December 2009 Archives

Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley yesterday inched close to, but just shy of, a formal announcement that he is running for California attorney general. Kenneth Ofgang in the Metropolitan News.

Sounding very much like someone who has made up his mind to run, he told the MetNews that he has "been strongly encouraged in the last several months" to seek the post "and I am definitely considering it." He said he wanted to "get through the holidays and the bowl games" and will announce his decision in the next 10 to 12 days.

His decision, he said, "boils down to one thing--who is best suited to be California's chief law enforcement officer." While the attorney general heads a department with "several core missions," he explained, the job "needs an experienced, reliable, seasoned law enforcement type."

Councilwoman Janice Hahn has put together her campaign team in her quest for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor, using people who have gotten her in office as well as those with statewide experience.
Heading the team as chief strategist is Garry South, who had been working on the gubernatorial campaign of San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, until he dropped out of the race. South has run several statewide campaigns, including that of former Gov. Gray Davis.
Joe Trippi will serve as media-social networking consultant. Trippi has worked in California politics for decades, but is perhaps best known for his work with Howard Dean and his run for president and was the first to show the fundraising power of the internet.
Hahn also has hired two people who have long been with her, pollster John FAirbanks and consultant John Shallman. Shallman will be senior campaign consultant.,
Her campaign manager will be Michael Trujillo, who has been very active locallky _ particularlky with the 2005 and 2009 electrions of Mayor Antonio Villoaraigosa and, last year, for Sen. Hillary Clinton.

New Year's Eve contract deadline between Time Warner Cable and a number of Fox broadcasting and cable channels is looming - and Fox channels could go dark in many San Fernando Valley homes if it is missed. Bob Strauss in the Daily News.

If an agreement over fees between the nation's second-largest cable provider and the News Corp. subsidiary isn't reached, cable subscribers could start 2010 without bowl games, local basketball and hockey or - gasp - "American Idol."

And if and when this thing gets settled, they can probably expect to pay more for what they do get.

LAKE VIEW TERRACE: The lights are still on, but nobody's home at what was to be the San Fernando Valley's children's museum. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

Eight months after the Children's Museum of Los Angeles filed for bankruptcy and abandoned its $52 million playland project, city officials hope to create a new museum especially for kids.

And residents hope the cavernous shell at Hansen Dam Recreation Area can be devoted to little boys and girls.

"It's everybody's tax dollars," said Steve Negrete, 60, of Lake View Terrace, watching his grandchildren play on a city parks playground next to the hulking museum site. "I see them filming movies there all the tim

At an age in which she could have received in-home care herself, Pacoima resident Susie Claborn, 73, seemed an unlikely welfare cheat. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

But prosecutors say she used two identifications - belonging to her incarcerated son and her granddaughter - to fraudulently bill the In-Home Supportive Services program $116,000.

She pleaded guilty to grand theft, identity theft and forgery and was placed on five years of probation, ordered to perform 500 hours of community service and pay $116,000 in restitution.

Tipoffs: City conducting survey for clean water tax; dealing with the city budget.

t shook Americans' sense of security, beginning with 9-11, continuing with the natural wallops of a tsunami, Katrina and deadly L.A. wildfires, and ending with a devastating economic downturn. It rocked citizens' faith in their political system, thanks to everything from a controversial presidential election to L.A. City Hall scandals. Daily News.

It challenged the status quo, with the election of the nation's first African-American president.

For the second year in a row - and likely continuing for the foreseeable future - Los Angeles city leaders have had to live with diminished expectations. Daily News,.

"This past year was a year of holding the line," Council President Eric Garcetti said in a recent interview. "Holding the line on the budget. Holding the line on crime and making even further gains there. Holding the line on the size of the police force.

"There was not much room to grow anything."

The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce has launched a new prescription drug discount program that has sparked complaints from a similar city-run effort that the chamber is misleading residents by copying the city program but offering lower benefits.
Daily News.
The city program, launched in August, goes by the name of LARx, while the chamber's, announced in November, is called Los Angeles Rx.

The firm working for the city criticized the chamber for coming up with a program that seems so similar yet offers very different benefits

Amid growing outrage over one supervisor's $707,000 office remodeling plan - including woolen carpets costing more than $50,000 - the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to reconsider the project.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The vote does not necessarily kill the plan by Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas to remodel his office, but places it under further review by the Chief Executive Office to determine the necessity.

Ridley-Thomas issued a statement saying he will order an "independent review to re-scope and re-evaluate the proposed project as deemed appropriate."

With a pledge to develop a program that does not tolerate discrimination, Los Angeles police officials said Tuesday they are on target to take over the Explorer Program on Jan. 1.Daily News.

New uniforms, patches and other insignia will be unveiled - along with a new name - to make the long-debated transition of the program from the Learning for Life subsidiary of the Boy Scouts of America to the LAPD's control.

"There has been a major push to get this together and we are there," Assistant Chief Earl Paysinger told the Police Commission.

Robert "Bud" Ovrom, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's deputy mayor for business development, was tapped Tuesday to take over as general manager of the city's Department of Building and Safety. Daily News.

In a letter to the City Council, Villaraigosa said Ovrom's 30 years of economic development experience would help him streamline the permit process and stimulate job creation. Among Ovrom's first tasks will be to implement the mayor's program to consolidate the city's 12 permitting agencies to just two.

Hoping to block Los Angeles Unified's bold reform plan that opens the doors for charter operators and other outside entities to take over public schools, the teachers union filed a lawsuit Monday that says the plan violates state law. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Under LAUSD's School Choice plan, approved by the Board of Education this August, some 220 outside groups have submitted bids to run 36 new and underperforming schools.

The deadline to apply for the schools is next month, with the school board expected to decide winners in February. Daily operations will be turned over by fall of 2010.

Santa's elves may toil long hours at toy time, but Los Angeles Sheriff's deputies are piling up the overtime all year long. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

Total deputy overtime has averaged $162 million a year since 2004, according to a county audit released over the weekend. Among the findings, 348 deputies worked 900 hours of overtime in one year - equal to six months of full-time work.

Furthermore, it said lawmen worked so many back-to-back shifts they risked being too weary to do the work

Despite all evidence to the contrary, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa insists this past year was one of the best in his nearly six years as the city's chief executive. Daily News.

Forget that he lost his biggest ally and the source of the city's success in reducing crime with the departure of Police Chief Bill Bratton.

Don't pay any attention to the fact that he is overseeing a city government that is shrinking by 2,400 workers, and faces a perennial shortfall in revenue that has stalled his ambitious hiring plan for the Los Angeles Police Department.

Tipoffs: With council in recess, Krekorian's swearing in on hold.

With the California economy sputtering at half- speed, population growth has slowed to a crawl as residents head east in search of jobs, according to a report released Thursday. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

Following a recent trend of decelerating population growth, the state grew less than 1 percent over the past year -- the slowest in a decade, according to the state Department of Finance.

Los Angeles County, a former destination of choice for immigrants, faced a growing exodus of residents but still grew at 0.65 percent as births outnumbered deaths.

As part of a multi-pronged effort to transform Metrolink from one of the nation's most dangerous rail systems to one of its safest, officials said the agency will soon receive the first delivery of new cars designed to better withstand crashes. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

Metrolink Board Chairman Keith Millhouse said the five-county commuter rail agency is expecting the arrival of a cab and passenger car featuring special crash-resistant technologies next month.

Hounded by cries for stronger safety features following two horrific passenger train crashes in the San Fernando Valley this decade that killed a total of 36 people, Metrolink has been working hard to repair its tarnished record.

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Ramon Cortines
Los Angeles schools chief Ramon Cortines said Thursday that he's done "coddling" under-performing teachers and plans to streamline district operations to ensure sub-par educators are removed from the classroom. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Cortines' statements came as the district faces a massive budget deficit that could lead to layoffs of 5,000 employees, including 1,500 teachers, next year.

Under current rules, the pink slips would go first to the newest teachers, even as dozens of chronically poor-performing teachers -- some who have been removed from classrooms for egregious behavior -- continue to stay employed due to their tenured status.

Los Angeles Unified and the teachers union reached a deal this week that allows the opening of 20 more semi-independent pilot schools in the district next year.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The deal could help LAUSD retain control of more campuses under the School Choice reform plan that allows teachers and nonprofits to compete to run public schools.

Pilot schools are district-run campuses that give staff and parents more decision-making power and have teachers working under more flexible contracts. They have become an attractive option to charter schools, which are publicly financed but independently run and are not required to hire union workers.

Under fire from passengers for leaving the Orange Line out of its plan to offer 24-hour service on New Year's Eve, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said Wednesday that the busway will be operating after all, to serve party-goers wanting a safe ride home.Tony Castro in the Daily News.

The announcement came after the Daily News reported that Metro would offer 24-hour service for New Year's on its Red, Purple, Blue, Green and Gold lines -- which not the Orange Line, the 14-mile-long busway that traverses the San Fernando Valley.

As hundreds of people have expressed outrage over Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas' plans to spend $707,000 on an office remodel, a county official said Wednesday the supervisor is considering whether to scale down the project.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

County Chief Executive Officer Bill Fujioka said Ridley-Thomas is seeking an outside firm to conduct an independent assessment to determine if the project should be pared back.

The Board of Supervisors have faced intense public pressure since voting unanimously Dec.1 to refurbish Ridley-Thomas' office.

Southern California's neglected roadways and bridges cost the average motorist about $2,500 a year in accidents, congestion-related delays and wear-and-tear on their vehicles, according to a report released today.Sue Doyle in the Daily News.

And the road will get even bumpier for commuters - and the economy - without increased investment in transportation improvements at the state and federal level, according to The Road Information Program, a nonprofit transportation research organization.

"A safe and more efficient transportation system is critical to economic recovery," said Carolyn Bonifas, associate director of research and communication for the Washington, DC-based nonprofit.

All but five of the city's estimated 800 to 1,000 medical marijuana clinics would be forced to shut down or move under the latest restrictions being considered by the Los Angeles City Council, officials said Wednesday.Daily News.

The council had intended to reduce the number to no more than 137. But members learned that the actual rules they drafted, including keeping them away from schools and residential areas, went further than they intended, making almost all of the city off-limits to the dispensaries.

Police Chief Charlie Beck pledged Tuesday to correct accounting practices in the LAPD's purchasing division, which an internal audit found had mismanaged millions of taxpayer dollars.
Tony Castro in the Daily News.
But Beck told the Police Commission there was no criminal wrongdoing and that a new manual and training program would help resolve the problems of sloppy bookkeeping and purchasing policy violations.

"There's no indication that this money has been wasted or squandered - it just hasn't been tracked appropriately," Beck said of the audit covering the 2007-2008 fiscal year. "And we're going to fix that."

Beck, however, acknowledged that he had not been made aware of the audit until recently - leading Commissioner Robert M. Saltzman to chastise the administrators responsible for withholding the findings.

As Los Angeles County seeks to replace a voting system that has been subject to sharp criticism from state officials, the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to terminate a contract with one of the system's main vendors. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The supervisors ended the contract with Premier Election Solutions Inc., formerly Diebold Election Systems, that would have provided the county with electronic voting equipment and a new central vote tabulation system.

The decision to terminate the contract follows the Secretary of State's office's top-to-bottom review of the state's voting systems.

The city controller cannot conduct performance audits of other elected officials' offices, a Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday, effectively siding with City Attorney Carmen Trutanich in his feud with City Controller Wendy Greuel. Daily News.

Judge Mark Mooney's ruling, which had been expected, does not necessarily end the long-running legal battle because Greuel intends to file an appeal.

"I think any elected official would want to defend their authority and right to do their job," Greuel said. "I think the voters of the city want and expect their controller to be able to do the job to audit programs, whether they are in a department or an elected official's office."

As City Council members criticized the Department of Water and Power for a lack of public trust, a committee moved closer to creating a new position in the department to represent customers' interests. Daily News.

Interim General Manager David Freeman found himself on the defensive as he fought to block an independent review of the DWP's operations.

"The truth is the public does not trust the DWP," said Councilman Richard Alarc n during the council's Energy and Environment Committee meeting. "They believe they are being overcharged. If you polled the people of Los Angeles, whether a business or residential customer, they would say they are being overcharged."

The LAPD under former chief William Bratton mismanaged and mishandled millions of dollars of taxpayer money - violating city policies in buying supplies and hiring vendors, according to an internal department audit.Tony Castro in the Daily News

Covering the 2007-2008 fiscal year, the audit revealed serious bungling in the department's purchasing process, which accounts for $60 million in spending annually, KNX News Radio reported Monday.

Although the audit was completed in late summer, as Bratton prepared to leave amid praise for reducing the city's crime rate, it was not made public until this week, KNX reported.

The quality of Los Angeles' drinking water ranks among the lowest of large U.S. cities and contains nearly four times the average number of chemical pollutants, according to a study released Monday.
"Dana Barftholomew in the Daily News

The environmental report rated Department of Water and Power drinking water at 83rd out of 100 cities because of its cocktail of 30 chemical contaminants.

One cancer-causing chemical exceeded federal legal standards while 14 other chemicals surpassed recommended health guidelines, according to the report

Taking the first step to professionalize gang intervention workers, a city panel recommended Monday paying a group $200,000 to create a training academy.Daily News.

The Los Angeles Violence Intervention and Training Academy will develop a 150-hour program for intervention workers - many of whom have been working on their own to try and curb gang activity. Leaders say the program will be operating by March.

LAPD Chief Charlie Beck told the City Council's Public Safety Committee the new academy is critical to the city's crime-fighting efforts.

Hoping to reduce the number of animals the city has to euthanize, a City Council panel approved a plan on Monday that would require microchips to be implanted in all dogs or cats recovered by owners from city shelters. Daily News.

Under the proposal approved by the City Council's Public Safety Committee, pets that are picked up by Animal Service workers and are reclaimed at a shelter will be automatically fitted with a microchip.

While the possibility of a nuclear attack in Los Angeles seems almost unthinkable, local officials are inventorying hundreds of old bomb and fallout shelters as part of their preparations for a "radiological or nuclear event." Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

Los Angeles and other metropolitan areas are drafting emergency plans while federal agencies study how to prepare the public for what county public health Director Jonathan Fielding describes as a "low-likelihood, huge-consequences event."

His department hosted a workshop last week for the emergency operations staff of the county's 88 cities in preparation for "Golden Phoenix," an exercise scheduled for June 2010 that simulates the scenario of a 10-kiloton nuclear device detonated in Los Angeles.

Tipoffs: Some in Los Angeles Police Protective League upset with
$400,000 spent in council race.

Facing a local unemployment rate of nearly 14 percent, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is reaching out to the city's most influential business and community leaders to help get more Angelenos back to work. Daily News.

Creating a new kitchen Cabinet to resolve what many consider the city's - and the nation's - most pressing problem, Villaraigosa is putting together an economic advisory team that includes former Mayor Richard Riordan, Eli Broad and Michael Milken.

"We have worked together on a number of projects, and I go to him for advice on a number of things," Villaraigosa said of Riordan in a recent interview.

UNIVERSAL CITY -- Meg Whitman, the billionaire former eBay CEO who is running for governor of California, introduced her campaign to San Fernando Valley business leaders Thursday by saying she would focus on "jobs, spending and education." Kevin Modesti in the Daily News.

The occasion was the Valley Industry & Commerce Association's 60th annual meeting, which drew a bigger-than-usual luncheon crowd of about 400, many intent on hearing the woman who leads early polls for next June's Republican gubernatorial primary.

Whitman told them Sacramento has tried to tackle too many problems at once.

There has been little time for the city's newest councilman to bask in his victory. Daily News/.

Councilman-elect Paul Krekorian found himself on a familiar commute Thursday -- back to Sacramento, where he carried out his duties as assemblyman to vote on some key measures before the holiday break.

"There are some votes I have to cast in the next few days and then I hope to focus on what to do in the council," Krekorian said.

Often accused of being dragged down by red tape, Los Angeles City Hall faced a novel criticism Thursday from the city's fiscal watchdog: It sometimes moves too quickly. Daily News.

City Controller Wendy Greuel released an audit that finds the city pays its bills too early, leading to a loss of up to $8.1 million a year in interest and earnings on investments.

A somber Los Angeles Unified school board approved a budget plan Tuesday that calls for the elimination of more than 5,000 district positions over the next two years. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The plan includes several cost-cutting proposals to help the district close a projected budget deficit of $1.2 billion through 2012, but all included some kind of employee pay cuts to prevent layoffs.

Approving the plan 6-1, board members denounced the cuts that would include layoffs of more than 1,400 teachers, nearly 1,000 janitors and maintenance workers and 520 school office workers, but said they had no other choice unless employees agree to some concessions.

Investigators are probing whether six city employees associated with Los Angeles World Airports improperly accepted at least two lavish trips from the agency that represents foreign air carriers at LAX, officials confirmed Tuesday.Art Marroquin in the Daily News.

Officials say the employees may have violated state and city laws when they accepted trips provided over the past several years by LAX Terminal Equity Corp., the agency that has represented airlines housed in the Tom Bradley International Terminal since 1984.

After years of delay, the City Council on Tuesday adopted a cap on the number of medical marijuana dispensaries allowed in Los Angeles, potentially leading to the shuttering of hundreds of the clinics that have popped up around the city in the past two years. Daily News.

The council also imposed new rules on clinic locations and operations that one council member said were so restrictive that they would prevent any clinics from legally operating almost anywhere in the city.

"Finally, we are getting a handle on this," Councilman Dennis Zine said after the 10-3 vote to impose the ca

Assemblyman Paul Krekorian won an easy victory over businesswoman Christine Essel in Tuesday's special election to fill out a term for the 2nd City Council District seat.
Krekorian had 10,998 votes, for 56.56 percetn of the votes, compared to Essel's, 8,304, for 43.44 percent. The election saw a turnout of 15 percent of the district's voters.

Assemblyman Paul Krekorian took an early lead in balloting for the 2nd City Council District seat over businesswoman Christine Essel.
Krekorian captured 58 percent of the vote by mail ballots.

The Los Angeles Unified school board is expected to vote on a two-year budget plan today that calls for the elimination of more than 5,000 district positions unless employee unions agree to furloughs and pay cuts.Comnnie Llanos in the Daily News.

The layoffs could be avoided if all district employees were to take an 11.75 percent pay cut, which could come in the form of furloughs or other cuts.

The district is facing a shortfall of some $1.2 billion through 2012, according to a report by Chief Financial Officer Megan Reilly.

San Fernando Valley residents from Studio City to Sunland-Tujunga will go to the polls today to fill the City Council seat vacated last summer by Wendy Greuel.Daily News.

Voters will choose between businesswoman Christine Essel and Assemblyman Paul Krekorian, D-Valley Glen, the top-two vote getters in a special election held in September.

Turnout is expected to be about 20 percent, based on the vote-by-mail ballots already received. But if the rain that fell Monday continues today, that number could be even lower.

A Los Angeles city panel asked City Attorney Carmen Trutanich on Monday to brief them privately this week on the status of a criminal investigation into the Michael Jackson memorial service held in July at Staples Center.Daily News.

City Council members said Staples owner AEG might be willing to reimburse the city for some of its $3.5 million cost to provide security at the event, but not until the company receives assurances the city will not file criminal charges against it.

"I call it the `put up or shut up' option," said Councilwoman Jan Perry at a meeting of the council's Public Safety Committee as it reviewed a report on the costs of the July 7 service.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will lead a delegation of nearly a dozen Los Angeles officials to Copenhagen this week as part of a business and environmental trip tied to the Copenhagen Climate Conference. Daily News

Villaraigosa will leave Saturday for his first stop in Berlin, where he will meet with government and business leaders involved in the solar power movement.

"The mayor hopes to advance some talks that have been going on and talk of the benefits that are available in Los Angeles with tax breaks in economic zones and the Community Redevelopment areas," spokeswoman Sarah Hamilton said Monday.

Teri Leahy has lived in her Northridge home for two decades. Susan Abram in the Daily News.

She hopes to grow old and die there, if only the bank would just let her.

"I love this house," she said. "I just want to pay my bills. I want to do the right thing."

Leahy is one of 650,000 Americans who qualified for a trial modification loan as part of the Obama Administration's Home Affordable Modification Program that kicked off in February. The $75 billion program allowed borrowers to prevent foreclosure by entering a three-month trial modification program to prove themselves before adjusting to a permanent loan.

Tipoffs: Councilman Dennis Zine refuses to debate mobile billboard operator.

City Attorney Carmen Trutanich, who was hospitalized last week with abdominal pains, made his first public appearance on Sunday in the San Pedro holiday parade, aides said.

For a while now, the Barrio Van Nuys street gang has been claiming a version of the New York Yankees' interlocked NY logo as its own. Tony Castro in the Dalyo News.

By trimming the tail off the 'Y,' the famous Major League Baseball trademark is turned into an interwoven VN, standing for Van Nuys. The gang is touting its Yankee-esque symbol on social networking Web sites and YouTube.

It's just one example of what law enforcement say is an increasing trend among gangs to use cyberspace to broaden their appeal, boast of illegal exploits, pose threats and recruit new members.

For nine-year-old Ferran Romero, there is no sweeter sound than the boisterous bellows of his trombone. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

"It sounds like an elephant," Ferran said as he balanced the brass instrument, nearly his size.

The fourth-grade student from Topeka Drive Elementary started playing the trombone last year thanks to a Los Angeles Unified program that brings music, dance, theater and art classes to every elementary school in the district.

On the surface, there are few differences between businesswoman Christine Essel and Assemblyman Paul Krekorian, who face off Tuesday in the special election for the 2nd City Council District seat. Daily News.

Both agree on the need to boost business development, deal with runaway film production and pay more attention to neighborhood needs in a district that stretches from Studio City to Sun Valley.

"This election is about an opportunity to restructure government, to put together reforms to make the city more efficient," Essel said at a recent debate.

Krekorian has tried to tap into voter anger.

Mailer causes controversy
A last minute mailing by the Essel campaign created a weekend controversy with accusations of sexism and anti-semitism.
Essel sent out a picture of City Hall with barbed wire wrapped around it an a headline: "'Intolerance has no place at City Hall."
It goes on to campaign about a website for an Armenian newspaper that contained harshly critical comments about Essel and featrured a picture of her in ropes. Theorigianl Krekorian mailing said it was to show she is :"the puppet" of special interests.
Both campaigns responded quicklyu,k with Krekorian bringing out Jewish supporters and the Essel forces saying it showed they had touched a nerve,.

For the first time since Proposition 13 was passed in 1978, homeowners in Los Angeles County and statewide will see a slight decrease in their property tax bills next year, thanks to a bit of deflation, officials said Wednesday. Troy Anderson in teh Daily News.

Due to an estimated 0.237 percent drop in the national inflation rate, California Board of Equalization officials said 2010 will be the first time such a broad scale reduction in property tax base year values has occurred.

"Since Prop. 13, this is the first time there has been deflation that could be applied to property tax values," BOE spokeswoman Anita Gore said. "It looks like this deflation will save homeowners about $2.60 for each $100,000 in assessed value."

Declaring "I will not let you down," Police Chief Charlie Beck took the oath of office Thursday to become the 56th leader of the Los Angeles Police Department in a formal celebration of his appointment. Daily News

Beck has been on the job for two weeks and has already begun remaking the command staff as he takes over a department from Chief William Bratton, who was able to drive down crime to historic low levels and generate the most popular support it has ever had.

Neighobrhood activists in Sunland-Tujunga have developed their won web ad for Assemblyman Paul Krekorian, D-Valley Glen, in the race for teh 2nd City Council District seat, using the new media better than either candidate has.

Los Angeles Unified announced a tentative deal Wednesday with the teachers union that would allow the opening of 20 more semi-independent "pilot" schools next year.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

If approved, the deal could help LAUSD retain control of more campuses under the district's reform plan that allows teachers and nonprofits to compete to run public schools.

Pilot schools are district-run campuses that give staff and parents more decision-making power and have teachers working under more flexible contracts. They have become an attractive option to charter schools, which are publicly financed but independently run and are not required to hire union workers.

As a Superior Court judge threatened to halt the sale of marijuana from an Eagle Rock clinic, Los Angeles officials said Wednesday they don't expect to finalize plans to regulate dispensaries before the end of the year.Daily News.

Superior Court Judge James Chalfant said Tuesday that he is likely to prohibit sales by the Hemp Factory V in Eagle Rock because he believes they violate state law.

He believes state law only allows collectives to grow and distribute marijuana, but not sell it. He set another hearing date in January for the lawsuit by the City Attorney's Office, which is trying to close the clinic.

Homeless people would be allowed to park overnight in designated zones throughout Los Angeles under a plan that is already generating strong opposition from residents of the Westside and other communities. Daily News

City Councilman Bill Rosendahl asked Wednesday that discussion of his plan be delayed until January to give him more time to rework the proposal based on comments from other council members and the public.

"I think we need to do something to deal with the people who are camping out in their cars and vans," said Rosendahl, who ask to delay debate. "It's happening, folks. It's something we have to recognize."

Former Councilman Joel Wachs, who once represented the district, announced Wednesday he is supporting Christine Essel in the 2nd District election next Tuesday over Assemblyman Paul Krekorian, D-Valley Glen.
"For years, I've known Chris Essel to be an honest, hardworking businesswoman. I trust her to protect Valley neighborhoods from rampant overdevelopment," Wachs said,

Former Council District 2 representative Joel Wachs announced today that he is supporting Valley businesswoman Christine Essel in the race to succeed him and Wendy Greuel as City Councilmember for District 2.

"For years, I've known Chris Essel to be an honest, hardworking businesswoman. I trust her to protect Valley neighborhoods from rampant overdevelopment," Wachs said, "You can trust Christine Essel - she won't be afraid to shake up City Hall. I'm happy to be supporting her in Tuesday's important special election."

"I am so proud to have earned an endorsement from Joel Wachs,

With assumptions California is headed toward a fourth year of drought, the state Department of Water Resources announced Tuesday that it will only supply local communities with 5 percent of the water they requested for next year.Dailky News.

The DWR's State Water Project is one of several major suppliers of Los Angeles water. City officials said because they have other sources they aren't ready yet to announce stricter conservation measures beyond those announced in the past year, but they are monitoring the situation careful

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced a plan Tuesday to pave the way for a rush of new electric cars in 2010-11 by expanding Southern California's network of charging stations and offering incentives to drivers of the environment-friendly vehicles. Kevin Modesti in the Daily News.

Under the agreement among government and private entities, the region's 400 existing electric-vehicle charging stations would be upgraded, and 100 would be added within a year after the adoption of new federal charging standards, expected to be issued in mid-2010.

he Board of Supervisors on Tuesday asked for a report on whether financial problems in Dubai will affect the $3 billion Grand Avenue project, whose developers have borrowed money from Dubai investors.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

State-run investment company Dubai World has sought to delay payments on about half of its $59 billion debt, which unnerved financial markets last week.