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# Neighborhood groups — do they really work?
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/neighborhood-groups-do-they-really-work/
- Published: 2003-02-28T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T01:40:50.000Z
- Author: Bill Bauer
- Tags: Opinion, Ocean Park, #archive-import, Homeless

(Editor’s note — This is the first column in a series of three that examines neighborhood groups in Santa Monica.) There are eight neighborhood groups “officially” recognized by the City of Santa Monica. Almost every section of the city has one.

Although Santa Monica is a small town geographically, each neighborhood has its unique concerns. The first neighborhood associations popped up more than 20 years ago in Ocean Park and the Pico corridor to deal with local problems. Other neighborhoods followed suit when citizens united to address overdevelopment, traffic, parking, crime, airport noise and other local issues.

Memberships in these associations varies from a dozen members to a couple hundred. However, most of the group's business is done by the chairperson, other officers and a board of directors.

Usually, the general (voting) membership of the association has little say in the association’s operation except to ratify board members and approve resolutions or positions at an annual meeting.

When issues come up with short notice, it is almost always the board of directors who speak for the group, not the group's membership. Being that even the largest of the associations are a tiny percentage of the area’s residents, it’s a stretch to say the group, let alone its board, represents a consensus of neighbors — except by coincidence.

Ocean Park Community Organization is one of the oldest and most active of these associations. Neighborhood development and maintaining the unique character of Ocean Park have always been big OPCO issues.

A proposed affordable housing development by Community Corporation of Santa Monica at Main Street and Pacific Avenue has many adjacent residents upset about its overly large size, mass and density. Convinced that OPCO is working against them to mitigate the project's negative impacts on the surrounding area, neighbors formed Friends of Ocean Park last year to better deal with the project.

Recently, four newly appointed OPCO board members issued a press release trumpeting their fervent support of affordable housing. Last month, OPCO endorsed the CCSM project raising a question, not only about OPCO but other neighborhood groups as well: Do neighborhood associations reflect the needs and opinions of those living in the area or do their leaders promote their own agendas?

It’s obvious that some OPCO board members do have an agenda — one that might or might not be supported by the majority of Ocean Park residents. It is this “agenda” that has resulted in sharp criticism of the association.

Residents living in the Main Street corridor are heavily impacted by drunks as well as traffic and noise from local pubs and eateries. They formed Main Street Area Residents because, as one 2nd Street resident told me, “OPCO doesn't give a damn about our problems.”

Many residents say OPCO also ignores the negative impact of the area's many transients and vagrants. OPCO's lack of response on this and other issues has led to attempts to oust long time chair, Rick Laudati, and pack the board with directors more willing to deal with real community needs. At least one OPCO critic is litigating against OPCO and Laudati because they have not even responded to basic questions about the group's finances.

Residents in the Northeast Neighbors area (Between Wilshire and Montana from 22nd to Centinela) complain about former chair Bob Seldon’s attempt to get his group to support a strong “anti-monster mansion” resolution for the area. Seldon favors the north of Montana standards that curtail the building of “monster mansions” even though the smaller lot sizes in the Northeast area mean even more restrictions when remodeling or rebuilding.

Just a few of weeks ago, Seldon was before the City Council speaking on behalf of his neighborhood for a “monster mansion” restriction despite a recent NN survey that confirmed most residents favor downzoning — but not to the extent of the more restrictive NOMA standards Seldon favors.

One of Seldon's neighbors also said that the neighborhood is relatively conservative based on its voting patterns. He thought Seldon's politics (Green Party etc.) was not representative of the residents. As a result, many of the group's original members have dropped out.

There are residents in virtually every neighborhood who feel that their “official” neighborhood organization ignores important livability issues such as the impact of large numbers of homeless, traffic problems or is too easy on development, especially “neighborhood unfriendly” developments.

Do neighborhood groups misuse their money? I'll have more to say, next week.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 28, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/022803.pdf?ref=smdp.com)