County supervisors will vote next week on a project that would demolish a great hunk of northern L.A. County‘s remaining natural habitat.If they reject the long-delayed Transit Mix Concrete gravel-digging project, supervisors will stand with its fastest-growing and third largest city, Santa Clarita, which is suing several federal agencies for failing to protect rare species […]
Month: July 2018
Biting Back
As a covered entity under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Angeles does not discriminate on the basis of disability and, upon request, will provide reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access to its programs, services, and activities . . .Dan Knapp, L.A.’s former Department of Animal Services general manager, […]
Supervisorial Misconduct
The buck-and-a-half word for today is tergiversate, which means ”to change repeatedly one’s attitude or opinions.“ And as of this week, Los Angeles County Counsel Lloyd Pellman is Civic Center‘s prime tergiversator.Just look at the way he flipped through his options a few weeks ago on the little matter of dealing with the home health-care […]
Beyond Bernie
Early last week, top leaders in the local African-American clergy held a private breakfast meeting. I don’t know what it was about. But whatever decision was made, it doesn‘t seem to have been to amp up the protest against Mayor Jim Hahn’s decision not to rehire his police chief. New York mouth-at-large Al Sharpton was […]
The Knife
Facing the tightest budget in seven years, L.A. County’s new health-services director, Thomas Garthwaite, told a skeptical Board of Supervisors this week that he is willing to consider service cuts far beyond the $10 million reduction already approved.But it won‘t be easy to do. In light of strong protests voiced against the $10 million round […]
Vital Signs
Thomas L. Garthwaite may have just taken on the toughest job in California, even if it pays — at $275,000 per year — the highest public government salary in Los Angeles County. Garthwaite is the new chief of the county‘s Department of Health Services (DHS), with its six public hospitals and nearly 150 clinics. And […]
Break Time
As reported in the L.A. Daily Journal by Gina Keating last week, in a recent preliminary hearing, the foundation’s lawyers raised the issue of who is a county employee: They contended that classifying home health-care workers as county employees is illegal, since the county doesn‘t hire, fire or supervise the workers and carries no legal […]
Sunshine Homecoming Day
A wild and assorted flock of chickens — in every plumage, weight and breed — came home to roost before the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors last week. All of them were as mad as wet hens, and none of them were pleasant to deal with.But the habitually aloof little kings and queens of […]
So Long, Bernie
Police Chief Bernard Parks asked the Los Angeles City Council to overturn the Police Commission‘s vote not to grant him a second term and cranked up his long-simmering war with Mayor Jim Hahn. He accused the mayor of prejudgment and virtually of corruption.In his hourlong speech Tuesday, Parks did not admit the slightest professional imperfection […]
What Goes Around
Race, Republicans and revenge combined to slow Los Angeles‘ Latino electoral-empowerment steamroller in the San Fernando Valley’s 2nd City Council District last month. Underdog Wendy Greuel, who came in second in last December‘s primary, edged out Assemblyman Tony Cardenas in the March runoff for the seat held for 30 years by Joel Wachs.It now goes […]