Facts & Comments

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Fact: An initiative that has qualified for the 2020 ballot will let California voters decide whether to repeal the terms of Proposition 13 as they apply to commercial properties, shifting from tax assessments based on the price of the most recent sale to current-market valuations.

Comment: An approval could add feathers to the caps of property owners who have been selling into the hot market in recent years. They will have spared themselves a hit to bottom lines that would come with a switch to current-market benchmarks. Recent buyers, meanwhile, wouldn’t feel much pain in a switch because their tax bills would have been recently adjusted to the current market in any case.


Fact: Austin Beutner and the Los Angeles Unified School District seem to be at loggerheads with Alex Caputo-Pearl and United Teachers Los Angeles over a new contract although both sides seem to agree the organization will eventually need more money and seem to think state and federal governments should provide such funds.

Comment: Perhaps Beutner and Caputo-Pearl could come to an interim understanding with provisions for retroactive adjustments based on what happens with the 2020 ballot initiative, which could put LAUSD in line for new revenue from property taxes.


Fact: Netflix Inc. recently confirmed reports from mid-summer that it has bought at least 18 billboards on the Sunset Strip.

Comment: The disruptor’s move to embrace a form of communication that’s about as old as the carnival barker says more about billboards than streaming, showing old media never die − they just adjust to new market conditions.


Fact: Government officials in Ireland are looking for a location for a consulate in Los Angeles, an effort that is proceeding alongside plans to link with Loyola Marymount University’s new Playa Vista Campus for IrelandCon, an all-day conference to examine tech, trade and cultural ties to the United States.

Comment: The island nation already punches over its weight in the Los Angeles area, with 185 companies from over there accounting for 20,400 jobs in Southern California, ranking No. 7 among foreign investors here, just ahead of China, according to the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. Look for Ireland to keep pushing, with a keen eye on the opportunity to showcase itself as the largest English-speaking country in the European Union as the United Kingdom continues down the Brexit path.


Fact: Mayor Eric Garcetti faced hoots, hollers and catcalls when he met with Venice residents about the city’s plans to build a homeless shelter there.

Comment: There’s no way to make any substantial progress on homelessness without facing the wrath of some voters. Garcetti deserves credit for walking into what was bound to be toe-to-toe debate with constituents, and they ought to appreciate the respect the mayor showed them by showing up.

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