STUDIO CITY - Last week, the City Council voted to repeal the Studio City Residential Floor Area District (RFA), as it conflicted with the recently updated and more restrictive Baseline Mansionization Ordinance (BMO). In 2008, Los Angeles passed the original BMO, but many neighborhoods felt it did not go far enough and left too many loopholes for developers to exploit. Councilmember Krekorian agreed with the critics and, when he took office in 2010, worked closely with Studio City residents to come up with building rules for the neighborhood that supplemented the old BMO and helped protect the character of the community.

Last fall, my office joined forces with dozens of community members to help North Hollywood’s Whitnall Off-Leash Dog Park win the Beneful Dream Dog Park competition. Together we succeeded due to a strong, united social media push by many North Hollywood residents, dog park users and my office.

On October 30, Harvard-Westlake made a tremendously important announcement: it is suspending its plans to build a parking structure on the west side of Coldwater Canyon Avenue, and will instead explore adding more parking capacity on campus. I want to thank the community for making its voice heard regarding the Coldwater project. I also appreciate that the school has listened to my concerns, and those of the community, and taken them seriously. The open discourse among the community, the city, the school and impacted neighbors highlights what makes our democratic process so great and important.

From the devastation of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, to the recent earthquakes in Mexico City and the Southland, it's clear that disaster can strike at any time. Our newspaper headlines, television screens and social media feeds are inundated with stories recounting the debilitating affects of Mother Nature's wrath and the rising human toll left in its wake. News of these natural disasters certainly may seem overwhelming, but it should also serve as a great motivator to counteract them, and the best way to do that is to get prepared.

For more than four decades, the neighborhoods of the San Fernando Valley adjacent to the 170 Freeway have been in desperate need of sound walls to minimize interference with their homes and lives.

In the week since Hurricane Harvey made landfall in southeastern Texas, the tropical storm has a left trail of devastation in the region. So far, it has claimed nearly 50 lives, flooded 136,000 structures in Houston alone and displaced hundreds of thousands of people in the storm's wake. The rising waters turned familiar roads into rivers, and residents sought refuge in official and makeshift shelters.

NORTH HOLLYWOOD - This week, the Bureau of Street Services completed a brand new cool pavement installation on Atoll Avenue, from Barbara Ann Street to Gault Street. The pilot project, which applies a light gray coating onto the pavement, aims to reduce temperatures of street surfaces.

STUDIO CITY - Wilacre Park is temporarily closed for park renovations.

LOS ANGELES - Councilmember Krekorian is now on Instagram! Follow along as Team Krekorian shares photos and updates of the work we're doing to serve the East Valley and beyond, and connect with Angelenos about ways improve our community. To find Councilmember Krekorian on Instagram, visit www.instagram.com/paulkrekorian. 

NORTH HOLLYWOOD - This week, the North Hollywood Recreation Center was abuzz with dozens of local organizations, volunteers and community members working to provide services and resources to homeless individuals in the East San Fernando Valley as part of Councilmember Krekorian's latest Homeless Connect Day.