore Parking Commission Chairman Kurt Schneiter  is proposing to introduce valet parking for businesses on Second Street.

 The location of the valet parking will be directly in front of Bono's -- a commercial property owned by Schneiter.

The commission chairman unveiled the valet parking plans last week to the Belmont Shore Business Association.

Several parking spaces on Second Street will be reserved for the valet parking staging area. Cars will parked in the lot at Farmers & Merchants Bank, which is available for the public.

 

A health fair -- with an emphasis on mental health -- will feature a variety of offerings, including health screenings, giveaways and music entertainment Saturday.

The first annual Long Beach Mental Health Event -- scheduled for 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Bixby Park -- will feature Nancy Foster, wife of Mayor Robert Foster.

There also will be informational booths and educational sessions during Saturday's program, which is sponsore by 54th District Assemblywoman Bonnie Lowenthal and Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services.

The park is at Cherry Avenue and Ocean Boulevard.

This is to remind you that the next WPAC General Meeting is scheduled
for next Wednesday, May 13, at 5:00.  The meeting will be held at the
West Division Substation located at 1835 Santa Fe Ave.  We will be
voting on the upcoming WPAC budget and hearing a presentation from the
Budget Management Office on the City's upcoming budget, as well.  We
will also get an update on the Storm Drains/Pump Stations project and
discuss other potential projects for the future.

It's tempting NOT to break out the Grinch analogy because it somehow seems cliche and obvious. But in the case of the dispute over Christmas displays on Daisy Avenue, it's so apt that it can't be avoided.

Especially in the light of the recent revelation that the Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance is suing the Wrigley Association over ownership of the displays and both sides have restraining orders preventing the other from disposing of the property.

Talk to anyone who doesn't have a dog in the fight and they roll their eyes and say something like, "What's wrong with these people?"

What indeed?

For those who aren't familiar with the flap, it goes something like this. (Note: Wrigleyites can now line up to nitpick omissions, failures to delineate the differences between 501 c-something incorporations et al.)

The Christmas Tree Lane was created in 1953 by Gertrude Whittle who thought it would be cool to put decorations on the median on Daisy Avenue and a tradition was born.

In 1988 the Wrigley Association was created and formed a Christmas Tree Lane committee led by Association co-founder Maria Norvell.

Over the years, disputes arose over a laundry list of issues. In 2007, the Wrigley Association split from the Christmas Tree Lane committee and set it up as a separate entity.

Norvell and her supporters were hurt. They went Wrigley one better and set up their own rival neighborhood group, the Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance.

The groups have been feuding about The Lane ever since. The dispute hit new heights when the two sides engaged in a Filene's basement moment recently as they raced around The Lane divying up the displays.

So far, all attempts to broker an equitable divorce have been unsuccessful. It's always about who gets the kids and property.

Now it looks like the winners in this fracas will be the lawyers.

The sad thing is that both groups do wonderful things in the community and are valuable assets in keeping neighbors engaged, keeping kids out of trouble, providing positive events, removing blight, and on and on.

And yet this one thing, Christmas displays for heaven's sake!, is the issue that is defining them to those outside the neighborhood.

One can only hope that one of these Grinches, like the character in the Dr. Seuss poem, will see the light and its heart will grow three sizes that day. Of course, as long at the two sides remain in their death embrace, such an outcome seems unlikely.