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Official publication of the Greater Lakewood Chamber of Commerce | 30,000 Circulation - Delivered to every home in Lakewood
February 2021
Volume 41 Number 02
Virtual Lakewood Run is a fun and City gives extra focus to easy way to support the community message of Martin Luther
Rain or shine, the 2021 Virtual Lakewood Run will kick off on Saturday, March 6, 2021. Although COVID considerations prevent the Lakewood Run from offering its traditional activities, this year’s participants can download a virtual “race map” and have 30 days to complete the “30 for 30th Challenge” by visiting local businesses for fun giveaways and discounts. Registration is online only at www.lakewoodrun.com/registra-
tion. The Jan. 31 early registration fee includes a specially designed T-shirt ($35) or half-zip ($45). Registration fees from Feb. 1 through March 5 will be $45 and $55. Every participant will receive a medal, but those who have participated for five years in a row will receive a special legacy medal to mark their achievement. See www.lakewoodrun.com for full details. Your support of the Lakewood Run funds the Soroptimist In-
ternational of Lakewood/Long Beach Live Your Dream program to assist women who provide the primary financial support for their families by giving them resources to improve their education, skills and employment prospects. Proceeds also benefit high school girls through the Dream It, Be It program that provides access to professional role models and career education. In addition, Run proceeds help local organizations such as Lakewood Meals on Wheels, Su Casa~Ending Domestic Violence, Friends of the Lakewood Sheriff’s Station Fund, and 9-9-9 for Kids (a program benefitting foster children in L.A. County). Major sponsors include Lakewood Center, Lakewood Family YMCA, F&M Bank, TLD Law, Kenny’s Auto Service, City Light and Power, Back to Life Chiropractic, Basiago Family Dentistry, Grocery Outlet-Lakewood, Teamwork Escrow, State Senator Bob Archuleta and the City of Lakewood. ♦
Lakewood begins transition to council district elections
At its Jan. 12 meeting, the Lakewood City Council reviewed its legal options under the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA), which strongly encourages cities to create council district seats, each representing a portion of a city, instead of having each council member elected by the entire city, which Lakewood has done since its incorporation in 1954. The CVRA makes it relatively easy for lawsuits to succeed against cities that maintain citywide council elections. If a city loses a lawsuit, the city pays the attorney fees for the party bring-
ing the suit, which can run into the millions of dollars. No city or other jurisdiction has won in such a suit, and over 150 California cities and school districts have now transitioned to district elections, many doing so to prevent a costly lawsuit. After deliberation, the Lakewood City Council voted unanimously to avoid the costly legal challenge and passed a Resolution of Intent to create district council seats starting with the 2022 and 2024 council elections. City Council Members expressed appreciation for having members elected by and re-
sponsible to the entire city under Lakewood’s current system, but also expressed hope that council members in the future would continue the tradition of looking out for the interests of the entire city, even if elected by only one area of it. The transition process will include the hiring of an expert demographer who will help the city hold a series of public meetings, likely beginning in April of this year, with the goal of finalizing maps for council district lines by Oct. 1 of this year. The theory behind the California Voting Rights Act is that when council members are elected citywide, there tend to be fewer minority group members elected, and that requiring voting by district creates more opportunities for minority group members to be elected, especially if they represent a particular region of a community that has a high population of a minority group. While the Lakewood City Council currently has two minority group members, that fact alone does not prevent the city from losing in a lawsuit under the CVRA. ♦
King, Jr.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. giving his “I Have a Dream” speech in August 1963.
At the Lakewood City Council meeting on Jan. 12, Mayor Todd Rogers spoke about the violent mob attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 and about the national commemoration of the birthday of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “The right to protest is inalienable and part of our nation’s DNA,” said Rogers, “but violence, destruction of property, and attacks against our core institutions and the men and women in law enforcement…wherever they occur and regardless of who commits the acts…are not acceptable and cannot be tolerated.” “I feel very fortunate to live in our diverse community of Lakewood where we have many more common values than not…and where civil discourse still prevails,” said Rogers. “I want to say thank-you to everyone in Lakewood for that. I pray that others throughout our nation will follow your example.” “Speaking of following a good example,” said Rogers, “in these harrowing times, I can’t think of a better American role model for all of us to be remembering and looking up to right now than Dr. King.” Rogers and other City Council
Members went on to describe Dr. King’s leadership in the struggle for civil rights for African Americans, who in the 1950s and 1960s were still being denied those rights in many aspects of life in the U.S. “Because of Dr. King’s persuasive words and his philosophy of non-violent political action,” said Rogers, “hearts and minds…and laws…were changed which resulted in major improvements in civil rights and equal treatment under the law for all Americans. More still needs to be done.” The city later sent an email to residents with links to Dr. King’s famous “I Have A Dream” speech, his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” and bullet points on his philosophy of non-violent action and communication. You can view these at www. lakewoodcity.org/MLK. “I encourage our residents to listen to and read these treasures of American history,” said Rogers. “This can also be another important step toward furthering the goals of our Community Dialogue, to build on all the good in Lakewood, and to make our city the safest and most welcoming place it can possibly be…for everyone.” ♦
Presidents' Day service changes
City Hall will be closed on Monday, Feb. 15 in observance of Presidents’ Day. Trash service will continue as usual. There will be no street sweeping on this day, no makeup sweep and no citations issued for street sweeping-related parking violations. There will be no DASH Transit service available. When City Hall is closed, here is how you can report a non-emergency issue: • Call and leave a message for the customer service staff at 562866-9771, extension 2140 or send an email to service1@lakewoodcity.org. They will answer messages on the next business day. • Submit a non-emergency
service request online at www. lakewoodcity.org/service. • Use the Lakewood Connect app for your smartphone to report an issue, ask a question or give input to the City of Lakewood. The app is available for free from both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. For emergency city service requests, like downed tree limbs or water main leaks, please phone 562-866-9771 and follow the recorded instructions to page a 24hour city emergency staff worker. For questions or requests regarding trash and disposal services, contact EDCO Disposal at 562-531-3054. ♦