Monday: One p.m. almost on the dot, and here comes thunder! Military display for the start of baseball season, as some kind of jet roars over Echo Park.

Down on the ground: Residents of streets most affected by the opening of the Billy Preston Gate -- Sargent Place, Portia, Bruce Court, etc. -- were saying that none of their neighbors have received promised resident passes or game schedules, and that efforts to contact community liaison staff were being met with boilerplate -- "Welcome back" to the Dodgers season mass emails.*

There are signs leaning on light poles around the neighborhood: "Local Traffic Only." But there have been reports (posted on a neighorhood list serve) that traffic cops just let anyone drive through, because, cops say, they don't know who lives where. Absurdist theater, then. Or standing practice.

Annalisa Magnusson was less than impressed with the guard assigned to Fairbanks Place:

This afternoon, after dozens of cars careened around our corner and sped down our narrow street at 35 miles an hour, a guard finally showed up, an hour late! While he poked around in his trunk for his cute little green vest, another nine cars came whistling around the corner. He was asked why he allowed it, and he said he couldn't do a thing without his vest. Another fashionista. While I certainly appreciate a properly dressed parking guard, I really would like one [who arrived on time]. He had no barrier up, either. I don't know how we can cooperate with our neighbor [the Dodgers] without them doing their part, as well. ... But the guard looks good!

At neighborhood meetings last year Dodgers VP Howard Sunkin stressed the enormity of the organization's project: getting 50,000 cars in and out of the stadium lots. Yes, awesome. But it's a shit storm for Echo Park.

If you're just tuning in, these kinds of problems were mitigated for the neighborhood by the previous owners of the Dodgers, who closed the Scott Avenue gate to Stadium traffic. It was as simple as that. The gates stayed closed for over ten years. Then a Boston parking lot man bought the Dodgers, messed up an already difficult parking situation AND opened the Scott Avenue gate, letting traffic back into the residential streets of Echo Park.

Dodgers rep Noel Pallais is scheduled to speak to neighborhood concerns at the Echo Park Improvement Association (open to the public) this Thursday evening, 7 p.m. at Williams Hall/Barlow Hospital, 2000 Stadium Way.