Updates on some of the biggest stories from The District’s first year

PHOTO by JONATHAN NAFARRETE, WINNER OF OUR FIRST-EVER FLICKR PHOTO CONTEST
Bank doors closing for the last time. Roaring factories fallen suddenly silent. The stock market on suicide watch. Evangelical hymns in 10 thousand churches rising to an angry, bearded God. Foreign powers circling, eyeballing [...]

Andy Street: Residents and business owners come together for the first ever Andy Street Christmas Tree Lighting. 6pm.
ANDY ST AND DOWNEY AVE 3495 Andy St, Long Beach 90805.
Thee Makeout Party: Ex-member CZ still gushes over these guys: “Dictators spirit, Raspberries songs.” 9pm. $3. 21+.
QUE SERA 1923 E Seventh St, Long Beach 90813. 562.599.6170; thequesera.com.

Once living in a hellhole run by gangsters, residents of Andy Street can rightly brag that they’ve found the secret to building a better Long Beach

PHOTO by RUSS ROCA
AND RINA PRAYED
Fifteen years ago, Rina Castaneda broke a cardinal rule of apartment-hunting when she rented a unit after seeing it just once on what turned out [...]

How to take advantage of the Neighborhood Resource Center
The NRC’s purpose is to assist neighborhood and community groups in neighborhood renewal. Go there to find information on:
Neighborhood associations
Public safety
Youth programs
Disaster preparedness
Neighborhood watch
Neighborhood cleanup programs
Code enforcement
The NRC can also provide a meeting place, and access to computers, printers, the Internet, slide projector and screen, and supplies [...]

To-Do list for neighborhood renewal
Launch a Neighborhood Watch program
Program the Graffiti and Shopping Cart Removal Hotline numbers into your cell phone
Utilize your local Community Police Centers (this is also the place to go if you would like to file an anonymous police complaint)
Take advantage of the Urban Forestry Program, which disperses funds to neighborhood groups [...]

A list of important city services
By Rachel Powers
Neighborhood Services, 570.6866
Neighborhood Watch, 570.7229
Apartment Watch, 570.7160
Business Watch, 570.7274
Graffiti Hotline, 570.2773
Shopping Cart Removal, 800.252.4613
Code Enforcement Violations, 570.CODE
Noise Abatement, 570.4126
Urban Forestry Program, 570.5221
Neighborhood Clean-Up, 570.5221
City Light and Power, 983.2000 (for burned out street lights)
Neighborhood Leadership Program, 570.1010
Community Development , 570.6841. http://www.ci.long-beach.ca.us/cd/default.asp
Neighborhood Services, 570.6866. www.ci.long-beach.ca.us/cd/neighborhood_services