ONE BIG THING: SOLAR STREET LIGHTS
What Happened?
Last week, we seconded a motion from Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez and Katy Yaroslavsky to invest $65 million to convert at least 12% of the city’s streetlights to solar power.
These solar lights aren’t just better for the environment – they’re also less prone to damage, as well as theft because they don’t have any copper wiring.
Why it Matters
Our street lighting system has reached a breaking point — which is why we’ve invested $1 million to deploy a dedicated repair team focused exclusively on District 13. At the same time, the Bureau of Street Lighting is working to increase the assessment fee that funds streetlighting, adjusting it for inflation for the first time in 30 years so we can cut repair times from over a year down to just one week.
As we push forward with transformational changes to our city’s infrastructure — we need to act boldly and invest in the future we deserve for our city.
What’s Next?
This motion was referred to the Budget & Finance Committee, where it will be heard before moving to the full City Council for a vote. Here in CD13, we already got our first solar lights installed last year in Historic Filipinotown!
We’re also excited to announce that our new CD13 Street Light Repair Team will begin their work next week! Citywide, average repairs now take over a year, but we’ll be able to significantly cut down on the backlog in our district thanks to this new team.
Three More Quick Hits!
- Bringing Production Back to Hollywood
This week at the Economic Development & Jobs Committee, we approved a package of motions from Councilmember Adrin Nazarian aimed at streamlining permitting and production to keep Hollywood work in Hollywood.
The motions include streamlined certifications for soundstages and free permits for shoots with less than 10 people. The package will now move to the full City Council for a vote in the coming weeks!
- Coupons for All!
On Friday, City Council approved a motion to require stores to offer in-store, paper, or automatic discounts so seniors, low-income shoppers, and people who just don’t want to download another app aren’t left paying more.
We seconded this motion from Councilmembers Heather Hutt and Curren Price because people like my own parents who don’t use smartphones should still have access to the same prices as the rest of us.
- Keeping it Clean in District 13
Potholes, palm fronds, and clogged storm drains don't fix themselves, so we’ve been hard at work with our City partners and our LA Conservation Corps CD13 Clean Team to fill potholes, remove fallen palm fronds, and resolve lingering flooding as soon as possible.
Please use the 311 website or app to quickly report issues, and send your request number to councilmember.soto-martinez@lacity.org and we can help expedite it!
CD13 Pet of the Week
Meet Teletubby, our pet of the week!
He’s got the most beautiful coat, soulful eyes & has been at the shelter for quite some time so he's quite deficient in vitamin YOU!
Teletubby is ready to trade kennel time for some much-needed cuddles & movie nights with a family that will show him the love he deserves <3
Click here to foster or adopt Teletubby today!
