City to Vote on the Future of Los Al TV

The City Council will hold a public hearing tonight to address the future of Los Alamitos Community Television, better known as LA TV or Los Al TV.

In 2009, the city reactivated the community cable station and recently invested more than $18,000 to upgrade its studio. Over the years, funding and programming for the station have been a hot-button issue in the community. Tonight, the city council will consider $35,000 in agreements with the nonprofit Community Schools Media Partnership and longtime Studio Production Coordinator John Underwood to produce programs. The council will also consider establishing a commission to oversee the station.

“LA TV and particularly public access (programs) belong to the community and the folks in the community who have the interest, time and wherewithal to make that programming,” said Underwood.

Underwood hopes to have renovations at the studio completed in April and have its doors opened to the community for new programs. Underwood has plans for a number of new shows including cooking features and a new garden program called “Up From the Garden.”

“We haven’t had a studio open since 2006,” Underwood said. “Now my function is to open the doors and bring folks into the studio for new programming.”

Anyone interested in working with LA TV as a producer, volunteer, reporter or tech crewmember can contact him at jsu@socal.rr.com, he said.

Of late, Los Al TV is best known for its coverage of Los Alamitos City Council and school board meetings, high school sports coverage and covering community events such as the Race on the Base or the 4th of July Celebration.

Larry Strawther, president of Community Schools Media Partnership is conducting a community survey to find out what kinds of programs viewers want to see. He is also advocating for technological upgrades to keep up with the influence of the Internet on people’s viewing habits.

“As is, will LA TV be physically relevant in five years? Print media and traditional broadcast media are now paying a heavy price for ignoring this question,” he wrote in a report to the city. “We would be foolish to ignore the rapidity of revolutionary change in communications, cable television  ‘chord-cutting’ and the further growth of satellite cable, which does not carry Los Al TV.”

Tonight’s council meeting is at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 3191 Katella Avenue.