Picfair Village Neighborhood Association

Thank you all for coming out to vote on Sunday for our new board. We are pleased to welcome the volunteers who stepped up and will now be part of the Picfair Village Neighborhood Association Board.
Join me in congratulating:
Joe Carrabba – President
Dave Riva – Vice President
Cindy Levey – Secretary
Darren Davis – Treasurer

In case you missed reading about the Candidates, you can use the QR below
or the visit website 
https://picfairvillage.com/june-2-2024-elections/
 or
CLICK HERE to read about the Candidates.

ELECTION BALLOT- CLICK HERE

Elections are Sunday, June 2, 10am-12pm. Corner of Orange Grove and Pickford. (Ballots will also be available on site.) Must be a Resident of Picfair Village. 18yrs +, or a business operating within the boundaries of Picfair Village. (Boundaries are: East side of Fairfax, Southside of Pico, West side of Hauser, North side of Venice)

MEET THE CANDIDATES

Joe Carrabba – Running for President

My name is Joe Carrabba. I have lived in Picfair Village since 2002 and Picfair adjacent (1300 block of Carmona) since 2000. I am originally from Texas and moved to LA in 1994 to go to Southwestern Law School. Worked in entertainment and practiced law for a short time but started selling real estate full time in 2007. I love my neighborhood! I know a lot of people say this but I feel we are truly lucky to live in such a wonderful neighborhood and it has been such a thrill to see it thrive over the last 20 years. The location is perfect, the homes have so much character with a broad range of homes and income properties, and the mix of long-time residents and more recent residents make it a special place. The main issues facing our neighborhood, like most neighborhoods in LA, is obviously safety. I would like to see our resurrected board address any glaring safety concerns the stakeholders have. Also traffic through the neighborhood is a concern, especially the southern part of our neighborhood. To further build community, I would like to see the board create opportunities for neighbors to meet and mingle with each other. Bringing back the street fair is a huge goal for me and I know a LOT of neighbors are eager to start up this amazing event again. I basically see myself as a first point of contact for neighbors who have any questions or concerns and have no problem making myself available. I know it’s not possible to address every concern or solve every problem neighbors have but it’s good to be able to voice them to someone, and I hope the newly installed board will serve that purpose.

John David Riva (Dave) – Running for Vice President

1. What is your background?

Long time Talent Agent, Producer and Director. Writer of Books and Scripts. Involved in the Retail Food Industry.

2. How long have you lived in Picfair Village?

36 Years.

3. What motivates you to represent Picfair Village?

Interest in my Community and willingness to help my Neighbors.

4. What issues do you see are important to our neighborhood?

Everyone’s issues are my issues, but personally I would be interested in problem-solving and improving traffic issues within the Picfair area.

5. We know that having a strong community is important. How do you see building community?

Group participation is key. I believe the best outreach is events that are both fun and informative, or even make a physical difference. A trash clean-up day can be paired with a free lunch at a local restaurant, for example.

6. Is there a personal mission statement that you have as a board member? 

Outside of the above, I would like to get our local police, fire, vector control and other city services to be available at a neighborhood event.

7. Anything you want us to know about you that we didn’t cover?

I am a member of the P.I.C.O. Neighborhood Council, and a past member of the Picfair Village Association.

Cindy Levey – Running for Secretary

Hello Picfair Village!

My name is Cindy Levey and I have lived in Picfair Village for 20 years.

I am excited to submit my candidacy for Picfair Village Neighborhood Association (PVNA).

I have spent my career focused on building healthy communities with special emphasis on access to health care and services, health education and partnership-building. For the last 20+ years I was an executive at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center as a Community Benefit professional, helping the hospital build the programs, systems and partners to improve community health.

As my second and last child graduated high school in June of last year, I changed my professional trajectory. I have recently launched my own consulting practice: Forward Community Health Consulting, LLC. I now contract with health organizations in California and around the nation to support strategy-building, program planning and reporting for community health improvement activities. I love this new professional change and challenge; and believe that so many aspects of my leadership training and expertise are applicable to the PVNA. I have been married to Larry Braman for 23 years. Larry is a UCLA employee. Larry and I have two children: Judah (age 21) and Dava (age 19). Both are students at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. I have always been interested in getting involved with the PVNA, but my previous life as a full-time mom, full-time employee, and active member of my synagogue (Temple Beth Am), made it difficult for me to engage in additional commitments. Now that my circumstances have changed and PVNA is holding elections, I am jumping at the chance.

It will be of no surprise that issues of concern and focus for me are crime and safety, as well as our city’s response to – and solutions for- the crisis for unhoused individuals and families, and how that crisis impacts our neighborhood.

That being said, the assets of Picfair Village outweigh these concerns exponentially. I love Picfair Village. Truly. I live on Ogden Dr. between Saturn and Pickford. I live amongst neighbors that care about each other immensely – we watch out for each other and we socialize together. Picfair Village was the perfect setting to raise a family – where my kids’ first solo outings as they got old enough were to Vons, Starbucks and Paper or Plastik; where they could walk or take the bus to school; and where they could learn to ride bikes and skateboard.

Because of the strong neighbor-bonds on our block, I am moved to suggest a community-strengthening initiative focused on getting to know your neighbors. There may be Picfair-ers who do not have previous experience with neighborhood-building. The more a neighborhood can build those bonds, the easier it is to keep people safe. On our block, we keep watch for each other, and communicate with each other when we see suspicious activity. We have each other’s backs. Focusing on community assets and post-COVID community-building goes a long way towards safe and happy communities. The additional (studied/researched) effects of breaking social isolation and improving mental health provides a fantastic opportunity and platform for a guiding direction for PVNA.

The application asks for a personal mission statement. That is a tall order! How about a slogan? Cindy Levey: Building on Community Assets to Strengthen Neighborhoods

This neighborhood has grown so much over the past 20 years. I want to be part of its next chapter. Thank you for this candidate opportunity.

Warmly,

Cindy Levey

Darren Davis – Running for Treasurer

1. What is your background?

Designer and Restaurateur.

2. How long have you lived in Picfair Village?

25 Years.

3. What motivates you to represent Picfair Village?

I love this neighborhood and want to rebuild the Association to get things done we need.

4. What issues do you see are important to our neighborhood?

I am all about community involvement – Street Fairs, Holiday events, and “meet and greets”. Working with Local Businesses, I would love to maybe bring back the Christmas Trolly for Xmas and also select (with CD 10) other events that celebrate our diverse community.

5. We know that having a strong community is important. How do you see building community?

Getting all the residents AND businesses together to exchange information and have fun – to make a strong bond so together we can work for many improvements.

6. Is there a personal mission statement that you have as a board member? 

I am here to help and also plan events, including a multi-block party.

7. Anything you want us to know about you that we didn’t cover?

I am a past Member of the Pico NC and the PVNA.

Darren E. Davis

MEET THE CANDIDATES HERE

WHEN TO VOTE? Elections for Picfair Village Neighborhood Association (PVNA) will be Sunday, June 2, 2024 from 10am to 12 noon.

WHERE TO VOTE? Corner of Orange Grove and Pickford St.

You can print a BALLOT HERE.

Ballots will also be available on site. NO online voting. In person voting only.

WHO CAN VOTE? You must be a resident, or operate a business within the boundaries of Picfair Village. Boundaries: North – Pico, South – Venice, East – Hauser, West – Fairfax.

Voters must be 18 years and up.

Have you wanted to get involved in the neighborhood? Are you looking for a way to make a difference in our community? Are you ready to make Picfair Village Neighborhood Association active once again?

For the past few years, PVNA has taken a pause and we are fortunate that Valerie Woodson has remained a board member (Treasurer) voted by stakeholders at our last election. Because there’s a better understand of COVID and people are being responsible with their vaccinations, we are ready to get PVNA up and running again. We are looking for strong leaders to be both a voice for the community and listeners to the community to be sure we take care of issues that confront our boundaries and may extend beyond. 

If you are interested in serving on the board, please check the https://picfairvillage.com/about-us/bylaws/ for qualifications and responsibilities.

Deadline for declaration of Candidacy is May 15, 2024.

Please note that the following bylaws will be waived for this election cycle:

ARTICLE IV – OFFICERS Section 2 A – Due to a non-active board, candidates seeking a board position will not be required to have attended any meetings within the preceding 12 months.

ARTICLE VI – OTHER COMMITTEES Section 2 – No nomination committee will be activated/established for this election.

ARTICLE IX – VOTING Section B – Due to a non-active board, all voting for this cycle will be drop-off vote (versus the customary vote on site at meeting).

SAVE THE DATE: Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 2022

There will be a SELF-GUIDED 2 Mile Turkey Trot in our neighborhood. Great time to meet some neighbors. There may be 2 different groups; a walking group and a trotting group. You decide how you want to travel the route!