The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce has invited the public to hear from Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Council President Herb Wesson, City Attorney Mike Feuer, City Controller Ron Galperin and members of the L.A. City Council during Access City Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 27.
Throughout the year, the Chamber serves as the voice of the L.A. business community at L.A. City Hall. “We represent you in hours of meetings and hearings so you can focus on serving your customers and growing your business. But once a year, we ask you to join us at City Hall to advocate with one voice for a set of recommendations that will spur economic growth in L.A. and benefit every business in our region,” the Chamber said in a statement.
The economy of L.A. has made noticeable progress since hundreds of business leaders visited City Hall a year ago. Unemployment is down to 4.4 percent, the new tallest building west of the Mississippi River has opened, and George Lucas and Mellody Hobson announced their decision to build the $1.5 billion Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in L.A. The Chamber championed an educational campaign to defeat Measure S by a two-to-one margin to avoid a construction moratorium that would have stalled the economy and exacerbated the housing crisis. At the urging of the Chamber, the United Way and other groups, voters also approved a $1.2 billion bond to construct permanent supportive housing for the homeless.
On Sept. 27, the Chamber will press the mayor and the council to take the next steps in increasing the housing supply by updating the city’s community plans, approving affordable housing sites and streamlining the process for building more market rate, low income and workforce housing throughout the city.
The chamber will also stress the urgency of modernizing major economic drivers such as the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and the Port of Los Angeles. Business leaders have said much needs to be done in upgrading the terminals at LAX and in building a transit connection to the Crenshaw Line of the Metro system. Meanwhile, the Port of L.A. has returned to pre-recession cargo numbers and continuing this growth is vital to hundreds of thousands of jobs in the region. In addition, the Chamber will express the business community’s strong support for the California Water Fix proposed by Gov. Brown.
The public is invited to join in and discuss these and other issues important to economic prosperity and the quality of life.
The event will begin with a breakfast reception in the rotunda on the third floor from 8-9:45 a.m. During the reception, attendees will hear from Mayor Eric Garcetti, Controller Ron Galperin, City Attorney Mike Feuer, Council President Herb Wesson and other councilmembers. Then the group will move to the John Ferraro Council Chambers for the regular council meeting at 10 a.m.
To attend, register at: http://www.lachamber.com/event/2017/09/27/public-policy/access-l.a.-city-hall/. The cost is $15. City Hall is located at 200 N. Spring St. Los Angeles.
Your voice and presence is important.
