Antonio Stresses Smarter Growth
Calling the San Fernando Valley the “backbone” of L.A., Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa challenged its business leaders on Thursday to support his efforts to reform the city’s public schools and boost its economy. In his first “State of the Valley” address, Villaraigosa told members of the Valley Industry and Commerce Association that they can help develop policies that will attract good jobs to broaden the middle class, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported. The mayor has vowed to create a $100 million trust fund for affordable housing, and asked business leaders to support a $1 billion bond issue that would help finance the program. Villaraigosa also urged business leaders to support his efforts to reform Los Angeles Unified.
LAPD Called Short of ’06 Goal
The independent monitor overseeing the LAPD consent decree said Thursday he expected it to miss the June 2006 deadline for full compliance. Michael Cherkasky said concerns remain about tracking misconduct, possible racial profiling in traffic stops and the pace of use-of-force investigations. L.A. entered into the consent decree with the Department of Justice in 2001 following the Rampart scandal. The agreement mandated an array of improvements for the LAPD over five years and averted a Justice Department lawsuit over allegations of excessive force, false arrests and unreasonable searches. Cherkasky and his risk-consulting firm, Kroll Inc., were hired to ensure compliance on behalf of the federal judge who will decide next summer if the consent decree should be lifted, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported.
Chick Says No to Bid for State Controller
Los Angeles City Controller Laura Chick said Thursday that she will not run for state controller next year, choosing instead to finish city projects that include the formation of a fraud and abuse strike force in her office. Chick, a Democrat, is dropping out of what is shaping up to be a formidable field. Other Democrats planning to run are state Sen. Joe Dunn of Santa Ana, Assemblyman Dario Frommer of Glendale and John Chiang, chairman of the State Board of Equalization. Republicans considering the office include state Sen. Abel Maldonado of Santa Maria and former assemblyman Tony Strickland of Thousand Oaks. Elected city controller in 2001 and reelected this year, Chick had been exploring a run for the state office for months, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Film Permit Group Gets a Remake
The Entertainment Industry Development Corp. is scheduled to announce today that it is shedding its bureaucratic name for the punchier Film L.A. Inc. “Now, you actually know what they do,” Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said. The changes come as L.A. faces competition from cities, states and foreign countries luring movie and TV productions with generous tax incentives, the Los Angeles Times said. Film L.A. says it will work with government officials to develop a marketing plan that may feature movie trailer advertisements and public service announcements touting the economic benefits of the industry. The simpler name coincides with the group’s move later this month to the Los Angeles Center Studios downtown from its current headquarters in Hollywood.
State Agencies Criticize Report on Gas Terminal
Three of California’s most powerful regulatory agencies filed sweeping indictments Thursday of how the Bush administration reached its conclusion that the proposed Long Beach liquefied natural gas terminal would be safe. On the last day for comment on the project’s draft environmental report, the three agencies raised questions about the safety of building terminals to handle flammable liquid gas in populated areas, such as Long Beach, where many live and work within three miles of the site. Two of the agencies called for the report to be rewritten. The detailed comments from the PUC, the California Energy Commission and the California Coastal Commission could help lay the groundwork for a possible legal test of the report, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Peninsula Resort Units Sell Out Quickly
Fifty-one people plunked down an average of $2.4 million this week to purchase vacation properties at the planned Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes. The allure of an income-producing vacation property as well as the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of the county’s only luxury coastal resort is why all 36 casitas and 15 villas put on the market sold in just 2 & #733; hours for a cumulative $120 million. People who buy into Terranea can stay a maximum of 60 days a year at the luxury casitas on the coastal bluff once occupied by Marineland, the Daily Breeze reported. Then they will reap about 60 percent of the rental fees the resort will charge guests who stay at the units. The remaining casitas and the larger villas will go on the market next spring.
