Mayor Villaraigosa, and Members of City Council,

I am writing to support keeping the City Community Beautification Program going!

I myself am a former recipient for my “Chicken Boy on Figueroa Street” project. The grant enabled me to install the one-of-a-kind roadside attraction on a section of Historic Route 66 in Highland Park. The installation of the 22-foot tall figure on the roof of my office building, has brought a lot of positive attention to our community, including national press. It has been cited as a great example of a restoration project, albeit an unusual one. We have already won one award from the California Preservation Foundation for this effort.

I am in the process of writing another proposal to re-light some historic lighting on Figueroa Street. We are the only commercial district included in an Historic Preservation Overlay Zone in the city, and have two examples important to the history of signage in LA—the rooftop Highland Theatre sign and another rooftop sign, “Manning Coffee Store”—an example of opal glass (pre-neon electric sign) and neon combined. My proposal will be to restore both signs.

The community beautification program has really made possible much art and restoration in so many communities which make our immediate environments so much more interesting, unique, and instill both community pride and local tourism. Art in general and programs like this one specifically create a lot of trickle-down that does not show up in spreadsheets. But think about a beautiful mural telling the history of a neighborhood to remind us all that we live in a special place, or a planted garden that brightens the day of anyone walking through and teaches neighborhood children about native plants at the same time. Historically, such projects also discourage tagging and vandalism. And…people will come visit, spending time learning about that area, and spending a few dollars there as well, discovering a wonderful new shop or a new cuisine.

I understand the situation the city budget is in but surely the small amount it takes to run community beautification can be approved—it’s a super-efficient department and it only creates positive programming—something the city truly needs and which benefits us in so many ways.

Sincerely,
Amy Inouye