News from Los Angeles Eco-Village (LAEV) & Other Ecovillages
in the Western U.S.A Region of the Ecovillage Network of the Americas *
(updated  7/1/10)       home

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Honeybees arrive at L.A. Eco-Village  http://laecovillage.wordpress.com/2010/06/08/bee-fever/ (posted 7/1/10)

For the latest goings on at L.A. Eco-Village and news about and from the Villagers, see our blog at:
http://laecovillage.wordpress.com/

New L.A. Eco-Villager arrives 2:30 am May 2, 2010, the new-born son of L.A. Eco-Villagers Jimmy Lizama and Josey Sarria. 
This was an at-home water birth in a new tub that Jimmy has been installing for the past few months.  Much to celebrate. (posted 5/24/10)

L.A. Eco-Village is the subject of a recent NPR radio interview by Brian Watt.  Hear it here: 
http://www.scpr.org/programs/offramp/2010/03/27/brian-watt-visits-an-eco-village-in-la/   (posted 6/1/10)

EcoMaya Festival co-sponsored by L.A. Eco-Village and Bresee Foundation.  Long time Eco-Villager and EcoMaya Festival founder and producer Julio Santizo organized this event in less than a month.  A good time was had by all. (posted 5/24/10)

L.A. Eco-Villager and Chocolatier Melba Thorn was recently interviewed by Tavis Smiley.  http://laecovillage.wordpress.com/2010/05/10/898/
You can order her vegan chocolates at http://www.chocolate.com/brands/native-gardens-inc/ (posted 5/24/10)

ECHO PARK TIME BANK
LAEV LETSystem is Merging with the Echo Park Time Bank.  Consider joining if you live in the following zip codes:  90004, 90026, 90029, 90031, 90039, 90027, 90065, 90012, 90057.  There are monthly orientations and potlucks and more than 125 members sharing skills and resources with one another.  More info here: http://www.echoparktimebank.com

Intersection Repair at Bimini and White House Place in the heart of LAEV happened on Saturday, September 12, 2009.  Lots of folks showed up to help with the painting to transform the intersection into the new plaza, especially kids from the neighborhood which was great.  Food, music and celebration  rounded out the day.  Lots of pictures and chronicling of the event can be seen at these websites (posted 9/20/09):

L.A. Streetsblog report by Damion Newton:  http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/09/15/eco-village-reclaims-bimini-pl-with-street-party-and-road-painting/

Homegrown Revolution blog of Erik Knutzen:  http://www.homegrownevolution.com/2009/09/city-repair-la.html

Handmade Ransom Notes blog of Eco-Villager Joe Linton:  http://handmaderansomnotes.wordpress.com/?p=392&preview=true

Urban Adonia Blog of L.A. Eco-Villager Adonia Lugo:  http://lugoa.blogspot.com/2009/09/two-options-for-public-space.html

L.A. Eco-Village Blog by Joe Linton:  http://laecovillage.wordpress.com/

Slideshow photos by L.A. Eco-Villager Kathy Hill:  http://picasaweb.google.com/kathill777/Streetpaint#

Thanks to Camille Cimino and Joe Linton for coordinating this event.  Thanks to Portland's Mark Lakeman for being our inspiration <www.cityrepair.org>

LAEV Corner Saved thanks to so many.  Go here for updates

LAEV Recently In the media (posted 9/20/09):
Tavis Smiley's Young Voices video by Tamika Thompson here:  http://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/voices/746.html

LAEV Intersection Repair on September 12, 2009 was reported extensively in the blogs.  See above references about it.

Go here for current update on Saving the Corner in L.A. Eco-Village  corner

Help save the L.A. Eco-Village corner from LAUSD bulldozers.  We will create a garden and orchard to serve the eight public schools within a 3 to 15 minute walk of the site.  More inner city green space and local food production is needed, not more asphalt in this inner city transit-rich neighborhood!  Sign the petition, please.  Time is of the essence.  Thanks to all who are helping with this.  Lois

A L E R T:  Help Save the L.A. Eco-Village Corner
The Struggle to Save the LAEV Corner from the LAUSD Bulldozers continues. 
Click here to write a letter
Click here to sign an electronic petition.
Read historical overview of our struggle to save the corner here

Your letters and signatures count!  You decide!  20 to 30 more parking spaces?  Or a horticultural program for thousands of inner city kids?

Please see updates, sign the electronic petition, and send a letter to our school board member, Monica Garcia, to explain why you think the LAUSD should redesign the parking lot to allow for a horticultural program which can serve the 5 schools within a 2 to 7 minute walk of the L.A. Eco-Village corner at Bimini and White House Place. 

Pass this along to all whom you think would be interested:  http://www.gopetition.com/online/28715.html

Please email copies of your letters to the following:

Aida Alvarado, Aida.Alvarado@lacity.org

Michelle Banks-Ordone, mbanks-ordone@cra.lacity.org

Susan Cline, susan.cline@lausd.net

Roy Cortines, superintendent@lausd.net

Eric Garcetti, garcetti@council.lacity.org

Guy Mahula, guy.mehula@lausd.net

Heather Repenning, Heather.Repenning@lacity.org

Bresee Foundation Eco Club is working with several L.A. Eco-Villagers to advance sustainability practices throughout the two block LAEV neighborhood.  The Bresee youth group plans to work on recycling issues, Eco-Village signage in the neighborhood, youth Eco-Village tours and eco tourism to other points, neighborhood environmental education, music and forums at the Bimini Slough Ecology Park and more.  Stay tuned for updates when the project launches in the next few months.   Bresee anchors the south end of LAEV.  More info at http://bresee.org/

Update on Elementary School #20 Toxics Situation and a potential horticultural program for local school kids posted (3/6/09).  For an update on the clean up efforts required for ES#20 to move forward on the east end of the Virgil Middle School playing field (thereby saving approximately 40 units of housing in the LAEV and adjacent Madison Ave neighborhoods),  here's a link.
http://www.envirostor.dtsc.ca.gov/public/profile_report.asp?global_id=60000872 

Also, the ad hoc LAUSD committee at LAEV (Michelle Wong, Lara Morrison and Lois Arkin) continue to work with our school board member Monica Garcia in an effort to save a portion of the White House Place Primary Center from becoming the new parking lot for Virgil Middle School.  Instead, we are recommending that approximately 10,000 sq. feet of the property be preserved for a horticultural program that would serve the children and youth from the dozen or so schools within a 3 to 15 minute walk of the site.  This portion of the property is the hill where the former four-plex was located, the actual place where the LAEV was founded in 1993,

We encourage people that would like to see such a horticultural program happen to write our school board member, Monica Garcia at monica.garcia@lausd.net and send copies to Jenny Aguas at jenny.aguas@lausd.net and Emmanuelle Soichet at emma.soichet@lausd.net, both in Monica's office.  Also, please copy us as well at crsp@igc.org

And Regarding that Parking Issue for LAUSD in the L.A. Eco-Village Neighborhood (posted 3/6/09).  Note that UCLA grad student in Urban Planning, Sarah Manning, is preparing a report for our school board member that will reflect a significantly mitigated need for parking in five years time when the the new ES#20 is scheduled to open.  And do note the legislative proposal just introduced in the State Senate by Long Beach State Senator Alan Lowenthal who also chairs the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee.  See  http://la.curbed.com/archives/2009/03/parking_minimums_1.php for a summary of the amazing bill he introduced to the State Senate last week to "reduce traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions by revealing the actual cost of parking and reducing governmental or government-required subsidies for parking."  Yeah!  And kudos to UCLA Professor Don Shoup who has been such an inspiration for such planning and legislation.

A brief video of LAEV by Deborah Stokol was recently uploaded to the web and can be viewed at http://iflizwerequeen.com/?p=2153  (posted 3/6/09)

An Ecovillage Initiative in San Diego (posted 2/26/09) .  Those who would like to explore creating an ecovillage in San Diego focused on integrating and empowering individuals with developmental challenges are invited to connect with the organization Project Turnaround http://www.project-turnaround.org/ This Ecovillage Initiative group is seeking individuals  from a variety of professions and walks of life willing to  offer their abilities and skills, creativity and resources ,for the creation of an ecovillage.  For more information, contact Nydia Abney communitiesbythesea@hotmail.com   858 481 3998.

The LAEV Food Co-op, aka The Food Lobby (posted 2/26/09) .  The co-op has been up and running now for almost two years.  The co-op regularly provides fresh organic produce from local farmers each Sunday.  A $10 box is more than enough organic produce for two people for a week.  Generally, we're preparing between 20 to 30 boxes each week.  If you live within walking or an easy biking distance of LAEV, you may want to join.  There is now also a bi-monthly grocery buy for those interested. If you would like to learn how we do it, so you can create a similar co-op in your neighborhood, you may also want to join.  See http://urbansoil.net/wiki.cgi/LAEV_Food_Coop x

Nowtopia author and Critical Mass founder Chris Carlsson addressed a crowd of more than 50 people on Friday, Feb 13th at L.A. Eco-Village with his message of the growing ways in which "Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclers, and Vacant lot Gardeners are Inventing the Future."  See review of his talk at http://californiawriter.blogspot.com/2009/02/inventing-future.html (posted 2/8/09)

Recent visitor to LAEV Timothy Beatley, who is the Teresa Heinz Professor of Sustainable Communities at the University of Virginia, and co-author of Resilient Cities and Green Urbanism Down Under and the author of the upcoming Planning for Coastal Resilience blogs about us on the Island Press website here:  http://blog.islandpress.org/302/tim-beatley-lessons-from-the-la-ecovillage (posted 2/8/09)

In and Around L.A. Eco-Village  (posted 2/3/09) .  Melba Thorn is celebrating the acceptance of her designer vegan chocolates by chocolate.com--check them out for Valentine's Day at:  http://www.chocolate.com/brands/native-gardens-inc/products.html.  Lara Morrison's hens have hatched 7 new chicks.  Eco-Villagers have begun to depave and mulch beyond the south garden where the garages are for more water infiltration and garden space.  The Food Lobby has been approved to use the old Bicycle Kitchen for its grocery co-op.  Michelle Wong has been working with the Bresee Foundation on placing youth in green jobs (contact her if you know of leads <mwong@bresee.org>.  Yuki Kidokoro has returned to her position at Communities for a Better Environment after a six month sabbatical.  Angel Orozco's Coffee Cellar business www.coffeecellar.com/  is now roasting his fair trade organic coffee right here in LAEV.  Ron Milam has started a new nonprofit organization called BikeSage <www.BikeSage.com> which matches experienced bike riders in mentoring relationships with people new to urban biking.  Long time L.A. Eco-Villager Thiago Winterstein has departed for his native Brazil to continue his music studies there.  L.A. Eco-Villlage co-founder and Non-Violent Communication trainer Esfandiar Abbassi has returned to his native Iran with his wife Homeyra Sharifi, both of whom have a recently widowed parent they will help care for.  Congratulations to Irma Garcia who has been elected to the Board of the Beverly-Vermont Community Land Trust.  The LAEV Intentional Community recently hosted Mexican environmental activist Laura Kuri and her two children Valentina and Tadgio from Cuernavaca who were here for the five day run of Laura's brother's production of Teatro de Ciertos Habitantes Monsters and Prodigies: The History of the Castrati at the Disney Concert Hall's Redcat Theater which played to sell out crowds for all five performances.  LAEV friend and youth facilitator Helen Samuels who has worked with Mexico City's Eco-Punks, also affiliated with LAEV, recently visited us for a week.  Extended short stay visitor Maeve Johnston is participating in a UCLA class entitled Green Collar Jobs, Green Buildings & Social Justice: Pathway to a Sustainable City and feeling inspired about the Green Economy.  Zoe Rawson, an attorney working with The City Project on social justice issues, is the most recent member to join the LAEV Intentional Community.

Columbia EcoVillage, Portland.   This 37 unit eco-cohousing development is at the move-in stage after several years of planning.  Co-founders Marilee & Mac McKinlay recently visited LA Eco-Village to glean some of our on-the-ground experience and knowledge they anticipate needing in their new living situation.  Learn more about the already mature food producing 3.75 acre community on their websites and blogs.  Start with http://www.columbiaecovillage.com/  (posted 2/3/09)

Carfree Fridays gets underway with help of LA Eco-Villager Aurisha Smolarski-Waters, membership outreach staff for the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition.  LACBC was actually started by L.A. Eco-Villagers Ron Milam and Joe Linton, and the community carries on the tradition of bicycle activism in a variety of ways.  The First Carfree Friday took off this morning (Jan 30) at 8:30 am from Hollywood Boulevard and Western with City Council President Eric Garcetti in the lead.  So all of you out there who have been thinking of getting the old two-wheeler on the road again, put the last Friday each month in your calendar to go car-free.  Gives you a whole month to get the bike ready and/or figure out your Metro route or some combination of the two.  You can do this. (1/30/09)

LAEV was honored by the L.A. Returning Peace Corps Volunteers with its Local Hero Award at their annual dinner in October 2008.  L.A. Eco-Villagers Lara Morrison and Michelle Wong were on-hand to receive the award.  PCV President Glenn Anaiscourt commented "I think the Eco-Village is fantastic, and it has made a big difference in my life, so I was very happy that the Eco-Village was a Local Hero this year.  Since visiting you, we have transformed our backyard into an organic garden following your instructions.  We have three compost areas, four composted plots with more on the way, four new fruit trees, composting worms, and more, and we are able to eat out of the garden every day, all thanks to what what your program taught us.  We have reduced the amount of waste we put into our garbage by probably 3/4, maybe more, and we feel much much more conscious about what we are doing.  Our lives are healthier and we have been able to decrease our carbon footprint, and so we really appreciate what you showed us during the tour, and what you taught during the gardening class.  The Eco-Village deserves a lot of honors.  This is indeed such an exciting time for our country.  The Peace Corps people I know feel much more hopful now.  I know having been a Peace Corps Volunteer means a lot to me, and I hope that the current volunteers will put a lot of emphasis on the need to change the world by the way we all live.  And I also very much hope returned volunteers will play a key role here in the US in restoring health and balance on our planet, as you are doing every day." (1/29/09)

LAEV:  Streetsblog features LAEV video.  Check it out at http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/01/26/streefilms-lessons-from-la-the-eco-village/ along with some other fun videos and informative blogging about more livable, less car-dependent cities.  (1/27/09)

LAEV:  And there's another new blog from L.A. Eco-Villagers sharing news, views, opinions, and the personal at http://laecovillage.wordpress.com/   (1/27/09)

Tierra Viva, Mexico City's Eco-Punks and friends of LAEV have been organizing on the streets of Mexico City for several years now in permaculture self-help activities, especially among street youth with otherwise little hope of a healthy future.  L.A. and Mexico City youth facilitator Helen Samuels has been among them.  Enjoy this recent 10 minute video which tells their remarkable story:  http://www.amigosdelparque.blogspot.com/

Topanga Canyon Ecovillage.  Our ecovillage is really coming along.  We've been here on 13 acres for 3 years now with several years of planning before that.  We're about 18 people that are transforming the hillside into a farm using permaculture principles, including greenhouses and water collection.  It's a lot of work so we have a volunteer program for folks who want to help.  Contact Geofrey Collins, 310 455 1341  (1/27/09)

Phinney Ecovillage in Seattle is an urban neighborhood effort committed to "Changing the world one stop 'n chat at a time."  See http://www.phinneyecovillage.net/  (1/27/09)

Sundog, Montana's new ecovillage, recently acquired 40 beautiful acres 30 minutes east of Missoula, Montana.  Learn  how to become involved, or just take a peek at some photos and learn about the community at  http://sundogecovillage.org  (1/27/09)

LAEV:  Resilient City and Green Urbanism authors give talk to SRO crowd in L.A. City Hall
Mayor Villaraigosa and four L.A. City Councilpersons (Eric Garcetti, Wendy Greuel, Bill Rosendahl and Ed Reyes) joined with the CRSP Institute for Urban Ecovillages on January 15, 2009 and 17 other co-sponsoring organizations to present eco-urban researches and authors Peter Newman and Timothy Beatley to a standing room only crowd of 150 in City Hall's Board of Public Works room.  Councilman Ed Reyes gave the official welcome to the group which included dozens of representatives from the city's Planning Department, Department of Transportation, Metro, the L.A. Housing Department and the Mayor's Office.  More than a dozen co-sponsoring environmental organizations sent representatives from their groups as well, including Global Green, Green LA, TreePeople, Eco-Home Network, L.A. County Bicycle Coalition, Beverly-Vermont Community Land Trust, UCLA Institute for the Environment, USC's Center for Sustainable Cities.  Peter and Tim were on a national book tour promoting their new books Resilient Cities: Responding to Peak Oil and Climate Change and Green Urbanism Down Under: Learning form Sustainable Communities in Australia, both from Island Press.  For many city staff, this was their early exposure to the many creative solutions other cities were implementing to reduce their carbon footprints, radically reduce auto dependency, and facilitate an overall higher quality of life.  While Peter outlined four potential scenarios for the future of cities; including collapse, ruralized, divided and resilient; Timothy spoke of the many advances that had been made in the development of more resilient options in Australia and other cities around the world.  Fortunately, the two hour forum was videotaped and we hope to show it soon to others who were not aware of the City Hall event.  Because space was limited, we were unable to widely promote the event.  Still, 50 people stood throughout the whole event.  Thanks to Jill Sourial and David Norman in Councilman Ed Reyes office for their help in making all of the City Hall arrangements, and to Rooney Summers for her help in staffing the event. (1/24/09)

LAEV: The new Bulb-Out in front of our big yellow building is slowly but surely getting landscaped.  For updates and photos, check out the LAEV Garden Blog. (1/24/09)

LAEV: The Beverly-Vermont Community Land Trust (BVCLT), the new nonprofit organization spawned by CRSP, the L.A. Eco-Village Intentional Community, and Cultivating Sustainable Communities received its tax exempt 501.c.3 status from the Internal Revenue Service in December 2008.  The primary purpose of the BVCLT is to exercise land stewardship as the basis for creating pedestrian-centered neighborhoods emphasizing affordable housing, work and recreational spaces that are economically and socially sustainable, and that integrate urban living with nature.  The target area is within a mile or so radius of the Beverly-Vermont Metro Station.   The organization held it's 2nd annual member meeting this month, elected board members and reviewed its activities of the past year.  CRSP plans to donate the land under the two buildings it owns on Bimini Place, which house most members of the LAEV Instentional Community, to the BVCLT sometime in 2009.   For more info on the BVCLT or to learn how you can become a member, check it out at:  http://urbansoil.net/wiki.cgi/The_Beverly_Vermont_Community_Land_Trust  (1/24/09)

Sorry that you Didn't Hear from Us for So Long.  Thanks to the many of you who called and wrote concerned that we had somehow been a victim of the slow economy.  No, it was just another glitch in our website and upload programs that took longer than I expected to smooth out.  I was also out of town for several months helping to care for my elderly Mom in south Florida, so it was hard to plan activities for those several months.  More coming soon.  -Lois (1/24/08)

Eco-Villager and L.A. River activist Joe Linton was one of the dozen or so who recently kayaked the entire 52 mile length of the L.A. River from the  San Fernando Valley to Long Beach.  Catch Joe's colorful description of the three day trek on his new blog (with Jessica Hall):  http://lacreekfreak.wordpress.com/  Scroll down to <Kayaking the Los Angeles River>.

Local Exchange Trading System (LETS) is revived at LAEV.  Some of you may remember the LETSystem that was a project of CRSP  from about 1986 to 1994.  Wow!  It was a while ago.  Well, thanks to Alison Rosenblatt, who spent much of her five month assignment with CRSP  researching LETS, the local supplemental neighborhood currency has been revived. The current version of LAEV LETS is very user friendly and already has about 15 members.  The next 15 members will be admitted free to the system.  After that, we will charge a $10 annual membership fee.  However, we are keeping it quite local within the immediate LAEV neighborhood plus the following close-by zip codes:   90004, 90005, 90010, 90012, 90020, 90027,  90028, 90036, 90038, 90052, 90057.  If you're local to LAEV and would like to join, contact Lois at 213/738-1254.  For a brief overview of what LETS is, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Local_Exchange_Trading_Systems.  We expect that most people who join outside of the immediate LAEV neighborhood will want to be members to learn enough to take the system or some other version of a local currency into their own neighborhoods.  Michael Linton, who founded LETS several decades ago, once said that pretty much everything that any of  us needs can be found within a few block area in most cities, but we don't have a way to connect with all of the people in our immediate neighborhoods.  LETS lets us do that!  So let's do it!  (6/4/08) (rev 1/11/09)

Diana Leafe Christian's Ecovillages Newsletter.  CRSP is a sponsor of this new and just released newsletter.  Read these fascinating articles, and with lots of photos too:
-  The Ecovillage Movement Today
-  L.A. Eco-Village Stops Bulldozers!
-  How Yarrow Ecovillage Got "Ecovillage Zoning"
-  Eco-Heroes in Japan
-  Finally, Ecovillage Activists Gather in the U.S.
-  Ecovilllages in the News: May 2008

Long Time Eco-Village Resident George Foster Passes.  George was 84.  Many of you who have visited here know him as the man who used to get up at 3 am each morning to clean our streets.  He will be missed.  On Saturday, May 31, 2008, about 40 friends and neighbors gathered on Bimini Place outside the Bimini Apartments where George had lived on and off for about 50 years to share a memorial service.  Several long term neighbors spoke movingly and with a good deal of humor about life with George here in the 'hood.  Many Eco-Villagers, too, shared music in the street there to celebrate his life.  You can read more about George and his life of service here (6/4/08)

Updates on LAEV and LAUSD here

L.A. Eco-Village in the News
-  The Philadelphia Inquirer picked up a story from the Columbia News Service by Cassandra Lizaire about eco-communities that included a few paragraphs on LAEV:  http://www.philly.com/philly/classifieds/real_estate/20080511_Communal_lifestyle_reborn.html
-  The Washington Post made mention of LAEV in their April 20, 2008 article entitled It Takes an Eco-Village to Make a Really Green Vacation
-  LA Eco-Village is a Leading story in World Watch's 2008 State of the World book by Erik Assadourian. LAEV is the opening story in Chapter 11, "Engaging Communities for a Sustainable World."  You can read it and other stories on ecovillages around the world at:  http://gen.ecovillage.org/
- LeMonde ran a feature story on L.A. Eco-Village on April 25, 2008.  For those of you who read French, google <"Le Monde" ecovillage bimini>
- The L.A. Weekly ran a very biased story about the LAUSD's Elementary School #20 on 4/20/08, but without checking the L.A. Eco-Village end of the story. (posted 5/15/08)
-  Both French and German national public television crews visited LAEV recently to film our story for their environmental programming.

Majora Carter, the charasmatic founder of Sustainable South Bronx <http://www.ssbx.org/> and a MacArthur "Genius" Grant awardee, recently paid a brief visit to L.A. Eco-Village during which she engaged with several residents about life and work in our different communities.  Born, raised, and continuing to live & work in the South Bronx, Majora Carter travels the world in pursuit of resources to improve the quality of life in her environmentally challenged community. She founded Sustainable South Bronx in 2001 after writing a $1.25M Federal Transportation grant to design the South Bronx Greenway with 11 miles of bike and pedestrian paths connecting neighborhoods to the rivers and to each other - securing over $20M to begin construction in 2008.  Eco-Villager Nikki Henderson arranged for the visit.  (posted 5/9/08)

Anders Nyquist, internationally known Swedish architect, and his wife Ingrid, along with Carolina Goodman of ZERI <http://zeri.org/> briefly toured L.A. Eco-Village recently.  Anders is deeply committed to zero emissions architecture and has designed numerous project in Sweden and throughout the world.  Composting toilets in apartment buildings in urban settings being among some of his most notable work along with utilizing plants as part of indoor ventilation systems.  He will be visiting Los Angeles again, so watch for a special event at LAEV with Anders in the future. (posted 5/9/08)

Car Free Earth Day on Wilshire Boulevard.  CRSP teamed up with the Beverly-Vermont Community Land Trust, L.A. Eco-Village, and Michelle Wong's Cafe *Sol*R in an exhibit booth on the Boulevard on Earth Day, April 22.  Eco-Villager Lois Arkin gave a public talk in the Eco-Tent on LAEV. (posted 5/9/08)

Council President Eric Garcetti dedicates new Shared Street on Bimini Place in L.A. Eco-Village.  Councilman Garcetti, along with several other city dignitaries, joined Eco-Villagers, neighbors and friends at the intersection of Bimini and White House Place on March 20th to dedicate the completed shared street.  Among the improved features of the street are permeable sidewalks and several bulb-outs or places where the street is narrowed.  And nine macadamia nut trees in the public median, a first for L.A., that is, planting food producing trees in the medians.  A second shared street in the East Hollywood SNAP (the specific plan for the area; see http://cityplanning.lacity.org/complan/specplan/sparea/vermonttodpage.htm) will soon start construction on Heliotrope just north of Beverly.  Many thanks to Metro and James Rojas, the major funder for this project, Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg, Councilman Garcetti and his staff, especially Alejandra Marroquin, Bureau of Street Services, Audry Netawang, and to Eco-Villager Joe Linton who got the whole thing started many years ago. (posted 5/9/08)

Eco-Villager Lois Arkin was a speaker at the 7th International Eco Cities Conference and World Summit in San Francisco on a panel entitled "Starting Small, Planning Large." Other panelists included Joan Boaker, co-founder of EcoVillage at Ithaca, Biosphere 2 designer Phil Hawes, and EcoTecture publisher Skip Wenz.  More than 150 eco city leaders from throughout the world gathered for this event with hundreds of others sharing their cutting edge work in making cities healthier and more sustainable.  Arcosanti founder Paolo Solari was honored while eco city maker Jaime Lerner <http://www.brazilmax.com/news.cfm/tborigem/pl_south/id/10>, former mayor of Curitiba Brazil shared history and views on urban transformation.  Jaime believed in implementing plans swiftly -- in just 72 hours, he converted several blocks of the downtown into Brazil's first pedestrian mall. Lerner's track record in Curitiba helped him gain the trust and confidence he needed to attain the governorship of his State of Parana from 1994 to 2002. Today, Lerner consults with cities on their plans for addressing long-term growth and sustainability.  He described his new ideas for strategic intervention and course-correction in city development as “urban acupuncture.”  Vancouver Planning Director Brent Toderian shared his views on "EcoDensity,” the citywide initiative currently being discussed with the Vancouver community. EcoDensity is based on the premise that strategically located, sustainably designed density can reduce the City's ecological footprint while making Vancouver more sustainable, livable and affordable.  These and dozens of others will soon be featured on a DVD that will become available from Ecocity Builders <www.ecocitybuilders.org>  (posted 5/9/08).  Many of the conference presentations can be viewed at http://ecocity.wordpress.com/  (posted 5/21/08)

Jeff Kenworthy, internationally renowned transportation researcher and professor at Curtin University Sustainability Policy Institute in Perth Australia, in California for the Eco Cities Conference, visited LAEV after the San Francisco event.  CRSP, along with the Sierra Club, Southern California Transit Advocates, Beverly-Vermont Community Land Trust, Next 10 <http://www.next10.org/> and Metro sponsored his talk at the Metro Board room.  He has been researching urban transport systems since the 1970s.  His comparative work on rail and the quality of life in cities is eye-opening.  His presentation pointed out that urban rail systems are a critical element in building effective multi-modal public transport systems that create a 'virtuous circle' in public transport and compete more successfully with the car.  His research will soon be available via an on-line power point.  (posted 5/9/08)

For updates on the LAEV struggle to save its neighborhood from the LAUSD bulldozers, click here

LAEV in the News:  click on these blogs for latest updates:
Blog by Damien Newton  http://la.streetsblog.org/2008/04/15/538/

Blog by Neal Broverman   http://la.curbed.com/archives/2008/04/ecovillage_want.php

Global Ecovillage Network (GEN) Board of Directors met in retreat at L.A. Eco-Village in early February.  Facilitated by internationally renowned consensus facilitator Bea Briggs, the lineup of board members included heavyweights in the world wide movement:   (2/13/08)

Jonathan Dawson, President of GEN, authored the book Ecovillages,  journalist, gardener, story teller, and sustainability educator based at the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland www.findhorn.org.   

Ismael Diallo, president of GEN Senegal, is a Belgian-trained hydrologist who heads TROPIS Environment, a local consulting firm which the Government and its funders have contracted as specialists in charge of implementing water protection projects on a national scale.

Max Lindegger, GEN Oceania and Asia representative, is founder and main designer of Crystal Waters Ecovillage in Australia, is the principal of Ecological Solutions, an ecovillage and permaculture training/consulting firm involved in a variety of international projects.  See http://www.ecologicalsolutions.com.au/crystalwaters/

Jonggon Duangsri represents GEN South Asia and provides permaculture trainings in NE Thailand. 

Giovanni Ciarlo, co-founder of Huehuecotyl Ecovillage in Mexico, represents the Ecovillage Network of the Americas.  He is a  musican/performer and is currently involved in academic studies of urban ecovillages. http://www.oasisdesign.net/design/examples/huehue.htm

Linda Joseph, co-founder Earthart Ecovillage in Colorado <www.earthart.org>, is the GEN representative from the Ecovillage Network of the Americas.  She is an elected Saguache County Commissioner,  consults to Manitou Institute on the Habitat Conservation Program and serves on the Board of ScSEED - the Saguache County Sustainable Environment & Economic Development agency.

Alison Rosenblatt, co-founder of Next GEN (the next generation of the Global Ecovillage Network).  Youth rep to GEN, Aly plans to intern with CRSP for the next five months (see below).  She recently did a year long internship with Lost Valley Ecovillage www.lostvalley.org.   She is co-editor with Lois Arkin of the column "Ecovillage Living" for Communities Magazine.

Robert Gilman provided consulting services to the group - He is a city councilman for city of Langley WA http://www.langleywa.org/, co-founder with his late wife Diane Gilman and Ross and Hildur Jackson of Denmark of the global ecovillage movement in the early 90s.   The Gilmans published the award winning In Context Magazine: a quarterly of humane sustainable culture (precursor to Yes! magazine) and were clarifying sustainable culture throughout the 80s and early 90s www.context.org   The study the Gilmans did on ecovillages in 1991 (Eco-Villages and Sustainable Communities) which defined the term "ecovillage" has served as a foundation for many contemporary ecovillage designers.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gilman

Diana Leafe Christian, author of two books on ecovillages and intentional communities, former editor of Communities Magazine, and soon to be publisher of an electronic newsletter on ecovillages provided support to the retreat.  www.dianaleafechristian.com

Alison Rosenblatt is doing a five month internship with CRSP (Feb.- July) and living at LAEV.  Ali comes to us through the Global Ecovillage Network.  As the youth representative to the GEN board, Ali co-founded the Next Generation of Ecovillagers (NextGEN), an emerging network of young people worldwide.  She is a graduate of Skidmore College from which she holds a BS in Management and Business, and graduated Magna Cum Laude.  Her senior thesis was on "A New Paradigm? A Study on the Relationship between Ecovillages and Participatory Research" which she presented at the Fifth International Critical Management Studies Conference at the University of Manchester.  She has come out of the Living Routes program (www.livingroutes.org), and spent considerable time visiting ecovillages around the world as well as an internship at Lost Valley Ecovillage in Oregon.  She will be helping to organize our Spring Permaculture Design Course.  2/13/08

LAEV in the News.  Los Angeles City Beat ran a story in their Frontlines column on "L.A. Unified's EcoDisaster" by Joanna Lin.  2/13/08

Funny Videos and Some Serious Too.  Check them out at:
 http://youtube.com/results?search_query=l.a.+eco-village&search_type=&search=Search or just go to YouTube.com and search <l.a. eco-village>
You'll see "Chicken Races," "Eating Broccoli," "Still Life," and, on the more serious side, snippets of public input at the LAUSD public meeting of January 9, 2008. 2/13/08

Beverly-Vermont Community Land Trust First Board members elected.  The BVCLT has three classes of board members:  leasee, general, and public interest.   On January 21, 2008, the very first board was elected.  Leasee representatives include Julio Santizo, Julio Roberto Santizo, Somerset Waters, and Ann Finkelstein.  General Representatives include Michelle Wong, Jill Sourial and Lara Morrison.  Public Interest representatives include Tina Mata, Helen Campbell, and Stephanie Zill.  The BVCLT has been in formation for over two years with representatives from CRSP, the LAEV Intentional Community and a sister organization to CRSP, Cultivating Sustainable Communities.  The Legal Aid Foundation has generously provided legal guidance to the organization.  We are especially grateful to Attorneys Julie Farrell and Barbara Corkrey.  The primary purpose of the BVCLT is to exercise land stewardship as the basis for creating pedestrian-centered neighborhoods emphasizing affordable housing, work and recreational spaces that are economically and socially sustainable, and that integrate urban living with nature.  The target area is within a mile or so radius of the Beverly-Vermont Metro Station.  Watch for more information and how you can become involved.

Some Market Rate Rentals Available in the LAEV Neighborhood
If you would like to live in the LAEV neighborhood, market rate rentals (large one and two bedroom units) may soon be available.  Please be enthusiastic about living without private car ownership (we're very bike and transit oriented; there is a Flexcar in the neighborhood, closeby car rentals, and the possibility of informal car sharing when one is really in need).  We expect you to share LAEV values www.laecovillage.org/values.html and want to live more cooperatively and ecologically.  Call for details.  Lois 213/738-1254.  1/6/08

Shared Streets Project on Bimini Place started.
Many of you who have toured LAEV, know that in 1999, funding was approved to make Bimini Pl. a demonstration "shared street," also known as a traffic calmed street.  Well, the City of L.A. Bureau of Street Services has begun this work.  Sidewalks are being widened and permeable pavement installed.  The street is being narrowed at several points between First and Second.  Food bearing trees will be planted and street furniture and art created.  Thanks to Councilman Eric Garcetti and his field deputy, Alejandra Marroquin, along with Bureau of Street Services Staff, Audry Netsawang, for moving this project along.  And thanks to Joe Linton for getting it all started back in '99. 1/16/08

Old Four-Plex where LAEV started in 1993 destroyed by Los Angeles Unified School District bulldozers!
Friends of LAEV from throughout the world engaged with the LAUSD back in 1997 to save the old four-plex and the extraordinary outdoor classroom that was created by LAEV co-founders Esfandiar Abbassi and Mary Maverick, an outdoor education center that saw the science knowledge shoot way up among the K-2 kids that came to the gardens each day.  1/6/08

Eco-Villager Aurisha Smolarsky-Heims Elected to L.A. County Bicycle Coalition Board (see http://labike.org/) 1/6/08

Eco-Villager Joe Linton elected to Rampart Village Neighborhood Council (see http://www.rampartvillagenc.org/) 1/6/08

Park(ing) Day in Los Angeles  Coming September 21, 2007.  Find a Park(ing) Near You (we'll be having one at LAEV from 11:30 am - 4:30 pm)  Many Eco-Villagers will be involved in the September 21, 2007 Park(ing) Day in Los Angeles.  And you can too.  This will be a city wide event in which a number of groups set up micro parks in parking meter spaces.  There'll be several mobile "park(ings)" via bicycles with bicycle trailers full of the park(ing) makings.  Major fun and a major statement about our park-poor central city areas.  To get involved or know where to drop by to enjoy a park(ing) experience, go to http://parkingdayla.com/  The mission of this special annual event (first year in LA) started by Rebar in San Francisco <http://www.parkingday.org/> is reclaim public space over-occupied by parking spaces for parks and people.  Eco-Villager Joe Linton is helping to coordinate this event.  For a fun video about it, see http://www.myspace.com/parkingdayla (8/20/07)

Neighboring in L.A. Eco-Village
Each Saturday from 5 to 7 pm (during this summer), Eco-Villagers Esfandiar Abbassi and Julio Santizo set up a few folding tables between the sidewalk and the street here in the heart of LAEV.  They put a few orange cones in the street to keep cars from parking in front of the tables.  On the utility poles within 50 feet or so of the tables, they post signs in Spanish and English about what is happening at the tables.  A few chairs are randomly available near the tables.  As pedestrians walk by and cars and bikes ride by, they reach out to them to let them know what is available at the table.  "Hola, buenos tardes. Como esta?  Agui, tenemos libros para la comunidad, adultos y ninos tambien,"  ["Hello, how are you?  We have books for the community, adults and children too."] Julio yells out to a family walking by across the street from the tables.  Pretty soon the family is engaged with the many books on the table.  Lorenzo wanders by and begins drumming on the small instrument he happens to be carrying with him.  Julio rushes into his apartment about 40 feet away and comes out with an armful of small musical instruments which he hands out to the family members.  Julio takes the lead finding the rhythm to Lorenzo's beat and begins singing and dancing, and pretty soon the children are playing an instrument and dancing too.  Other Eco-Villagers wander by and join in the fun, spilling comfortably into the street.  Esfandiar explains the local neighborhood bartering system to the parents and the emergency preparedness training happening soon in the neighborhood and invites them to sign up. Forty minutes later, the family goes on its way with several children's books which they promise to return the following week.  This is typical of what has been going on here the past several weeks.  It is easy and fun.  The tables and signs can be and say anything you want them to about what is going on in your neighborhood.  And your welcome to come by soon on a Saturday at 5 and see how Esfandiar and Julio make it happen. (8/15/07)

LEED Neighborhood Development - Want to be on our Project Team?
LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.  It is a term and a set of criteria created by the U.S. Green Building Council.  See www.usgbc.org
LEED has become the national standard for green building during the past several years.  Now for the first time, the USGBC has developed a pilot program to define what constitutes a whole green neighborhood.  CRSP is very excited about registering the Los Angeles Eco-Village Neighborhood as a pilot project.  We are hopeful that we will qualify for certification during the pilot period.  Let us know if you would like to volunteer to be part of this exciting venture.  The work is complex but fascinating, and we will be working to tight deadlines.  We are especially interested in working with folks familiar with GIS and Autocad.  Architects, planners, graduate students in architecture and planning, environmentalists, urban ecologists, transit and bike advocates--there should be at least a little bit for everyone.  If you would like to explore the possibility of what is involved, go to http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=148  If this is something your heart, knowledge, skills and, most importantly, time, will allow for in the next six to eight months, please contact Lois (213/738-1254) or Lara (213/383-8684). (8/3/07)

New L.A. Eco-Village Intentional Community Membership Procedure
The LAEV-IC has been in the process of revising the membership process for a few years now.  The first segment of the process has been consensed on.  For an introduction to the process, see http://urbansoil.net/wiki.cgi/Becoming_a_member   You can follow details on the progress of our process at http://urbansoil.net/wiki.cgi/  It is possible to live in the LAEV neighborhood without being a member of the LAEV Intentional Community (see above item on Market Rate Rentals...).  (8/3/07)

The LAEV Food Co-op
The Co-op is up and running.  It is small for right now--generally between 10 and 20 members--while the formation group works out the kinks.  Most members are Eco-Villagers, though there are a few from outside the immediate area.  The group is buying organic veggies and sometimes a few fruits from two different farmers who deliver after the Sunday Hollywood Farmers' Market.  Co-op teams, collect the money, receive the food, box it and deliver it to Eco-Villagers or store it in our fridge till others pick it up.  Watch for opportunities when the co-op is ready to expand.   See http://urbansoil.net/wiki.cgi/LAEV_Food_Coop (8/3/07)

L.A. Eco-Villager Joe Linton Working with Livable Places and Helping to Coordinate PARK(ING) DAY IN L.A. 9/21/07
Long time Eco-Village activist resident--and LA River activist, L.A. County Bicycle Coalition co-founder, artist, author of Down by the L.A. River and more--has taken a position with Livable Places as a policy associate.  One of his first major projects is to help coordinate Park(ing) Day which will occur on September 21, 2007.  The idea behind Park(ing) Day is to create micro parks within a street parking meter space for the day in dense park-poor central cities.  It is a worldwide movement.  Several locations are being planned in L.A.  Learn more about iPark(ing) Day by watching this amazing video http://www.rebargroup.org/projects/parkingday/trailer/   If you would like to volunteer, go to www.parkingdayla.com (8/3/07)

EcoMaya Festival Founder and L.A. Eco-Villager Julio Santizo
Julio has been struggling with colon cancer for the past 2-1/2 years and was recently diagnosed as free of the disease.  There is still a difficult operation looming for him in the next few months.  If you would like to send him good wishes or know someone who has been struggling with this disease and would like to be part of a support group with him, write him at ecomaya@azeteca.net (8/3/07)

Dedan Gills Transitions to the Bay Area
Long time Eco-Villager Dedan Gills has relocated to the Bay Area to join his fiancée Belvie Brooks.  They are off for an extended visit to Africa where they will be married.  Dedan will be working with at-risk youth in the Bay area when they return.  Dedan was instrumental in helping LAEV develop a new level of maturity through his work with the Conflict Committee.  He will be missed.

Maybe Fridays. 
Eco-Villager Arturo Aranda has organized a monthly "open mic" event at LAEV.  Called "Maybe Fridays," the event happens the third Friday evening each month, though not necessarily--which is why it's called "Maybe Fridays."  (7/20/07)

Eco-Villager Michelle Wong debuts cart Business at Beverly/Vermont Metro Station
Selling fair trade organic coffee (purchased from another Eco-Village entrepreneur, Angel Orozco of the Coffee Cellar) tea, and healthy snacks, you can catch her most week days if you happen to be passing by the Metro at Beverly/Vermont.   Please patronize our budding Eco-Village eco-entrepreneurs when you have an opportunity. (7/20/07)

A Big Day in the Los Angeles Eco-Village:  Somer and Aurisha Marry
Just a little over a month ago, Eco-Villagers Somer and Aurisha tied the knot in an exquisite setting in Elysian Park.  About one-third of the the 150 people attending rode their bikes to the site.  Relatives of the couple came from Poland, Paris, New York, Hawaii, Pennsylvania and all over LA.  The bride and groom, both professional musicians, in addition to writing their own vows, played music to each other as part of the ceremony: Somer on cello and Aurisha on violin.  Somer rode down the aisle on his custom made very high bike, and the bride's father rode her in a carriage hooked up to the back of a bike.  Unfortunately, it seems to have gotten a  little stuck, so Dad did actually walk her down the aisle.  A great feast followed the ceremony on beautifully set tables right there in the park.  Of course, public park spaces are "first come, first served," so thanks to Eco-Villager Esfandiar Abbassi who got out to the park site at 6 am that morning to save the place.  Many hours later,  friends and neighbors delivered and set up the tables, and the caterers brought the feast.  A rather remarkable composting toilet was set up.  Unfortunately it was for liquid only, and this writer is still not sure what folks did for No. 2.  Eco-Villagers Ann Finkelstein baked the wedding cakes which went very quickly.  Ann had been practicing her cake baking recipes on the community for several weeks before the wedding, and wow! she had it down.  The cakes were gone pretty quickly.  That night, dozens of wedding celebrants rode their bikes from the park to Lili Lakich's Neon Studio downtown where dancing and partying continued till midnight when they all rode home.  The nitrogen rich "liquids only" box did end up enriching local soils.  (7/20/07)

Eco-Village Edward Locke is awarded PhD Fellowship at University of Georgia
Long time Eco-Villager Edward Locke recently received news of his fellowship in Engineering.  He will be studying Engineering and teaching.  Edward moved to LAEV in 1999.  He is an inventor, translator and expert in Asian history and geo-politics.  We wish him well in his new adventures.  (7/20/07)

Diana Sacks Passes On
Long time Eco-Villager Diana Sacks died in February after a two year struggle with breast cancer.  She moved to Eco-Village in 1995.  Diana was a story-teller extraordinaire and loved working with children.  She gardened and was passionate about picking up trash and creating beauty.  She was also a great lover of cats and had two.  She spent many hours with several Eco-Village neighbor kids, helping them on Halloween, reading to them, tutoring them.  She was a poet, and we'll be getting some of her poems up here on this website or our wiki soon. She is in our thoughts.  She was 66 and is survived by her brother, David Sacks.   (7/20/07)

Ecovillage Network of the Americas Meeting in Brazil
Lois Arkin, CRSP Executive Director and Place Holding Council Representative for the Western U.S. for the Ecovillage Network of the Americas (ENA)  attended the recent meeting in the Atlantic Rainforest about four hours from Sao Paulo Brazil at the IPEMA Ecovillage http://www.ipemabrasil.org.br/  Twenty persons attended the meeting including representatives from five of the nine regions of ENA.  ENA's mission is to engage the peoples of the Americas in common effort to join the global transformation towards an ecologically, economically, and culturally sustainable future. ENA serves as the Western Hemisphere representative of the Global Ecovillage Network and works to unite cultures from North, Central and South Americas and the Caribbean to become a unified force in the ecovillage and sustainability movements.  If you are interested in helping Lois do some ecovillage organizing in the Western U.S., please make contact at 213/738-1254.  Learn more about ENA at http://ena.ecovillage.org  (7/20/07)

L.A. Eco-Village and Eco-Villagers in the News:  
-  The L.A. Times Home Section runs a letter to the editor also on Nov. 30 from Eco-Villager Lois Arkin in response to their 11/23 feature article on planting a million trees in L.A.   Lois writes:  "Thank you for this informative article.  However, in an era when oil is peaking, putting our food supply at risk--yes, pretty much everything we eat that we don't grow in our neighborhoods is oil dependent!-- we should be planting a variety of fruit and nut trees everywhere in our public and private spaces.  Our city has thousands of miles of superfluous auto parking lanes in residential areas. These could become orchards and food forests.  Children in all of  our neighborhoods could be learning how to take care of one another in the context of taking care of our future food supply in our neighborhoods.  Mayors and schools that really want to prepare kids for a future on this rapidly warming planet, take note!"
-  The Washington Post Magazine ran a cover feature story on Earthaven Ecovillage Sunday November 19, 2006 and invited readers to respond.   See the
story at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/14/AR2006111400979.html.  An interesting on-line discussion followed this story
at: <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2006/11/17/DI2006111700851.html>, including a response from Eco-Villager Lois Arkin  (11/28/06)
-  Coffee Cellar entrepreneur and L.A. Eco-Villager Angel Orozco was the subject in a feature on the new coffee giants in L.A. who are roasting their own fair trade and organic coffees.  Check it out at http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-artisan25oct25,1,7962221.story?coll=la-headlines-food  Visit Angel's website at  http://www.coffeecellar.com

LAEV has a place at My Space thanks to a new friend, Alveraz Ricardez.  Check it out at http://www.myspace.com/laecovillage.  (11/28/06)


Lizard bench or is it a dragon bench?
Thanks to artist and cob builder Ray Cirino, the first L.A. Eco-Village cob bench is nearing completion.  It's a lizard (or a dragon) adjacent to the sidewalk under the sipote tree.  It even has a metal sculpture about 20 feet away with an underground tube to the lizard's (or is it a dragon's) ear that kids can try out their dragon sounds on.  Ray is available for facilitating other community groups on neighborhood cob benches and ovens. Contact him at <cobanation@yahoo.com> for fees and availability.  (11/12/06)

Japan Hosts International Ecovillage Conference
CRSP director Lois Arkin was recently invited to Tokyo by the BeGood Cafe for their two day International Ecovillage Conference held October 28-29.  She was asked to give a presentation on the L.A. Eco-Village at the sold-out event attended by over 250 people, mostly young activists.  BeGood Cafe founded  in 1999 by Shikita Kiyoshi  is a nonprofit organization that offers solutions and strategies for restoring Earth and its communities.  They promote lifestyle changes through workshops, conferences, speakers, musical events, and a traveling cafe featuring vegetarian organic food.  Currently, thirteen major Japanese cities host BeGood activities.

With the work of the BeGood folks along with other environmental and social activist groups and the sustainable development academic community, it appears that Japan is poised for a significant ecovillage movement in both rural and urban areas.  More than 130,000 villages dot the nation, providing ample opportunity for learning and teaching traditional living patterns.  In one village Lois visited, about 2 hours by train from Tokyo, the countryside was already dotted with single family detached houses with 2 and 3 car garages, illustrating the worst of U.S. suburban sprawl.  One thing the Japanese ecovillage movement will have going for it is that much of the rural agricultural land is restricted to buyers who are professional farmers.  So it seems that ecovillage groups with farmers among them would be able to acquire such lands.  And in many parts of Tokyo, narrow mixed use streets adjacent to train stations and major bus routes appear to lend themselves nicely to urban ecovillage retrofits.

Others from the Global Ecovillage Network among the speakers at this conference included Liz Walker from EcoVillage at Ithaca and Max Lindegger from Crystal Waters in Australia.  Marti Mueller of Auroville in India, also a presenter, worked with the BeGood staff to help organize the event.  Well known sustainability architects, permaculture and eco community founders were among the Japanese presenters, including Nihon University Professor of Bio-resources Sciences Kouji Itonaga, Architect Professor Kazuo Iwamura of Musashi Institute, BIO-City Magazine Editor Hiroki Sugita, Tokyo Cohousing Founder Hiroko Kimura, Kobunaki Ecovillage founder Chikyu No Me, and PICA Lake Yamanaka For more info on the BeGood Cafe, go to http://www.begoodcafe.com/ (11/15/06)

Street Redesign on Bimini Place
As many of you are aware, in about 2000, the City of L.A. set aside about $250,000 as a result of a proposal developed by Eco-Villager Joe Linton to redesign Bimini Place into a demonstration shared street.  As many as 40 shared streets are called for in the specific plan Eco-Village is in.  Known as the Station Neighborhood Area Plan or SNAP, the plan also calls for more mixed land uses, live/work spaces, affordable housing, parks, sustainable design standards, bicycle infrastructure, and, at one time, even a demonstration car-free neighborhood. 

Well finally this year and next, that money is becoming available to the City to move forward on our demonstration shared street.  A series of meetings is in process to get more input from neighbors.  Along with Councilman Eric Garcetti's office, the Department of Street Services and the Department of Transportation are also involved in the planning process.  As a result of the first two meetings, here is a sampling of the input provided by Eco-Village neighbors:

-  Be skateboard friendly
-  Eliminate diesel delivery trucks and busses
-  Transform the alleyway into a green promenade
-  Include a demonstration of permeable pavement
-  Maximize youth and community participation in the construction of the project
-  Provide more bike racks, plus have street furniture, trash cans, and recycle cans
-  Create a fruit and nut orchard the entire length of Bimini in conjunction with children and youth
-  Create a mini park on Bimini Place to provide more green space and eliminate short-cut traffic through the neighborhood

Please let us know if you would like to be informed about these community meetings: 213/738-1254 or <crsp@igc.org>
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* CRSP Director Lois Arkin is the Western U.S.A. representative to the Ecovillage Network of the Americas <www.ecovillage.org>

Following is list of Western U.S. ecovillages from the Global Ecovillage Network Directory as of January 27, 2009. 

611 Ecovillage Oakland CA
7 farms Laytonville CA
A World of Peace Portland OR
Alderleaf Farm and Wilderness College Monroe WA 
Alpha Farm Deadwood OR 
Aquarian Concepts Community Sedona AZ
Arcosanti Mayer AZ USA
Big Island Cohousing and Ecovillage Atlanta GA HI USA
Breitenbush Community Detroit OR USA
Broken Earth Tribal Pueblo Ojo Caliente New Mexico USA
Cerro Gordo Cottage Grove OR USA
Clearwater Commons Bothell WA USA
Colorado EcoVillage San Luis Colorado USA
Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage Rutledge MO USA
Dapala Farm Elk WA USA
EarthArt Village Moffat CO USA
EcoVersity Santa Fe NM USA
Eden Project Kenwood CA USA
Eden Ranch Community Paonia CO USA
Friends of the Trees Society Bellingham WA USA
Gaia University registered in Boulder Colorado USA
Global Community Communications Alliance Sedona AZ USA
Hummingbird Ranch Boulder CO USA
Island Park Sustainable Community Fridley MN USA
Jordan Village Arlington WA USA
La Flor del Agua Laredo TX USA
Los Angeles Eco-Village Los Angeles CA USA
Lost Valley Educational Center Dexter OR USA
Manzanita Village Prescott AZ USA
Nevada City,Ca. Ecovillage Nevada City ca. USA
Oak Village Commons Austin TX USA
Olahonua Hana HI, USA
Old Mill Farm Mendocino CA USA
Oregon Working Group for a Eastern Oregon Ecovillage Eastern Oregon Oregon USA
Osagewood McLoud OK USA
Pacifica EcoVillage .. .. USA
Peaceful Gardens Bonners Ferry ID USA
Phoenix Cooperative Ecovillage Phoenix AZ USA
Piñon Ecovillage Santa Fe NM USA
Port Townsend EcoVillage Port Townsend WA USA
Rancho Estrella Sonoma CA USA
Refugio del Rio Grande San Benito TX USA
Sacred Groves Bainbridge Island WA USA
San Diego Ecovillage San Diego Ca USA
San Mateo Ecovillage San Mateo CA USA
Solaris Valhalla CSA Farm and Educationl Center Cabool Missouri USA
Southwest Sufi Community Silver City NM USA
Sundog Ecovillage Potomac Montana USA
The Cell Habitat Cantil Ca USA
The Grove Mesa AZ USA
The Happy Brigade Community Soquel California USA
The Peace Farm Panhandle TX USA
Western Cultural Heritage Institute Corvallis Montana USA
Yew Wood Healing Center Deadwood OR USA