24 Locals Run for Studio City Neighborhood Council

A total of 24 people will be running for the Studio City Neighborhood Council as community advisers to elected officials. The race promises to pit some longtime rivals, and some present board members decided not to run again.

Most notably, the longest-seated board member and past president Ben Neumann, who at the last Neighborhood Council meeting thanked the board and spoke about what an honor it was to serve with everyone. Other present members Jeff Carter and Ben Di Benedetto decided not to run again for the board.

Among the newcomers on the list are , a lifelong resident who went to school locally and manages with her family on Ventura Boulevard. Also, president of  , who has worked for a compromise of medical marijuana shops in Studio City, is running for a seat.

, a self-employed real estate consultant who butt heads with many of the board members while working on the Residential Floor Area District plan, and helped lead a campaign to oust longtime board member Lisa Sarkin, is also running for a seat.

Nominations closed at midnight Tuesday, but only the five statements below were filed on the site.

Studio City Patch welcomes all nominees to post their statements or blog their statements. For instructions, click here.

According to Steve Box, the Candidate Filing deadline for the Southeast Valley was Tuesday at midnight and less than 24 hours later, after processing 189 candidates for the region, here are the Studio City candidates:

(Names in Bold are present board members)

Service Organization (2 seats available)

Service Organization    Kessler, Remy

 Service Organization    Niederberg, Richard

Residential Homeowners (4 seats available)

Residential Homeowners Seats    Angel, Sarah

Residential Homeowners Seats    Feder, Eric

Residential Homeowners Seat    Nieman, Dan

Residential Homeowners Seats    Pyken, Matt

Residential Homeowners Seats    Sarkin, Lisa

 Residential Homeowners Seats    Steinberg, Gail

Residential Homeowners Seats    Walker, John

 Residential Homeowners Seat    Yacoubian, Lisa

 Residential Homeowners Seats    Welvang, Denise

 Residential Renters (3 seats available)

Residential Renters Seats    Drucker, Jane

Residential Renters Seats    Eisenberg, Karen

Residential Renters Seats    Hughes, Arthur

 Residential Renters Seats    Shackelford. Lana

Residential Renters Seats    Taylor, Ronald

 Residential Representative    Going, Geoffrey

 Business Representatives (3 seats available)

 Business Representatives    Lawler, John

Business Representatives    Ouellette, Scott

Business Representatives    Villa, Rita

At-Large Stakeholder (1 seat)

At-Large Stakeholder Seat    Davis, Lisa

At-Large Stakeholder Seat    Humeid, Sam

Youth Board Member (1 seat)
Youth Board Member    Vafaee, Pasha

Employee Representative (2 seats)

Employee Representative    Raphael, Shoshana



Here are all of the statements that are available:

Homeowners Seats 

 ERIC FEDER

Working as a Corporate Director in the entertainment industry for which Studio City is named, it is very important for me to work with my fellow residents to ensure that film and television production is a core revenue for us. My wife and I work with various dog rescue organizations and are the proud parents of three shelter pets.

I am not a career politician. I am a Los Angeles native. Born in Panorama City, I have lived my entire life in California. Let’s work together to modernize our infrastructure, ensure the safety of our neighborhoods, and keep our government working for us!

JOHN WALKER

It has been my pleasure to serve my community as President of the SCNC and on the Board to help protect and preserve the quality of life in Studio City and help make the SCNC one of the most respected NCs throughout Los Angeles.

DENISE WELVANG

As one of the few residents in Studio City with a home on Ventura Blvd, I have a unique exposure to the needs and problems of all classes of stakeholders, be they homeowners such as myself, the business owners across the street from me, their employees, their customers, as well as the property owners where those businesses are located. I also recognize the many common problems we deal with are equally shared by the renters in the apartment buildings located behind those businesses. My neighborhood is a microcosm of Studio City in just a few blocks: Hillside & flatland, businesses and residence, we have it all. Your problems are ours as well.

 Service Organization Seats

REMY KESSLER

It has been a pleasure and an honor to have served on the Studio City Neighborhood Council and its various committees for the past seven years, including as Treasurer for four years. I seek re-election to further the accomplishments we have made and to continue to protecting our community for the benefit of all stakeholders. Thank you for your continued support.

RICHARD NIEDERBERG

This is my 60th year of living in Studio City. I have observed many changes; some good, some bad. I will work hard to retain and restore the quality of life that the stakeholders have come to expect, particularly in the areas of Land Use and Cultural Affairs. I am the President of the Studio City Optimist Club which holds Essay and Oratorical Contests for Youth in Studio City, as well as our yearly Ovarian Cancer Walk/Run and Health Fair that we conduct at the CBS Radford Lot in Studio City. I am a lawyer in private practice in Studio City, as well as being a member of the Los Angeles Fire Department’s CERT and ACS teams, and I train Mediators for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office. I have the time, energy, desire, and resources to serve on the Studio City Neighborhood Council in an exemplorary fashion.

Elections are scheduled for Sept. 20 and will be held at

Volunteers are needed for the election, for more informaiton click here: