RL NEWS update — What didn’t make it to the paper. Oct. 31, 2014

POLAHS Organize Union
SAN PEDRO — On Oct. 29, United Teachers Los Angeles announced that 59 teachers and faculty at the Port of Los Angeles High School in San Pedro organized a union with UTLA.
The teacher’s primary goal is to have a collective voice to ensure an effective learning environment for students. Teachers and faculty will soon begin collective bargaining for wages, hours and conditions of employment at POLAHS.
POLAHS is a charter school. UTLA represents more than 900 educators at independent charter schools in the Los Angeles area.

Victory at TraPac
SAN PEDRO — On Oct. 29, ILWU members returned to work in and around the automated yard on the MOL Matrix.
ILWU locals 13 and 63 had representatives at TraPac to observe and verify changes agreed to and signed by all parties involved.
For more than a month, ILWU locals 13, 63 and 94 have had the TraPac automated yard shut down due to health and safety concerns. Locals 13, 63 and 94 demanded that TraPac hand over the system to the ILWU workforce and implement safety protocols and procedures for all aspects of operation. For weeks the Pacific Maritime Association and TraPac refused to acknowledge that the automated yard was unsafe, despite at least 11 collisions. The company refused to give the union full disclosure and work with them to make the automation safe.
On Oct. 10, the local, working with the Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and the Los Angeles Harbor Department forced TraPac and PMA to agree to a complete system analysis by an independent information technology firm. The third party performed a detailed audit of the automated system’s configuration, access and security features, along with establishing a comprehensive safety and jurisdictional procedures and protocols.
On Oct. 20, the IT audit firm issued a 62-page forensic analysis report that was delivered to all parties involved. The union was correct. There were 11 major issues and more than 24 related issues that needed to be resolved before longshore, clerks and foremen could return to work.
TraPac and PMA agreed tall the of the unions demands on Oct. 24.

Harbor Commission Approves Tariff
LONG BEACH — On Oct. 27, the Long Beach Harbor Commission unanimously voted to approve an ordinance amending the Port of Long Beach Tariff No. 4 by increasing non-container wharfage rates by 5 percent.
The Harbor Commission also approved the adoption of an ordinance establishing charges for water and sewer services to certain customers within the Harbor district for fiscal year 2014 to 2015. The commission later authorized the chief executive to execute a change order for $3,026,740 for the Gerald Desmond Bridge Replacement project.
Click here for video.

Schroeder Hall to House Police East Division Substation
LONG BEACH — On Oct. 24, Long Beach accepted the deed for Schroeder Hall from the U.S. Army Reserve.
The 4.7 acre facility will be renovated to house the Long Beach Police Department’s East Division Substation.
Schroeder Hall has been in the the region since 1960. The Army Reserve Center was constructed in 1960 and later dedicated to Maj. Henry F. Schroeder. Maj. Schroeder served in the United States Army and received the Medal of Honor during the Philippine-American War at Carig in the Philippines. Maj. Schroeder joined the Army in July 1896, and permanently retired with the rank of Major in August 1930.
The current East Division Substation on Los Coyotes Boulevard near the Traffic Circle is undersized and outdated. The new substation will include office space, renovated locker areas, showers, restrooms, and gym facilities, an elevator to provide accessibility for people with disabilities, public waiting and reception areas, and a multi-purpose community room.
Renovation work is expected to start in early 2015, and finish in time for the Substation to open by the end of the year.
Schroeder Hall U.S. Army Reserve Center was declared surplus under the 2005 round of the Base Realignment and Closure process, which was designed to increase U.S. military efficiency by reorganizing its bases. The Long Beach City Council and a citizen advisory committee recommended that the site be used for the Long Beach Police Department’s East Division Substation. The U.S. Departments of Justice and Housing and Urban Development approved a no-cost public benefit conveyance of the facility in 2010, a savings to the Long Beach of more than $3.5 million.
As part of the process, the city helped Mental Health America acquire a site on Long Beach Boulevard, where they will provide a Healthcare Access program to help homeless people get services they need. The site is located adjacent to a Los Angeles County Mental Health facility.

City Manager Announces Recruitment Process for LBPD Chief
LONG BEACH — On Oct. 28, City Manager Pat West announced the process for selecting a new police chief, should a vacancy occur as a result of the Nov. 4, 2014 election.
The city manager plans to conduct an expedited recruitment process of internal candidates. All Long Beach deputy chiefs and commanders will be eligible to apply for the position, and all interested candidates will be reviewed and interviewed.
The process will begin immediately following the November election, should it be necessary, and an announcement of a final decision is expected by mid-November to ensure a smooth transition. There is no expectation that an interim chief would be necessary.

San Pedro Youth Racing in LA Triathlon
LOS ANGELES — Abigail and Baltazar Fedalizo both San Pedro natives finished second in their age brackets in the 2014 Herbalife Los Angeles Triathlon, Sept. 21, in the Super Sprint Not Youth Race.
The Fedalizo siblings raised money for Fight Autism organization. Abigail, 10, and her brother Baltazar, 9, attend White Point Elementary School in San Pedro. Their coach and mentor Deanne Preyer inspired both to compete in the adult triathlon. Preyer is head coach at the Zenith Aquatics Program in Rancho Palos Verdes.
“They are a prime example of the ability of our coaching staff to instill a can-do attitude in Abigail and Bali,” Preyer said.
Abigail and Baltazar’s parents are Gertrudes Fedalizo, a registered nurse at United Healthcare and Baltazar, a senior retired Naval officer and business owner in the biodiesel industry.
“We try to lead by example with our kids and Baltazar senior a triathlete himself, at a very young age encouraged the kids to swim in the open water at Cabrillo Beach,” Gertrudes said.
Both children will continue to compete in the local triathlons.