TheFoothillsForum

While I was gone last week, a notice was put in my mailbox that my address numbers were going to be painted on my curb and a "donation is voluntary and sincerely appreciated". I spent a lot of time and effort to paint my own address numbers on my curb (with the appropriate paint and prep-work) and I did NOT want some bozo messing up my paint job. However, since I was away and didn't respond to the notice, my curb was painted This morning I saw the culprits and called LAPD to report them as vandals. Two officers showed up very quickly and helped mediate (kudos to LAPD--they did a good job). It turns out the painters are using a legitimate permit from the City of LA, but there is a catch. The painters are working for a company called "Curb Numbering Service". This is a for-profit company so any donations you give them go right into their pocket. The owner of the company is on the board of a not-for-profit group called Care For The Children. Care For The Children is actually the holder of the curb painting permit, so if you call up the city they will tell you that the curb painting is for Care For The Children. But when I called up Care For The Children, they said they will get none of the donated money--they are just letting Curb Numbering Service use their permit until Curb Numbering Service can get their own permit.

I am not happy about my curb being painted, but technically the curb is owned by the city and they do give out permits for it to be painted. However, you can tell this Curb Numbering Service to not paint your curb if you want (and you catch them in time). BUT YOU ARE NOT UNDER ANY OBLIGATION TO GIVE A DONATION, AND NONE OF YOUR MONEY WILL GO TO ANY "FEEL-GOOD" ORGANIZATION, IT IS STRICTLY A FOR-PROFIT BUSINESS. Just so you know...

They did ours too....and it was crooked!

That's not an isolated incident.

I don't like when they go around; I feel that an older, well-painted marker looks far better than a fresh, poorly-done one.

New doesn't always mean better.

on Fenwick above the park we don't have curbs only a 60 year old sloping crumbling blacktop. they painted the house number and it was a mess so I painted it all black and it looks better now. my house number has been in plain sight on my garage door for the last 40 years.

When we bought our house a few years ago, the curb numbers were already freshly painted. About a month later a man came and talked to my husband while he was out in the yard. He claimed to have painted the curb and even acknowledged it was before we purchased the house. He was very insistant that my hubby pay him. Of course he was told to take a hike.

The guy came by this afternoon to try to collect. I told him that we did not ask for the service and that our address was clearly visible in a several spots. He tried again, but then politely gave up and tried the neighbor.

So tonight a guy came by asking for a donation for painting the curb. My housemate asked where the donation was going. He said some of it goes to a charity. (WRONG) My housemate started pushing him--what charity and how much? The guy suddenly started backtracking and saying that he really didn't know where the money was going. (BS) My housemate kept asking him for answers--the guy got belligerent and finally admitted that none of the money goes to any charity. Then they got in an argument and my housemate told him to get off our property. He said he wasn't on our property (he was) and then he ran away. Tomorrow I will call the city and Care For The Children to tell them that this Curb Numbering Service is misrepresenting itself.

My friends, I just received a visit from a gentleman to my perch on Odell Street about five minutes ago, asking for a $15 donation for curbside house number painting.

I gave him the benefit of the doubt that he was indeed contracted by the city to paint the numbers (when he showed me what appeared to be a white piece of paper, with small, fading text, with the city logo on it); but when he asked for a donation, I politely, but firmly, explained to him that we had no idea that numbers were being painted; that we had no idea that we would be asked for a donation; that we had no idea that we had the option to opt out of the painting. Finally, I told him that I was aware of his/their activities around the neighborhood, in case he thought I didn't know any better and to make him realize that we would be keeping an eye on him/them.

In the end, he went on to ask if we had received a notice on our front door. He then he asked if we could donate at least $5, at which point, he was starting to piss me off. I told him we had received nothing. I advised him that in the future, such notices should be placed in our mailboxes (even though it is technically illegal to do that) or somewhere more conspicuous. After a few minutes of this, he apologized and left.

Now, I don't mind the number painting, and I don't mind the donations. I do mind that there is no transparency to this whole process. I do mind that people just come to my front door asking for donations for services I had no idea were being offered.

Interestingly enough, he had a wad of bills in his left hand, so he's been busy.

yea. it would of been different if they asked BEFORE they painted the curb. the whippersnapper came to my door. started off with a we painted your curb.. then I shut the door, with a not interested. I hear him as I close the door saying don't be rude. hell with them. if i wanted a service done, i would of hunted for the service.

Well, civility, sir. Always civility.

I was lucky enough to have caught them before they started and told them no, but I did see a guy going door to door tonight about 8:15 I assume he was trying to collect

who gives a crap about being civil to those that expect to get paid for something we never asked for. I also hang up on the telemarketers that call every day and interrupt me. I'm on do not call list and these a-holes try to sell something using a BS story. not being civil to them either. sometimes i may even get crude with them. so you can be civil, I will be my self. thank you.

I taped the little piece of paper they distributed to my curb and wrote DO NOT PAINT. Good thing too, cause in addition to the cost of the painting job they did a lousy sloppy job on the houses they did do.. white globs and paint drips all over the place.

What "little piece of paper they distributed"?

In my neighborhood there was a notice of intent to paint. With all the donation after the fact information on it.