Came in to get some paperwork. I'm thinking about applying for a roll with another city with…read moreregards to their Homeless Services dept, and since I served on the homeless and housing committee here in Culver city, I thought why not? Basically I needed proof of my role on the committee, as well as a copy of some minutes, agendas, etc that I voted on. To conclude, it's always pretty easy to retrieve paperwork, files, or make your way through this relatively small City Hall. The staff are always friendly, the offices are always super cool (with great blowing AC), and it's usually a solid experience, as was today.

PRO-TIP: Free parking here for the Kirk Douglas Theater and the theater validates up to 3 hours. I…read morebelieve the first hour here is free. Parking runs on license plate identification. We didn't even have to insert our validated ticketed to be let out. Pretty high tech since many school campuses have that tech but only use it to scan for parking tickets. Parking garage was clean and well lit. No one was speeding, didn't look shady or smell shady either. There's some monuments, statues, inspirational quotes, a neat looking architecture arch that you can see from the street, and a old school movie camera where you can scan a QR code to look at some historical pieces. Neat! Love that they have the street sign with the sister cities. Look up Kaizuka, their mascot, Tsuge-san is super cute!

We were visiting from out of town for business in California. We had requested a room at the…read morelibrary so that we could conduct our meeting. When we arrived, we were surprised to see three or four homeless individuals sleeping right by the courthouse, just to the left of the library. Given that this is a wealthy liberal area known for advocating social issues, it was disappointing to see that little seems to be done about the problem. All talk no action! That said, once inside, the library was a completely different experience. My wife and I reserved a private room to get some work done, and we found the space to be quiet, well-organized, and neatly maintained. The librarian was friendly and helpful, which made our visit even better. If you're looking for a peaceful place to work or read, this library is a great option. Just be prepared for what you might encounter outside since the locals don't care!

With 2 small children I spend a lot of time in library's. We split half the year living in the…read moreThousand Oaks area and half the year in Malibu near the Ventura County line. This is the closest library to us when living in Malibu. The staff is notoriously rude, like beyond reason. They typically don't return hellos. Are cold. Lock the doors in the middle of the day making you wait outside with small children in tow. Most of the patrons during the day appear to be homeless or dirty druggie type young men that stand outside smoking, eat in the library, curse and watch TV on the computers. The arm guards are friendly and sadly very appreciated. Story time for toddlers is typically at 3:30pm, oddest story time slot for littles at any library. We come because we check out books on a regular basis. I prefer litterly any other library than this one. It doesn't feel clean, overtly safe or welcoming. The city of Malibu could do much better.

This weekend I volunteered to help with set up for the SFV Pride Parade near city hall and the…read morecivic center. I was impressed by how clean and well kept the gardens are and everyone is so friendly. Everyone was so nice to volunteer with and to watch the event come together. Later the parade was pretty grand to see! What a wonderful experience!

The City Hall of Van Nuys is one of the nicest and well organized in Los Angeles County. According…read moreto google it was in 1932 and originally designed as the Valley Municipal Building. Located on Sylvan St (east off Van Nuys Blvd) across from the Van Nuys Courthouse it's in the mecca of most community resources and services including the Van Nuys Public Library, original Firehouse, Police Station, postal services, legal services (including notary, bail bonds, lawyers, paralegals, etc.) and several small business including local restaurants and shops that keep the people who work here going as well as the city of Van Nuys thriving: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-city-of-van-nuys-los-angeles Local LADot Dash and LA Metro city buses run past here both on Sylvan St and down Van Nuys Blvd. Also a very brief stroll away from the Van Nuys Blvd Orange Line station. The C.H. department provides services Monday through Friday (excluding observed holidays like President's day) from 8:30 AM to 5 PM. Find Public Records related to Van Nuys City Hall including marriage, voter and vital information here not to mention obtain permits, make request for city changes and inquire about local city roles, positions and listings. There's local street parking available, most of is free if you can find it as well as paid parking structures around, most shared with the courthouse and other businesses on the block.

I tagged along with someone's US Citizenship Oath Ceremony this week, just to see what it's like…read more First off, if your appointment is at 8:00am, show up half an hour early. There was a 30 minute wait in line that morning for a bag search, and since they only allow a certain amount of people inside at a time, be prepared to wait. After that, you head up to the 6th floor. The wayfinding is terrible so you might have to walk around in a circle a bit and find the freestanding sign that directs you to the correct room. Once you're in the room, you check in with the Immigration Officer at the window, who gives you some paperwork and a flag, then you sit down again and wait for another 30-45 minutes to allow more people to show up. After about 45 minutes into the hour, they cut off the amount of people for the time slot. He then preps the room with the video. The people taking the oath are allowed to take a specific designated seat by the Immigration Officer, and guests are allowed to sit in the back row (if there's room). There are no pictures allowed during the ceremony. They say the oath, there's some instructions on the paperwork and TV on what to expect next (apply for your passport ASAP!), and then the officer gives you your certificate! You're done! Congrats you're a US Citizen! There's a little photo op area to the left of the room with a flag for your obligatory "I'm a citizen" photo, and you exit the space. To be honest, it's a bit anticlimactic considering how monumental the feat of becoming a citizen is. I wish they'd funnel some of that DHS money into making that room nicer or making it a little bit ceremonious. Maybe paint a wall? That being said, even if the room is as sterile as a doctors office, to see all these people 10 years into the process finally becoming a citizen is still heartwarmingly wholesome. All in all, between waiting in line to get into the building, waiting in the room, and the oath, expect the experience to be about 1.5 hours. Though the actual oath is maybe 10-15 minutes, tops. NOTES: If you miss your window for whatever reason, they will bump you to the group for your oath, so if you miss the cut-off for 9am, you will be sworn in at 10am... which is really 10:45am by the time you're in the room putting your hand up for the oath. CELL SERVICE: You get no cell service in the room and will have to walk to the elevator area to get any sort of reception. PARKING: There's parking across the street in the Los Angeles Mall. It's a cavernous dizzying ramp down to the parking area. After 2 hours of parking, I had to pay $24.

No parking at a federal building? What a joke. There's little to no accessible parking nearby, and…read moreto make it worse, they don't even validate your parking slip. For a place that people are required to visit for important matters, you'd expect at least basic accommodations like parking or validation. Poor planning and frustrating experience overall.

After recently finishing a PBS visual documentary of "Lost LA," I was awestruck by how many…read morehistorical landmarks are missing from Yelp! It is so easy to walk or drive past important buildings, statues, or places of interest in a large city like Los Angeles without blinking an eye. One particular example is the Merced Theatre (originally named the Merced-Abbott Building) located in the original El Pueblo de los Angeles district. This was not only the first theatre in the city, but also a gift to cabinetmaker William Abbott's wife, Mercedes (who went by Merced)--hence the building's name. Together they had hoped to rival the other three-story building around the corner, The Pico House. Both buildings shared an interconnecting door which worked great for Pico House guests. Merced Theater offered live theatre between 1871 to 1876 until it ceased operations due to an outbreak of smallpox at the nearby Wood's Opera House. Here's where things get interesting... When the Merced re-opened towards the end of the 19th century, Victorian Sex Clubs were the only organizations that could afford the high rent of the building making it LA's first porn theatre. At that time, it also offered a safe gathering place to LGBTQ+ individuals through its hosting of masked balls. These costumed balls allowed anyone to socialize with one another under the safety of their concealed identities, in addition to have the freedom to dress in clothing of the opposite gender without fear of persecution. Beginning in 1897, the building was used as a lodging house for queer men. Now the building is apparently undergoing renovations to become the new home of Cityview, the City of Los Angeles public access TV station on Channel 35. Nonetheless, I wanted to share these fascinating facts and can't wait to go visit the building and peek through the windows. "Plaque Marker NO. 171 MERCED THEATRE - The Merced Theatre was built in 1870 and is one of the oldest structures erected in Los Angeles for the presentation of dramatic performances. It served as the center of theatrical activity in the city from 1871 to 1876. The theatre was built by William Abbot, the son of Swiss immigrants who settled in Los Angeles in 1854. In 1858, he married the woman for whom he would name the theatre, Maria Merced Garcia, the daughter of Jose Antonio Garcia and Maria Guadalupe Uribe, who were long-time residents of the Los Angeles pueblo."

In this quaint part of town, I decided to take a pit stop and get a refill on water as well as…read moredrain the radiator. Plenty of shaded lot parking for a Saturday afternoon though fairly strong attendance of library patrons all the same. With parking down below, the library was up on the second floor with the front of the entrance decorated with tall red, blue, and yellow flowerlike installations. The library looks and feels inviting, warmly lit by sunlight peering in through the front windows. Sprinkled around are decorative pieces showing the local wildlife, mounted on the walls. Noise level was kept to a minimal, so it also felt like a great opportunity to just relax and getting some reading done. As for me, there was a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle near the center of the library that kept me occupied.

They had a $1 book sale in front, clean and spacious inside, and it feels like a tree house getaway…read moresince the library is on the second floor

Our building project was completed 6 years ago. All invoices were paid at completion of the work…read moreand we believed that t there was nothing left to be done. Recently, we discovered that the permits had NOT been finalized! Inspector Ron Dockery at the Department of Public Works, Building and Safety, LA County, was amazingly helpful and diligent in completing the final inspection and documentation. It was a delight to deal with him!

(This review is strictly for the billing department)…read more It took them almost a year and a half to send me my bill. I then called my insurance company, where I learned that they were in the middle of processing the claim. When I called the fire dept's billing office to explain this, an extremely rude representative started yelling at me about how they had already billed the insurance company and started demanding immediate payment. I had to repeat myself multiple times before she finally understood me. Two weeks later, they sent me a final notice bill. Really? You get to spend a year and a half f******* around and then don't even give me 30 days to pay? I understand that emergencies happen, but just be prepared for a headache when the bill arrives.

I was nauseous (like motion sickness) and overwhelmed by the heat while watching my niece play…read moresoccer at The Sports Complex yesterday. No matter what I did, I got progressively worse. I thought I was just going to throw up and feel better. I actually passed out!!! I was so dizzy I couldn't pick my head up: so distressing! People were so nice to bring water, ice packs, and an umbrella... I had hit my head on the concrete so it was bleeding... An official at the Complex called 911 as part of their protocol and... Station 24 to the rescue! This awesome team: Matt, Chris, Steve, and Carlo, took excellent care to question me, take my vitals, advise and assist me. They were very professional, so kind, and impressively compassionate and considerate. Thank you ALL so very much! I really appreciate your team and your dedication to serve and to care for others: helping the helpless when they need someone the most. God bless and protect each and every one of you! Warmest Regards, Kristine