Angered by alleged RV Dweller and transient drug use, prostitution and loud noise, residents on Victoria and Prospect in Venice pooled resources and “beautified” The Venice United Methodist Church last week by having a gardening crew completely remove all of the greenery in front of the Church. Residents told Yo! Venice! that the work was done with the approval of the Church, but they had to pay for it.
Venice residents around the church have asked for Yo! Venice! reader support, asking that readers call in during business hours (310-391-2314) and also email the church asking them to “be neighborly” by discouraging transients and RV Dwellers (outside and on Church property) as well as providing nighttime security.
The Church may be resistant to “neighborliness”, as we have learned that the Treasurer of the The Venice United Methodist Church is none other than pro-RV activist Peggy Lee Kennedy. Ms. Kennedy is also behind the “Spirit of Venice” blog and an alleged member of the Venice Action group with Karen Wolfe, Chris Plourde, David Ewing and Venice Neighborhood Council President Linda Lucks.
(I deleted the picture that was here as someone commented they thought its placement was “vindictive” … it was not meant to be, so I deleted it!)
Neighbors say that during the evening the RV population and their transient friends along Victoria and Prospect had become so impossible to deal with that they feared for the safety of the neighborhood. Since so many transients were sleeping in the hedges outside of the church at night and using the “cover” the hedges provided for illicit activity, they had them chopped down, as seen in the pictures.
While we were there (late afternoon), there was only one passed out transient on the side door, three RV’s on Victoria and two used condoms in the gutter where RV’s park at night on the west side of Prospect. The neighbors also allege that the church allows an RV or two to park within church parking lot gates that run their generators well into the evening disturbing the peace of the neighborhood.
Yo! Venice! recommends that readers contact the church during business hours (and make sure the person on the phone is not Peggy Lee Kennedy) and also email the Church to tell them that they need to discourage RV dwellers and transients from using Church property and the surrounding public streets as a hub for illegal activity. The neighbors ask that you request the church not allow full time RV dwelling on Church property.
It will be interesting to see how many lots like this one are named in the “Streets to Homes” program. Neighbors near this church said that while they were “for” the program, any attempt to use this lot would end up in court as the church “can’t even deal with the RV’s they allow on the property now.”
ADDED INFORMATION: The Venice United Methodist Church has an awesome 1/2 pipe and does GREAT and WONDERFUL things for the community and kids during the day. Truly, they do great stuff for the community. This issue is only about them being mindful of their property in the hours between 10PM and 6 AM.
