Essel's Sinking Ship
Yesterday I told you that CD2 candidate, Downtown Chris Essel, once gleefully spackled SB1818 all over LA. Looks like the proverbial chickens have hit the fan as a pro-developer/anti-neighborhood council screed penned by Essel for the powerful Central City Association hit distribution through the SLAP-Happy and NC networks. All of this has led to several prominent neighborhood leaders in CD2 expressing sharp diasppointment in City Controller Wendy Greuel for endorsing Essel today. The following is one such example from OurLA.org:
Hi Wendy,
I am dismayed to learn that tomorrow you will be publicly endorsing Chris Essel for your former Council seat. Many of us consider Chris' running to be an insult to CD2. She has no connection to CD2 whatsoever, and in fact has a record of standing with the "downtown" boys which flies in the face of our concerns here. One would be hard pressed to find many, if any, community activist or leader, whether it be Sunland-Tunjunga, Studio City, Valley Glen, North Hollywood, Valley Village, Van Nuys, Foothill Trails, or Sherman Oaks who finds Chris Essel to be a credible candidate. She hasn't a clue about our communities and has had no ties to the Valley for years. We need true representation in the Valley. We do not need another of the Mayor's plants on the City Council.
Not only does she take credit, while Chair of the Central City Association (CAA), for pushing forward SB 1818 in the state Senate, but she is also quoted as saying "As a result of our efforts, a citywide ban on condominium conversions is off the table, and neighborhood councils will now be required to submit economic disclosure statements before creating a council file." This does not sound like a person who is a friend to the empowerment of neighborhood councils or to providing protection for renters. Although SB 1818 is promoted as creating more affordable housing, it is a friend to the developers, not the communities. And if affordable housing was the issue, why would the CAA not support a citywide ban on condominium conversions as many more affordable housing apartments are lost than gained with condo conversions.
I could go on and on, but you get the point. Attached is a copy of the CAA newsletter where Chris takes credit for the leadership role that the CAA has played in these issues.
As a citizen you have the right to endorse a candidate, but as City Controller, I believe you are compromising your position by endorsing anyone publicly.
Sincerely,
Judy Price
Valley Glen
Labels: cd2, cd2 special election, Chris Essel, sb 1818
Posted by Michael Higby @ 8/06/2009 04:52:00 PM
38 Comments:
Got three e-mails today form NC folks in CD2 about this letter.
This is being blasted around all over the place.
This ding bat is as good as dead.
Can we watch the "S.I.S. Essel" sink in Hanson Lake ??
S.I.S. = Special Interest Ship
What morons in AV's office thought Essel would make a good candidate?
What an idiot this women is.
Burnside just quit Essel's campaign.
Watch and see. There is going to be a big backlash in CD2 against all the Machine candidates. Its gonna be Benson and Sheftel in a run-off. LMAO
Mr. Spot, that would be "Hansen" lake. Not Hanson.
Essel has become the Jack Weiss of this campaign. Hated by many , loved by none.
5:44: Finally the Essel is WEiss and I hate them both like I hate the Mayor troll has outed himself: what a surprise, it's Phil Genderjoined!
The good old boy network will pick a chick-cop this time.
Mark my words.
If you are telling me Burnside was working for Essel, as in Sue Burnside and Associates, then I think a certain banned someone just posted an anti-Essel bombshell and he didn't even know it. I think things may be caving in on Burnside may be more of the reason of any separation. Your thoughts...
I don't know if Burnside has quit butt, the talk is how the Essel campaign is falling apart.
According to Wendy's people she went ape shit and chowed out Essel's folks for blanking the press conference.
You get on the wrong side of the NC folks in these Valley neighborhoods and your as good as dead.
You cant win a city council race with so many people of the homeowner activists against you.
I think Essel is being Weissed and she is too dumb to know it.
Well well.
I have been following the going's on in CD2 and i must say, we must give the devil his due.
Hacopian holding a weaker hand has out worked the Essel and Antonio's team into a corner. A corner that they will probably will never crawl out of.
The game plan was this, drip out Chris negatives one by one over weeks to undermine any momentum she gets from her establishment endorsements.
Use local NC folks the front the attacks on Chris, while it looks like his guy has nothing to do with it.
Winning the NC folks was going to be the key in winning this race. With 10-15 thousand voters you get 100 opinion makers against a candidate, that race is over pretty quickly.
The Wendy endorsement is a perfect example of his strategy. That was a huge win for Essel, in 24 hours the only story is about how all the NC people are shitting over Wendy and Chris.
The fight will go on but the outlines of the race are set, Essel the insider verses Paul the outsider.
And if that outline sticks, then all the money in the world cant save Essel's campaign.
It does not matter if Burnside quits, she does not bring much to the table any way.
Ummmm, from what I can tell it looks like the Valley Glen neighborhood is against Chris. That may be the result of Paul representing them in the State Assembly.
Then parts of the Studio City NC are against her.
Other than that I don't see any other NCs against Chris.
I think we are watching the same 4 people and Phil, as if that matters, posting over and over. Those folks using the time tested AV tactic if you say it over
and over it makes it a fact.
For all those folks who live in CD2 and don't participate in NCs, which is the majority, their opinion will mean nothing.
Chris is a stand up individual with a track record of accomplishment. While I do not want her to be the next council person in CD2, she is getting a raw deal.
Paul must be enjoying the feeding frenzy but don't count on this one way single candidate attacks to stay focused only on Chris.
I would rather she have a press conference where no media showed up than a packed press conference where we are told the State is taking millions of dollars from Los Angeles City and County.
Remember folks it was only after the threat of a law suit that Paul and the rest of the Sacramento Kabal change their minds about taking even more of our local funds.
As it is, the funds were taken from abused and neglected children, the mentaly ill and other social services. Not something that we will see on a fancy slick campaign brochure.
I will congratulate Hacopian and PK from distancing themselves from the Mayor. Even though they are bosom buddies with the Mayor.
The only thing that Essel's campaign is failing on is letting Hacopian paint their campaign as the Mayor's insiders.
Essel's campaign isn't even on the inside with AV, but the Mayor's people (Hacopian) are painting her into that corner, while having drinks with AV.
Krekorian has the endorsement of Jill Banks Barad. She's president of the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils. Homeowner activists in Studio City are backing Paul Krekorian. Sherman Oaks will probably go for Galatzan because she has served the community well and understands and knows local and city issues.
I am pretty sure Jill Barad is a resident of Koretz's district. She doesn't even live in the second district. Did Paul get any endorsements from folks in the fifteenth district he can tout too?
And I agree I think the SOHA folks and Sherman Oaks in general will go to the Tamar camp.
The runoff might even be between Paul and Tamar not Paul and Chris.
Tamar needs to start raising money if she wants to make it anywhere.
Today's event was packed. Although no press, who cares, people came OUT in the middle of their WORKDAY to support this woman!! She's got something to say!
krekorian needs to go home and leave. he brings the dishonesty of the state to LA. essel at least has neighborhood experience and has protected her neighborhoods, but tamar and krekorian, really?
Krekorian is a polished politian who cannot raise money and doesn't know the issues of the district. Tamar and her inauthenticity and drive to be higher up is not commendable.
Essel spinners in da house! (BTW not very good spin guys, try harder)
All of the other candidates need to start getting some press coverage.
People need to know that there are options to the Krekorian/Essel machine!
The Essel Spinner in the house is:
Young Su
By the 9:17/Young Su
Which neighborhood did Essel protect?
Let me guess, the Hollywood Hills?
Again 9:22
inauthenticity: not a word i would use when fronting for Essel.
And by the way a polished politician that cant raise money? there is no such thing.
7:58
Please explain to us what the Essel campaign is not failing in?
Its six weeks before the election and they don't have freaking campaign office.
10:13
Essel does have a campaign office.
It is on Wilshire Blvd according to her web site.
Krekorian is in the lead right now because he is an elected politician whose name many people will recognize. The timeframe for this election window is so short... name recognition is huge. Big head-start for him.
Essel can buy media....fliers, calls, etc.
She can even buy TV ads.
But she can't buy love.
Tamar will get some votes, but not enough.
Benson, I believe, is the biggest threat of the "outsiders" to make it into a runoff. She seems to be widely and deeply admired by people in the community.
Essavi has election experience and name recognition in this area, and that may be a big help.
All the others will all generate decent amount of votes.
I agree that Essel's people are posting away.
I especially dislike the posters who try to discredit neighborhood councils. Don't underestimate them.
Chris Essel lost it with them when she sided with Greig Smith over council files.
It's never going to happen for Chris or Tamar.
I would bet Mary Benson vs Paul Krekorian.
Essavi has election experience and name recognition in this area, and that may be a big help. ??? You need big help.
Essel will be in the runoff for sure; money gets votes, no matter what the bloggers say. The TV, mail and billboards and signs equal votes.
Paul and Tamar have been unable to raise money, especially surprising for an Armenian, who is usally guaranteed really strong financial support from his community. What gives?
Of course the banned blogger doesn't know what is happening, because unless he reads it here or in the LAT, he has no clue.
Burnside quits a while ago; that is OLD news. Stale.
Actually, she was unable to coordinate well and Shallman won the debate. bUt, Chris' staff has to do better or she will lose the runoff.
During the runoff, money will pour in to the top two, so fasten your seat belts.
More bad news for banned blogger; Starbucks, and others are cracking down on the folks who sit and use their wifi and don't each and spend money.
The free wifi is going away fast. The trend has begun in the east and is moving west.
Good riddence.
LMAO! Mary Benson is the favorite amongst the locals in the race, but that will only yield her single digit percentages and no run off. Especially with the other NC candidates - McCue, Sanchez and ZD.
This is not David Vahedi. No Persian money backing Mary. If you remember all of those candidates in the 5th District race all had raised around $250k around election time.
This time only 1 will have that, CE. PK will be a not too far 2nd and then there will be a huge drop off after that to Tamar... Finally all the locals will have a couple thousand each, death in an election.
Runoff is CE and PK, with a slight chance of TG if the NC folks realize Mary won't be able to make it.
And that is the problem with politics in Los Angeles. The people who really know the district support Mary Benson, but it takes money from outside the district to get someone who lives outside the district elected.
I HATE SB 1818 I GUESS THAT MEANS I DON'T LIKE ESSEL EITHER. WE DON'T NEED OUT OF CONTROL DEVELOPMENT WHEN WE ARE HAVING WATER SHORTAGES AND ELECTRICAL BROWNOUTS. MUCH LESS CUTS IN POLICE ,FIRE, AND UTILITIES. I HOPE PEOPLE LISTEN TO ALL OF THE CANDIDATES BUT DO RESEARCH AND FIND THE PERSON WHO WOULD TRUTHFULLY OPEN THEMSELVES UP TO YOU AND YOUR COMMUNITY NOT TELL YOU WHAT TO DO AND FIGHT FOR YOU.
You all are clueless! Where do you get your info? Zuma Dog??
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