Spencer Davis was chatting up tourists on the Venice boardwalk when police officers pulled up in front of his display of plastic alien heads.
Had Davis seen a man threatening people with a chain saw, they asked?
"Not today," he quipped with a smile, assuming that the officers were joking.
Then he turned around and saw police officers, their guns drawn, with a man holding a chain saw.
"Just when you think you've seen it all…" Davis said.
For all the gentrification, designer homes and tourist attractions, Venice is still that kind of place — where artists, the homeless, Silicon Beach hipsters, surfers, inline skaters and tourists come together along a circus-like boardwalk.
Over the last few decades, the city has tried to tame the scene on Ocean Front Walk, but with limited success. Now, City Hall is making what some locals consider the most concerted effort yet to bring control to the area.
The city is considering a series of safety measures, including security cameras, more lights and a public address system, as well as closing off about 20 of the 32 streets that dead-end onto Ocean Front Walk. To accomplish that, the plan also calls for the installation of automated retractable posts, as well as gates, planters or other measures at the locations to prevent cars from getting onto the boardwalk.
Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents the area, is also talking about eventually appointing a governing board to oversee the boardwalk, to keep a lid on problems and plan for its future.
"You can never regulate or restrain or direct the spirit of Venice, but you can crack down on criminal behavior and you can clean things up," Bonin said as a man on the boardwalk tried to hand him a reggae CD.
"This is one of the places the world sees when it comes to Los Angeles.... What face are we showing?"
The efforts are meeting with a mixed reaction. The local neighborhood council has opposed the posts, gates and street closures as being unnecessary. Instead of focusing on security, some community activists say the city should improve basic services such as bathrooms and park maintenance.
Critics say that the city is trying to turn the beloved boardwalk — one of California's top tourist draws — into "Fortress Venice."
"If you can't even go to the beach without being watched," said Venice Neighborhood Council President Linda Lucks, "where can you go?"
::
The effort to "secure" Ocean Front Walk was sparked by a deadly crash on the boardwalk last summer. On a crowded Saturday evening, a man intentionally drove his car onto Ocean Front Walk. A woman visiting from Italy was killed and several others were hurt.
City workers installed temporary barriers at seven Ocean Front Walk intersections as well as "Dead End" and "Road Closed" signs.
In January, the Los Angeles Police Department's Pacific Division boosted bike and foot patrols in the area.
For Venice veterans, the campaign has had a familiar ring.
In the 1980s, police cracked down on healers, fortune tellers and other service providers after reports that they were scamming tourists. Over the last two decades, the city crafted ordinances limiting what vendors could sell and times dogs were allowed. There were also bans on such things as motorized scooters as well as musical instruments and amplified sound during certain hours in certain areas.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Officials seek to tame Venice boardwalk
Dengan url
http://sehatgembiralami.blogspot.com/2014/03/officials-seek-to-tame-venice-boardwalk.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Officials seek to tame Venice boardwalk
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Officials seek to tame Venice boardwalk
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar