MINUTES FROM SEPTEMBER 10th 2026
Voting Members in Attendance: Allison Holdorff Polhill, Reza Akef, Daphne Gronich, Caroline Nick, Sue Kohl (partial attendance), Chris Spitz, Cindi Young, Diana Daniele,* Robert Trinkeller,* Karen Ridgley, Kimberly Bloom, Lorie Cudzil, Sharon Kilbride, Andrew Wolfberg, Valeria Serna, Kevin Niles, Courtney Macker, Fay Vahdani,* Rich Wilken,* Matthew Rodman, Rick McGeagh (*voting alternate); Irene Pazirandeh also in attendance (temporary voting alternate appointed per PPCC Standing Rule 16)
Non-voting Members and Advisors: Joanna Spak, Michael Edlen, Bonnie Burgess, Warren Jacob, Ben Einbinder, Marc Gordonson, Kim Millimaki-Gory, Darragh Danton, James Alexakis, Jim Kirtley, Aileen Haugh, May Sung, Beth Holden-Garland
1. Call to Order and Reading of Community Council’s Mission. The meeting was called to order at 6:02 p.m. Caroline Nick read the Mission Statement.
2. Introductions / Roll Call. The Presiding Officer introduced the members and called the roll.
3. Certification of Quorum. The Presiding Officer certified quorum.
4. Approval of Minutes. The minutes of August 13, 2026, were approved.
5. Consideration of Agenda & Upcoming Meetings. Sept. 24, 2026 (last meeting of term for organizational members; 3 Chairs Committee nominations and Board election of Alternate Area & At-large representatives; PRIDE presentation on parkway improvements / La Cruz & Sunset Blvd.; PPCC Evacuation ATF & City officials presentation on status of Evacuation Planning ; tentative guest speaker Crystal Lee, City Engineer. October 8, 2026 (first meeting of term for elected Area & At Large representatives and appointed organizational representatives; Resilient Palisades presentation; proposed Palisades concrete “batch plant” presentation); other topics to be announced.
6. Treasurer’s Report. The Treasurer reported that she has been working on reconciling the accounts. As of the meeting date, the account balances were as follows:
US Bank: $ 28,734.90
Schwab: $322,443.14
Total of both accounts: $385,497.96
The accounts balance and PPCC are reconciled. She also reported on an outstanding uncleared payment to NORC of $35,000, with a remaining balance due NORC through the end of the survey including its final report of $71,500. There are additional restricted funds of around $8,500. Accounting for all the above, there is an outstanding balance of $270,928.04 for all upcoming PPCC needs, including payments for unbilled work/services, such as website and online election systems provided by tech vendor Miracle Data.
The Treasurer is reviewing all current invoices from Zoom and others and annual expenditures to confirm an overall budget of set and anticipated expenses for the upcoming fiscal year starting 10/1/26, including insurance, Zoom, Mailchimp, accounting services and other fees. She will also be reviewing past grants funds received by PPCC, to confirm whether any of the funds balance include amounts whose spending and allocation must be restricted per the terms of their grants, such as the communications related to funds received from the Department of Angels/CCF. She will report on this as soon as possible.
7. General Public Comment.
7.1. Fati Adeli (resident) announced that the Longest Table event will return this year on Sunday, October 4, from 12n – 2pm on Pampas Ricas Blvd. in the Huntington. All are invited.
7.2. Liz Tulasi (a representative of ACTUM) remarked briefly on the temporary pole top distributing station planned for Sunset Blvd. [item 9.3 below]. She stated that her firm represents the law firm for the property owner who has brought a lawsuit against the City and LADWP opposing the project. She acknowledged that the project site would be on Sunset Blvd. and Marquez Pl. It was clarified that the matter was on the agenda for an announcement only; no discussion and no action would be taken on the matter at this meeting. Infrastructure Committee Chair Reza Akef noted that Ms. Tulasi is welcome to attend an upcoming committee meeting to provide information.
8. Reports, Announcements and Concerns.
8.1. From the Chair/Presiding Officer.
8.1.1. Letter to Governor Newsom re AB 1847 (extension of mortgage forbearance):
https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/PPCC-Letter-Gov.-AB-1847.pdf. The President explained that the letter was sent. She thanked resident Rachel Jonas who was instrumental in leading a campaign to obtain passage of this important bill.
8.1.2. New committee appointments:
Lorie Cudzil, Sue Kohl – added to Land Use Committee
Daphne Gronich, Caroline Nick – added to Grants Committee
Sue Kohl, Dave Card, Chris Spitz – Three Chairs Committee (committee of three past PPCC Chairs / Presidents, required to review applications for alternate positions and present nominations to the Board, per Bylaws Art. VIII.1.C & D); see item 9.2 below. The President announced all the appointments.
8.1.3. Update: PPCC-NORC Follow-Up Community Survey; all Palisades residents are encouraged to take the Follow-Up Survey. The President made the announcement about the Survey.
8.1.4. Virtual Emergency Preparedness Town Hall (sponsor: Mayor’s office) – September 24, 5pm. The President made the announcement about the Town Hall.
8.1.5. Looking ahead: Annual PPCC Awards Event / Holiday Gala: December 10, 2026 (more details about the nomination process, awards committees and event venue to be announced at upcoming meetings). The President made the announcement about the 2026 Awards Event.
8.1.6. CRCC and ATF reports. The President provided information about the CRCC’s regular weekly meetings with government officials (Tuesdays at 10am) and described the work of the ATFs.
8.1.7. Communications. The President noted that the Community Connections and Communications ATFs will be merging and will effectively act as a media advisory ATF for PPCC.
8.2. From Officers/Chair Emeritus – None.
8.3. From At-Large and Area Representatives.
8.3.1. Sharon Kilbride (Area Seven) provided information about concrete lining the channel, which broke apart during recent rainstorms and moved down the channel toward the beach. LA County Public Works is aware; she is hopeful that the area will be cleared before the next rain.
8.3.2. Lorie Cudzil (Area Six) noted that some residents have expressed concern about construction workers doing work outside of allowed hours and making noise that disturbs homeowners who have returned to standing homes. She asked that contractors be reminded of construction hours.
8.4. From Organizational Representatives.
8.4.1. Jim Kirtley (Lowe Family YMCA) announced three upcoming events: September 26: Back to School Bash at Simon Meadow, 11:30am-4pm; October 1: the Y Pumpkin Patch opens at Simon Meadow; October 17: Community Picnic at Simon Meadow.
8.4.2. Valeria Serna (Resilient Palisades) reminded everyone of the Power Up Palisades (PUP) event on September 13 , 2-6pm at the Pali Hub on La Cruz Dr.
8.4.3. Fay Vahdani (Palibu Chamber) announced two upcoming events: September 24: Sunset Mixer at Mastro’s; October 11: Recovery Expo on La Cruz Dr., 11am-3pm.
8.5. From Government Offices / Representatives (as available). Contact information: https://pacpalicc.org/index.php/government–contacts/
8.5.1. Brian Espin, LAPD Senior Lead Officer (SLO), Pacific Palisades, was called away on another assignment. LAPD Capt. III Richard Gabaldon, Commanding Officer, West LA Division, reported in SLO Espin’s absence on the status of the “basic car” assigned to Pacific Palisades. Officers are instructed that the car must not leave the Palisades area unless they receive a “priority” service call from the watch commander that they must leave to assist with another incident in the A1 area.
8.5.2. Arus Grigoryan, CD 11 Area Director (Pacific Palisades), Councilwoman Traci Park, reported on ongoing remediation work and additional topics, including: the Emergency Preparedness Town Hall on September 24, hosted by the Mayor’s office; LA Sanitation’s cleaning of the large Palisades Debris Basin #69; the availability of sandbags at LAFD Station 19 for use during storms; the status of the “Surplus Land” matter (committee meeting not yet scheduled); the status of the Tramonto development project EIR (action on the matter is not expected for at least a year); ongoing Caltrans test drilling in the Tramonto slide area; and the status of Zone 0 (Sarah Flaherty of CD 11 has more information). She also announced that she has been promoted to Area Director for the Palisades (but will still be working with us); and she introduced the new CD 11 Palisades/Brentwood Deputy Amir Ebtehadj (a Pali High grad and former PPCC Youth Advisor), who noted that there will be a neighborhood clean-up in the Huntington on September 26 from 9-11 am. The Board and audience welcomed Amir and expressed congratulations and thanks to Arus for her dedication to Pacific Palisades.
8.5.3. Marian Ensley, Deputy Director, Recovery & Community Engagement, Mayor Karen Bass – not present.
8.5.4. Zac Gaidzik, West/Metro LA Field Deputy, County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, spoke about the Los Angeles County lawsuit against State Farm Insurance, and provided information about County measures on storm preparedness. He also announced a virtual Town Hall on El Nino preparedness, hosted by the Supervisor, to take place on September 28.
8.5.5. Sean Regan, District Representative, Congressman Brad Sherman – not present.
8.5.6. Sophia Liebman, Field Representative, SD 24 (Sen. Ben Allen) provided information about bills that have passed the legislature, focusing on AB 1642 and AB 1795 – she explained that these bills have been coordinated. She also reported on the status of the Zone 0 regulations (withdrawn from required review by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) to address technical fixes).
8.5.7. Anthony Avila, Field Representative, AD 42 (Asm. Jacqui Irwin) – present but no report.
8.6. From PPCC Advisors and Liaisons – None.
9. Reports from PPCC Committees. Committee information: https://pacpalicc.org/index.php/committees/.
9.1. Election Committee (Chair Caroline Nick). Committee update. Chair Nick announced the newly elected representatives as follows:
Area One: Bart Young
Area Two: Kambiz Kamdar
Area Three: Elissa Ashwood
Area Four: Rebecca Lobl
Area Five: May Sung
Area Six: Lorie Cudzil
Area Seven: Sharon Kilbride
Area Eight: Andrew Wolfberg
At-large: Chris Spitz
She explained that that there were 720 total voters and the Committee was encouraged by the engagement, especially with the three contested races. The Committee is continuing to review the data and more information on the results will be forthcoming. The President thanked the Committee for its work in presiding over the successful election.
9.2. Three Chairs Committee (Sue Kohl, Chair; members Dave Card, Chris Spitz – all past Chairs / Presidents): Report on Alternates Application process; applications due by 5pm September 19. Alternates Application Notice: https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/PPCC-Alts.-App.-Notice-2026.pdf
Committee member Chris Spitz gave a brief report on the application, nomination and election process, noting that the alternates will be nominated by the Committee and elected by the Board at the September 24th PPCC meeting.
9.3. Infrastructure Committee (IC/Reza Akef, Chair) – Update: Status of temporary Pole Top Distributing Station (TPTDS), proposed by LADWP for Sunset Blvd. & Marquez Pl.
Summary: https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Summary-TPTDS.pdf Chair Akef gave a brief report and expanded on information in the summary about the TPTDS; he also provided an update on the IC’s work with LADWP.
9.4. Land Use Committee (LUC/Chris Spitz, Chair) – Update: Surplus Land Act matter.
Summary: https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Surplus-Land-LUC-SummaryR.pdf
Excel Parcel List: https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/palisades-surplus-parcels-summary.pdf
(Documents linked above for information only at this stage.) Chair Spitz briefly described the status of the Surplus Land matter and encouraged everyone to read the Summary and review the spreadsheet / list of parcels which were both linked in the Agenda. The LUC will monitor.
10. Old Business – None.
11. New Business.
11.1. Draft PPCC Two Year Strategic Plan, proposed by the Executive Committee. Motion by the Executive Committee for Board adoption of the proposed Plan. Draft Plan:
https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/PPCC-EC-StrategicPlan-DRAFT-A.pdf No second was necessary because the motion was made by a committee of more than one voting member. The President explained the purpose and goals of the Strategic Plan and asked for the Board’s approval. After an opportunity for discussion, a vote was called: Result: unanimous approval.
11.2. PPCC Comment on Federal Block Grant Funding Formula, proposed by the Community Recovery Coordination Council (CRCC). Motion by the CRCC (members include six voting PPCC Board members) for adoption of the proposed Comment. See Background Information attached below.
Comment text: https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/PPCC-HUD-Response-D5R.pdf No second was necessary because the motion was made by a committee of more than one voting member. The President explained the purpose of the Comment and briefly described the CRCC’s work in developing the document. After an opportunity for discussion, a vote was called: Result: unanimous approval.
[See a recording of items 11.1 and 11.2 above at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pS3Y2WNI-E&t=4s ]
11.3. Trash Collection Presentation by LA Sanitation. Discussion only. Several LA Sanitation officials joined the meeting, including Executive Director and General Manager Joone Kim-Lopez. Gabe Miranda (Assistant Director, Solid Resources Operations) conducted a slide show and provided information about LA Sanitation trash collection in the Palisades. The officials also answered audience questions. The President thanked them for their informative presentation. [See a recording of item 11.3 at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS2kIJtxE64&t=8s.]
12. Adjournment. The meeting was adjourned at 7:53 pm.
ATTACHMENT – Item 11.2
Proposed PPCC Comment on Federal Block Grant Funding Formula:
Proposed Comment Text:
https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/PPCC-HUD-Response-D5R.pdf
Background Information:
1) Overview re federal block grant funding: https://www.hud.gov/hud-partners/community-cdbg-dr. As explained:
“Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) grant funds are appropriated by Congress and allocated by HUD to rebuild disaster-impacted areas and provide crucial seed money to start the long-term recovery process. . . .”
2) Federal Register Notice re the funding formula (methodology used by HUD to allocate funding amounts):
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/13/2026-16499/notice-on-community-development-block-grant-disaster-recovery-cdbg-dr-formula (Note: comments are requested by September 14, 2026; “late-filed comments will be considered to the extent practicable.”)
3) Summary: https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Summary-of-Proposed-Comment-on-Block-Grant.pdf.
4) CRCC Information: See https://pacpalicc.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Palisades-CRCC-ATFs-InfoR2.pdf and https://www.pali411.com/.