Long Beach Is Under A Tsunami Warning

A tsunami advisory has been issued for the coastline from Southern to Central California following an 8.3-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Chile, according the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The advisory included coastal areas from San Onofre State Beach in San Diego County to Ragged Point, about 50 miles north of San Luis Obispo.

"If you are located in this coastal area move off the beach and out of harbors and marinas," the NOAA said in its advisory.

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This Makes Six Months of Cleaning up MacArthur Park

Today makes six months that we have been working to make the MacArthur Park Neighborhood a better place; the very first clean up was six months ago from this Saturday om 15th Street. We intend to spend it where this began, helping our neighbors in the AOC7.

Next Clean Up 06/20/2015: Sherman and 15th Street. 10am.

Clean Up: Gaviota PCH to Anaheim: Thus Saturday 05/30/2015: 10am.

I will be starting at 1744 Gaviota 10am to noon. I will be providing snacks and bottled water water for anyone who wants to volunteer; nothing fancy just yet. Rolling cans, iron claws, brooms, rakes, gloves and trash bags provided. The MacArthur Park clean up schedule is here: http://macarthurparklbc.blogspot.com/p/events.html

17th Street Clean Up Orange to Gardenia Done

There was an announced clean up of 17th street starting at Orange and ending at Gardenia today. The clean up started at 10am, and because 17th was cleaner than any street touched to this point, all work was done by 12pm. I couldn't take any before and after pictures because there was nowhere the before picture would have looked all that back.

Off to the side you can see three of the worst neighborhood littering candidates. One is La Gaviota, the LA Pizza Loca on 1470 PCH and Auto Adviiso Magazine.Com.

Next week we will be cleaning Gaviota, starting at PCH and ending at Anaheim. In addition to bottled water, food will be provided. Meet at 1744 Gaviota, a white building with green trim, at 10am to volunteer. Rolling cans, iron claws, trash bags, gloves, rakes and sodas will also provided this time around.

In the mean time, we are continuing with the MacArthur Park Next Door drive. Please follow this link to join next door and keep in touch with your neighbors as well as keep your community safe.

The Cambodian New Year's Celebration Is Tommorrow

In the coming few months, many MacArthur Park residents will be coming together to make Cambodia Town more inviting and walkable. Tomorrow, LA Sparks will be joining us this year for the Cambodia Town Culture Festival at MacArthur Park, right after the Cambodian New Year Parade! Make sure you make your way over this Sunday, April 12th, 2015 to MacArthur Park. In the meantime, you can also show your support by liking Cambodia Town's Facebook Page. 

Preventing Car Theft In The MacArthur Park Neighborhood

In order to create a safer neighborhood crime stats from crime reports most of the crime for the MacArthur Park Neighborhood is car theft. In the past month alone there have been ten. So, here's all the wisdom about car preventing car theft in a single place. The top month cars are stolen is July and August. 

Of those cars stolen only 52% are recovered. Short of installing a Lojack system on all the older cars, how can we bring down those numbers? Let's start with the cars that are stolen the most often: During 2013, according to the NICB, with total units cited:

Here are the most common cars that may get stolen: 


What Cars Get Stolen?

1. Honda Accord
2. Honda Civic
3. Chevrolet Silverado
4. Ford F-150
5. Toyota Camry
6. Dodge Ram Pickup
7. Dodge Caravan
8. Jeep Cherokee
9. Toyota Corolla
10. Nissan Altima

The Nissan Altima: A Target for Theives

Top-selling older cars are stolen far more often than brand new cars. This may be because many newer models come with very effective anti theft devices. Older cars are typically taken to chop shops where they are dissected into replacement components which are later marketed on Internet sites and/or sold to unscrupulous auto-parts dealers.

In McArthur Park, especially on Anaheim you will notice a lot of smaller car shops.

Sometimes, thieves steal the car, sometimes they just break in. Be aware radios and wheel covers aren't the only thing thieves may take. The most popular targets are: engine, transmission, air bags, radios, GPS units, iPods, laptops, and purses.

You can't do something to protect the entire list. You can hide your valuables.

How Do You Stop The Car Thieves?

Here are some ways to prevent car theft:

1. Many insurers suggest keeping your registration in a secret place in the car so thieves can't produce proof of registration.
2. Don't leave the keys in the ignition, the car running and double check to see the doors are locked.
3. When parked, never leave your keys in the car. Close all the windows and the sunroof if you have one.
4. Avoid leaving valuables inside your vehicle where they can be seen.
5. Park in a well lit area. Some neighbors park in front of my building because I have security cameras.
6. Have your car’s vehicle identification number (VIN) etched on each of the windows. Car thieves want to get off cheap. They don’t want to go to the expense of replacing all the glass.
7. Put on your parking brake and turn the wheels turned toward the curb or some other obstruction. This makes it harder for thieves to tow your vehicle.
8. f you see someone loitering around the parking lot, it’s best to park somewhere else. Walk a few extra steps if you think safety is an issue.

What Do I Do If My Car Is Stolen?

Auto Theft Has Been Decreasing Since 1991

First make sure your car is actually stolen. On more than one occasion I was in the wrong parking lot and jumped to the conclusion my car was taken. 

Maybe you parked on a different level, or in a different row. Also there are other reasons your car might be gone. Did you park next to a hydrant, in a red zone, in the handicapped space or in a loading and unloading only zone?  You may want to check the police impound before you assume it was theft.

If it was stolen, call the police immediately. Most crimes that get solved, get solved in the first 48 hours, so call ASAP and improve the odds you'll get your car back. After calling the police, ask any people in the area if they saw what happened.

If your car is stolen, the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) recommends you give the following information to the police:

1. The year, make, model and color of the car and the license plate number
2. Approximate time the car was stolen
3. Description of anyone you saw loitering around your car before it was stolen
4. Names of witnesses
5. Check online places like eBay and Criags List. In some cases, people have found their own car up for sale on these sites.

What About Anti-Theft Devices?

In order of how effective they are, here are the basic anti theft devices.

The passive immobilizer is now standard equipment on 98% of General Motors' light duty vehicles and nearly all of the new Fords. These immobilizers use a key that contains a computer chip which communicates with the car's engine.

Vehicle Tracking/ ALA Lojack.Even if a thief steals your car, new vehicle tracking technologies can get it back again. The least expensive form of vehicle tracking is “VIN etching.” The more expensive tracking devices are electronic and offer a real-time location of the stolen vehicle using Global Positioning Systems (GPS). These are sold with service contracts, and have a reputation for relocating many vehicles a mere hour after they have been stolen.

Kill Switch: This anti-theft device can be activated to shut down part of the engine's electrical system. (I know you’ve seen this used in “bait cars” on the “COPS” TV show.) Some cars have them built in, and they are pretty easy to install. 

Car alarms feature electronic sensors designed to activate when a vehicle is breached: unauthorized entry, breaking of glass, sudden movement, and perimeter violations. When a threat is detected by the sensors, a siren activates (at over 120 dBs), alerting the car’s driver and everyone else within earshot.

Mechanical Immobilizers are the least expensive car anti-theft devices, designed to restrict access to or movement of the vehicle. The biggest advantage of mechanical immobilizers is their highly visual appearance, which should ward off amateur car thieves, but not the pros. Police authorities recommend including one of these in conjunction with other anti-theft devices.  There are also hood clamps, wheel clamps and steering wheel locks.

The FBI says car thefts are back on a downward trend after seeing a slight increase in 2012. The FBI predicts its final 2013 statistics (to be pasted later this year) will see a 3.2 percent reduction Let's also bring those numbers down in the MacAthur Park Neighborhood..