Hello Neighbors!
As the flowers and trees begin to spring to life, Alma Park Neighbors have been diligently planning some exciting community improvement projects and events. You can find information about our events in the Upcoming events section below.
In addition, our team has been working with the Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council (CSPNC) and the Community Disaster Preparedness Foundation (CDPF) to help improve our neighborhood's readiness for a disaster. We are trying to secure a grant to fund emergency supplies that can be securely stored in our area. These supplies will help neighbors in the aftermath of an earthquake. We are also working with the CDPF on distributing a series of commercial radios to members of our Alma Community Emergency Squad (ACES) and our AlmaNet monthly radio check-in participants.
A fantastic opportunity to have a mural painted on the shed in Alma Park came up rather suddenly. More information about the possibility of a new mural can be found in the Our previous meeting section below.
We hope you enjoy this issue of the newsletter. Please share your thoughts with us by simply replying to this email!
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Our previous meeting
On April 2, 2022, at 9:30 am, 19 neighbors met in Alma Park to discuss neighborhood happenings. The weather was perfect, with a light breeze and bright blue skies. Some homemade oatmeal raisin cookies and freshly brewed Peet's coffee were available as refreshments.
Attendees heard from the park cleanup team, who began cleaning at 9:00 am that morning. Overall, the grounds were in good shape, with minimal litter and no significant signs of vandalism/graffiti.
Chris and Annalisa provided an overview of the Alma Park Neighbors group, explaining that we are a non-profit 501(c)7 organization. They also described the group's continued effort to help keep the area surrounding Alma Park clean, safe, and welcoming.
The pair discussed upcoming events, including the much-anticipated Picnic in the Park. The picnic will be taking place on Sunday, June 12, from 10 am to 2 pm. A call for volunteers was announced at the meeting. If you are interested in volunteering, please reply to this newsletter or email almaparkneighbors@gmail.com.
Group coordinators shared that the city had reached out to Alma Park Neighbors with a tentative offer to have a mural painted on the shed. Neighbors were encouraged to share ideas on what they would and wouldn't like to see. We made a note of all suggestions that we heard.
Early the next morning, two Alma Park Neighbors coordinators met with the mural artist to share neighbor feedback and brainstorm other possible design options.The pair also shared feedback they had received from neighbors.
Overall, there is a lot of excitement about the idea of a mural on the shed. Thank you to those who provided ideas and feedback! We are hopeful that adding a splash of color and some pizzazz to the shed will help bring some vibrance and new energy to the park.
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Our next meeting
Please join us on Saturday, May 7 at 9:30 a.m. at the park tables for pastries and fresh coffee. Our Senior Lead Officer, Melody Shortle, will be providing a crime update and answering questions.
Be sure to follow us at www.almaparkneighbors.org for the latest happenings. Also, you can always email us with questions or concerns at almaparkneighbors@gmail.com.
Thoughts on COVID safety precautions
We ask that you please come prepared to exercise whatever health-safety measures you feel are necessary to protect you and your family. For some, this will mean masks; for others, social distancing; for others, still a combination of both masks and social distancing plus additional safeties.
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Emergency Prep tip of the month
There's been some talk lately about how current events might affect the power grid. In case of a long-term power outage, make sure you have enough backup power. For many things, like flashlights and radios, that's as simple as keeping extra batteries, like AA or AAA, on hand. For things that are USB chargeable, like phones, tablets, and smartwatches, you'll want to have a power bank like the Iniu 20000 or the Anker PowerCore 10000.
If you have larger devices that you need to keep powered, like a CPAP machine or a mini-fridge to keep medications cold, you may want to consider a full generator or a "power station" like a Jackery 500 which can be charged with a solar panel like the Big Blue 3 PLC.
And if you've become used to checking your phone or smartwatch for telling the time, you may want to keep an old-fashioned "dumb" watch in your emergency kit. Using it will help conserve the battery life of your smart devices, so you can use them when you really need them.
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Water conservation tip of the month
The Owens River, Mono Lake Basin, and reservoirs in the Sierra Nevada Mountains provide more than 500 million gallons of water to the City of Los Angeles daily via the LA Aqueduct. However, this represents only about 1/3 of Los Angeles' water supply.
TIP: Cold showers are not fun, but letting the shower water run until it heats can waste up to 5 gallons. Have a plastic bucket ready to capture that clean water so you can use it for things like watering your outdoor plants.
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Upcoming events
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ANNUAL GRAFFITI WALK THAT WAS SCHEDULED FOR 5/14/2022 HAS BEEN POSTPONED. WE WILL LET YOU KNOW WHEN A NEW DATE HAS BEEN SELECTED.
Here is a list of upcoming events taking place in our neighborhood:
- Saturday, May 7, 2022, at 9:00 am: Alma Park Deep Clean. Join your neighbors, have some fun, make friends, and make a difference!
- Saturday, May 7, 2022, at 9:30 am: Alma Park Neighbors monthly meeting IN-PERSON! Join us at the picnic tables in Alma Park for some light refreshments. We will be joined by Officer Melody Shortle, our Senior Lead Officer.
- Saturday, May 14, 2022, at 5:30 pm: AlmaNet radio check-in! For more information on participating, please check out this article on our website.
- Sunday, June 12, 2022, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm: Join your neighbors for our Picnic in the Park! More details are now available on the event web page, here.
Be sure to check out our Events page for the latest information about the schedule.
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How you can help
This month we ask you to help us on our mission of creating a welcoming, safe, clean neighborhood in one simple way. Tell one friend or neighbor about our group, and ask them to check out our website at www.AlmaParkNeighbors.org!
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