The Next Phase: $$$,$$$

The Fire Station 62 Ad Hoc Committee has been busily working to complete its bylaws and 501(c)3 status, and hoping to kick off the next phase of realizing the neighborhood's dream of converting the ol' fire station into a community center. A certain amount of work will need to be done to bring the building up to modern standards - upgrade the electrical, modernize the restrooms, do a little bit of roof work in one spot, tear out some glued-on carpet, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. She ain't young. 62 is turning 62 next year, and she'll have to come up with a pretty nickel (ah, inflation) for an Oprah-fitting makeover.

We have both an architect and a contractor on our committee who've been tasked with pinning down the amount we'll need to raise. We might be looking at half a mil here, chump change if you're Brad Pitt renovating a work-out gym. But in our neighborhood, we might be looking at selling 200,000 cupcakes and 300,000 glasses of horchata to raise that kind of cash.

We're a marvelously diverse neighborhood, the mirror of Los Angeles in many respects. Our households encompass a spectrum of income, from the low to the high. If you've been blessed in this economy or have helping hands and wish to assist in some way, please, join us in a meeting. We meet quarterly on third Wednesdays in the months of January, April, July and October at St. Andrew's Lutheran Church, 11555 National Blvd. in Mar Vista, in the library, 7 to 9 pm. And if we come knocking at your door, soliciting funds, please give what you can. Also, be watching this blog for notice of any fund-raising events.