A Roundup of the Neighborhood Council Meeting

In the council president's report, Louis Krokover clarified Encino's boundaries as set by the city's Department of Neighborhood Empowerment. The boundaries are: Mulholland Drive, the 405 Freeway, Victory Boulevard, and Lindley Avenue.

Krokover also addressed rumors that he said have been circulating about the outgoing Barnes & Noble bookstore and the CVS Pharmacy that will be moving into its space in the Encino Marketplace at Hayvenhurst Avenue and Ventura Boulevard. He said the Barnes & Noble will be gone by Feb. 1. He also said the rumor that Ralphs, which has a store in the Encino Marketplace, has filed a lawsuit against the mall's owner, Caruso Affiliated,  is false. Encino Patch has searched Los Angeles Superior Court Records and has found no record of a lawsuit. "There should be no more further discussion on that matter and our position stands as is," he said. (To hear the president's full report on this topic, click on the video button above).

In light of an ongoing email quarrel between some of the council members, the Krokover urged the board to familiarize themselves with the Brown Act, which guarantees their right to attend and participate in meetings of local legislative bodies as members of the public.

Vice President Laurie Kelson announced that there are openings for alternate board members and committee members. The neighborhood council is looking for volunteers.

Treasurer Michael Kaufman moved that the council endorse the finance committee's decision to approve the education committee's request for $5,000 for education grants, which will be awarded through a competition administered by the education committee.  Council members debated the motion and decided that the entire council, not just the education committee, will pick which schools should receive the grant.

Karen Henderson was sworn in as the alternate representative of the Education Committee. She is actively involved with the PTA at a local level and district level.

Council member Glenn Bailey asked for a reconsideration of a motion approved at the last general meeting in support of an increase in the number of animals per household proposed by . Bailey said the proposed change calls for an increase of the number of dogs and cats that can be owned at a residence to five dogs and five cats (10 total), from the current limitation of three dogs and three cats (six total). Bailey's motion for reconsideration passed, and the agenda item was tabled until the January Encino Neighborhood Council meeting.

The council discussed the Sepulveda Garden Center plot fees, which have been increased by 500 percent. After stakeholders and gardeners expressed their concerns, the council voted unanimously to request that the Department of Recreation and Parks reconsider this fee increase due to the high percentage.

During public comment, Robin Permaul, the creator of the Save Our Encino Barnes & Noble Facebook page, announced that the fight to keep CVS out of Encino Marketplace is not over. She discussed a letter sent out to challenge CVS's conditional use last week regarding procedural violations.

A proposed project at 18131 Ventura Boulevard (the old Michael's site) has raised some concern. Though the property is in Tarzana, it lies within a 500-foot radius of the City Council District 5, which represents Encino. The building is part of the Ventura Boulevard Specific Plan, which defines a 30-foot height limit. The project is asking for a variance to build up to 67 feet high and increase the floor area ratio by 50 percent. The neighborhood council moved to oppose the variances above and beyond the Specific Plan. The Los Angeles Department of City Planning will be considering the project at a public hearing scheduled for Dec. 13 at 10 a.m.