Politics & Government

City Council Redistricting Plan Puts Neighborhood Groups at Odds

A request by the head of the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council to speak at tonight's meeting of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association is raising tensions between the two groups.

A proposal to redraw the boundaries of the Los Angeles City Council district that includes Sherman Oaks is causing friction between the two main groups that represent the community’s residents.

Jill Banks Barad, president of the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council, said she asked that a member of her group be allowed to speak about the redistricting plan, at Wednesday night's monthly meeting of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association, but her request was denied.

"They won't let us speak at their meeting," Banks Barad said. "We have a right to present our opinion to their membership, but they will not let us."

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The meeting was held at Notre Dame High School. Assemblyman Michael Feuer was the featured speaker.

"All we're asking for is a couple of minutes to spell out our position on redistricting," Banks Barad said. "But … we were told, 'Sorry, the agenda is full.'”

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Sherman Oaks Patch left voicemail and email messages for the homeowners association president, Richard Close, but he has not yet responded.

Banks Barad and Close are two of the most influential residents in the community. She has been called, the "First Lady of Sherman Oaks," while Close has been referred to as the "Pope of Sherman Oaks," because candidates running for office often seek his blessing.

Bob Anderson, a member of the homeowners association’s board of directors who organizes the meetings, said the schedule for the event was already in place by the time Banks Barad asked to speak.

"It's a little late for them to request time to speak at the meeting,” Anderson said. “Our agenda was already set. And besides, we'd like to meet with them privately first to see what points they want to make."

The proposed boundaries for the new City Council District 4 would extend from Griffith Park and Hollywood into the center of the San Fernando Valley, taking in Studio City and Sherman Oaks. At that point, the district line would turn northwest and include communities that run up toward Chatsworth and Northridge.

(District 4 is the green area in the map above.)

The arguments that residents have made, both for and against the proposed district, have been passionate and complex. The neighborhood council’s position on how the new district should be redrawn is not aligned with the views of the homeowners association.

"This is an outrage,” Banks Barad said. “When people from the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association request to speak at our monthly meetings, we always allow them to speak.

“This is a matter of mutual respect. We respect them, but they appear not to respect us.”


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