October 01, 2020
By City News Service
The Los Angeles region was awarded tens of millions of dollars today by the state of California's Homekey project to help keep people from living on the street.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday announced the third round of awards for Homekey, the state's $600 million program to purchase and rehabilitate living facilities into permanent, long-term housing for people who are experiencing or at risk of becoming homelessness.
“Not only is Homekey unprecedented in providing capital to house people experiencing homeless, but we are moving with unprecedented speed,” Newsom said. “Most of these projects will be ready to house people very soon after the acquisitions are complete, providing immediate help to our most vulnerable residents.”
The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles was awarded nearly $48.5 million for five projects totaling 269 units, including:
• $8.96 million for acquisition of a residential building with 40 studio and one-bedroom units to provide permanent housing to individuals experiencing homelessness in the Hollywood community;
• $2.2 million to purchase an 11-unit property in the Hollywood area that will immediately increase the supply of two- and three-bedroom units;
• $15.4 million for acquisition of a 91-room facility to provide interim housing for 137 individuals and families experiencing homelessness with coordinated entry into permanent housing;
• $13.3 million to purchase a 75-unit facility that will provide interim housing for 113 individuals and families experiencing homelessness; and
• $8.6 million for the purchase of a motel that will provide 52 units of interim and permanent housing.
The county of Los Angeles also was awarded $7.4 million to acquire a facility in Norwalk that will house 56 homeless people.
“The city of Los Angeles has housed thousands of our homeless neighbors at an unprecedented rate since the COVID-19 crisis began, and this moment demands that we all step up together to create even more housing in the coming months,” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said.
“I am grateful to Governor Newsom for his work to deliver this additional funding, which will help us expand our shelter capacity and bring housing and services to the people in our communities who need it the most.”
Newsom also announced that he has asked the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to for an additional $200 million in coronavirus relief funding for Homekey.
If approved, the Department of Housing and Community Development will provide funding for about 20 more Homekey projects now on a waitlist pending additional funds.
According to Newsom's office, the HCD on Monday awarded more than $137 million for 19 projects in 15 California communities, totaling 938 units.
Homekey has now awarded a total of $449.9 million for a total of 3,351 units. The statewide average cost to Homekey thus far is about $134,000 per unit, HCD reported.
October 01, 2020
By City News Service
Gov. Gavin Newsom today signed legislation, co-authored by several Southland lawmakers, that requires diversity on corporate boards in California.
AB 979, which requires publicly held corporations headquartered in California to have at least one director from an underrepresented community by the close of 2021, was jointly authored by Assembly members Chris Holden, D- Pasadena, Cristina Garcia, D-Downey, and David Chiu, D-San Francisco, with Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes, D-San Bernardino, and Sen. Ben Hueso, D-Chula Vista, as principal co-authors.
“The new law represents a big step forward for racial equity,” Holden said.
“While some corporations were already leading the way to combat implicit bias, now, all of California's corporate boards will better reflect the diversity of our state. This is a win-win as ethnically diverse boards have shown to outperform those that lack diversity.”
The bill's authors noted that soon after the social unrest following the killing of George Floyd, many corporations publicly stated their support for diversity and Black lives.
But they said public support for social justice movements often does not lead to long-term structural changes in hiring and retention policies, and cited a 2018 Deloitte analysis that found that out of 1,222 new board members of Fortune 100 companies, 77% were white.
“The lack of diversity on California's boards and upper-level corporate positions is a challenge we urged corporations to address on their own during our time in the Legislature,” Garcia said.
“However, it is clear we can no longer wait for corporations to figure it out on their own.
“By ensuring diversity on their boards, we know the corporations are more likely to both create opportunities for people of color and give them the support to thrive within that corporation,” she said.
“I'm excited this bill is signed and look forward to California continuing to lead the way in our fight for racial equity in general.”
Chiu, who chairs the Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, said the bill “recognizes that including the perspectives of underrepresented groups in leadership roles will result in more innovation, improved productivity and better economic outcomes.”
In addition to the 2021 benchmark, AB 979 also requires corporate boards to include two members from underrepresented communities for corporations with more than four members, while corporations with more than nine must have a minimum of three by 2022.
The bill defines a director from an underrepresented community as an individual who self-identifies as Black, African American, Hispanic, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, Native Hawaiian or Alaska Native, or who self-identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.
September 24, 2020
LAWT News Service
Waters Announces Over $1 Billion in Paycheck Protection Program Loans Awarded to 10,750 CA-43 Businesses in Gardena, Harbor City, Hawthorne, Inglewood, Lawndale, Lomita, Los Angeles, Playa Vista, and Torrance Areas.
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43), Chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, released a district data sheet which summarizes Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) data provided by the Small Business Administration (SBA) regarding loans made to businesses in Gardena, Harbor City, Hawthorne, Inglewood, Lawndale, Lomita, Los Angeles, Playa Vista, and Torrance.
Over one billion dollars in PPP loans were awarded to 10,750 businesses within Congresswoman Waters’ congressional district.
“From the onset of the coronavirus crisis, I have fought to ensure that our communities receive the relief they need to get through this pandemic and as part of the CARES Act I worked to provide critically needed financial assistance to struggling small businesses,” said Congresswoman Maxine Waters.
“Following reports that the small businesses most in need could not access Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) lending while big banks were providing the loans to their large business clients, I pressed the Trump Administration to make sure minority-owned businesses and neighborhood small businesses had access to the program, and demanded transparency and accountability.
As part of my duty to conduct oversight of these funds, I have fought to ensure that we know where and to whom these taxpayer funded loans are going.
As more data becomes available following my requests to the SBA and Treasury Department, I will continue to keep a close eye on how the funds, intended to be a lifeline for struggling small businesses, are being dispersed.”
The fact sheet outlines loan approvals through August 8, 2020 and PPP loan distribution for California’s 43rd Congressional District by city, size, and industry.
On June 13, 2020, Chairs Maxine Waters, Richard Neal, and Nydia Velázquez, sent a letter to U.S. Department of Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and U.S. Small Business Administrator Jovita Carranza requesting the names of all PPP loan recipients; for each recipient, the dollar amount of all loans received; and the names of all applicants for PPP loans that did not receive a loan.
On June 22, 2020 Chairs Maxine Waters, Richard Neal, and Nydia Velázquez issued a statement reiterating their demand for full transparency regarding the Paycheck Protection Program following an announcement by the Department of Treasury and the Small Business Administration stating they would disclose certain information regarding PPP loans and recipients.
September 24, 2020
By Betti Halsell
Contributing Writer
Mel’s Fish Shack is about legacy. Located on Jefferson Boulevard, in the heart of the Crenshaw District, the aquamarine-colored venue’s door stands open, filling the air with enchanting smells of freshly fried catfish and soul food cuisine.
The shack is a staple in the collective community; Mel’s Fish Shack was cultivated by the waves of the collective culture and continues to be a pillar that stands strong as the impacts float in from the tidal wave that is COVID-19.
“Black people ate fish on Friday’s …” declared Georgette Powell, the second-generation owner of Mel’s Fish Shack. She provided the background setting behind her family taking root in the seafood dining experience.
Powell depicted the origins of her father’s journey, leading him to opening his own seafood restaurant in 1982.
According to Powell, within that timeframe, it was tradition for many people from the collective community to eat fish on Fridays, Mel Powell made the wise decision to open his own Fish Shack.
This place is where one goes to find real flavor; Mel’s Fish Shack has a unique method to prepare a meal that will tantalize everyone’s taste buds.
They know the importance of fresh ingredients and the kitchen has gone through decades of perfecting the craft of frying and grilling fish.
Powell explained the wide spectrum of fried catfish; she preferably likes her catfish to be fried hard. Mel’s cornmeal and seasoning blend is
The menu continues to adapt to the tastebuds of the community; Powell shared her concern about the guests that she feeds. She wanted to have a place they can trust to explore a healthier pallet of foods.
Powell stated, “I wanted to create something that was healthy and tasted good, make their pallets happy.” used on their signature catfish and has been passed down through the family; one can taste the rich history of experience and evolution of the seasonings in every bite.
Powell made a point that Mel’s Fish Shack took it a step further with having their hot sauce imported from Louisiana and measured to fit the meal that is ordered.
She went on to describe the development of their salad dressing that also pairs well on the grilled catfish.
No frozen fish and never greasy are pillars that sit at the base of Mel’s Fish Shack’s method of preparation.
Powell stated, “You have to know how to prepare it, so that cornmeal and the seasoning sticks to the fish,” she said effortlessly, as if the knowledge was ingrained into her by her father before he passed in 2001.
Although grounded in their tradition, Powell stated they have a different approach to creating a great meal, to always be original in flavor.
The story behind the sea colored shack comes out of place of social justice, selected artist Dezcjon Lathrop was commissioned to bring a cleansing color story to the little shack on Jefferson Blvd.
Powell stressed her frustration with all of the police brutality and unjust murders happening.
She continued to unveil the symbolic tale that lives on the walls of Mel’s Fish Shack.She explained the Shack’s unique hue by saying, “It was commissioned because we need to pay attention and shed some light on the social injustices that’s been happening.”
As much as COVID-19 has taken away, it also revealed the occasion to rise to new heights.
With an overnight skyrocket demand, Powell broke down the swift and shift adjustments to meet the workload that came on the high tides of a global pandemic.
She provided an inside view to the impact of food delivery service apps slamming the kitchen with crazy amounts of orders. In a vulnerable moment, Powell shared her feeling of guilt for not being able to get a handle on the threshold of new traffic at first.
Through this experience, Powell explained the accelerated growth the Shack had to take to meet their new speed of business.
They went from one cook holding down the whole kitchen for the day, to three cooks with their areas of focus and a well-oiled system of assembly.
Powell closed with her philosophy that the blue crush color shack abides by, “I wanted to make sure that we talk about the importance of maintaining and sustaining legacy.”
She continued, “We really need to preserve our cultural legacies and make sure we leave something behind for future generations to draw on.
We’ve done a lot of things throughout history and a lot of times our stories get lost … I think it is important to keep our community tight.”
More information and the menu of tradition and soulful flavors can be found at melsfishshack.com.
They are available on Groupon, Yelp, and other major food delivery apps.