ONE BIG THING: BIKE LANE STREET SWEEPER
What Happened?
A new bike-powered street sweeper is rolling down Hollywood Blvd.
A simple, low-cost way to keep our bike lanes clear of leaves and trash — the sweeper hooks onto an e-bike like a trailer and has rotating brushes that scoop debris into small baskets you can dump straight into a dumpster. Later today, our partners at Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE) will reveal its official name from over 130 submissions.
Why it Matters
Traditional street sweepers are too big for bike lanes, and the City only has a handful of smaller ones to cover the entire network. That means lanes often go unswept for months, piling up trash and leaves that make streets unsafe.
The sweeper is funded through our office’s discretionary funds and only costs $5,000 plus operating expenses — a simple, affordable way to keep bike lanes clear and our streets safer.
What’s Next?
Our new team member will officially be unveiled (and named) later today, on Saturday October 11!
Join SAFE from 2pm-6pm at the entrance of Barnsdall Art Park to say hello to [name to be announced] and see how it works.
Two More Quick Hits
- Unarmed Crisis Response Update
In September alone, the Unarmed Crisis Response model diverted 1,152 calls away from LAPD, with an average response time of just 27 minutes.
That shift has already contributed to a 5% decrease in LAPD call volume — saving millions in overtime and resources. If we expand the program citywide, those savings could help us fix broken streetlights, expand after-school programs, and build the safer neighborhoods we deserve.
We’ll provide more updates on this program in future newsletters, but for now, if you want to reach a UMCR team, simply call 911 and state that you need an unarmed crisis response team for a mental health, substance abuse, or welfare check situation. The 911 operator will then dispatch the correct UMCR team if the incident is within their service area. For all life-threatening emergencies, always call 911 immediately.
- HistoricPlacesLA Revealed: Latino Los Angeles
City Planning’s Office of Historic Resources has launched HistoricPlacesLA Revealed: Latino Los Angeles, a project to recognize and celebrate the sites tied to Latino heritage across our city. More than 100 markers with QR codes will be installed along public streets, linking to multimedia stories about Latino history in Los Angeles. You can view the list of sites already identified here.
If you know a place that should be recognized — whether it’s a mural, plaza, restaurant, building, or other landmark — you can share stories, photos, or nominate a new site using the official submission form here.
CD13 Pet of the Week
Meet Donny, our Pet of the Week!
Everyone knows Donny – he’s a standup guy, and he’s up for adoption!
He’s listed as a Chinese Shar-Pei, but we’re pretty sure he’s got at least a smidge of Xoloitzcuintle in him!
The Xoloitzcuintle, indigenous to Mexico, is known for its calm and loyal nature – with a lineage dating back over 5,000 years.
Come meet Donny at North Central today and find your fur-ever best friend!
