Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 1, No. 14 - December 5, 2019
Inside
This Issue
Calendar of Events.............2
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................6
Classifieds............................2
Food.......................................7
Hawthorne............................3
Hawthorne Hotspot............3
Lawndale..............................4
Inglewood.............................5
Legals.................................4,6
Pets........................................8
Weekend
Forecast
Mido on Kelly Clarkson Show!
Officer Lewis and K9 Mido were on the Kelly Clarkson show last week on NBC! K9 Mido was recently awarded a ballistic vest purchased with donation money raised by Brady’s K9 Fund and was asked to
be on the show to model his new vest. Photo: Hawthorne PD
Absent Council Members Delay
Wrongful Eviction Ordinance
By Brian Simon
A light agenda and a holiday week meant
a brief Hawthorne City Council meeting and
the absence of two members from the dais.
Though excused from attending the session,
the missing Mayor Alex Vargas and Councilmember
Mike Talleda unexpectedly resulted
in postponement of a key vote that shocked
the remaining trio present.
The group was set to pass an urgency ordinance
to prohibit no-fault evictions without
just cause through December 31, 2019. A
state bill, AB 1482, goes into effect on Jan.
1 to prevent such evictions as well as rent
gouging (capping rent increases at no more
than 5 percent annually plus consumer price
index bump-ups), so the urgency ordinance
intended to protect Hawthorne families until
that time. Councilmember Alex Monteiro
cited recent votes from the cities of Redondo
Beach and Los Angeles to address the same
issue. He noted that local landlords have
been evicting residents for no good reason
as of late because the former can get away
with it until the state law kicks in next year.
But to the Council trio’s surprise, the item
had to be continued to Dec. 10 because an
urgency ordinance requires four votes for
adoption. Three wasn’t enough. The situation
Friday See Hawthorne Council, page 4
AM Clouds/
PM Sun
65˚/56˚
drew the ire of Councilmember Haidar
Awad. “I think this pisses me off just a bit,”
he said, noting the ordinance was something
the Council was “doing for the residents”
and that he was “shocked” this required
four votes. He added that he doesn’t want
to see a family that is “living paycheck to
paycheck” wondering if they will be able to
sleep at home during the holidays. Awad went
on to state that the vote needed to have “an
entire council pushing” for it. “That’s lack
of leadership,” he said, adding that fighting
wrongful evictions was one of two items
residents had asked him for the most during
his tenure on the Council.
The other item asked of Awad did pass
during the meeting, as it only required three
yes votes. This was to establish a blight fee
that penalizes negligent property owners who
leave vacant lots in poor visual condition.
Mayor Pro Tem Olivia Valentine reported that
she received numerous complaints from local
citizens about blighted properties and that
the new ordinance amendment can assess a
$1,000 fee (City Attorney Russell Miyahara
confirmed fees can be imposed daily if not
addressed by the violators) or even jail time
if ignored for six months in both commercial
and residential areas. She noted that the beefed
up code will “add teeth to enforcement” to
charge misdemeanors “if not taken seriously
by business owners.”
Awad said he was glad to see the enforcement
come to light so “landlords know Hawthorne
is coming in heavy.” He also argued that the
updated code is not anti-business but rather
Stability Brings New Day
for Inglewood Unified
Historically, the Inglewood Unified
School District has served as a beacon of
opportunity for youth of color. Once known
as the “Jewel of the South Bay,” families
throughout Los Angeles moved to the city to
enroll their children in Inglewood’s schools.
Unfortunately, in recent years, the district
has faced financial challenges that led to
state oversight and upheavals in leadership,
further complicated by declining student
enrollment, shifting demographics and a
reduction in state funding.
Today, however, the leadership of
Inglewood Unified with the guidance of the
Los Angeles County Office of Education
has entered a new era. Thanks to the support
of the community and its families, we are
creating a positive and stable environment
where young people thrive.
The change taking place in Inglewood
schools is remarkable. Young people, parents,
educators and community members
are building programs for success in the
schools. Inglewood Unified is a place where
children thrive in modern classrooms. Students
engage in programs that place them
on paths to college and careers in adult-
See Inglewood Unified, page 5
Saturday
Showers
64˚/57˚
Sunday
Partly
Cloudy
64˚/51˚
Op-Ed
Lawndale Tribune
AND lAwNDAle News
Hawthorne Press Tribune
Featuring the Weekly Newspapers of Hawthorne, Inglewood and Lawndale