Los Angeles Police Make Time to Talk Trash With Several Fraternities at USC

Los Angeles police have assigned USC’s fraternities some homework: Get rid of the mountains of overflowing trash in your alleys.

The garbage is not only unsightly and unsanitary, it “breeds and encourages criminal activity,” Officer Robin Surendranath told the Daily Trojan.

Transients are attracted “to the high quality of the fraternities’ trash, which sometimes includes furniture, clothing, electrical devices, compact discs,” the newspaper said.

An additional problem is that USC students occasionally “invite vagrants into the [frat] houses to party,” Surendranath said.

Nothing like a few drinks to make folks more gregarious.

An InterFraternity Council officer told the Daily Trojan that “one house found a vagrant living in their basement for a couple weeks. This guy found his way into the house.” I just hope he wasn’t hazed too badly during Pledge Week.

By the way: The police report makes me wonder if it’s time for U.S. News & World Report, the Princeton Review and the other college guides to include a new ranking: “Quality of Students’ Trash.”

Then again: This is a guy problem at USC, as you might have guessed. The LAPD’s Surendranath said the school’s sororities have the “cleanest back alleys I have ever seen.”

What’s-in-a-Name Dept.: Tom Leventhal of Long Beach noticed that a Chino motel lost its central motif during a recent windstorm (see photo).

Motel owner Janis Grabowski said the 120-foot pine, which was once featured in Sunset magazine, was believed to be at least 200 years old. “People we didn’t even know called to give us condolences,” she said. Plans for a monument at the site are being discussed, she added.

Talk about minute wedding planning...: The Long Beach Parks and Recreation Department is offering a course on that all-important first dance (see accompanying). A six-week course. I looked but couldn’t find any courses on Tossing the Bouquet, Ducking the Rice or Keeping Your Spouse’s Uncle Sober at the Reception.

A suitable wedding gift, perhaps: City Councilman Tom LaBonge (the only council member who shoots photos for this column, I might add) sent along a shot from Los Feliz that proved once again that parking in L.A. is an art (see photo).

miscelLAny: I’ve mentioned before how syndicated broadcaster Paul Harvey picks up items from this column without crediting me. I’m happy he left me out of the latest one. In retelling one of my blurbs on Jujubes, he mispronounced the candy as “Jujoobs.”

Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LA-TIMES, Ext. 77083, by fax at (213) 237-4712, by mail at Metro, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 and by e-mail at steve.harvey@

latimes.com.