INSIDE INGLEWOOD-According to a USA Today video interview with Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts, the stadium proposal put forth by St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke and approved by Butts will require the destruction of the Forum.
The mayor’s comments about the Forum’s destruction, however, were cut out of the video starting at the 1:25 minute mark. (See the edited video link at the bottom of this story.)
When asked about the deletion during a late March telephone conversation, Peter said, "[USA Today] is responsible for omitting the 20-second clip." When asked why they were going to bat for Butts rather than investigating why he made such a statement, Peter said, "I didn't find enough to substantiate all that was in the story."
Butts, of course, refused to answer why he disclosed that the Forum would be destroyed, let alone why he is hiding the fact despite his revelation during the February interview.
In January of 2013, Butts approved an $18 million "redevelopment loan" that he attempted to force the city to forgive in 2014.
Butts later had the city spend another $2 million for the Forum security, street cameras and much more.
That all came around the time when Madison Square Garden - the Forum's new owner — backed out of a parking lot deal that Butts may have known would not be honored.
Moreover, residents around the Forum were forced to endure mortally dangerous motor traffic after the mayor secretly decommissioned the red light cameras.
Now Butts is saying that the Forum will be torn down. Here is the video from USA Today from which Butts comments about the impending destruction of the Forum were removed.
(Randall Fleming is a veteran journalist and magazine publisher. He has worked at and for the New York Post, the Brooklyn Spectator and the Los Feliz Ledger. He is currently editor-in-chief at the Morningside Park Chronicle, a weekly newspaper based in Inglewood, CA and on-line at www.MorningsideParkChronicle.com. Mr. Fleming’s views are his own and do not reflect the views of CityWatch.)
-cw
CityWatch
Vol 13 Issue 26
Pub: Mar 27, 2015
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