What’s happening today?
Hot topic MacArthur Park fencing on the Rec and Parks agenda today, but there’s also the iconic Griffith Park planetarium projector, tennis court improvements, and an outdoor performing arts center
The Recreation and Parks Commission is meeting at Pan Pacific Recreation Center this morning, and among the items on their agenda is the proposed installation of a green “wrought iron perimeter fencing” around both the north and south sections of MacArthur Park. Given the prominence of this park, this has unsurprisingly become a hot topic, with some urging the city not to move ahead with this. The department’s report (which contains drawings, more detail and maps) points to more maintenance and repairs needed at MacArthur Park, compared with Lafayette Park nearby that has fencing. “The damages and vandalism are typically occurring overnight when the park is closed,” the report says, and by installing this perimeter fence, the department will get “greater flexibility in managing park hours, improve oversight during off-hours, and support long-term stewardship of this important public space.” There’s also a maintenance contract for the Universarium Mix Model 555 Star projector used in the Griffith Observatory’s Samuel Oschin Planetarium. This model was purchased by the Friends of the Observatory in 2000 when the Griffith Observatory got a big renovation done, then transferred to the city in 2005. The files before the commission say that the maker of the projector, Zeiss, is the only one that can maintain it, so that’s the contract before them. The report even adds, “failure to properly service and repair the projector would place a multi-million dollar instrument at the heart of the Griffith Observatory experience at risk.” There’s also an item seeking more funding for the Griffith Park outdoor performing art center, to pay for an accessible pathway that ended up needing to be longer than anticipated. Also on the agenda are tennis court improvements at Northridge Recreation Center, playground improvements at Bronson Canyon playground, and a new gymnasium at the Studio City Recreation Center.
What just happened?
Blast from LA’s secessionist past ‘community boroughs’ idea could be revived: Council member Tim McOsker, who chairs the new Ad Hoc Committee on Charter Review, reached back into the past to call for reviving a previously spiked proposal to create a “community boroughs” system in Los Angeles. McOsker authored a motion on Wednesday that calls for re-opening an expired file from 2002 for a motion authored by then-Council member Wendy Greuel and seconded by then-council members Janice Hahn, Tom LaBonge, Dennis Zine and Jan Perry. One iteration of that proposal at the time envisioned a ballot measure that would “establish a community borough system which shall increase local autonomy and decision-making by granting community boroughs authority over local issues, including but not limited to local budgeting, land use and delivery of services, while the citywide government shall continue to have authority over issues of citywide concern. The system of community boroughs shall augment the City’s neighborhood council system and provide for coordination between neighborhood councils and their corresponding boroughs.”
That 2002 proposal came at a time when secession by the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood were a major concern – although interestingly, the neighborhood councils that this proposal cites had already been viewed as a way to quash those secessionist urges. The secessionist efforts ultimately failed.
Racism in the LAPD is a ‘herpes virus’? Libor Jany offers a look at racism within an LAPD that has changed its racial makeup to better reflect Los Angeles’s population. He offers up some perspectives, including a survey that indicated pervasive defensiveness amongst the officer ranks over efforts to address racism in the department, as well as an eye-catching comment from noted Connie Rice, a civil rights lawyer, who says that “racism is like the herpes virus in the body of the LAPD.” Jany is reflecting on this topic shortly after a whistleblower officer, Daniel Flores, was initially charged by the District Attorney with eavesdropping before those charges were dropped amid public outcry. The role of racism in the department could also be relevant amid an effort by LA city leaders to push for restrictions on the department’s use of pretextual stops, which has been used historically as part of law enforcement racial profiling practices.
The vibes are off between LA city leaders and LA28: LA City Council members seemed especially testy about LA28, the coordinating committee for the upcoming 2028 Olympics, at Wednesday’s ad hoc committee on the “major event” headed our way. One City Council member, Katy Yaroslavsky, even questioned city staffers about whether the vague contracting details LA28 has given the city might constitute a breach of contract. Steve Reid of Southern California News Group picked on Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson seeming bad mood, picking out his comment that the off-vibes between the city and the LA28 committee paints a “troubling picture.” While staffers didn’t go as far as the council members did, City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo told the committee that they’re in “dispute resolution” with LA28, Reid reports. James Rainey of the LA Times also provides some context about the clouds brewing over the “partners.”
A libertarian lawsuit puts a stop to Measure ER, maybe until January 2027? The Libertarian Party and a private citizen have sued to put a pause on Measure ER, a half-cent sales tax to fund healthcare services in LA County, reports Steve Scauzillo of Southern California News Group. The lawsuit argues that the sales tax would lead to some cities’ tax limits getting exceeded, but that’s something that could be worked-around through state legislative action. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill to allow cities to exceed the limit, similar to what was done for Measure A, which generates sales tax revenue for homeless services. Scauzillo writes that “at best, the monies would be delayed until Jan. 1, 2027, when AB1768 takes effect, according to the lawsuit.”
Medical helicopter crashes near Catalina, killing two: A medevac helicopter went down as it was taking off from Catalina Island, killing two people while one person was missing. You can find County Supervisor Janice Hahn’s post about that here. There is also some broadcast news coverage here. This comes a couple weeks after another helicopter crash tragedy in Chatsworth that killed three people.
Streetsblog LA explains pedestrian headstart crossings, as LA city transportation officials report reaches City Council: Joe Linton of Streetsblog LA offers an explainer of “leading pedestrian interval,” a wonky word for those street crossing lights that give pedestrians a headstart to walk across the street before cars are allowed to also move across the intersection. Just last month, in September, the LA Department of Transportation submitted a report responding to an earlier 2023 motion by several City Council members for more information about this pedestrian safety measure. You can track that report, which does not appear to be scheduled for a committee meeting just yet. The issue has generated some interest from neighborhood councils in Westwood and Studio City. Westwood’s neighborhood council expressed support for the item, while Studio City’s neighborhood councils were wary, writing in their community impact statement that “all motor vehicle users must be part of the total transportation equation and not be punished for private motor vehicle use as a means to force them into the current inadequate public transportation system.”