LeBong in Secret Meeting: "Oppose Griffith Park Historic Designation!"
The Autocrat of Griffith Park is at it again. Recently calling all General Managers in this City to a secret meeting at his office, LeBong then ordered all their respective departments to oppose the Historic Designation application for Griffith Park.The Historic Designation application was filed by the Griffith Trust, a family foundation run by Van Griffith, the great-grandson of the man who created Griffith Park and donated the land to the City, Griffith J. Griffith. The application is in direct response to the continued carving up of the park by LeBong for development by his personal friends and donors, and to the violence which he sometimes responds with when questioned by his constituents.
While away in Germany ostensibly on City business yet again, through his sock puppet proxy, Rory Calhoun, LeBong told all the GMs that the application was filed because the community has no confidence in the Department of Rec and Parks. The reality is that the public is completely fed up with LeBong continually concocting schemes for handing over chunks of the park to his buddies, big money donors like the Autry and prominent members of the Korean business community, to name just a few.
Actions by LeBong make it pretty clear that the Clowncilman thinks Griffith Park is his personal backyard. He completely rewrote the version of the Griffith Park Master plan that the community opposes so strongly in the image of Disneyland, complete with a pleasure pier, two funiculars (cable cars) -- one from the Observatory to Mt. Hollywood and one from Mineral Wells to the top of Toyon Landfill -- multilevel parking structures, and new baseball fields on top of the landfill when current closure plans for the landfill call for its restoration to natural habitat.
LeBong also recently promised his Korean financial supporters that they could take a substantial chunk of natural habitat and create "Busan Point" -- a Korean garden of their own design and use. Bypassing official processes and Rec and Parks approval, LeBong often orders or pushes around Rec and Parks employees to build or bulldoze whatever his whim is at the moment. It could be a monument to George Harrison 'here' or a tree for victims of the 1933 Griffith Park fire 'there'. But in the case of 'there', the tree is actually no where near the location where the victims fell, but instead at a location that allowed LeBong to have the absolute biggest press conference possible. It seems that the Clowncilman's sense of propriety with regards to Griffith Park is what the public, and the Griffith family itself, is tired of fighting.
It's worth noting that the "Busan" in LeBong's "Busan Point" promise is one of the Sister Cities of Los Angeles. Contrary to popular belief, the Los Angeles Sister Cities program is not a City program. It's run by a private foundation funded by some of the biggest financial movers and shakers in Los Angeles, including the powerful Korean business community. LeBong has already built the "Berlin Forest" in Griffith Park for yet another Sister City. At last check, there were 27 Sister Cities of Los Angeles, and the number continues to grow as more ethnically linked members of Los Angeles' business community jump in the game. If left unchecked by such efforts as the Historic Designation proposal, LeBong will be handing out chunks of Griffith Park to all of them. Labels: griffith park, Griffith Park Historic Designation, Griffith Park Master Plan, Griffith Trust, Rec. and Parks, tom labonge
Posted by Anonymous @ 7/08/2008 09:26:00 AM
32 Comments:
Amen!! Great Post!!
So why did the idiots in the area elect him?
Le Bong not only ruins important initiatives, but he runs roughshod, BABBLING LIKE A FOOL at City Council meetings.
The people in Le Bong's district have nothing to complain about; they foolishly put a fool in their council seat!
If I hear LaBong say "Sister Cities Program" one more time, I'm will go to city council and puke on the lecturn.
Sister Cities is just a way for officials to explain the need for THEM to travel abroad.
What a total ripoff.
The idiots in CD 4 elected him because the woman running against him ran an odious campaign filled with racist babbling.
If someone of character ran against LeBong, they might beat him.
Great post P-fied!
I thought La Bong would be back today, after a long absence. When I didn't see him again, today, I aksed where he is. Supposedly, the answer to Tom's problems in his district lie in France, this week.
Yes, The Bong is in France, this week. Maybe his $60,000 Cheese Feast Special Event Fee Waiver was his sent off party.
Have fun in France, Tom. Hope you learn more about high school footbal on your trip, you empty headed tool and bully.
The way the incumbents look at it, character has nothing to do with winning elections. Having a big campaign war chest to finance propaganda, distributed during election campaigns in waves, precisely timed for best impact, and aligning with the political powers with clout to swing votes your way is how they like to handle it.
In many ways, character, good character, is a negative element. In order to win, you have to sell your soul to somebody, if you had one to begin with, and that's not easy if there really is any character present.
For incumbents, that bridge was crossed long ago and it's not a moral issue for them anymore. It's just part of doing business and they didn't invent it, so they don't feel responsible for the corruption that permeates their environment.
The incumbents' basic plan is to destroy any and all challengers to their continued reign as quickly as possible- it's part of enhancing job security. Just look at all the posters on this blog that support their bosses and allied office holders. Too much to lose at all levels. Campaign donors especially don't want to start over in the process of "investing" with a new guy (or woman). The incumbent is a "known quantity," so they work hard to keep him/(her) in office.
I don't notice much blogging in defense of DWP's David Nahai, but then he was appointed to his post, and not elected, after Mayor Tony selected him.
Good character alone will not get anyone into office. The campaign advisors could probably elaborate much more on this idea.
If you don't believe that, consider how many office holders have had elections without opponents. Gloria Molina is one prime model of the above considerations.
In Huizar's northern area.
ZUMA DOGG that is a funny, funny, funny post!
Re-read it if you missed it. Right on-the-money about Boing-headed Bong.
The mere fact that LaBonge is off in Germany "again" and, along with Janice Hahn, is among the most travelled Councilmembers promoting "sister city" projects which have a fraction of the validity that a Mayor's presence would -- yet get no attention or criticism for the money they spend -- while the Mayor gets a heap for taking all of three trips abroad in 3 years, shows the short- sightedness of the public and media. Meanwhile, Greg Smith and a number of other CM staffers are gone for a month to 7 countries to study trash, with nary a peep.
Just shows again how the "low lying fruit" of bashing the same targets, is all the media can lead the public to do. And it's only getting worse, now that their budgets are so butchered and staff can barely keep up with basics.
The Times ran a report on how an indie panel found that after hiring the hugely expensive Fujioka at over $300K, the Supervisors/ County bureaucracy is LESS not more transparent, despite the extra cost of senior management -- because they have their own fiefdoms. The money and lack of accountability involved here gets no further mention. None of the BIG city issues do.
LaBonge and Griffith Park, and his secret meetings: he's clever like a fox, hiding it behind that dumb demeanor. Which seems no act, but like he says, "book learnin'" isn't all there is, at least for him. I've got to wonder, what Germans think of this loud buffoon -- just a "typical crude American" I guess. (Even though Germans are right next to Americans and Australians as the loudest and most boorish western travellers.)
If the boisterous W Germans think he's a buffoon, the French must think he's the end of civilization as we know it, no wonder the white man has given the west over to Latino peasants. Only hope: maybe the way he pronounces Los AnGeles, no one will know where he's really from. What do we bet, we see a proclamation at City Hall soon to some small towns somewhere (though it's hard to top the fanfare janice Hahn keeps making over the tiny, poor island off Italy, Ischia). I'm amazed these two have so far missed a chance to travel to Africa to make "sister cities" of some obscure Kenyan township: or is that left for Perry and Parks?
All of the above comments are right on the money, expecially ZD). Tom is a disaster and yet no one has come forward torun against him. He has no sensitivity to his constituents, is arrogant and rude and has the attention span of a gnat. Glad I don't live in his district any longer.
Does he support spending $40 million for the one remaining elephant in Griffith Park, or the Zoo?
I can only imagine how he voted in order to get a photo riding on the big guy.
110, then why do you (those of you in the Mayor's office) put out a release about it?
Why whine here on MS. Sounds like a legit point, and I actually despite the Mayor. But it sounds like one legit point.
But don't cry about it here if you're not getting one of your bag-man reporters at the Times to write about it.
And let's take note that LaBong and Ha=Ha=Hahn (as ZD would say) don't fly off to help peasants. It's always to a nice country.
Zuma:
This was so f u cking funny:
"Hope you learn more about high school footbal on your trip, you empty headed tool"
The Mayor's office can't be putting out negative press about Councilmembers and all their travels which make his pale by comparison -- he's got to be the consensus builder, at least in public.
But if we had a real media, they'd figure this out on their own.
The Daily News instead just puts out stories they KNOW will generate anti- Antonio buzz, because it's "hits" and he's as sure-fire as Bill or Hillary Clinton that way.
Same goes for any story.
If labong thinks anyone will vote for him now he is delusional. he will ruin griffith park. the time for someone new is right now. he is a bully and a putz.
The person to blame here is the Mayor.
LaBonge, or the entire City Council for that matter, cannot order departments to do anything.
Departments are run by the Mayor. He hires and fires GM's and proposes their budgets.
If the Mayor told the GMs to ignore LaBong, they would do it.
4:21 -- you're an idealist. If a councilmember orders a department to do something and it goes unopposed or unnoticed by Tony V's folks, THEY DO IT. No questions asked.
Are Antonio's people reading this?
Notice Served on Mayor's Office:
The cockfighting roosters are coming home to roost!
You lost control of the city.
You lost MORAL control of the city.
People despise and resent Villaraigosa so much that this "scare tactic" fundraising will backfire big time.
And we love it.
The caption to the first photo is "Zuma's penis is this big!"
That photo of LaBong taking a photo of HIMSELF in a photo op with a Victoria's Secret model, is just who he is. He and Janice Hahn, the biggest attention hogs on Council. Well, except for Rosendahl, Alarcon and Reyes.
Tom La Bonge is out of town right now, and good or bad, has been during this time frame. So, it would occur to me that he may have a renegade deputy in play here. Either way, it will be difficult for Tom or anyone at CD4 to publicly not support the HCM application; he has fostered his conservationist image over many years. So, someone needs to get a public commitment from him in the public square...and get him on record.
He just came back today and brought greetings from our Sister Cities in Bordeaux and Berlin, where he was studying something Important along with members of the state department and other city department staffers -- everyone ignored him, maybe not wanting to call attention to his personal boondoggles? Man, that voice. Gives "elitism' a good name, if that's the opposite.
4:34
That's exactly what I said. The Mayor is to blame by either being silent on the issue or agreeing with what LaBonge is doing. The Mayor can tell the departments what to do.
12.40, Labonges M.O. is to have his deputy's do his dirty work for im. This ain't the 1st time hes held secret meetings
Do you guys have any idea how our city operates, or do you, just like the buffoon ZD, want to sit around and make it up as you go along?
The Council is supreme, guys. Any ten can overrule the Mayor on anything. Period.
The enployees listen to the Council mmember as to district matters. The reason is that the rest of the council will generally support the king or queen of the district.
Now to Griffith Park. There are two main outlets for the rage of our vast populace that is underprivileged; Griffith Park and the beach.
When it is hot and humid, and the kids are out of school and you got no bread, where can you go for little or no money to take them for the day? Just to the beach or the park.
Tom wants it to be different and exciting. There are plenty of natural preserves all over Southern California; start with the mountains conservancy or the foothills.
Griffith Park is for the kids; the zoo, the observatory, even the old merry go round. The Autry and the childrens museum and the pony rides and the golf courses.
We need more of these, not less.
The poster, and Zuma Pussy got it wrong this time. I hope Tom can withstand you know nothings and the rest of the naysayers; I'm for the kids myself.
2:48, which one of Tom's gofers are you?
"I'm for the kids myself." So to oppose LaBong's Disney-fication of Griffith Park is to oppose kids now. Kids don't hike. Kids don't enjoy animals and nature. Kids don't need a break from the XBox universe.
Take a f*cking hike, jerkoff. Maybe you'll learn something.
2:48
You've obviously never worked in City Hall. The City Council, by 10 votes, cannot do whatever it wants.
That's why some many of the City Councilmembers opposed the new City Charter and donated money to the campaign against it. It was all about them not wanting to increase the power of the Mayor over City departments.
The ability to hire and fire GM's, set budgets, and do performance evaluations for GM's that determine if they get a pay hike is critical. That's what GM's respond to. If the Mayor told the GM's not to bend over for LaBong, that would be the end of it.
So why doesn't someone simply ask the Mayor how he feels about this matter?
2:48 - I'll try to ignore your 'to be against LaBonge is to be against children' spin-doctor vomit and comment on the rest of your opine.
Griffith Park cannot be all things to all people. No park can.
This is why a regional/local Network of Parks (regional parks and neighborhood parks combined) that provides all of the services you describe, and more, is vital.
Especially now with the cost of gas so prohibitive. People shouldn't have to drive across the City to find a certain kind of parks service/amenity. It should be available at at least one of the local parks in the network.
If LaBonge turns Griffith into Disneyland, like Disneyland only those who can afford to go there (including the cost of fuel) will be able to do so.
LA is local-park-poor. Funding, resources, proper planning and Citywide energy needs to be put into changing this and not into reworking a gem like Griffith into one person's myopic vision.
I note that you do not comment on the 'secret meeting' tactic. Apparently you're not bothered by the means to the end you envision. By hook or by crook, then? How sad.
A comment to anonymous who asked:
"So why did the idiots in the area elect him?"
Many chose not to vote.
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I recall that he got elected with something over 6000 votes.. in a district of over 250,000? That ratio is less than many Neighborhood Council members got elected with.
LaBonge says he needs the publics help to find the arsonist? I think he's setting the fires and he's made a deal with O.J. help me find the arsonist & I'll help you find the "real killer".
LaBonge says he needs the publics help to find the arsonist? I think he's setting the fires and he's made a deal with O.J. help me find the arsonist & I'll help you find the "real killer".
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