July 2008 Archives

That's right. After almost three years living in California and coming up on a year of getting schooled on all the ins and outs of Long Beach City Hall, I finally feel like a real Californian.

My easygoing Midwest attitude had already faded upon hitting the LA freeways, and now I've felt the earth roll, twist, shake and convulse underneath me.

When Tuesday's quake hit Southern California, I was on the phone with a source, talking about, yet again, Congresswoman Laura Richardson, the Long Beach Democrat who has made some questionable and widely reported financial decisions. Then everything began to shake. Maybe it was a sign from God -- enough with the Richardson stories already!

I guess when I moved to California, I had the idea that earthquakes were practically a part of daily life, mostly a minor inconvenience. See, back home in Kansas (make all the jokes you want, KU is still the NCAA basketball champion) tornadoes are a regular occurence, at least in the summer. I remember spending at least a couple of hours a week in my parents' basement to escape tornadoes during one summer of my childhood.

But earthquakes are different. There are no warning sirens to let you know that one is on the way, and no escaping or hiding. You just have to ride it out. Frankly, when the tremor began Tuesday, I had only a brief moment of fear, but mostly I was a little excited and intrigued by the new experience.

However, here in the somewhat new Press-Telegram offices on the 14th floor of the Arco building downtown, once the shaking stopped, the swaying began. It was like being a ship at sea as the building swayed from side to side for several minutes, freaking out more than a few of us.

But my coworkers and I, in fact all of Long Beach, escaped unscathed, for which I am grateful. And now that I've finally had my earthquake experience, and knowing the damage a more powerful one could do, I'll be happy to not ever sit through another one again.

How about you? Any other first-time earthquake-ees? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Just post a comment and share with the rest of the Press Corps readers.

A 295-foot sailing ship once used to train Nazi cadets in fascist Germany will sail into the Port of Los Angeles on August 1 under its new banner as "America's Tall Ship."

The Cutter Eagle, owned and operated by the U.S. Coast Guard since 1946, will be open for public tours from 1 to 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.

The ship will be moored at the Port of Los Angeles, Berth 87 for the tours.

*photo courtesy U.S. Coast Guard 

Long Beach apparently isn't just one of the nation's most walkable cities, it's one of the nation's most dog-walkable.

Just as Walkscore.com rated Long Beach the eighth most walkable city in the country this month, Dog Fancy magazine announced it will list Long Beach as a runner-up for the most dog-friendly city, the third straight year it has made that list. The article will appear in the September edition of the magazine, which is on stands now.

The criteria used to select the winning city include plenty of dog-friendly open spaces and dog parks, events celebrating dogs and their owners, high vet-to-dog ratios, abundant pet supply and other services, and municipal laws that
support and protect all pets.

Despite its dog park, dog beach and other resources, Long Beach still couldn't beat out Colorado Springs, Colo., as the most dog-friendly city.

Here's a fun little video someone posted on Youtube.com of dogs frolicking at the Long Beach dog park.

LONG BEACH -- A Long Beach police officer shot an armed man in Belmont Heights early this morning, police officials said.

Police Sgt. Dina Zapalski said that police received a phone call late Tuesday night that a man with a gun was walking through the neighborhood, which is an upscale area near the beach on the city's southeastern end. Officers responded to the call and located the man in the 200 block of Mira Mar Avenue, where a police officer shot him at 12:30 a.m., Zapalski said.

The man was taken by ambulance to an area hospital and was believed to be alive, though news of his condition wasn't available, she said.

Zapalski didn't give further details of what led to the shooting, about the suspect's identity nor about the type of gun he allegedly had been carrying, as police investigators were still working the scene at about 3 a.m. No charges had been filed yet against the suspect, she said.

Several neighbors said they had heard two gun shots. Shortly before the shooting, a police helicopter was scouring the area with its search light for several minutes, they said.

Lisa Sage was barbecuing with her boyfriend, Mikey Loza, at her apartment one block south of the shooting when they saw the helicopter and then heard the gunfire that they at first mistook for fireworks, the couple said.

Sage said the area can be noisy at night because of patrons at nearby bars, but that she had never seen an incident like this in her three years in the neighborhood.

"It creeps me out, big time," Sage said.

As many as 10 police units appeared to have responded to the scene initially, followed by police investigators and other officers who closed the 200 block of Mira Mar Avenue as well as parts of 2nd Street and Broadway.

The investigation was expected to continue until the early hours of the morning.

It's a conundrum that has faced Southern California coastal cities for years. When faced with a drought and a water supply crisis, as we are now, how can we draw on the massive water resource lapping at our beaches?

Standard desalinization -- removing the salt from sea water to create drinkable water -- can be costly and environmentally damaging, but Long Beach Water Department officials say they have a solution in a revolutionary desalinization process they are now experimenting with.

However, the project still has its detractors.

On Tuesday, Ryan Alsop of the Water Department and Joe Geever of the Surfrider Foundation will discuss the city's desalinization plant proposal and the dangers that Surfrider fears it may pose during the monthly Beer and Politics event.

The discussion will take place at 7 p.m. at Smooth's Sports Bar and Grille, 144 Pine Ave., on the rooftop patio. The event is free and open to the public.

A powerful federal trucking association sued the cities of Long Beach and Los Angeles in federal court Monday, claiming their "Clean Trucks" environmental program violates federal law and creates an "unreasonable burden" on local truck drivers.

In their suit, filed in Los Angeles, the American Trucking Association asks a judge to block a  regulatory plan that would force drivers into newer, cleaner trucks no later than Jan. 1, 2012. The program is expected to cut cancer-causing truck diesel emissions by 80 percent in five years.

Specifically, the ATA objects to the plan's use of concession agreements to enforce the vehicle turnover, saying the deals "unlawfully re-regulate the port trucking industry to the detriment of motor carriers, shippers, and the businesses and consumers that depend on the products handled at those ports."

Ironically, the Port of Long Beach, whose commissioners adopted a plan slightly different than neighboring Los Angeles in an attempt to avoid a lawsuit, now face a showdown in federal court.

The ports have up to 30 days to respond to the allegations before the court can act.

 

Gas prices aren't the only costs going up. According to today's release from the Long Beach Water Department, the Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners voted to raise water and sewer rates by "a combined 15.8 percent" for FY 2009. The hike is expected to take effect on Oct. 1

For a typical family household, that's an additional $5.39 a month for water and an another $1.30 a month for sewage service.

Rising costs for services like imported water and losses in water sales prompted the rate hike. (About 2 percent of the 15.8 percent will be used to offset those losses.)

"The increase to water and sewer rates is substantial, and unavoidable," according to President of the Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners Bill Townsend.  "Imported water, upon which our city is heavily reliant, is up 14.3 percent and is expected to get significantly more expensive with each year.  Construction, power, water treatment, labor and other fees and assessments we are required to pay are all up substantially.  We have done everything we can as a Board, in the limited areas where we can, to mitigate these cost increases, including a 40 percent reduction next year in our water main replacement and rehabilitation program."

There will be a special public protest hearing on Sept. 18.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today signed AB 97 by Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, D-Norwalk, which will phase out the use of trans fats in all California restaurants beginning in 2010 and from all baked goods by 2011.

"California is a leader in promoting health and nutrition, and I am pleased to continue that tradition by being the first state in the nation to phase out trans fats," the governor said in a statement. "Consuming trans fat is linked to coronary heart disease, and today we are taking a strong step toward creating a healthier future for California."

Mendoza served on the Artesia City Council until 2006, when he won his 56th Assembly District seat.

The Sustainable City Commission paved the way for an eco-friendly business program today when it unanimously agreed to send to the program's initial framework to the City Council.
As it stands, the voluntary Green Business program includes establishing a four-step certification process, a green business logo and brand for businesses to use and a map or directory of the city's green businesses.
A green business in Long Beach would have to comply with federal, state and local regulations, pledge to carry out a number of conservation and waste reduction practices and annually renew its designation.
The proposal will come back to the council in early August.

About 14 developers/parties recently took a mandatory walk-through of the old Julian Ship Supply building, which the Long Beach Redevelopment Agency is looking to move to make way for a potential new courthouse.

RDA announced earlier this month that it wants someone to renovate, reuse and move the 1931 structure built by Crescent Oil Company founder and Long Beach Councilman Frank W. Barnes.

The building - "designed by the prominent Long Beach architectural firm of Schilling and Schilling to capitalize on the drive-in market phenomenon of the time," according to the RDA - still sits empty along West Broadway between Daisy and Magnolia avenues.

The next step is for the RDA to send a notice to developers who attended the walk through to submit their Letters of Intent and provide a general outline of their plans, according to an RDA representative.

The Children's Clinic, Serving Children and Their Families in Long Beach will receive $322,540  to complete its electronic health records system.

California Department of Managed Health Care Director Cindy Ehnes is planning to make an announcement tomorrow morning about the grant from UnitedHealth Group and PacifiCare of California.

The grant will pay for a system that will "allow digital versions of patient records to be stored and transmitted within the clinic and across sites, including to Long Beach Memorial," according to the release.

The fates of two Pine Avenue venues are up in the air.

The Press-Telegram learned today that Network Development, LLC, is looking to sell the Vault 350 and the yet-to-be-open Backstage Jazz and Blues Club.

Property listings show Vault 350 at 350 Pine Ave. at $9.995 million and Backstage at 330-340 Pine Ave. at $4.195 million.

According to the Woodland Hills-based real estate person handling the transactions, the properties went on sale three weeks ago with the Vault previously listed at $12 million and Backstage at $6 million.

Read more about it in Wednesday's Press-Telegram.

Sources report that the Port of Long Beach will be sued in federal court within the week for its "Clean Trucks" environmental program.

The lawsuit stems from a series of regulations port authorities adopted in December to force the turnover of thousands of trucks in the harbor. Regulations were written to reduce diesel emissions from trucks by 80 percent within 5 years.

Diesel emissions from trucks are a major source of the toxic air pollution local residents and workers breathe each day.

The American Trucking Association initially said it was ambivalent to the Long Beach plan, then decided to sue because they decided it violates federal interstate laws.

Los Angeles is facing a similar ATA lawsuit after adopting a regulatory plan that requires trucking companies to hire drivers and purchase trucks.

 Expect a lawsuit no later than July 29.

In this corner, Councilwoman Gerrie "the tax-blocker" Schipske of the 5th District, and in the other corner, Mayor Bob "the infrastructure-izer" Foster.

Political sparring fans will enjoy not one, but two opportunities next week to watch these opposing city leaders square off.

First, Schipske will have a community meeting Monday to discuss the mayor's proposed infrastructure parcel tax and the city budget. Foster and City Manager Pat West have been invited to discuss their proposal, according to Schipske.

Schipske has been a critic of Foster's plan, and her reluctance to declare a fiscal emergency to get a necessary unanimous council vote prompted the mayor to change his initial proposal. The plan requires a parcel tax to finance $571 million in infrastructure bonds.

Check out that story here.

The community meeting will take place at 6 p.m. Monday at the El Dorado Senior Center, 2800 Studebaker Road.

Then, on Tuesday at 5 p.m. in City Hall, the council will vote on Foster's proposal, which requires approval by two-thirds of the members to put it on the November ballot, and then two-thirds voter approval to put it into effect.

Both events should yield some new information, interesting exchanges between our elected leaders, and possibly a political throw-down.

A couple days late, but here are some photos from Tuesday's council inauguration ceremony, courtesy of Councilman Dee Andrews' office. Four council members -- Suja Lowenthal, 2nd District; Patrick O'Donnell, 4th District; Andrews, 6th District; and Rae Gabelich, 8th District -- were sworn in to 4-year terms.

Later, the council members had a joint celebration on the Queen Mary, organized by Andrews, who also had over 100 seniors and 6th District residents bused to the celebration.

Here's Andrews taking the oath:

And O'Donnell:

And Lowenthal:

And Gabelich:

At the party later that night:

Gabriella Holt, the Republican candidate for the largely Democratic 54th Assembly District, may have an uphill battle as she heads into the November general election against Democratic nominee and Long Beach City Councilwoman Bonnie Lowenthal.

So Holt has been working the Long Beach scene.

I sat next to her Tuesday night at the council meeting, where she was watching her opponent in action and was particularly interested in a discussion about the financing of the Long Beach Airport terminal improvements, Holt told me.

Holt has been popping up all over Long Beach this month, attending block parties and a chili cook off at the Long Beach Yacht Club on the 4th of July, and going to the Wrigley Neighborhood Association's luau picnic July 9, according to Holt's Web site, www.gabriellaholt.com. Holt is a nurse and former Palos Verdes Unified School District board member.

In the interest of fairness, here's Lowenthal's site: www.bonnielowenthal.com.

And things seemed to be going so smoothly.

Steamship operators are steaming mad this week after a series of
reported worker slowdowns at ports up and down the West Coast
hampered the loading and unloading of their commodity-laden cargo
ships.

The Pacific Maritime Association is accusing longshoremen of taking
unauthorized smoke breaks, driving tractors like grandmas and general all-around laziness as dockworkers begin their 17th day without a new labor contract.

Waterfront bosses claim things are especially bad in the ports of Long Beach and
Los Angeles - the nation's largest - where productivity has dropped
20 percent or so in recent days.

"Keeping the ports open, productive and secure are critical to the
American economy, especially during a time of economic downturn and
uncertainty,"  the PMA said Thursday, before blasting the
International Longshore and Warehouse Union for jeapordizing "an already fragile economy that can ill afford another hit."

The union, meanwhile, says the 15-minute smoke/coffee breaks - which are
taken every four hours or so - are much ado about nothing.

 "I wonder if they've been drinking too much coffee over at PMA
because they seem to be getting worked up over a fairly minor
situation," the ILWU's Craig Merrilees told East Coast reporters. "The ports are
open, cargo's moving, the longshoremen are working hard, so what's
the big deal?"

The previous pact, a six-year deal reached in the days after a bitter
10-day lockout in 2002, expired July 1. Both sides have bargained
since, and union leaders have urged workers to report to work until
told otherwise.

The Planning Commission has a pretty eclectic agenda to consider on Thursday, including:

* An appeal by Larry Goodhue and Kerrie Aley about the removal of a chain-link fence between Bayshore Avenue and La Verne Avenue and between La Verne and Third Street on the southeast side of Marine Stadium and replace that portion from La Verne to Third with a wrought-iron fence. Some residents consider it an eyesore. Goodhue has said the fence provides security and safety;

* Modifications to the Press-Telegram Lofts project, a massive housing development planned at the newspaper's former headquarters on Sixth Street and Pine Avenue; and

* A conditional use permit for selling beer and wine and allowing wine tasting to Sophia Sandoval, who wants to open an art gallery and retail wine store with wine tasting at 2142 E. 4th Street, a storefront along Retro Row.

The meeting will take place at 5 p.m. in the Council Chamber at 333 W. Ocean Blvd.

Another item from our guest blogger, P-T education reporter Kevin Butler:
 
The Long Beach Board of Education meeting next week will be occuring at an unusual date and time. The open session will start Monday at 4 p.m. At that meeting, the board will determine its next president and vice president. Board members also are expected to consider approving a construction bond measure for the November election ballot. The meeting will, as usual, take place in the Community Room at LBUSD Headquarters, 1515 Hughes Way, in Long Beach.

From guest blogger, P-T education reporter Kevin Butler:

State education officials this week will release the latest high-school drop-out rates, calculated using a new system that authorities say will result in a more accurate count than ever before.
The California Department of Education is using a new system that assigns unique identifying numbers to each student in order to track students over time.
The system will allow the state to follow a student as he or she moves between districts, receives a diploma, drops out, or pursues some other education program, like a GED.
The system also will allow officials to track the reasons for a student's no longer attending a school district, such as the student's moving to a new district, entering a medical treatment facility or failing the high school exit exam.
School districts previously relied partly on parents to reveal whether a child who was no longer attending had dropped out, transferred to another district or pursued other routes of education.
But the state did not have a system to double-check whether, in fact, the student ended up where his or her parents indicated, leading to a potential undercounting of dropouts in some cases.
The new system's unique student identifiers allow the state and districts to more accurately track students' sometimes unexpected movements.
State authorities have not said what day this week the data will be released for individual districts and high schools.
Keep reading the Press-Telegram to see drop-out rates in your area.

With four City Council members being sworn in to new terms tonight, and surely wanting to take off to celebrate afterward, the council's regular 5 p.m. meeting will start at 4 p.m.

The 4 p.m. meeting was added at the end of last week a few days after the regular meeting agenda had been made public. On the 4 p.m. agenda is an Airport Finance Overview report, which had been delayed from last week, but City Clerk Larry Herrera tells me the council may tackle other issues that had been scheduled for the 5 p.m. meeting as well in order to get them out of the way before the swearing-in ceremony.

Overall, the agenda is relatively short and sweet, and aside from the pomp and circumstance, the meeting should go quickly.

Enjoy it while you can, because during budget discussions in the coming weeks, and with the city expected to cut expenses to make up a $17 million budget shortfall in the next fiscal year, the council meetings could get long, verbose and heated.

If you're going to those meetings for any other issue, you might bring along a good book, maybe a snack, and hell, why not a pillow?

A 1920s Elm Avenue hotel that once catered to visitors on winter vacation has become affordable housing for those who were homeless and/or are recovering from mental illness.

Mayor Bob Foster, Vice Mayor Bonnie Lowenthal and developer Clifford Beers Housing this morning celebrated the opening of Elm Avenue Apartments. The Long Beach Housing Development Co. provided $1.8 million in rehabilitation loans toward the project, a two-story building with 17 studio units, laundry facility and community room.

This is Clifford Beers Housing's first affordable housing development in Long Beach, but there may be more. Executive director Jim Bonar says Clifford Beers is eyeing as many as four properties it can convert into affordable housing.

Read more about the project and the apartment's new tenants tomorrow here.

Long Beach Public Transportation Co. is getting a small piece of the Prop 1B funding pie - $371,111 to be exact.

California Homeland Security Director Matthew Bettenhausen announced today that Los Angeles County agencies will receive nearly $17.5 million to "improve mass transit security."

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority will get about $16.1 million, while Santa Monica Big Blue Bus will receive $ 267,091; Torrance Transit System $115,470 and City of Gardena $76,732.

"The threat to transit systems is a fundamental challenge and is one of the reasons the governor, working with the Legislature, added security funding into the bond measure." Bettenhausen said. "The Governor has always said public safety is his top priority. I'm proud to deliver this funding to Los Angeles in such a timely manner, which shows the Governor and OHS are moving quickly to protect California's mass transit systems."

Funding will come from Proposition 1B, a measure approved by voters in November 2006 that enacted the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006.

The Broadway Association, a newly formed neighborhood group consisting of business owners along or near the Broadway corridor, will host an evening with Long Beach Redevelopment Agency board member John Thomas, who co-authored Long Beach Art Deco.

Thomas will talk on the subject and sell copies of the book. Proceeds from the book sale and the raffling of an original Art Deco clock and signed photography of LB Art Deco landmarks will benefit the association.

The event will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. July 12 at Sasha's - Living With Style, 3237 E. Broadway. 

From the 14th floor of the Press-Telegram newsroom, I can hear the drums and chants of people picketing along a lengthy stretch of Ocean Boulevard.

I wrote in today's paper that Long Beach hotel workers and community supporters were planning to march and host rallies downtown to protest what they say are poverty wages and lack of health benefits from their employers. A spokesman for the Long Beach Hospitality Alliance - which represents the Hyatt, the Hilton and Airport Marriott - said the march was part of a strategy to unionize members.

The march, which bought supporters from as far away as Los Angeles, started at Ocean and Golden Shore and moved down to Pine Avenue and Shoreline Drive.  

The story can be found here

And  a video of the rally here

Mayor Bob Foster and City Manager Pat West are planning to announce a $570 million infrastructure investment plan Thursday, sources at City Hall said today.

The "needs-based" improvements would be funded with a bond measure that must be approved by voters.

Although the plan doesn't include the construction of a new City Hall, the need for which city officials have discussed, it is expected to include a slew of street, sidewalk, alley, storm water management, fire station, library and other improvements, sources said.

Read all of the details Thursday afternoon at www.presstelegram.com and in Friday's print edition.

Councilwoman Anne Bayer at tonight's Downey City Council meeting was recognized by her peers for her new role as president of the board of the Gateway Cities Council of Governments.

Gateway Cities COG is a nonprofit advocacy group that represents the 27 cities of Southeast LA County and includes the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. Among its initiatives are the Clean Air Program, a three-pronged plan to reduce emissions at the ports, and transportation studies for major freeways such as the Long Beach (710) and Santa Ana (5) freeways.

Bayer, who represents the city's District 4, is the second Downey city leader to hold the year-long post. Former District 1 Councilman Keith McCarthy served as Gateway Cities COG's board president from July 2001 to June 2002. 

*** 

Candidate filings for the Nov. 4 election don't open until Monday, but two prospectives who have expressed their intent to run for District 5 were greeted by out-going District 5 Councilman Kirk Cartozian from the dais.

Attending this evening's council meeting were businessman and Downey Rose Float Association president Gary DeRemer, and District 1 Cable TV Citizens Advisory Committee member Luis Marquez.

"They won't have big shoes to fill," Cartozian joked.

The timing of two news reports Monday was quite auspicious, but they also leave some unanswered questions.

City officials say the planned terminal improvements and construction of a new parking garage at Long Beach Airport should go ahead as planned. I reported Monday that the City Council on Tuesday will discuss funding options for the airport projects, including possible passenger fee and parking rate increases.

Meanwhile, an article came out the same day in the Los Angeles Times that says many airports' expansion projects, including Long Beach's, may be at risk. This excerpt sums it up nicely:

Thanks to higher oil prices, fares are rising, airlines are cutting flights, older gas-guzzling planes are being mothballed and passenger fees are being added almost weekly. Now improvements worth hundreds of millions of dollars at aging passenger terminals and other airport facilities are in jeopardy.

So, which is it? Hopefuly, Long Beach airport officials will have some answers Tuesday, and certainly the council's discussion should be a lively one.

The fact is, there are more than few people around Long Beach who would love to see the airport expansion project crash and burn.

Its razing last year had been a sight to behold. For more than a year, it's become an eyesore as it lay inert under a development moratorium. These next few days are your last seeing the remains of Johnie's Broiler, 7447 Firestone Blvd., the 1960s drive-thru diner that was illegally demolished in January 2007. 

All of it - crumbled stonework, twisted metal and broken wood columns - was finally being cleared from the 90,000-square-foot site. There's no need for the sentimental to worry: some of Johnie's surviving pieces is planned to be included in the drive-thru's reincarnation as a Bob's Big Boy restaurant.

Cleanup efforts were originally meant to begin early May, but had to be delayed when the Air Quality Management District felt that the original asbestos report insufficient, said Downey Deputy City Manager Gilbert Livas.

The report turned in at the time was written just after Johnie's January 2007 illegal demolition, and a more up-to-date report was required.

 

Johnie's Broiler - christened Harvey's Broiler by its founders, the late Harvey and Minnie Ortner - was illegally demolished January 2007. By then, it had ceased operating as a diner and was actually being subleased to a used car parking lot. For about 19 months, the site lay untouched after city officials put it under a development moratorium, its fate in limbo. Ghost rides were organized in its honor but community groups like Friends of Johnie's and The Coalition to Save Harvey's Broiler weren't quite ready to let the place die.

The place was definitely lively on Monday, as Friends and Coalition members walked around the site, which had been fenced off from the public (but had not stopped taggers from scrawling their graffiti on Johnie's famous "fat boy" sign). The City Council - with the exception of Councilwoman Anne Marie Bayer - and other city officials observed cleanup efforts, chatted with media and posed for photos with the Bob's Big Boy mascot. Mayor David Gaffin and Councilman Mario Guerra posed for shots as they climbed inside a bulldozer. Two dozen Warren High students also hung around to snap images.

Jim Louder, the Torrance Bob's Big Boy owner investing more than $2 million in the project, hopes to have the restaurant completed by the first half of 2009.

"A year and a half to get to this point,"  remarked Councilman Mario Guerra. "This is really cool."

More than 200 people attended 6th District Councilman Dee Andrews' job fair June 28 at Ernest McBride Park. At least 10 unions representing building trades, craftsmen and other industries vetted potential workers.

Here are some shots of the event, courtesy of John Edmond, Andrews' chief of staff.

 

   

   

Long Beach Redevelopment Agency board member John Thomas will assist in the ship's restoration efforts, Queen Mary officials have announced.

The 19-year Long Beach resident, who was approached about two months ago, will be tasked with establishing a new historic preservation nonprofit organization designed to create a comprehensive restoration plan for the ship and develop funding sources.

"I believe it's an incredible honor and privilege to be able to work with Save the Queen," Thomas said today. "I've been very, very impressed with the team of Jeff Klein. The entire group has demonstrated to me their integrity as it relates to the Queen Mary as a historical asset, not only for the city but for the world. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come on board to help out."

Read more about it tomorrow on the Web at Press-Telegram

Now's your chance to save the historic structure. The Long Beach Redevelopment Agency announced this morning that it's looking for someone to renovate, reuse and move the 1931 structure built by Crescent Oil Company founder and Long Beach Councilman Frank W. Barnes.

The building - "designed by the prominent Long Beach architectural firm of Schilling and Schilling to capitalize on the drive-in market phenomenon of the time," according to the RDA - still sits empty along West Broadway between Daisy and Magnolia avenues, the potential site of a courthouse.

For a copy of the RFP, go to www.longbeachrda.org

The rash of foreclosures around the country, but especially in California, doesn't just mean that the home down the street starts to look like a backwoods shack. Nor does it mean only that your cousin/sister/uncle/college roommate will show up at your front door for an indefinite "visit."

The housing crisis also is hitting city governments with a drop in property taxes.

But there may be some relief with the federal Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HR 3221), which would give cities $4 billion that can be used to purchase and rehabilitate foreclosed properties, as well as assist low- and moderate-income households purchase these properties.

The League of California Cities announced its support for the legislation today. If other cities are hurting for money as much as Long Beach is, I guess that's not much of a surprise.

The City Council's Hotel Labor Peace Agreement may have failed last year, but that doesn't mean hotel workers are giving up in their drive to get better wages.

A surprise crowd of about 60 hotel workers and their supporters asked the council for its help Tuesday as they pressure Long Beach hotels for more money. The hotels are making millions, while many employees feel underpaid, they said.

I can't imagine the council making a foray into the realm of influencing employer-labor relations again, particularly with the backlash it evoked from the business community last time. And if the city couldn't afford to put the issue on the ballot last time for voters to decide (following a campaign by opponents to force the ballot measure), then the financially strapped city that is facing an almost $17 million budget deficit in the coming fiscal year certainly can't now.

But since the city courted hoteliers to bring them into downtown Long Beach and help boost the new tourism industry, does that mean the city has a right now to ask them to pay their employees better? That's what hotel workers say.

What do you think?

By now, Cerritos and Compton had received word that the Los Angeles County of Supervisors had certified the results of the June 3 primary election.

The numbers, finalized on Monday by the County Registrar/Clerk's office, were certified yesterday by the Board.

For Cerritos' planning commission chair Carol Chen, this is truly the finish line for a short, expensive and vigorous election season.

After failing to clinch a City Council win last year, and spending more than $76,000 this election season for the chance to finish former Councilman John Crawley's term, Chen came in with 3,342 or 43.16 percent. Election turnout was low, but Chen's strong absentee ballot campaign helped her leap ahead of opponents ABC Unified president Mark Pulido and city commissioners Alon Barlevy and Chris Fuentes.

The chances of Chen kicking up her heels is slim, however, if she's to stand by her intention to run in March's municipal elections for a full four-year term in office.

(Related story: 'Chen to run again for Cerritos council seat')

In other City Hall-related shifts, Compton's Isadore Hall will be moving on to represent the 52nd Assembly District. He beat opponents by a wide 56.71 percent margin, or 10,703 votes, according to final numbers released today by the County Registrar's Office.

At a distant second place is businesswoman Linda Harris-Forster with 4,694 votes, followed by Paramount Vice-Mayor Diane Martinez with 2,882, and university professor  Deborah Sims LeBlanc with 595 votes. Nonprofit House Learning Center co-founder Gwen Patrick -- the solitary Republican in the race -- got 841 votes.

Hall's seat will be officially declared open by Compton city leaders for 30 days after Hall turns in his resignation. In those 30 days, council members will have to decide whether to hold an election or to appoint a successor -- the same options weighed by Cerritos council members after Crawley resigned late January.

Labor talks between longshoremen and shippers are expected to continue without disruption this week as negotiators try and hammer out an agreement for some 25,000 workers in California, Oregon and Washington.

The previous six-year pact expired July 1, but both sides have publicly stated their desire to see it through without delays.

In a memo Wednesday to members, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union said this:

"The Negotiating Committee wants everyone to dispatch and work normally without any slowdowns or other actions. This will help our Committee manage the negotiations.  Please don't let employers provoke you to take actions that could undermine our strategy to win a good contract."

Council meeting after council meeting, people on both sides of the debate of whether to open a mental health center for the homeless near the Schroeder Hall Army Reserve Center in East Long Beach keep giving their opinions during public comment.

Tuesday's meeting was no different. Several speakers railed against the proposed project or against those who oppose it.

Mental health and homeless advocates say the East Long Beach neighborhood that opposes the site is close-minded and stereotypes the mentally ill. Residents there say they fear for their property and well-being, and that they don't have any homeless in the neighborhood now, so why bus them in for counseling and other services?

One speaker, Harvey Cochran, a gadfly who is no stranger to council meetings, made an impassioned speech on the subject because he himself is mentally ill. Cochran has a public access show and challenged parties of both sides to go on it to try to resolve the issue.

During his diatribe, in which he called those who are adamently opposed to the homeless site "yahoo meisters" and said that the homeless are people, not "zombies," Cochran and Mayor Bob Foster had an entertaining exchange. Sometimes Cochran speaks just to speak, sometimes he really does provide some insight into city matters, and sometimes he is good for pure entertainment value during what can be long, dull council meetings.

Here's a sample from that exchange:

Cochran: "I've been coming here since 2002, so that's six years. I've been coming here longer than you have, mayor."
Foster: "It actually seems a lot longer, Mr. Cochran."
Cochran: "As long as you sit in that chair, you're gonna have the ride of your life."

At that, the crowd roared with laughter.

Check out a video of the entire homeless center discussion (just use the "jump to" function to go to the first "public comment" period), and if you just want to hear Cochran, forward the meeting to about the 1 hour, 42 minute, 45 second mark.

And get the latest news on Schroeder Hall here.