Dear Friends,
You may have heard the phrase “Charter Reform” lately, and I wanted to take a moment to explain what it means and why it matters. The City Charter is essentially Los Angeles’s constitution. It lays out how our government is structured, how decisions get made, and who is accountable for what. It’s been substantially revised only a handful of times in our city’s history.
Los Angeles is at an inflection point. We are rebuilding after disaster. We are navigating the long tail of a housing crisis that has reshaped daily life for hundreds of thousands of Angelenos. We are trying to plan a city for the next fifty years while governing with a Charter designed for the last century — and how we choose to revise it will say something about whether we are serious about meeting this moment.
Right now, an independent Charter Reform Commission has spent more than a year studying our current Charter and recommending updates. The Commission’s draft recommendations have come to the City Council, where my colleagues and I on the Ad Hoc Committee for Charter Reform will deliberate on what moves forward in the process. Ultimately, they will move to the full Council, and then, most importantly, to all Angelenos on a ballot.
Before I update you further, I want to be candid: the Charter Reform process has not been ideal. The Commission got an extremely late start because of how slowly appointments were made, and has faced repeated questions about its independence. Now, the Ad Hoc Committee has just one month to consider some big changes, during a time when the city’s budget also needs to be finalized. We are being asked to move quickly through subject areas that each deserve serious, unhurried deliberation.
A reform process that is itself rushed and half-baked cannot produce the accountability and trust that Angelenos are asking for — and I want to be honest that I have real concerns about where we are right now. Despite those constraints, we will do everything we can to make sure the reforms that move forward are ones Angelenos can be proud of.
I want to share with you a few areas of interest where I believe we can make some changes.
One of the biggest conversations will be about whether to expand the City Council, and I support adding more seats — Los Angeles has the largest council districts in the country. But more seats alone won’t solve the accountability challenges residents feel every day. Department heads often say they already answer to sixteen different bosses, and adding more doesn’t untangle that. We also need to look at the balance of responsibility between the Council and the Mayor, and the organization of our Public Works departments. I support splitting the City Attorney’s role into two — an appointed legal counsel for the City, and an elected City Prosecutor — to decouple advice and support being given to departments from campaign promises. But how we structure this change matters, and I’ve already asked for more research on how this change could be structured to make it most effective.
I also support important changes to our infrastructure, land use, and planning laws that can help guide our city’s growth better, and can help to reduce corruption and unpredictability in our decision making. On infrastructure, Los Angeles is the only major American city without a Capital Improvement Program — a multi-year plan for investing in our streets, sidewalks, facilities, and public spaces. That’s a gap we shouldn’t keep normalizing. I’m also supporting phased increases to the Department of Recreation and Parks’ funding, so the parks Angelenos have counted on for nearly a century get the investment they deserve.
There is much more on the table that is extremely important — police accountability, procurement reform, and other questions raised by residents who wrote in and showed up throughout the process. I’m grateful to every neighbor who has engaged so far. This is a rare opportunity to shape how our city works for decades to come, and I hope you’ll stay engaged as the conversation continues.
Warmly,
Nithya
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Updates From City Hall — LA Launches Updated Affordable Housing Database, Ringing in AANHPI Month in City Council
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In The District — Forest Lawn Drive Safety & Mobility Project Updates, CD4 DCA Arts Grantee Workshops, Silver Lake City Services Updates, STAP Investments Support Public Transit in CD4, Breaking Ground on Glendale Hyperion Bridge, Committee Vacancies, Recent Events & Activities
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Upcoming Events — Pawsapalooza, Lilo & Stitch Movie Night, VCC Vanowen Cleanup, ONEgeneration Senior Symposium
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Resources & Forums — CD4 Parks Page Updates
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Other Helpful Links
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LOS ANGELES LAUNCHES FIRST CITYWIDE AFFORDABLE HOUSING DATABASE
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In 2023, my office introduced a motion to create a centralized website listing available affordable housing across Los Angeles, with information on how to apply. I’m so excited to share that an updated citywide registry Access Housing LA is finally live, and will be regularly refreshed with new available housing options. You can now search for affordable housing across Los Angeles and utilize the filter features to see if there’s a match based on your requirements, needs, and preferences.
We collaborated closely with the Housing Department to identify funding to create and launch this website — available in multiple languages — to connect residents with affordable housing opportunities across the city’s diverse communities. This is about equity and access, and during an acute housing and homelessness crisis, Angelenos deserve to know where affordable units are being built, including in high-resource areas, and how to access these units in a simple and immediate way.
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RINGING IN AANHPI HERITAGE MONTH IN CITY COUNCIL
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Earlier this month in Council, I was honored to continue to serve as Co-Chair, alongside Councilmembers John Lee and Ysabel Jurado, to celebrate Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month here in Los Angeles — lifting up the cultures, histories, and traditions that shape our city every day.
AANHPI communities have long been woven into the fabric of LA — from small businesses to science, from public service to the arts. As the first Asian woman and first South Asian on the City Council, and as an immigrant from Kerala, it is important to see our stories reflected and respected in these spaces.
We were proud to honor remarkable individuals who exemplify excellence in sports, including former Dodgers pitcher Chan Ho Park, Olympians Howard Shu and Noelani Day, and Paralympians YanXiao Gong and Scout Bassett — athletes whose journeys reflect discipline, resilience, and deep pride in their heritage. Their paths remind us that representation matters, and that possibility expands when we see ourselves in it.
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FOREST LAWN DRIVE SAFETY & MOBILITY PROJECT UPDATE
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In the near future, the Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) will resurface Forest Lawn Drive between Memorial Drive and Zoo Drive, which will happen alongside a safety-focused reconfiguration led by the Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT), laid out in detail on our website. Over the past decade, speeds on Forest Lawn Drive have led to fatalities for both pedestrians and drivers. We owe it to those families, and to every family who travels this corridor, to do better.
This project has taken time to come together, requiring coordination across multiple agencies, which underscores the need for a Capital Infrastructure Plan and stronger interdepartmental alignment to guide how we prioritize and deliver infrastructure citywide.
At the time this effort began, a key question emerged: if resurfacing was already planned, could we also make the corridor safer through design? If we know that speed is the biggest severity factor in traffic fatalities, and we have both policy guidance and technical expertise pointing us in the same direction, then the path forward is clear: we must design our streets for safety.
Beyond slowing traffic, the design improves how the street functions in the following ways:
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Expanded, protected bike lanes along most of the corridor
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Significantly increased turn capacity into Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Mount Sinai Memorial Park, and the Junior Achievement Center, including a new dedicated right turn lane for Mount Sinai Memorial Park
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Safer turning conditions and improved visibility for drivers entering and exiting driveways
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Reduced conflict points, with fewer lanes to cross
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Dedicated curb space that creates safer conditions for those patronizing flower vendors
Change can feel significant, especially on a corridor people use every day. But this proposal, which is grounded in data, informed by best practices, and designed to be adaptable, will make Forest Lawn Drive safer, calmer, and more functional for everyone who uses it.
To learn more, please visit the CD4 Forest Lawn Drive Safety and Mobility Project page here.
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CD4 DCA ARTS GRANTEES ATTEND FIRST OF THREE WORKSHOPS
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Council District 4 is home to a thriving creative community that has faced significant hardship in recent years. From widespread disruptions in film and television production to the devastating fires in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, our local artists and arts organizations have faced multiple setbacks.
This week, the Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) hosted its first of three emergency preparedness workshops, a condition of the $300,000 in grant funding awarded to 23 local artists and 20 arts organizations who received it, all of whom are based in or connected to CD4. Our office, in partnership with the DCA, established this funding in October 2025 to support artists and arts organizations who have been impacted by the ongoing effects of the pandemic, natural disasters, and other destabilizing factors.
As a condition of their award, recipients of the grants — distributed through the Arts Restabilization and Emergency Response Preparedness Program (ARERPP) — are required to attend a series of emergency preparedness resource workshops tailored specifically to the arts sector, hosted by DCA, 18th Street Arts Center, and the National Coalition for Arts Preparedness and Emergency Response (NCAPER). From these sessions, each grantee will develop a customized emergency preparedness plan designed to safeguard their cultural and artistic assets for the long term.
Los Angeles is a city built by artists, and Council District 4 is at the heart of that legacy. We wanted to find a way to give back to artists during a time of real difficulty. Our office worked closely with advocates to support creators throughout these challenges, and the new ARERPP grants are a direct investment into both the individuals and nonprofit organizations that have helped make Council District 4 a vibrant and distinctive place to live. We are grateful to the Department of Cultural Affairs for partnering with us to put $300,000 directly into the hands of the visual artists, dancers, musicians, filmmakers, and other creatives who make CD4 and this City so extraordinary.
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SILVER LAKE CITY SERVICE UPDATES
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To improve public safety around the Silver Lake Reservoir, our office coordinated repairs and maintenance in the area, including lighting repairs with the Bureau of Street Lighting along Armstrong Hill, and brush and tree clearing by the Los Angeles Conservation Corps to increase visibility.
After concerns were raised by the community, CD4 moved quickly to coordinate with City departments to dispatch services to address immediate needs. We appreciate our district partners for bringing these needs to our attention, and our City services for acting so swiftly.
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STAP INVESTMENTS SUPPORT PUBLIC TRANSIT IN CD4
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Bus stops are public spaces that shape daily life for thousands of Angelenos. Through the Sidewalk and Transit Amenities Program (STAP), the City is investing in transit shelters, including this one in front of the CD4 Studio City office with some of our field team!
These shelters provide shade, safety, and comfort for riders — addressing climate change while improving access and mobility across neighborhoods. These changes are part of a citywide effort to support public transit as well as improve the use of sidewalks and bus stops as everyday public space.
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BREAKING GROUND ON GLENDALE HYPERION BRIDGE
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The Glendale-Hyperion Complex of Bridges has held this city together for nearly a century — but for a long time, its structural needs have been overlooked, leaving the surrounding community disconnected. On April 30, CD4 joined city leaders and community advocates at the groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of major improvements to the bridge, including seismic retrofitting, connecting the bridge to LA RiverWay walking and biking paths, widening sidewalks to make them ADA accessible, and realigning the I-5 northbound off-ramp.
The work we begin with this groundbreaking ensures that this historic bridge will improve the connection between Los Feliz and Atwater Village and protect that link for another century and beyond. We are grateful to the advocates and neighbors who never stopped pushing and to the City team that made this possible.
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EQUINE ADVISORY COMMITTEE INVITES APPLICANTS
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CD4 seeks a community member to serve on the Los Angeles Equine Advisory Committee! Responsibilities for this role include oversight of trails, horse and rider safety, and policies that impact the equestrian community across Los Angeles. If you’re connected to equestrian life, please send a resume and cover letter to contactCD4@lacity.org by May 15.
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HEALTH COMMISSION SEEKS TO FILL VACANCIES
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CD4 seeks community members to fill vacant roles on the Los Angeles Health Commission! The Health Commission exists to determine the health needs of residents in the City, and ensure that those needs are being met. Commissioners’ responsibilities include maintaining a presence in LA County health-related meetings, publishing reports on health plans, and annually reviewing the County’s health contracts. If you have a background in health, please send a resume and cover letter to contactCD4@lacity.org by May 29.
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COMMUNITY COMPOST DAY LA | APRIL 18
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This special Earth Day edition of Compost Day LA uplifted environmental education, soil stewardship, and deeper community connection, providing community members with valuable resources, including compost, trees, native plants, seeds, and mulch.
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HOLLYWOOD DELL NEIGHBORHOOD CLEANUP | APRIL 18
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HOLLYWOOD HEIGHTS ASSOCIATION NEIGHBORHOOD CLEANUP | APRIL 18
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For our Spring Cleanup at Pinehurst Park, dedicated volunteers worked industriously to tidy the park grounds, prune overgrown plants, and clear litter throughout the neighborhood. A separate crew met at Camrose and Highland to clean the park and adjacent streets, making a noticeable improvement to the community!
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CLEAN RIDE CREW: FOREST LAWN DRIVE EDITION | APRIL 25
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Our office partnered with Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE) for this month’s Clean Ride Crew! We cleaned up the bike lanes of Forest Lawn Drive in preparation for SAFE’s Finish The Ride event, helping to clear any hazardous debris, sweep bike lanes, and trim overgrowth along the route.
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SKETCHXLA: SKETCH YOUR WORLD | APRIL 26
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On Sunday, April 26, CD4 hosted a relaxed, arts-focused community gathering at Silver Lake Meadows. Together, we celebrated Earth Month by sketching the natural beauty of the meadows.
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ENCINO COMMUNITY CLEANUP | MAY 2
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Spring cleaning continued across CD4! In partnership with Volunteers Cleaning Communities, CD4 hosted a community cleanup in Encino on Saturday, May 2 in Encino Park. We enjoyed a morning of beautifying the neighborhood, cleaning up Ventura Boulevard between Paso Robles and White Oak.
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Pawsapalooza is a community celebration with a purpose — bringing together dog lovers, local vendors, and rescue organizations for a day centered around dog adoption and giving back.
WHEN: Saturday, May 9, 12:00-3:00pm
WHERE: Griffith Park, 4800 Crystal Springs Drive
RSVP LINK HERE
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LILO AND STITCH FREE MOVIE NIGHT | MAY 15
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Join Council District 4 and the Newcastle PTA for a family movie night screening of Lilo and Stitch! Doors open at 6:30, movie starts at 7:30!
WHEN: Friday, May 15 at 6:30pm
WHERE: 6520 Newcastle Avenue, Reseda
RSVP LINK HERE
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VCC VANOWEN CLEANUP | MAY 16
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Join Volunteers Cleaning Communities for a 13 1/2 mile community cleanup along Vanowen Street on Saturday, May 16!
WHEN: Saturday, May 16, 9:00am-11:00am
WHERE: CD4 will be stationed at 16840 Vanowen Street, Van Nuys
RSVP LINK HERE
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ONEGENERATION SENIOR SYMPOSIUM | MAY 16
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Join ONEgeneration’s Senior Symposium on Saturday, May 16! This free annual event provides health screenings, community resources, raffles, and entertainment!
WHEN: Saturday, May 16, 9:00am-12:00pm
WHERE: 17400 Victory Blvd, Los Angeles
RSVP LINK HERE
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The Council District 4 Parks page got a refresh, including updates regarding Parks upgrades, safety & mobility, and more! Visit our Parks page here for more info.
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CD4 staff are always here to help. For assistance, contact us at contactcd4@lacity.org or 213-473-7004.
Our Office:
Services + Resources
- Food Pantry Locator — Get connected to food resources near you.
- StayHoused LA — Workshops and resources to help renters stay in their homes.
- MyLA311 — Submit a request for services including graffiti removal, pothole repair, and bulky-item pickup.
- LA-HOP Homeless Outreach Portal — Assist or self-input an outreach request from the LA Homeless Services Authority to unhoused residents.
- LA City Sanitation — Submit a service request for metal/household appliance disposal.
- MyChildCarePlan — Free resource website for childcare providers and families listing every licensed provider in California.
- Adopt or Foster a Shelter Pet — Find pets for adoption and a list of local shelters.
- Gas Assistance Fund — The Gas Assistance Fund (GAF) offers a one-time grant to help customers pay their natural gas bills.
- Ready Your LA Business Workbook — City of LA’s FREE workbook to help business owners prepare their business for any emergency. Available in English and Spanish.
Alerts
- NotifyLA — Sign up to receive urgent notifications about local emergencies by phone, email, and/or text message.
- LAFD Alerts — Sign up for alerts on fires and evacuations in your area.
- LADWP Outage Info — Sign up for outage alerts in your area.
- StreetsLA Street Sweeping — Register for notifications about sweeping in your neighborhoods.
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