The Summer Night Lights program that has been credited for keeping crime rates low by offering youngsters an alternative to gang culture will serve the central area of the city from a location in the Historic Filipinotown district northwest of Downtown this year.
Summer Night Lights provides facilities and city staff to oversee various programs that will be available until 12 midnight on a daily basis throughout the summer as part of a bid to make constructive activities available during the months when schools are closed. Last year, for example, the various locations hosted basketball and soccer tournaments, workshops in acting, film screenings, and classes in music, dance, fashion and aerobics.
A city-owned recreational facility at Lake Street Park in Filipinotown will serve the central city area under the program, which also calls for similar efforts at 23 other locations throughout the city. The centers opened on July 7 and the program will continue until September 4, about the time most schools will resume classes.
Lake Street Park is located on the 200 block of N. Lake Street, just north of Beverly Boulevard. Filipinotown sits between the Echo Park district to the north and the Westlake district to the south, with the Angeleno Heights district to the east and the Silverlake district to the west. There are numerous gangs that operate in the general area, as well as large populations of school-aged children who are not involved in gangs.
City officials credit the Summer Night Lights program with keeping a lid on gang activity last year. Representatives of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's said that last summer saw a reduction in gang-related crime despite the economic downturn and the cancellation of most Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) summer classes.
This marks the third year of the Summer Night Lights program, which has grown steadily from 8 locations in 2008 to 16 last year and 24 for the current summer. The program is overseen by Villaraigosa's Office of Gang Reduction and Youth Development.
"Summer Night Lights is a crucial part of our broader strategy to invest in another summer of hope for our youth, and safety for our families," Villaraigosa said recently.
The program costs approximately $250,000 for each location — or $6 million for this year's roster of 24 facilities. City funds and contributions from private donors pay for the program.
Other parks around the city that will serve as Summer Night Lights locations include: Cypress, Glassell, Hubert Humphrey, Imperial Courts, Jackie Tatum Harvard, Jim Gilliam, Jordan Downs, Lemon Grove, Mt. Carmel, Nickerson Gardens, Ramon Garcia, Ramona Gardens, Ross Snyder, Sepulveda, Costello, Delano, Highland Park, Lake Street, Normandale, Van Ness, Martin Luther King, Slauson, South and Valley Plaza.
Villaraigosa's anti-gang strategy also includes contracting with so-called gang interventionists to provide crisis management after gang shootings and negotiate cease-fires. It also provides after-school and job training programs for at-risk youth and gang members.
Call the city's information line at 3-1-1 or visit lacity.org on the Internet for information on the Summer Nights Lights program.
Image from Google Maps.
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