WESTLAKE : New Residents Group Tackles Area’s Woes

The frustrations of living and working in one of the city’s most crowded and crime-ridden neighborhoods have propelled a group of residents, merchants and parents to unite as the area’s newest community improvement group.

The New City/Pueblo Nuevo Prevention Project held its first meeting last week in the auditorium of Esperanza Elementary School, attended by about 50 Westlake locals and city representatives, including personnel from various civic agencies.

The group is targeting essentially the same problems--including violent crime, drug abuse, homelessness and crowded, often-substandard housing--as other neighborhood alliances in the area. Even so, co-founders Cathy Lee and Bert Saavedra hope to continue attracting representatives from law enforcement and from city departments such as housing, building and safety, sanitation, and street use to address citizens’ concerns.

In an activity the group calls “circles of change,” police and city representatives break into small circles with members for question-and-answer sessions.

“Individuals are not as intimidated talking in a circle,” said Saavedra, who is on the staff of the Los Angeles Alliance for a Drug Free Community.

Councilman Mike Hernandez stressed the importance of clear communication between the community and city agencies.

“Community-based policing alone is not going to do it,” he told the crowd. “We have to talk about community-based city services.”

A priority for the group is to clean up a drug-dealing hub near 7th Street and Burlington Avenue, a block from Esperanza Elementary School.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Lee, who is trying to clean up the neighborhood on behalf of her family real estate firm whose properties are all in Westlake, several near the school. “You just drive up and get it (drugs). It’s like getting cash out of an ATM.”

New City/Pueblo Nuevo meetings will be held regularly at the school, 680 Little St. The next meeting is Oct. 6, at 8:30 a.m.

Information: Cathy Lee at (818) 508-3360 or (310) 271-3434.