The Great Debate "Affordable Housing"

Debbie Lopez & Jill Stewart question the candidates about the current Mayor's affordable housing plan.

Evening Hotsheet for Saturday

The final weekend before the election and Mayor Villaraigosa has lots of photo ops planned including swallowing a weiner at Pinks and gnoshing at Cantor's.  The Mayor, aware that Measure B stands a good chance of failing, also took off on a Yes on B Bus Tour Saturday.

Moving on to Measure B, a Green Party candidate has come out in opposition to the "solar" plan. 39th Assembly Green Candidate Jack Lindblad. Linblad issued a statement saying "Defeat of this green-washed, wrong-headed, top-down, anti-union, payola underwritten Proposition does not stop solar development within the City of Los Angeles. Measure B will be defeated and then we will make a real plan for clean energy and clean government."

Time Warner Cable's internet service had significant latency and intermittent outages as we reported earlier in the week. LAist posts up a statement from the cable company blaming it on hackers.  Service credits will be offered on a "case by case" basis, whatever that means.

In a last minute, pre-election campaign stunt City Controller candidate Wendy Greuel has "outed" a number of businesses as "tax cheats" who allegedly owe the City hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars in unpaid taxes.  Blogger David Markland has an insteresting idea - run some of those businesses through the City Ethics Commission's database of campaign contributors.  Well I did and not much there only two companies on the list came up as donors to local pols and only one still in office: CVE Development owes $130K and donated $500 to Villaraigosa. American Waste Industries owes $225K and donated $1200 to former Mayor James Hahn and $500 to past Council Member Ruth Galanter.

Paul Harvey, 90

NEW YORK (CBS) - Paul Harvey, a radio legend who began his career in 1933 while he was still in high school, has died, ABC News reported Saturday.

The Great Debate "Antonio & the Media"

Jill Stewart, from the LA Weekly, asks the candidates about the soft ball treatment the Mayor continues to receive from the LA Times and other media outlets.

Of Dying Fishwraps and the Future

The Former Fishwrap of Record AKA THE OLD GRAY HAG ON SPRING STREET thinks Joseph Mailander of Street Hassle is laughing when he takes them to task for their abyssmal election coverage this season.  In reality, Joseph is crying.for the Times that was and the Times that could have been.  In the meantime, like Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard, the Times is waiting for it's close up that will never ever come again.

Speaking of the Times that could have been and speaking of Joseph Mailander, check out an excellent op-ed piece that could have been, In LA Mayor's Race, Democracy Lost.  It pretty much sums up why people are simultaneously turned off to politics and local fishwraps.

Still speaking of dying fishwraps, tech writer Leo Laporte on his radio show this morning discussed the rapid termination of local newspapers.  A huge shot across their bows was the debut of Craig's List, an online source for classified ads that are free or nearly free, and which made the wants pretty much go the way of the phone book.  Couple that major loss of revenue with slanted coverage and the wraps are soon toast.  One option - Leo suggests that the New York Times save itself from certain death by cutting the print edition and giving a free Kindle to paying digitial subcribers.  The Kindle is the quarter inch thick "e-paper" wireless internet device produced by Amazon.com that allows users to read digital content without a computer. 

Saltsburg Responds to Moore and Rubin Debate Threats

BREAKING NEWS: We have received word that mayoral candidates Walter Moore and Craig X Rubin have allegedly joined together to ask that fellow candidate David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsburg be barred from a candidates forum held this afternoon at the Henry Fonda Theatre in Hollywood. This is in response to allegations from Rubin that Saltsburg made death threats against Rubin; allegations that Saltsburg has denied.

Via a third party, we received the following email sent by Rubin:

"I would appreciate you all helping me to make sure that Zuma, who is no longer a viable candidate (not that you all ever thought he was to begin with), stays out of the remaining debates by unanimous consent rather than me alone. I think Walter will be on this, but if not I will do it alone."

We then contacted Saltsburg for his reaction, contained in the clip below. Speaking directly from the Fonda a few moments ago, Saltsburg says he intends to participate in the forum and that he "does not answer" to Moore nor Rubin.

Craig X, The "Weed President"

Cannabis for the children?

The Great Debate Begins! "Opening Statements"

Part 1


Part 2


Time for the pitch! The candidates explain why they are running for office.

The Reverend Craig X Rubin: And you people tell me Zuma Dogg is crazy?

Excerpts From The Great Debate

I'll be posting excerpts from "The Great Debate" from now till Monday evening.
In this first clip, panelist Debbie Lopez asks the candidates about their spanish speaking abilities.

Ass Clown Award Nominations for Jan/Feb. 2009

Second to last day of the month means that the time has come for nominations pertaining to the assorted political clowns who make asses of themselves in the "City of Angels".

Nominees include;

1. Don Quixote (known as "LIL D.Q." from LHT)
2. Coalition for Clean Air for supporting Prop B. (Martin S.)
3. Sierra Club for backing Prop B. (Martin do as Susanna does)
4. Assemblyman John Perez of Hollywood for donating Keith Brackpool and Ari Swiller's money in support of Prop B.
5. "Lapdog" and "Lap Dancing Horn Dog"?? Jack Weiss
6. Mayor Antonio Ramon Pollovillar
7. "Mr. Positive" Ace Smith
8. "Protector of the children", Mike Trujillo
9. The "Kennedy Republican"
10. The "La Antonia Times" for endorsing Pollovillar
10a. The "La Obama Times"
11. George "Little Red" Skelton at the "OLD GREY HAG ON SPRING STREET"
......and the "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN LEAVING CITY HALL AT 4:00 PM AS JOSE HUIZAR"

Your comments and additions to the list greatly appreciated.

A "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR" Update

One awakens from his bloggin slumber to the talk of "DOGG", pot, "X", threats, and comments from the bloggin peanut gallery.

But while y'all seek rapid comment moderation so you can get your rants, err comments in on the "DOGG/ X RUBIN AFFAIR", lets bring you up to date on someone who's M.O. is to get pay much for doing so little, yes we are referring to CD 14 resident slacker, "THE COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR".

We last posted here on the chances (rare or none) of the "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR" attending your Super Bowl Bash.

While no definative location can be given on where the "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR" parked his rear end to view this year classic game, one can surmise that a "future trail of favors" will lead us to the location (Mercado ??).

On the subject of favors, is the "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR" doing Deputy Chief of Staff Henry Casa a favor by keeping him on payroll as he awaits resolution to his domestic violence case? Or is this part of a deal to keep a certain closet full of "staffer skeletons" under lock and key???

Whatever may lurk behind the closet door, on can only speculate, but what is clear is that the "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR" has selected a Chief of Staff in Ana Cubas.

Some in CD 14 will remember Ana Cubas in her former incarnation as a Huizar staffer at LAUSD during his reign as the "SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT LAST SEEN WHITE WASHING BELMONT LEARNING CENTER AS JOSE HUIZAR".

Her first order of business will be the damage control over yesterday's article in the LA Weekly where the "COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR" was rated out by his fellow council members for being the "LAZY COUNCILMAN LAST SEEN AS JOSE HUIZAR".

Cubas may also want to fill some of the blank spots in his daily schedule with more visits to the likes of the Southwest Society and the Barrio Action Center in El Sereno where he gives alot....in cash (payments of $4,306, $3,500, $500, $1,860 to start).

One can only wish Ms. Cubas the best in her new position, but as someone pointed out to me today, when you schedule a public meeting on the test holes being drilled in El Sereno for the 710 extension, and no staff from CD 14 is in attendance, then you have problems....

Weight Room Donated To Honor Jamiel Shaw, II

Los Angeles High School opened a new Varisty Sports Weight Room in the name of my son, Jamiel Shaw, II (Jas). The facility will be dedicated in his memory on Monday, March 2, 2009 at 3:00pm. Los Angeles High School is located at 4650 W. Olympic Blvd, L.A, CA 90019.

Michael Garvey, President of The Dumbell Man Fitness Equipment (TDM), donated the equipment for the new 900 square foot facility which features a variety of machines and weight training stations.

Ron Haddad, TDM Vice President of Development stated, "We are honored to be involved and have the support of the Shaw family, coaches and school administrators."

As many of you already know, my beloved son was murdered March 2, 2008, while his mother was serving in Iraq. Following the dedication of the Weight Room, we will have a candelight vigil at 21st and 5th Avenue. The candelight vigil will be held from 5:30pm to 6:30pm, where Jas was murdered.

All are welcomed to join us. For more information call 323.806.9918.

My family and I thank everyone who supported us and continue to support us during this difficult time!

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Friday

The LA Times has a profile of Mayoral candidate Walter Moore of who Cal State Fullerton professor Raphael Sonenshein, said "somewhere between a minor candidate and major candidate. If someone's going to have a splash, it's going to be him . . . but it's not nearly enough to unseat the mayor." Also uncovered by the report is that Moore did not contact the family of slain teenager Jamiel Shaw before pursuing his death as a campaign issue, "We actually heard about it on the radio. We weren't happy with that,"Althea Shaw told the Times. Councilman Dennis Zine accused Moore of playing politics with Jamiel's death telling the fishwrap "The fact is, I just don't think it's appropriate to use a tragedy to run for public office."

In the Times piece Moore also states that "You got people butchering goats in their frontyard. You've got barnyard animals running around." I haven't seen any goat butchering and I don't know if that's a Wiccan ritual but when it comes to barnyard animals maybe Moore means South LA.  Janice Hahn has a solution though - allow each home to have one rooster.  However that might mean a ban from Jan Perry on Kentucky frying those chickens.

Sea creature antics big news at Pulitizer Paperweight winning WWG's "blog."  "An octopus at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium opened a valve on its tank and flooded the place with seawater."

Speaking of our favorite faux Pulitizer prize winning suburban Anglo crank, fresh from the Sherry (Shirley?) Bebbitch-Jeffe cocktail circuit, Westside White Guy blurbs the Zuma Dogg-Craig Rubin incident story and somehow works in a gratituous slam on Weekly Deputy Editor Jill Stewart, one of the only media "outlets" in town that doesn't - unlike Old Kev - take it up the patoot from Villlaraigosa and the LA kleptocracy  - and completely misrepresents a story she's written.  Westside White Guy can push for his press club martini stained status quo but as his beloved fishwraps fold and the government he supports is slowly getting unmasked, the world as Roderick knows it may soon be coming to a drastic and sad end.

I've been having big problems this week with Time Warner cable internet and so have others.  Apparently the cable provider has been the victim of denial of service attacks by hackers.  Credit, Time Warner?

Incident At Mayoral Candidates Forum

We are receiving reports that mayoral candidate David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsberg was escorted by police from a candidates forum today. Mayoral candidate Phil Jennerjahn sent MS an email saying that Zuma had been detained by the LAPD due to alleged threats he made against fellow mayoral candidate Craig X Rubin.

A phone call to LAPD Wilshire Division confirmed that Zuma had been detained but was released soon after. It is unknown if any charges will be filed, and we are waiting for further statements from both Zuma Dogg and Craig X Rubin.

We'll bring you more information as it comes in.

Antonio no pudo ayudar a Wendy; MAPA Passes Over the Pixie for the Greek

Oops!

MEDIA ADVISORY
Mexican American Political Association to endorse Nick Patsaouras for Los Angeles City Controller

Date: Friday, February 27, 2009
Time: 2PM
Location: Music Center courtyard, across from DWP Headquarters
111 N. Hope St.
Los Angeles

Feliz cumpleaños a mi abuela

Winifred Hurd Lynch Higby. Better known to friends and family as "Ticky." Though late in life she preferred to be called by her given first name.

She didn't make me menudo but she made one hell of an Aunt Wally Cake. That's coffee cake for those of you outside the Lynch family.

Born February 25th, 1917 in the state of Iowa. Grandma Ticky had eight sisters and one brother. Grandma as well as everyone of her sisters spent some part of their lives as teachers, some of them their whole life. If you attended Hollywood High in the 1960s and 1970s you may have had Mrs. Van Sickle for home economics. That's Grandma's sister, my Auntie Flo.

Grandma Ticky was the youngest of the family. She met my Grandfather, Seward Edward "Ed" Higby at Iowa State Teachers College, now the University of Iowa. They were married in 1937. My grandparents went on to raise two boys, owned two hardware stores in Iowa and were pillars of every community they lived in. My Grandpa was the Mayor of Rudd, Iowa for a time. They were involved in a number of organizations and were always busy. Their backyard pancake breakfasts, first in Iowa and later in North Hollywood would be attended by 100 or more people.

Grandma was loving and sweet but stern. She was ahead of her time in many ways in how she treated people. But she also expected you to work hard and be a good citizen. She also had a heck of a sense of humor; something every one of the Lynch girls had.

Grandma and Grandpa moved permanently from Iowa to North Hollywood not too long after I was born. All together, there were four of us granchildren.

After moving to California Grandma went back to teaching in her early 50s. She taught nursery school classes at First Christian Nursery School, then in North Hollywood now in Studio City (the school didn't move; the map did). Among her students were the members of the rock band Nelson and many other children of celebrities.

When licensing rules changed for pre-school teachers, Grandma went back to college and got her degree. It was her experience as a teacher and a love for learning that motivated my joy of reading and writing. She encouraged me to write as much as I could and always enjoyed my stories (as did Auntie Flo too). Grandma instilled in my love of "performing," we built puppets together and did puppet shows for her college classmates and for our fellow church members.

My grandparents are responsible for my love of community service and volunteering. Both of them were prolific to this regard. They never did it for ego reasons, they never sought attention or glory for themselves, they always helped others and this engenderd an amazing respect and love for them from everyone they know. I have never met one person who knew my grandparents that ever had a negative word to say about them.

We lost my grandparents in 1972. I was just eight years old. My sister wouldn't be born for another seven years and sadly never knew her amazing grandparents. My grandfather was an experienced private pilot who had built and owned several planes. On a Sunday afternoon in November 1972, as they took off from Lancaster Airport, engine failure caused the plane to crash just a few hundred feet in the air. They were both killed instantly.

I will always miss my grandparents and am sad that they were not there during the many milestones in my life. Considering that most of their brothers and sisters lived well into their 80s and 90s - indeed Grandma Ticky's older sister Marjorie just passed away a few months ago at age 94 - I believe they would most likely be alive today and getting a big kick out of Mayor Sam's blog.

Happy 92nd Birthday, Grandma!

(By the way my maternal grandmother is still alive and kicking and will be celebrating her 90th birthday soon. I spoke to her Tuesday morning. These relatives sure live a long time!)

Does Janice Hahn Hate Voting?

KNBC has been doing some bang up reporting lately on local civic issues.  Let's continue to encourage them.  Their latest gem concerns our favorite illegal parking City Council Member Janice Hahn.  According to Channel 4, Ms. Hahn missed over 2000 votes in Council Chambers in 2008.  Hahn told KNBC "Many times, I've had to miss city council meetings, because I've had to go to a funeral."  That's a lot of dead people.  The story below.

Where have all the writers gone?

Dow at lowest levels in 11 years.

Since the election, I've been pretty quiet here at Mayor Sam's, only penning one article. That article proudly declared that I had returned from my self-imposed isolation after the recent election. Well, unfortunately I didn't actually return and frankly, I've been feeling guilty about it. Then I viewed our current front page. I don't know how he does it, but every article was written by our founder Michael Higby himself. Guilt evaporated!

This site has since its inception provided a creative and influential outlet for writers and political activists, and now with none but special elections remaining, many of us have found ourselves either disinterested (not me) or just juggling and struggling to survive in our everyday lives (definitely me and a few others). That got me to thinking: we've all had to make sacrifices in one form or another during these economic hard times, regardless of where we are on the ladder, so specifically what hobbies and leisure activities have people been forced to give up and why?

Maybe you had to give up golf because it was too expensive? Maybe you find yourself forced to give up your weekends to make ends meet? I just recently read that it's becoming more typical for people to work 7-day weeks. I've even seen a story about a 70-something man who had his retirement account wiped out and is working as a greeter at Wal-Mart to survive. Yikes! No rest for the weary I guess.

So what's your story? This is my gift to you: a thread on which to commiserate. How has this recession/depression affected you? What have you had to sacrifice? How did you get through it? Do you have any tips/tricks for saving money for the rest of us? Maybe, like me, you want to sound off against the bailout and the stimulus (which I will do when I next get the time)? Take this thread and run with it boys and girls, and remember that you're not in this alone!

In my case I haven't been blogging because I can't find a lot of time and don't make a lot of money (and yes, they most certainly are the same thing). I honestly never really know when I will be able to sit long enough to write one of my normally verbose and occasionally convoluted dissertations. Since I'm not well-versed in my L.A. politics and am also completely disinterested in the contrived and seemingly endless, cyclic OC soap opera, I'll probably write an occasional serious piece covering state or national issues sandwiched between conversation posts like this one and short commentaries and media clips on notable topics.

We're all economizing. Remember, time is money. I'm trying to save, so what's changed for you?

SMS

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Wednesday

Excellent piece by Joel Kotkin on "The Decline of Los Angeles."  A mentor of mine told me several years ago that Los Angeles is a city with its best days behind it.  That appears to be true.  Kotkin chronicles how the City has fallen on economic hard times, the middle class and business has left in droves and quality of life is slipping. Kotkin laments" In such a context, Villaraigosa's upcoming coronation seems hard to comprehend. By most accounts, he has been at best a mediocre mayor, with few real accomplishments." Though its tough at the moment to find a scenario where one of the Mayor's challengers pushes him into a run-off or even defeats him, there's still the chance.  Vote for anyone but Antonio and lets go from there. 


Westside White Guy shows his Pulitzer Paperweight winning suburban chops once again when he can't imagine why even Congresswoman Maxine Waters has bailed on supporting Jack Weiss for City Attorney and has endorsed Carmen Trutanich.  Yes Kevin, get past your cocktail party talk and understand that indeed "Anyone but (Jack) Weiss" is critical for the City.

So if it's anyone but Jack who do you vote for? Fortunately you have several choices. One of whom is the good Weiss, NOEL WEISS, whom you can read about here and here.

Mayoral candidate David Hernandez is charging the City's Channel 36 censored the final segment of a Full Disclosure report on the Mayor's gang program.  Hernandez charges that "The broadcast was censored and viewers were subject to a blank screen during the 30 minutes scheduled to air the controversial conclusion.," and then asks " Just what did the Mayor not want you to see?" 



Measure B made the New York Times.  Relatively balanced piece however it doesn't go into why there is such "fierce opposition" to this shady boondoggle.

I'm all for privatizing as much City services as possible but stand for a shady alert.  Mayor Villaraigosa wants to explore an idea similar to one implemented in Chicago (red flag alert) in which the Windy City has sold their parking meter revenue for 75 years to Morgan Stanley.  Watch out folks, there's huge room for abuse here.

Joseph Mailander likes yurts but I think he would rule this one out as an option for the homeless.  CurbedLA reports a Silverlake version of a manse that comes with the home style pioneered by the Mongols that is on the market for nearly $600K.

Slow Internet Evening Hotsheet

Time Warner Cable is still having challenges (the support technician I spoke to said "the engineers are aware") but let's try to crank out the hotsheet I owe and maybe one for tomorrow through all the latency.

The Times points out something I've been saying frequently lately - City department heads like Police Chief Bratton should not be endorsing candidates in City elections. As the fishwrap notes "the Christopher Commission concluded, amid its many recommendations, that the chief of police should refrain from engaging in city politics. 'Because the chief's office is inherently powerful,' the commission wrote, 'it is unseemly for the chief to use that position to influence the political process. ... Such activity politicizes the chief, and ultimately the department.'"  We agree.

We've heard about this the last few days but how unseemly it was to have Mayor Villaraigosa - in the throws of a re-election campaign where he's yet to really discuss the issues - campaigning for Governor in Northridge last weekend?  As the LA Times notes "there was Antonio Villaraigosa, the mayor of Los Angeles, giving a low-key pitch for his reelection next month without so much as a nod to his potential rivals in the June 2010 primary for governor."  Is California ready for an 11% Governor?

Political recurring disease Laurette Healey is back again hitching her wagon to yet another shady solar measure like she did with last year's Proposition 7.  Healey is using her vast mailing list to push Measure B.  Besides being opposed by those who know solar what both measures have in common are both Healey  and the so-called "Green Cowboy" David "I was there when FDR built the Tennessee Valley Authority" Freeman.  One wonders what's in it for them? We may eventually know.

If he's elected Mayor, Candidate David Hernandez promises to send Billy the Elephant to a sanctuary where he can be with other elephants.  Herndandez issued a statement saying that "Time has come for Billy the Elephant to join Ruby at the PAWS Sanctuary. It is clear the Los Angeles City Council and Special Interest Groups are using Billy as a bargaining chip in moving the Zoo’s Elephant exhibit forward."

Vahedi - You're Not Supposed to do This

LA Chamber Votes For: More of the Same

Forget the mantra for change or in fact even doings something that will actually improve the economic climate in Los Angeles.  The LA Chamber - whose stated mission is to promote business in the region but whose real effort is to advance the status quo - has chosen to continue to kowtow to the Downtown establishment and keep the kleptocracy in place.

The "Chamber" has called for an up and down vote on every incumbent or son (or daughter?) of an incumbent on the ballot.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Not a surprise, the Chamber is endorsing the corporate welfare giveaway Measure E - which does nothing to actually bring real business to the City but will handsomely benefit the Downtown corporations which make up the Chamber.  You may remember that the City of Burbank showed Wendy Greuel to be lying about the need for this shady measure.

Amazingly, the Jurassic Chamber is opposing Measure B. I believe that was probably done to forestall a wholesale rejection of the mother ship by local Chambers who have mostly gone on record opposing B (which stands for boondoggle).

What it comes down to folks is not just to be against something because we're against it.  It's because the way the City has been run the last 4, 8, 12 years just doesn't work.  The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

That being said, the LA Chamber is certifiable.

***

The Chamber endorses the following candidates and has taken positions on the following measures in the City of Los Angeles March 3 election:

CITYWIDE ELECTED OFFICIALS

MAYOR ............................ Antonio R. Villaraigosa
CITY ATTORNEY ................................ Jack Weiss
CONTROLLER ............................... Wendy Greuel

CITY COUNCIL

DISTRICT NO. 1 ................................. Ed P. Reyes
DISTRICT NO. 3 ............................ Dennis P. Zine
DISTRICT NO. 5 ....................... Adeena N. Bleich
DISTRICT NO. 7 ......................... Richard Alarcón
DISTRICT NO. 9 ................................ Jan C. Perry
DISTRICT NO. 11 .......................... Bill Rosendahl
DISTRICT NO. 13 .............................. Eric Garcetti
DISTRICT NO. 15 .............................. Janice Hahn

BOARD OF EDUCATION

DISTRICT NO. 2 ............................ Mónica García
DISTRICT NO. 4 ................................ Mike Stryer
DISTRICT NO. 6 ........................... Nury Martinez

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SEAT NO. 2 ................................. Angela Reddock
SEAT NO. 4 .................................... Kelly Candaele
SEAT NO. 6 .................................. Nancy Pearlman
SEAT NO. 7 .................................. Miguel Santiago

BALLOT MEASURES

OPPOSE
MEASURE B
Solar Energy and Job Creation Program
The Chamber embraces the economic and business opportunities that an aggressive solar program will bring to Los Angeles. But the process used to bring Measure B to the voters cannot be condoned. Measure B would signal a new direction in the management of the city’s utility through piecemeal ballot measures intended to favor single programs that should more appropriately be considered by the LADWP Commission, business, labor and the public in a broader context and through a transparent process. 

SUPPORT
MEASURE E
Economic Incentives for Business Development
Los Angeles is being bombarded by recruiters from cities and states trying to relocate our companies. The Chamber supports efforts to retain and attract businesses to Los Angeles. Measure E will provide the mayor and city council with the authority to design, in a public process, incentives such as tax and fee waivers for businesses and jobs we want to keep or attract to Los Angeles.

Fishwraps Continue to Fall

Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Hearst Corp. will sell or close the San Francisco Chronicle, the second newspaper the company has put on the block this year, after the publication lost more than $50 million in 2008.

Why Is DWP Campaigning for Measure B?

From my inbox:

You are cordially invited to attend a community meeting where LADWP will present facts about the Comprehensive Solar Plan including Measure B and the Huron Consulting Group will discuss the Independent Assessment of LADWP Owned Solar Projects (Measure B).

February 25 – 7:00 pm
Banning’s Landing
100 E. Water Street, Wilmington 90744
Parking: Street or Lot Entrance on Water Street

Will the other side be allowed to present? Send your questions to neighborhood.newswire@ladwp.com.

When this election is over I'd like to see someone pursue a ballot measure that will prohibit government agencies like DWP or LAUSD from "advocating" on ballot measures that impact them as well as banning department heads like the DWP General Manager and LAPD Chief from campaigning for city issues and candidates. Time to start cleaning up the corruption.

By the way I'm told that protesters from the unions and environmental groups that oppose B have outnumbered the general public at this meetings. The Sister City encourages as much peaceful, legal protest outside these meetings as possible.

I owe you a hotsheet...

But in the meantime open thread away on the campaings.  What's Villaraigosa up to? Any more Vahedi signs being stolen? Did you listen to Zuma Dogg or Walter Moore on Bill Handel? Who is sending you the most mail? Blog away dum dums.

Time Warner Cable Internet Spotty Tonight

My internet connection appears to be very spotty tonight.  I called Time Warner and their customer service line has a recording saying that if you're calling because you're having internet trouble you don't need to stay on the line because they're "working on it."

If you don't see a hot sheet tomorrow now you know why.

Death of a Fishwrap

From today's Daily News:

Note to our readers

You will notice changes in the Daily News beginning with today's edition. For starters, we have redesigned the newspaper to make it more reader-friendly. To save on newsprint costs and adjust to the current adverse economic climate, we are making the following changes to our format:

On Mondays and Tuesdays, you will find the comics, puzzles, TV grid and advice columns in the front section. Dilbert appears on A2 on Mondays. There will be no dedicated Business or Opinion page on Mondays, but both will return on Tuesday.

Wednesday through Sunday, the L.A. LIFE section returns with comics, TV and advice columns and other features. Dining coverage continues on Wednesday and health coverage moves to Thursday.

We thank you for your loyal support as we confront this troubled economy. We are committed to producing a relevant local news report that is focused on the San Fernando Valley.

If you have questions or comments, please call 818-713-3719 or leave a message at feedback@dailynews.com.

Chick Endorses Amerian

City Controller Laura Chick has endorsed City Attorney Candidate Michael Amerian.  Stay tuned for more.

Villaraigosa: Always out and about!

Photo by Zach Behrens of LAist

Your Mayor, hard at work, showing up to the Oscars last night as chronicled by Zach Behrens at LAist.

Lawn Sign Thief Caught on Tape

Fifth Council District candidate David Vahedi says that someone has been stealing his lawn signs - over 400 signs costing nearly $1600 - and now it appears that at least one theif has been caught on tape.  A webcam was set up near a Vahedi sign and the suspect is seen clearly removing the sign from where it's been installed.  The suspect appears to be a husky blonde caucasian female in her 30s or 40s.  Let's hope the police find her.  If you recognize this person, please contact the Vahedi campaign.

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Monday

The Great Debate was a great success. I did a little Twittering here but network problems prevent a true live blogging effort. However, upwards of 60 people watched the live stream courtesy of Antonio Watch. Joe B. did a great job organizing everything. Our panel of Ron Kaye, Debbie Lopez and Jill Stewart rocked the house. For the best recap, check out Joseph Mailander at Street Hassle.

Update: Daily News story on the debate.

LAist post on the debate.

Both Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom were invited to participate in an fundraiser for the Lung Association where they would climb the steps of the tallest builidngs in their city to raise money for the charity. Apparently both eventually opted out with a Villaraigosa press aide, saying "It's not even on his radar."

The City is replacing some historic bridges in LA and preservationists are up in arms. The plans to replace the legendary but crumbling sixth street viaduct resemble something out of a Wal-Mart. Yet some good news is that plans for another famous local bridge, the Glendale-Hyperion include not only keeping the bridge looking the same but actually restoring it to it's original appearance from 1928. Considering modern construction techniques and how well Walt Disney Imagineering does in recreating vintage LA locales it shouldn't be that hard for the City to actually make public works look decent.

The City of LA gave up on the idea of building an airport on 17,000 acres of land it owns in Palmdale and now - as a part of shady Measure B - it wants to turn it into a solar farm. As great as that idea sounds LA County Supervisor Mike Antonovich - in whose district the land sits - makes a good point that the City of LA took that land from local owners in Palmdale with the purpose of building an airport. Thought the City of LA couldn't make a go of it in running an airport there's no reason that Palmdale couldn't. Decency requires the land be returned to the local community; LA doesn't need to be running an empire.

Speaking of Measure B, appparently USC students are split on the issue. The university's paper, The Daily Trojan, quotes Mayoral candidate David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsburg “There really is no plan, and the DWP is not prepared for a project of this size. It’ll drive up rates, and then we won’t get a real solar plan, because we’ll just have this inefficient boondoggle.” An on campus forum will allow students to debate the matter on Wednesday.

If you're wondering what some of the fish or shrimp you eat may have eaten back on the farm, it may very well have been your dear departed dog or cat or other dead animal picked up by the LA City Department of Sanitation. Neon Tommy reports that the City has a contract with a rendering works located in Vernon where some 60,000 pounds of dead animals are dropped off by the City each month. The carcasses are boiled down where the remains are used for everything from biofuels to cosmetics to the meal fed to farmed seafood in Asia, that eventually makes it way back to LA diners' plates.

Some Photos of the Great Debate

 

The set before we started

Joe B. and Solomon getting video operations going.  Yes Joe was existing in two dimensions at that point.

 

The Candidates.  Cell phones are not great for taking photos.

 

After the event.

Watch the Great Debate!

Today's the day! Mayor Sam's Great Debate will be held this afternoon featuring candidates David Hernandez, Phil Jennerjahn, Walter Moore, Craig X. Rubin and David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsburg. Panelists include Moderator Ron Kaye, LA Weekly Deputy Editor Jill Stewart and blogger Debbie Lopez. Tune in here to watch live streaming video of the event.

Live blogging the debate as it happens at MS2.

You can also get live Tweets from the debate at Mayor Sam's  Twitter page.

Online TV Shows by Ustream

The Anyone But Antonio Meme

The Mayor and his minions have launched a "campaign" that is almost comical in it's lies, distortions and mistruths when it comes to representing his record over the last four years (or would that be acutally the 161 days he actually worked on City business?).

If you've read this blog you're familiar with all his mis-doings from Mirthala to toilets to more serious matters like the fiscal health of the city.  You know how big of a kleptocracy Los Angeles has become. So its not a surprise that blogs beyond this one are starting to call for rejection of this 11% mayor.

Not known for being a radical MetBlogs' David Markland gets the ball rolling asking voters to "head to the polls March 3rd and vote for anyone BUT Antonio."  Next Joseph Mailander at Street Hassle picks it up hat tipping to Markland and saying that the Mayor and his handlers have "denied democracy to Los Angeles" this election season.  Fishbowl LA is next to chime in offering that Markland's "reasoning is sound."

So who's next?

Image from Fishbowl LA

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Sunday

The LA Times has given a half-hearted endorsment of Mayor Villaraigosa.  Of course, no one is surprised by this.  In the meantime Villaraigosa's strategy is as if there is no election, telling Rick Orlov
"I don't take umbrage that people want me to debate," Villaraigosa said. "What I say is judge me by what I've done. I'm going to knock on doors and talk to voters."

Nearly $3 million in special interest money has gone to the campaigns of City Controller candidate Wendy Greuel and City Attorney hopeful Jack Weiss.  On the other hand, Greuel's nearest competitor Nick Patsaouras has raised just over $100,000. Better walk those precincts and make those calls Nick.

MetBlogs notes that Mayor Villaraigosa, Tom LeBong and Richard AlarcCON all seem to be inspired by rock legend Huey Lewis in photos on their websites.

Measure B is getting most of the attention this election season but Measure E is yet another scam by the politicians to divert your money to people who can do something for them.  Claiming that LA needs to bring business to the City - which it does - LA's leaders want to direct big chunks of your tax money to certain businesses who agree to locate here.  Council Member Wendy "I never saw a giveaway I didn't like" Greuel is of course supporting this measure and once again spouting mistruths claiming that nearby cities like Burbank do this and gave big bucks to Yahoo to locate in that city.  Not true says Burbank City Manager Michael Flad who said not one dime was given to Yahoo, "We don't try to bribe people to come to Burbank . We find ways to encourage businesses, not buy them off."  It's not a lack of corporate welfare that drives business out of LA, its the City's business unfriendly regulatory environment, high crime and high taxes - as well as a well developed NIMBY contigent.

The Daily News has come out against both Measures B and E.  In their editorial the paper points out that both shady propositions would despite their best intentions "unnecessarily change the City Charter with vague and restrictive requirements that could saddle Angelenos with bad policy for decades to come."

Saltsburg y Jennerjahn comer tacos

Our photographer on the go captured this shot of Mayoral candidates David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsburg and Phil Jennerjahn patronizing a taco truck in Los Angeles. No comment from either campaign at press time.

LA Times Endorses Ron Galperin for City Council

-----Original Message-----
From: "Jeff Millman" <jm@jeffreymillman.com>
Sent: Sat, 21 Feb 2009 10:19:44 Pacific Standard Time
To:
Subject: RELEASE: LA Times Endorses Ron Galperin for City Council

PRESS RELEASE CONTACT: Jeff Millman
February 21, 2009 (800) 709-7532

LA Times Endorses Ron Galperin for City Council

Today, the Los Angeles Times endorsed Ron Galperin's campaign to
represent the fifth district in the Los Angeles City Council. Here is
an excerpt from today's editorial endorsement:

"The Times endorses Galperin for the 5th District City Council seat.

Like the other candidates, Galperin places the needs of his
constituents at the top of his agenda. But he also has a keen interest
in improving accountability and fiscal prudence in City Hall, and
that's something that all council members must grapple with, for their
own sakes as well as for their constituents. The 5th District has a
tradition of electing people -- Zev Yaroslavsky and Mike Feuer come to
mind -- who served their constituents while also leading on issues of
citywide concern. Galperin has the best potential to follow in that
tradition."

The full editorial is available at
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-council21-2009feb21,0,1555860,print.story

The Times editorial adds to the momentum in Galperin's campaign for
fiscal reform at city hall. On Thursday, he was endorsed by former
Los Angeles city controller Rick Tuttle. And this week's filing with
the city Ethics commission shows Galperin's campaign has raised the
most contributions and has the most cash on hand compared to the other
candidates.

Galperin is the business candidate in the race. He has started
several successful small businesses and was an editor at the Los
Angeles Business Journal. Galperin will work to make the city operate
more like a business by collecting its unpaid debt, cutting waste and
operating more efficiently so it can better provide services in
neighborhoods, including more police and road paving. Ron has served
on his neighborhood council and on the West Los Angeles Police
Advisory Board. He lives in Coldwater Canyon.

###

And then there were five

Candidate Phil Jennerjahn will be participating in The Great Debate this Sunday, sponsored by Mayor Sam.  With that, the list now includes:

David Herndandez
Phil Jennerjahn
Walter Moore
Craig X. Rubin
David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsburg.

Panelists are Ron Kaye, Jill Stewart and Debbie Lopez.

We're sorry but all seats have been given out.  However you will be able to watch the debate live on streaming video.  You can however still submit questions for our panelists to ask by clicking here.

And now here's Phil Jennerjahn and I'm sure he approves this message:

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Friday

The candidates for Mayor were asked if they support the vision for a "subway to the sea."  Candidate Carlos Alvarez does as well as subways to everywhere else.  Because he rode the subway in London, Phil Jennerjahn is surprisingly for this boondoggle as - no surprise - is Mayor Villaraigosa.  Walter Moore and David Hernandez correctly note the fiscal irresponsibility of the project and David "Zuma Dogg" Saltsburg drives it home saying the project consumes "a lot of money, time and hope tied up for something that may or may not even happen for 30 years."

The Planning Commission has delayed plans to re-write the City's billboard laws, changes that could have a chilling effect on free speech in Los Angeles.  In the meantime while billboard hysteria reaches a fever pitch during the City's primary elections, a recent poll bears out what I suspected - that most folks don't care and aren't even aware of the fight with 47% of Angelenos saying the advertisments are attractive.  Among Hispanics, the fastest growing segment of LA residents there is a near total lack of interest in the issue, with only three percent of that demographic saying the issue had any relevancy to their lives. That being said the billboard NIMBYS are loud and wicked - and voter apathy concentrates their venom - so local politicians cross them at their own peril.

How many DWP employees does it take to pass out a lightbulb? About $3 million worth.  Each of you will get free energy-saving CFL lightbulbs and the DWP will personally deliver them to your home.  I guess some genius at the DWP didn't figure out it would be far more cost effective to include a coupon in ratepayers' bills.  Question: Will they deliver light bulbs to the homeless? Yet another reason - DWP poor decisions - Vote No on B!

Saying that he is "a fiscal reformer with the energy and know how to clean up the financial mismanagement at City Hall, cut government waste and bring more accountability to city departments," former Los Angeles City Controller Rick Tuttle endorsed Fifth District Council Candidate Ron Galperin. 

About 400 entertainment industry jobs in the Los Angeles area will be lost in 2009 according to a research report released by the he Los Angeles Economic Development Corp.  The LAEDC's Jack Kyser - Walter Moore's second favorite economist - said the industry "faces challenges on many fronts."

Who Knew?

The Jewish Journal reports on the number of candidates who are Jewish running for office saying that "Jews are rapidly becoming the People of the Ballot."

I felt that deserved a song.

People of the Ballot

(with apologies to Adam Sandler)

by Mayor Sam

Elections are the alternate to fights,

Instead of years of uprising, we have one crazy night.

So when you feel like the only one on the ballot without a Latin name, 

here's a list of people who are Jewish, that jumped in to the game:

David Berger kisses the mezuzah,

So do Jack Weiss, Paul Koretz, and the CD5's Adeena

Guess who eats together at our favorite deli Cantor's,

Bornstein from CD3, and Mrs Robin Ritter (Simon).

Eric Garcetti's half Jewish; Harry Potter's half too,

Put them together--what a magical shady Jew!

You don't need confession or to post on Mayor Sam's blog

Cause you can atone your sins with Noel Weiss and Zuma Dogg--both Jewish!

Put on your yarmulke, and have some Manischewitz,

Cause you can vote for the former WeHo Mayor Mr. Paul Koretz.

Nick the Greek -- not a Jew!

And guess who else...the Valley's Wendy Greuel (but her husband is)

We got Ron Galperin and his opponent Robert Schwartz,

Gary Shlossberg's also Jewish--and on the right course!

Some people think that Dennis Zine is,

Well, he's not, but guess who is: The Mayor of Beverly Hills.

So many Jews are in the gov biz--

Walter Moore isn't but I heard his consultant is!

Make your connections, its time for elections

I hope no one shady wins, in these lovely, lovely elections.

So get a new direction, and toke up with Craig Rubin,

Just make your selection, 

have a happy, happy, happy, happy election.

happy election!

Eric Garcetti: Changing L.A.

Antonio Villaraigosa: Let's Double The Number of Potholes!

Nick Calls Out Greuel on Measure B

City Controller Candidate Nick Patsauouras has issued a challenge to his opponent - City Council Member Wendy Greuel - to meet him any time, any where for a debate on Measure B, the controversial DWP takeover of the solar industry in Los Angeles.

In his message to Greuel, Patsaouras says "We don't know how much Measure B will cost but we do know it will raise utility fees significantly for DWP ratepayers.  In this time of extreme economic stress the voting public should have all the facts on Prop B."  Patsaouras tells Greuel "You as an author of Prop B and it's chief sponsor in the City Council and I as an opponent of Prop B are uniquely qualified to debate this issue."

Stay tuned for Greuel's response, if any.

Wendy Greuel's House of Flip Flops

I'm not sure if Wendy Greuel is having a John Kerry or Joe Biden moment.

The candidate for City Controller is airing a commercial (below) where she chastises the City Department of Housing for hiring a Zen Buddhist consultant to teach employees how to breathe.

Yet, as a Council Member Greuel voted to approve the funding for the program.

In the spot Greuel also lashes out at the Department of Animal Services who apparently bought equipment they never took out of the box.  However, as noted by the always excellent David Zahniser in the LA Times, that issue was a key point of a Laura Chick audit released months ago and Greuel's Audits and Efficiency Committee never took up that contract.

Even Council Member Jan Perry, usually a Greuel ally, was a bit miffed by the spot saying "If you have a problem with something at the time, you say it at the time and you vote accordingly," with regard to Greuel's sudden turnaround on these issues.

So like Kerry I guess Wendy was for it before she was against it?

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Thursday

Excellent piece by Jill Stewart in the LA Weekly takes a look at the race for City Controller between Wendy Greuel and Nick Patsaouras . Greuel is viewed as a friendly and popular politician however a funny thing happened on the way to her coronation to succeed Laura Chick - a hardscrabble, battle worn old Greek who knows where the bodies are buried jumped in the race. A series of embarrassing moments for Greuel, pissed off voters, growing skepticism of incumbents tied to the failing economy and a perceived too cozy relationship with Mayor Villaraigosa has privately caused some in Camp Wendy to be "concerned." Stewart notes this in her piece; saying that the Greuel campaign is sensitive to the Villaraigosa issue and has backed off on joint appearances with the Mayor.


Steve Lopez chats with former Villaraigosa Planning Commission Jane Usher  who eventually left the family when she get tired of the shadiness that is LA City government.  Usher is hopeful for eventual change in LA but like many of us is terrified of the "terror troika" being elected to lead LA.  So she's backing Carmen Trutanich for City Attorney, most likely sensing that Jack Weiss is the most vulnerable and scariest of the troika.

The DWP finally managed to shut off a fire hydrant in the Valley that's been gushing 50 gallons of water a minute for the last ten days.  According to the Daily News, after several days the utility ultimately figured out how to save some of the water  while they tried to figure out how to turn off the flow.  The DWP seems to have a lot of trouble with hydrants lately .  And now they want to take over the solar industry in LA? Vote No on B!

Antonio Villaraigosa has one  and now Britney Spears is getting version 2.0 of her wax figure  at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. In the meantime, Joseph Mailander at Street Hassle has an audio-animatronic version of the Mayor for your amusement .

Alarcon Diverts Public $$ to Friends Via 501(c)3 ... Again

UPDATE

A couple of points of information:

1. Ms. De la Torre and Ms. Chavez have contacted Mayor Sam and stated that Ms. Chavez no longer works for Padres Contra El Cancer. Ms. De la Torre insists she no longer has any communication with the former program director. Ms. Chavez also stated that though she worked with Ms. De la Torre in the past, she has no contact or relationship with her.

2. Here are links to specific document(s) referenced and not already linked in this article...

http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990_pdf_archive/270/270126980/270126980_200712_990.pdf (Youth Speak Collective 990 from FY 2007, see page 5)

Note that charities, especially 501(c)3s, are public entities and their tax records are public documents... a matter of public record.

http://mayorsam2.blogspot.com/2009/02/health-research-and-education.html (undated document showing at bottom of page Ms. Chavez's business affiliation and contact information as Program Director at Padres Contra El Cancer, another 501(c)3. Since we first posted this, the original page was taken down by the source so we have an HTML version on MS2. We do have a .PDF of the original on hand at Mayor Sam HQ.)
---------------------------------------------------------

Deja vu. Councilman Richard AlarCON has been caught diverting public funds to his political friends and lovers yet again. Slipping a motion quietly through Council without any substantial public or neighborhood council input, $100,000 of the Lopez Canyon Community Amenities Fund has been diverted yet again by the slick councilman from CD 7 and seconded by his political lovechild, Tony Cardenas.

Who is the receipient of the Godfather's generosity with public funds this time? Why, it's a 501(c)3 run by a protege of Maribel de la Torre. De la Torre is the sister of Cindy Montanez, a former Mayor and current San Fernando City Councilmember.

The project ostensibly slated to receive the landfill mitigation funds is a community garden at Roger Jessup Park, an unstaffed community pocket park near Whiteman airport. According to Federal tax documents (Form 990) for 2007, Youth Speak Collective, the charity responsible for the project in question, was formed just four years ago and lists Michelle Chavez as the President/Chairman of the Board as well as just $200,000 in assets.

Chavez is/was also the Program Director at another 501(c)3, Padres Contra El Cancer, where, coincidentally, Maribel de la Torre is or has been the Director of Development for the same organization. The address listed for Chavez in Youth Speak Collective's tax documents (again, Form 990 for 2007) is the exact same address given by Padres Contra El Cancer as their business address.

It's common knowledge that Alarcon, a political "life-er", jumped on the opportunity to cut a deal with Cindy Montanez to withdraw from the race for the CD 7 seat vacated by Alex Padilla when Padilla went up to Sacramento.

There are three or four funds associated with the closed landfill in the northeast San Fernando Valley, all of which receive incoming monies from sales of methane which is a byproduct of the decades of decomposing City garbage underground. The Lopez Canyon Landfill Community Amenities Fund is supposed to benefit the people who have been highly impacted by the landfill. This area includes the parts of Lake View Terrace and Pacoima nearest Lopez Canyon, and most of unincorporated Kagel Canyon. Kagel has borne the majority of the landfill's impacts while receiving effectively none of the millions that have passed through the funds since Ernani Bernardi introduced the original motion with the best of intentions in the early 1990s.

Sadly, the history of abuse and outright theft of Lopez Canyon community funds seems to be endemic to District Seven Council Office. Previous CD 7 representative Alex Padilla at one point transferred all of the money from the main active account into his personal discretionary account for undisclosed uses.

When questioned last year as to why Alarcon was taking $100,000 from another of the landfill community funds (the Hansen Dam Environmental Awareness Center Fund) and using it to build a truck driving academy on the landfill property now slated to be a City park, Alarcon simply dissolved the Environmental Awareness Center fund and moved the money into the Community Amenities Fund where the motion states that the funds are to be spent at the discretion of the councilman.

So at this point in time, the Community Amenities Fund has for all intents and purposes gone from a community mitigation fund to a second discretionary fund for Alarcon, leaving the people impacted most by the landfill once again without a true democratic voice in how the funds are spent. Meanwhile, Alarcon's friends profit from the community's loss.

According to Alarcon aide (and coincidentally also his cousin) John de la Rosa, the Lopez Canyon fund is supposed to be used '...for the area north San Fernando Boulevard to Foothill Boulevard; east of Paxton Street to Osborne Street.' Completely contrary to Bernardi's original motion, De La Rosa's description of the impacted area tellingly leaves Kagel Canyon, the area most impacted by the landfill, out of the picture.

It seems nefarious behavior associated with this landfill runs in the family. De La Rosa was the manager of Lopez Canyon Landfill in the 1990s until he was allegedly forced to resign after being caught more than once significantly altering employee files without authorization.

...Oh the way Glenn Miller played.... songs that made the hit parade....

Mayor Sam's Hotsheet for Wednesday

Opposition to Measure B is growing .  Ron Kaye reports that Council Members Bernard Parks, Dennis Zine and Greig Smith have gone on record opposing the controversial DWP measure and that "Bill Rosendahl, is now undecided."  Kaye also notes that 32 Neighborhood Councils and two NC coalitions, at least seven homeowner groups and business organizations, the county Republican Party and the Harbor Democratic club have joined the opposition.

Industry news source FTVLive is reporting that NBC may outsource local news operations at it's owned and operated stations , perhaps to local Fox stations who NBC has an agreement with to share programming.  Apparently NBC brass aren't happy with the revenue performance of their local news divisions and their associated websites.  According to sources, NBC honcho Jeff Zucker wants to align the local websites with MSNBC.  The report says however that the outsourcing program will not affect KNBC here in Los Angeles.

If you're interested in having input into the legislative redistricting reform contained in the voter approved Proposition 11 last fall, here's your opportunity.   The California State Auditor will hold a public hearing  on Monday, February 23rd from 11am to 5pm at the Mark Taper Auditorium, 630 W. 5th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90071.

The San FernandoValley Republican Club has released a list of recommended voters and ballot measure positions for the March 3rd election .  To me the most interesting thing is how many Republicans are not running in some of the various races.

City Council President Eric Garcetti is holding a competition for local residents to design bike racks  to be built and installed in his District.  The prize for the winning design is $2000.  How about a contest to design a better City government? Oh wait - that's Garcetti's job!