Results tagged “ordinance”

Although two City Council committees voted down a draft ordinance on regulating medical marijuana, the full board is expected to discuss the matter during today's 10 a.m. meeting. District and City Attorneys Steve Cooley and Carmen Trutanich interpret pot sales to be illegal under state law, but the council, along with everyone else, seem to be leaning towards passing a law that allows for sales, as long as you have a legal license to purchase the drug for medicinal purposes.

A proposed medical marijuana ordinance for Los Angeles has failed to garner a majority of votes. Today, two committees rejected the fifth proposal submitted in a year and a half time, this one drafted by the recently-elected City Attorney Carmen Trutanich. Proponents of medical marijuana threatened to sue if this draft went through and the majority of councilmembers agreed that it was too prohibitive. The full council could still take up the issue as early as Wednesday, says the LA Times. Around 1,000 dispensaries are within Los Angeles city limits.

The fifth draft of Los Angeles' proposed medical marijuana ordinance (the first draft was submitted in April of 2008) will be discussed at a joint city council meeting this morning at 8:30 a.m. Since 4th draft, which we saw in late October, was released, some changes have been made. Most notably, the City Attorney's office "deleted the unnecessary requirement that collective members provide their names to the City as part of the registration process," says a letter to the City Council. "Their names will continue to be maintained in the collective's own books and records."

As Los Angeles prepares to dive into their own pot law, Long Beach is already taking it head on. Last night they voted to make some changes to a proposed medical marijuana ordinance, loosening some restrictions, before finalizing the law. "The changes included, among others, allowing collectives in mixed-use areas; removing prohibitions against having collectives within 1,000 feet of libraries and parks; improving patient privacy issues so as to not identify every member of a collective; giving a grace period for existing collectives to comply once the law goes into effect; and allowing collective patients to grow marijuana in their homes," reports the Press Telegram.

Remember that draft ordinance submitted to City Council last month (read a copy of it here and scroll down)? Well, it's finally going to a city council committee where it will be vetted, questioned, possibly changed and more next Monday, according to the Daily News. Once and if passed out of committee, it will move to the full city council for a vote.

City Attorney Carmen Trutanich wants the City Council to pass the latest proposed ordinance aimed at regulating medical marijuana dispensaries (you can read that ordinance in full, embedded below).

The newly proposed ordinance--the fourth to be considered--is reported to be the most strict version yet. "Under the measure, the shops will be open only from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., will be allowed to have only five pounds of marijuana on hand and no more than 100 plants," says the Daily News. "Also, all the marijuana provided must have been grown by the collective." Additionally, locations not following city rules will be forced to shut down immediately. But the proposal is not without potential controversy and lawsuit fodder. Dispensaries would be required to hand over the names of members and providers to police, owners of new locations will have to notify neighborhood councils and the city council, the sale or manufacture of edible marijuana treats will be banned...

Although Santa Monica's outdated bicycle license appears to directly contradict state law, officials recently have been promoting the city's bicycle licenses because of a rise in thefts in the Southbay. "We do try to get people to get licensed because it makes the return of stolen bikes easier," explained Don Patterson, the manager who oversees the division that issues bicycle licenses.

Under current written law, Santa Monica police are able to throw any cyclists, whether a city resident or not, into jail for not having a bicycle license. Fines can range up to $1,000. The 1995-created law directly contradicts a 1996-written California Vehicle Code section, which states the law shall apply to residents of a city issuing bicycle licenses.

Yesterday, the City Council voted unanimously in favor of a proposed ordinance that would mandate all new buildings (residential and business) have a graffiti-resistant coating applied to the exterior, reports the Daily News.

Although he tells the denizens of Los Angeles to cut down on their water use or face fines and higher bills, Mayor Villaraigosa's city-owned mansion has had its lawn watered during illegal hours several times, NBC's Joel Grover found in a month long investigation.

In a discussion about the upcoming trend (and hopefully long-term habit) of residents taking part in urban farming and apartment gardening, commenter trishells points out her illegal use of water under current city ordinances. However, she has a great point:

Faced with multiple drought years and the fact that 85% of Los Angeles' water is imported, Los Angeles and other cities are taking a hard look at every way to conserve and curb water use. A new city ordinance was voted on unanimously by the City Council this morning and will be sent to Mayor Villaraigosa for a signature. The ordinance, brought forth by Councilmembers Eric Garcetti and Jan Perry, will set new water efficiency guidelines for toilets, urinals, faucets, showerheads, dishwashers, single-pass cooling systems, and cooling towers in new buildings and for the replacement of broken fixtures in existing buildings. It would save an estimated average of 1 billion gallons of water per year over the next 20 years. That's almost like if no one flushed a toilet in Los Angeles for over a month! The specifics of the ordinance are below:

It's been more than a year since a proposal to ban smoking in outdoor dining areas was brought forth as an idea. Now, the City Attorney's office has written the draft ordinance, which is scheduled to be reviewed tomorrow by a City Council Committee.

The County tried to regulate the time a taco trucks could operate in one place and lost. On Friday, a similar, but lesser known Los Angeles city ordinance from 2006 was struck down by a judge. Last December, a taco truck owner received a $150 parking ticket from the city's Department of Transportation for violating the law. He and a group of attorneys and students from UCLA Law School's clinical program challenged the ticket in an administrative hearing, but lost. They appealed to LA County Superior Court and won with no city attorneys present at the hearing.

Since the recession and a new ordinance began, business for a family selling food out of a taco truck in Palos Verdes Estates is down by half. It started last summer, as LA County tried to unsuccessfully enforce a similar, but more relaxed, ordinance that was struck down as unconstitutional. In an article about trying to curb taco trucks nationwide, the LA Times explains: "No longer could loncheras set up for hours at parks or construction sites. Instead, they could stop only at sites where a bathroom was available to patrons, and stay just half an hour, barely enough time to set up and prepare a meal or two before having to break down and drive away again. In addition, all employees had to get background checks." The guys over at Carne Asada is Not a Crime caught wind of an ordinance proposed at neighboring Rancho Palos Verdes earlier this year and spoke to the attorney who represented taco vendors in the LA County case. No word if any action will be or was taken.

An ordinance in the high desert city of Lancaster went into full effect on March 1st, but today Lancaster officials are reminding residents not to water their lawns between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. “The summer heat is already beaten down upon us," said Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris about today's reminder. "It is imperative that we each do our part to conserve water this summer. We must sustain this precious resource in our Valley." Recently, the Antelope Valley has been regularly experiencing temperatures in the high 80s and 90s, which is nothing compared to normal temps during the height of summer. The ordinance, which was adopted last year, stays in effect until October 31st.

Parents, take heed. If your kid tags, sticker slaps or otherwise destroys property by defacing it, you may be stuck with the bill. The Los Angeles City Council preliminarily approved a new graffiti ordinance today, but will have to approve it once more next week because not enough members were present at today's meeting. If a minor is found guilty, the parents could be liable up to $25,000. Get nerdy below and read the full blown ordinance below:

By Mark Dolley, Special to LAist

Billboard blight activist Dennis Hathaway has combed through the proposed sign ordinance released last week (download a copy here) and has found a bit of everything reflecting the good and the bad. There's lots of good, but if you're against sign districts--think Hollywood & Highland, a major commercial district in the city--then Hathaway sees a problem:

A slew of gun ordinances are up for a vote at tomorrow's city council meeting. They're touted as ways to help disarm gangs, but as anything goes with restricting the use of guns, groups such as the National Riffle Association (NRA), the California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA), the California Association of Firearm Retailers (CAFR), and other interest groups have threatened to bring forth litigation, which Mayor Villaraigosa vows to fight.

Councilman Dennis Zine's, who created a regional Paparazzi Task Force this summer, has proposed an ordinance to keep paparazzi a modest 20 feet away from schools, hospitals and medical facilities when recording celebrities. Zine defines the prohibition for photographers and videographers taking photos/video for a "'commercial purpose" defined as the expectation of a sale, financial gain, or other remuneration. However, the celebrity or facility can give consent for photographs. But does 20 feet matter? With a long lens or a great zoom function, the product won't change much. What will happen is an easier walk from the door to the curb for the celebs.

After more than six months since it was first proposed, Pasadena officials finally passed their new smoking ordinance last night. "The new rules will prohibit smoking in outdoor shopping and dining areas, in ATM and movie ticket lines, within 20 feet of building entrances and at outdoor events like the Rose Parade. That would make it nearly impossible to smoke in Old Pasadena, and other commercial districts of the city," reports the Pasadena Star News. "Violators would be fined $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second and $500 for third or subsequent violations, according to staff reports. Smoking in parks is already prohibited in the city." The ban could go into effect in 30 days, but the city may take some time to develop a marketing campaign first.

In the name of water conservation, the high desert city of Palmdale is expected to pass a new ordinance banning traditional grass front lawns on any new residential projects, according to the Daily News.

Fans of LA's ubiquitous Taco Trucks rejoice: The ordinance passed in April has been overturned, and the vittles vehicles can park and serve in unincorporated LA County to their hearts' content for more than one hour at a time.

"There is really loud work near my house at 7 a.m. every day over the weekend. When are the quiet hours over?" Dear Reader, according to the city's municipal code 41.40, "construction in residential areas is limited to the hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., during the week, and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays. It is banned on Sundays." In community meetings with police, officers have stated that someone on a construction site on a Sunday could be posing as a worker, but really there to steal equipment. In that case, it's a call to the police. Also, you may be interested to know that leaf blowers may not be used before 7 a.m. or after 10 p.m. according to the city's code, 114.06.

Turn on that hose during the day and you may find you've been hosed--the LA City Council unanimously approved a change to the outdoor water usage ordinance yesterday that calls for one extra hour of banned watering time and double the fine.

For some, taking a shopping cart out of a parking lot and using it to haul their purchases home is a regular practice. But this habit has multiple consequences, with companies having to hire retrievers to comb the neighborhoods in search of wayward carts, carts becoming regular hallway fixtures in some apartment buildings, and stores having to absorb the cost of the lost carts--which in turn often means having to raise prices, since most metal carts cost about $100-$135 each.

Last night, the Manhattan Beach City Council voted and passed a ban on plastic bags, according to the City Clerk's Office. A month ago, the city tried to pass the ordinance, but opposition claimed the city did not go through the correct environmental review processes. Nevertheless, one group said prior to last night's meeting they would probably still sue the city over the new law. The oceanside city joins Malibu and San Francisco in plastic bag bans. Santa Monica is expected to join them later this summer.

After both San Francisco and Malibu successfully passed plastic bag bans in their respective cities, Manhattan Beach is taking up the issue tonight at their City Council meeting. The measure is similar in nature to Malibu's ordinance, but opponents, Save the Plastic Bag Coalition, say the city did not go through the correct process to initiate such a ban and threatens to sue. Another issue to them is that paper bags are not addressed, which they contend are also bad for the environment. Santa Monica is also looking into a bag ban that will also have more regulations on paper bags.