About Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske

Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske was elected to the Long Beach City Council in 2006 to a four-year term of office. The 5th Council District is the largest council district in the City comprising more than 11.5 square miles. It is the largest because it has the least density of homes, apartments and/or condominiums. Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske is the only member of the Long Beach City Council to utilize a blog. She hopes that you will keep reading it as she writes about her experiences in local government.

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Archive for May, 2008

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What Are They Doing in Sacramento?

Friday, May 30th, 2008

Thanks to the diligence of www.lbreport.com, we now know that the folks up in Sacramento don’t have much respect for the problems facing cities like Long Beach when it comes to being able to control who, what, where and how many released sex offenders can inhabit our neighborhoods.
As reported this week, an Assembly Committee gutted […]

Public Access Television May End in 2009

Wednesday, May 28th, 2008

Residents of Long Beach should be aware that the public access cable channels now available to residents will end in 2009 thanks to a move by the state legislature.
With the passage of the Digital Infrastructure and Video Competition Act of 2006 (DIVCA)  local cable companies will no longer be required to provide public access facilities, […]

Street work planned: Los Coyotes Diagonal from Studebaker to Carson and Bellflower between Spring and Wardlow

Tuesday, May 27th, 2008

Great news! The City Council has approved an authorization to pay for street rehabilitation work in the following areas of the 5th Council District:

 Los Coyotes Diagonal from Studebaker Road to Carson Street
Bellflower Blvd between Spring Street and Wardlow Road

Repair will include the pavement, replacing damaged curbs, gutters and sidewalk, removing and replacing bituminous surfaces, cold […]

Ban on Check Cashing Companies — Not just in Redevelopment areas

Tuesday, May 27th, 2008

The City Council voted to put a moratorium on check cashing and pay day advance companies throughout the city so that the City can study the impact of the growth of these businesses.
At first, Councilmember Lowenthal proposed that the ban be put in the downtown area and in “redevelopment areas.” Problem with that proposal — […]

Tips for Making Your Home Green

Sunday, May 25th, 2008

I ran across a very interesting publication — “45 ways to green that no so new house” by the US Green Building Council that contains 45 basics on how to go green.
The suggestions range from removing the lint from your dryer so it will work more efficiently to buying a “water sense toilet” that dramatically […]

City Needs Traffic Plan and Sturdy Barriers at Farmers Markets

Friday, May 23rd, 2008

A couple of weeks ago, a constituent contacted me and asked if the City could replace the saw-horse, moveable barriers at the farmers markets and replace them with either police cars or some type of vehicle in order to prevent automobiles from driving into the market and hitting pedestrians as happened in Santa Monica in […]

Did Long Beach Leave Money on the Table?

Monday, May 19th, 2008

Consider this:

Chevron just posted a $5 billion (yes, billion) dollar profit for the first quarter of 2008
Crude oil just hit $126 a barrel
The following California cities assess a per tax per barrel of crude taken from their cities:

City                       Tax per Barrel           Estimated Production     Est. Revenue
Beverly Hills                  $0.34                         193,000               $65,620
Huntington Beach           $0.31                         935,000               $291,720
Inglewood                     $0.22                         3,100,000            $682,000
Santa […]

Gay Parade and Fire Department History

Monday, May 19th, 2008

My wonderful friends at the LB Firefighter Museum drove me, my partner, Flo, my chief of staff and an intern from my office, plus three friends, in an antique fire truck today in the Gay Pride Pride Parade.
Thank god it wasn’t as hot as the past couple of days. The parade was fun. I couldn’t […]

Court Says Gay Marriage Legal in California

Thursday, May 15th, 2008

My email inbox is full. My voice mail system is too. The word came down at 10 am this morning that the California Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that the state cannot prevent same sex couples from legally marrying.
This is an important civil rights victory! Whenever government takes away rights from anyone for any reason, it […]

Gang Czar Not Needed

Thursday, May 15th, 2008

I was glad to listen to the newly appointed “gang czar” in Los Angeles say that he thinks the term “czar” is inappropriate. Afterall, this isn’t Russia.
Gang violence is a problem. But we need to be honest. Not all the violence that is on our streets and in some of our homes, isn’t gang related. […]

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