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History of T.R.A.P.P.D.Ronald and Lisa Cerda lived in West Los Angeles until 1994. The fifteen years living in West Los Angeles was a time of continual building in their neighborhood. Three story apartment buildings erased block after block of single family residences. Soon only two blocks remained untouched. These two blocks faced the Palms Jr. High School. Their home was on a cul de sac and all of the typical nuisances associated with a school had not plagued their neighborhood. Parking by staff was prohibited and few parents used the street to drop off children or park. At least, not until the City decided to reroute traffic, and make a one way street of the rear entrance. Suddenly they were under siege. So they opted to move to Tarzana, where the neighborhood was home to chickens, goats, pigs, horses, and hopefully no growth! But the scent of large lots brought developers at a full gallop. From day one they were receiving notices from the City on applications to either subdivide, or MTA's Orange Line development, and in 2003 the final straw was thrown. An application to build a private elementary school across the street from them. Unwilling to be forced out again, they organized 125 residences to fight against the proposed school. They collected over 2000 signatures on a petition to oppose the new school. And they realized that they all wanted a voice in the future direction of their neighborhood. Their neighborhood already consisted of the largest magnet school in Los Angeles County for 4th - 12th graders. 1200 students bussed in, 600 students dropped off, and 125 student drivers parking in the neighborhood. The Eretz Cultural Center, the Hungarian Church, and the New Beginnings Church was also there. They had one large Discovery School for nearly 300 preschoolers, and two smaller preschools. They also had 3 plant nurseries that sold whole sell. The MTA Orange Line was now a reality and the parking lot on Reseda Blvd and Topham was expected to be inadequate in the near future. An adult day care was provided at the Hungarian Church. There was numerous businesses operating with conditional use permits. The overall picture is quite staggering when considering that this is all within three blocks. A new time had come! The Neighborhood Councils were formed by Charter and the residents of Tarzana no longer had to run downtown to City Hall to fight planning and development. They could attend local meetings, and appeal to fellow Tarzana residents, who sat on the Neighborhood Council, for support in protecting their quality of life. The Cerda's became active in their community and sat on the MTA landscaping committee. Soon Lisa Cerda would be a board member of Tarzana's Land Use Committee, the Topham / Oxnard Subcommittee, the Block Captain for the Neighborhood Watch, she sits on the Board of Directors for the Tarzana Property Owners Association, and was appointed to the Tarzana Neighborhood Council. She serves as the Chair of both Outreach and Elections and is serving on the South Valley Election Alliance. Ron Cerda joined Dennis Zine's P.O.S.S.E. and has worked diligently on getting blighted areas restored. The fight against the proposed school had unified this neighborhood and the organization Tarzana Residents Against Poor Property Development was born. Defeating the school was only step one. They wanted to motivate other people to fight for their City and neighborhood. To educate them on how the process works and to develop an outreach program that served their community by implementing beautification projects, and having a canned food drive for St. Augustine’s Volunteer Emergency Service (S.A.V.E.S) who feeds the homeless. The future of T.R.A.P.P.D. is one of service and effort. It's a necessary root of their neighborhood. Since its inception, they have defeated all of the local unwanted and unmitigatible development. The organization is stronger and more certain of the future. Every day a new battle is on the horizon. A new request for rezoning or subdividing is being reviewed, and T.R.A.P.P.D. stands ready. Shoulder to shoulder, brother to brother, they attend the local meetings. Writing to City Officials and gathering as friends with a common vision. |
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T.R.A.P.P.D. | 18640 Calvert Street, Tarzana CA 91335 | 818.757.1330 Site design by EarthDaughter Arts |
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