Memo to City Leadership: Blame Yourselves if Angelenos Reject the Olympics

POLITICS-For the record, I would love to see the Olympics return to LA, and I would love to see a successful Measure R-2. That said, I think the Mayor, City Council and Downtown "leadership" have done enough mischief and backdoor wrongdoing that it will prove very difficult for Angelenos (who really are sick of City corruption) to support either endeavor.  Downtown still hasn't learned:  spend public money well, and stop belittling Angeleno taxpayers! 

The repetitive slaps in the face to the businesses, neighborhood councils and residents (both daytime and nighttime, because plenty of commuting "Angelenos" work here but don't reside here) aren't endearing us to City leadership, no matter what distractions the City Council and Mayor can throw at us. 

For many it's too late--they've thrown up their hands and said "no more!"  No Measure R-2, No Olympics.  The era where the City and County (to be fair, more so the former than the latter) once gave a rip about desperate, exhausted taxpayers and families appears to be OVER, and they're tired of being chumped and treated like a perpetual and ever-ready ATM machine to fund the needs of special Downtown interests. 

But there are many of us, perhaps still "chumps" and perhaps still trying to do the right and moral thing DESPITE bad City leadership, who remain both cynical and hopeful that something can be figured out. 

So here are a few last-ditch efforts to at least address the needs of City residents (and the rest of the County who commutes, shops and otherwise relates to City needs and issues), in the hopes that Mayor Garcetti and other City leaders will show helpful courage, vision and taxpayer-respect as well as useless smiles and speeches: 

1) Throw out a City charter amendment prohibiting the use of local taxpayer funds, and set up a private sector Olympics committee to make sure that a 2024 Olympics both is fiscally-sound and protective to the taxpayers.  Both the past and current mayors, despite a few big wins, have rightfully earned the fear and need of City residents for protection against Downtown City (and, to a lesser degree, County) government. 

2) Have this private sector Olympics committee find a way to privately fund the refurbishing and rebuilding of the Coliseum and any other necessary stadiums.  Note to USC and all of the billionaires and megabusinesses: if you want an improved Coliseum and necessary Olympic stadiums, then YOU pay for it (and I'm sure you can get a nice tax deduction or even tax credit if it's done right). 

3) Just what IS "Measure R-2", anyway?  It's perfectly reasonable to align long-desired public works projects (such as expediting the Purple Line Subway, a Valley/Westside Subway, and--oh, yes--a Metro Rail/LAX Link and a direct rail link from LAX to Union Station) with the 2024 Olympics.  But how much will it cost?  What are the priorities?   

Will "Measure R-2" be the critical funding source to fix our sidewalks, curbs, gutters, medians, roads, alleys, etc.?  Because THAT will be just about all that the public will be, and should be, expected to pay for the Olympics. 

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4) Get off the socialist bandwagon, and have the private sector be a partner for fixing the sidewalks and streets of Los Angeles.  Yes, we love our public sector unions, but when the prioritization and politicization of fixing roads and sidewalks favor some parts of the City over others, we lose the ability of contracting cost-effective and qualified private contractors to fix ALL of our sidewalks and roads in 5-10 years (not 30 years!).  

5) Downtown must stop "fixing" our problems of affordability and cost of living, because the middle class keeps getting smashed, and crime keeps going up in the City as a consequence of City meddling. 

Wanna create affordable housing, reduce utility and food/grocery costs?  Empower Neighborhood Councils again, and establish a few charter amendments to allow them access to fixing our budgetary/policy nightmares! 

It's up to YOU, Mr. Mayor.  And it's up to YOU, Mr. Wesson.  And it's up to YOU, Mr. Galperin.  You are either the cause of our success or failure in funding and organizing a return of the Olympics back to LA, and everyone knows that.   

So if we don't bring the Olympics back to LA, then don't bother blaming the Koch brothers, Wall Street, stingy Angelenos, short-sighted Neighborhood Councils, CityWatch writers, or anyone else. 

Blame yourselves.

 

(Ken Alpern is a Westside Village Zone Director and Board member of the Mar Vista Community Council (MVCC), previously co-chaired its Planning and Outreach Committees, and currently is Co-Chair of its MVCC Transportation/Infrastructure Committee. He is co-chair of the CD11Transportation Advisory Committee and chairs the nonprofit Transit Coalition, and can be reached at  [email protected]   He also does regular commentary on the Mark Isler Radio Show on AM 870, and co-chairs the grassroots Friends of the Green Line at www.fogl.us. The views expressed in this article are solely those of Mr. Alpern.)

-cw

 

 

CityWatch

Vol 13 Issue 71

Pub: Aug 31, 2015