PPCC Reviews Proposed Changes to Bylaws, Provides Updates

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

The Pacific Palisades Community Council introduced the first distribution of proposed bylaws amendments—to include Pacific Palisades Forestry Committee and Palisades Americanism Parade Association into its rotation of organizations—and provided updates at its meeting on Thursday, April 13.

Bylaws Committee Vice-Chair Andrew Wolfberg presented the report, and explained the PPCC bylaws govern the way the council is organized and how it operates. The bylaws have incrementally changed throughout the years, Wolfberg elaborated, and were most recently revised in September 2022.

“The bylaws include several appendices, including Appendix A, organizations eligible to send representatives,” Wolfberg said during the meeting. “Appendix A must be updated to reflect the addition of the Palisades Forestry Committee and the Palisades Americanism Parade Association.”

The changes would add PFC to the Aesthetics and Culture Category, and PAPA to the Service Clubs Category. PPCC board members voted to include the two organizations to its organizational roster back in March.

PPCC Chair Maryam Zar said Palisades Beautiful will be removed from PPCC’s rotations for now, but if the organization would like to be reconstituted, it would be welcome to submit another application.

The Bylaws Committee submitted its report and provided the board with a draft of how Appendix A would be amended. A vote on the proposed changes will take place on Thursday, April 27, at the next board meeting.

LAPD Pacific Palisades Beach Detail Officer Jose Bermudez announced during the meeting that foot beats have been implemented at Potrero Canyon.

“We have been noticing a lot of people with dogs off-leash,” Bermudez said. “Enforcement wise, I like to give verbal warnings before we actually do citations, but if that’s what needs to be done, I believe we’ll probably have to start enforcing that.”

Area One Representative Murray Levy and 1st Alternate Cindi Young spoke on “a serious issue that impacts … all of the residents of the area,” Levy said, which encompasses the most western part of the Palisades, including Castellammare and Paseo Miramar.

Levy said a “massive development” was approved at a Planning Commission meeting in September 2022 and the Home Owners Association appealed the ruling.

Young said the proposed development is on the site of a 1958 landslide and would take a portion of Tramonto Drive to create a private driveway.

“We’re very, very, very concerned about the direction this seems to be going,” Young added. “It’s not like we’re against development … but we’re concerned … there is no [Environmental Impact Report].”

Levy and Young asked PPCC to support their request for an EIR and urge the city to be mindful of the narrow hillside streets that would be impacted by the scale of excavation and construction.

PPCC unanimously voted to support Levy and Young. A letter was sent on Friday, April 14, to Councilmember Traci Park and West LA Area Planning Commissioners.

“PPCC has always insisted, as a matter of [principle], that all laws be scrupulously applied to development projects,” the letter read. “We specifically ask that excavation and construction practices be specifically monitored in hillside streets located in the Very Hire Fire Hazard Severity Zones, of which Pacific Palisades is a part.”

An appeal was presented at a hearing on Wednesday, April 19, during a West LA Area Planning Commission meeting. The item was continued by the board, which will work with the applicant to gather more details about the impacts, earthwork and compatibility.