Streetsblog

So, we're just two weeks away from the first L.A. Streetsblog fundraiser hosted by the Eco-Village and sponsored by New Belgium Brewing.  And we have an exciting new addition to the event.  The first ever Los Angeles Streetsfilm that was shot, edited and produced here in Los Angeles will debut at 7:30 P.M. and we'll have a laptop available all night to view it the rest of the night for any stragglers.  The film was shot and produced by Ivy London and is sure to be a hot topic of conversation.

Yesterday, Los Angeles Streetsblog quietly celebrated its second birthday with a slice of Hungarian cheesecake and a story about Paris Hilton.  Yeah, we really know how to party.

Way back when I first started writing Street Heat, one of the way that I attracted readers was to do long, in-depth coverage of Metro Board meetings.  I would write a preview beforehand and a review afterward.  When Street Heat moved to Streetsblog, I continued the practice even though the other Streetsblogs would just cover any news that came out of their local MTA meetings.

As Los Angeles Streetsblog inches towards its second birthday on March 3, we have some pretty ambitious plans to expand and improve our coverage so that we can cover more stories, in a more in-depth way, around Los Angeles City and County.  Currently, we have one staff person in Los Angeles, me, and I'm part-time to boot.  With the exception of the work done in the weeks following Sammy's birth, all of the guest pieces have been donated.  My contract, and all of the Los Angeles Streetfilms, have been paid for out of New York because of the very generous support of Mark Gorton.

This will be difficult news for those of you who are already reeling from Oprah's retirement, Simon Cowell's abandonment of "American Idol" and Sewell Chan's departure from City Room, but here it is: I am leaving my job as editor-in-chief of Streetsblog.

Last summer, Streetsbloggers wrote stirring defenses of the transit-friendliness of their communities for a series aimed at finding the most transit-friendly community in L.A.  I'm hoping to repeat that success with a short series, to run the week between Christmas and New Years, on what you want to see change on Los Angeles' streets in 2010.  There's no limit on words, but there is a minimum.  For example, a post such as this won't get published:

Today is sort of a perfect storm for me.  In addition to the regular writing and baby time, I'm being skyped in to meetings in New York and listening and "Live Tweeting" Metro.  I'll get Today's Headlines, syndicated stories, a wrap for yesterday's bike meeting, and a report on the Metro meeting all written by the end of the day; but it might take a little more time than normal.  Thanks for your patience.

Today on the Streetsblog Network, member blog UrbanCincy notes with deserved pride that Cincinnati was ranked the seventh-safest large city for pedestrians in the nation in Transportation for America's "Dangerous by Design" study.

This Saturday at 10:00 A.M., I'll be joining the hosts of the popular Internet Radio show Bike Talk for a discussion of bikes, mobility, politics and policy. This is my first time doing live radio since a debate with Senator Karcher on a New Jersey Transit fare hike.  Hope I'm not too rusty.