October 30, 2014

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Your Community Connection since 1994

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Including Inglewood Airport Area • Baldwin Hills • Crenshaw/LA • Ladera Heights VOL. 23, No. 44

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October 30, 2014

Inglewood Voters Poised to Re-Elect Their Mayor for Second Term

ith crime down 39 percent, property values up 40 percent and the Forum re-opened, Inglewood voters are poised to re-elect their mayor James Butts to a second term in office come Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 4. Citing his unparalleled record of public service and commitment to moving Inglewood forward, throughout this election season voters have shown strong support for Butts’ re-election. “The Mayor has reduced the city’s deficit tremendously and renewed Inglewood’s reputation,” explained Maxine Toler, Chair of the city’s Human Affairs Commission. “Mayor Butts’ greatest accomplishments in my opinion are The Forum, Hollywood Park Tomorrow, sewer repair, and crime reduction.” Hollywood Park Tomorrow is a new project for the city that is expected to include open space, mixed use, commercial and recreation, residential, and civic space. There are plans for a hotel and about 146 residential

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Mayor James T. Butts overlooking the “City units. It’s a project that resi- been shortlisted for the City dents identify with the may- of Inglewood’s Market Street or’s results-driven leadership. development competition. Residents also point to im- The finalists will compete for provements being made to the opportunity to develop Centinela Hospital, the only five of the most desirable hospital in the immediate transit-oriented real estate area for Inglewood residents. parcels in Southern CaliforEarlier this year the mayor nia. The five firms are City announced that Thrifty Gas Ventures with LAB HoldStation was building a new ing, Itex Group, NAEROK community center with pub- Property Development with lic access at no cost to the city. Highridge Costa DevelopMore recently, the mayor an- ment Company, Neighbornounced five finalists have hood Housing Services with

of Champions” Sticks Holdings and Faithful Central Bible Church, and Thomas Safran and Associates. Downtown Inglewood’s Market Street Development project includes a 2.5-acre city-owned site at the intersection of Florence and La Brea Avenues and several smaller parcels at the gateway of Inglewood’s historic Market Street shopping district. According to the mayor, (Continued on page 4)

Halloween With Love

On The Inside:

By Thomas Bunn

• News • Community • Entertainment • Health • Real Estate • Business

Rail to River Project to Transform Blight into Walking and Bike Path

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n the grounds of one of Inglewood’s most renowned educational institutions, Wilder’s Preparatory Academy Charter School held its annual Harvest Festival in celebration of Halloween. Chief Executive Officer (Continued on page 11)

Inglewood Today Proudly Serving Inglewood for 20 Years

fter heartfelt testimony from residents and environmental advocates calling for the revitalization of an 8-mile stretch of blighted, abandoned railway in South Los Angeles, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors have voted to allocate $2.8 million for pre-construction activities, including architectural design work and environmental studies. By acting on a motion by Supervisor Mark RidleyThomas, who has championed the project for more

than two years, Metro catapulted Rail to River, a plan to convert the stretch of unused railway into a greenbelt with a recreational walking and bike path, from a cherished and long-held idea into an actual project. “Today we set the foundation for what I know will become a wonderful asset to the community,” said Supervisor Ridley-Thomas. “It is simply unacceptable that we have allowed blight to not only remain, but flourish along this property, and I am (Continued on page 2)

Vote 2014 November 4


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