Local Measures stir controversy
VENICE — Outside the political bubble of Santa Monica,voters in bordering Los Angeles enclaves will be asked to weigh in on a hotbed of issues up for consideration Tuesday.
Aside from state official races and propositions, three local measures have stirred enough controversy to spice up the ballots for voters in Venice and Brentwood, both of which are part of the city of Los Angeles.
This year, voters will be faced with Measures H, J, and R — which address the issues of affordable housing, technical changes in fire stations and increased term limits for city council members, respectively.
Measure H would provide safe and clean housing to homeless and people at risk of being homeless, such as battered women, children, seniors, the disabled and veterans. If the measure passes, the city would issue $1 billion in bonds for approximately 10,000 homes and rental units over 10 years.
If the measure passes, the city would have to make debt service payments of approximately $58 million for 30 years. The average homeowner with a $500,000 house would pay an extra $73 a year in taxes for 30 years as a result, William T. Fujioka, city administrative officer, told Smartvoter.org, an informative election web site run by the League of Women Voters.
“It’s a critical piece of policy to create the affordable housing... for homelessness that we need,” said City Councilman Bill Rosendahl, who represents the 11th District, which includes the areas of Venice, West Los Angeles, Brentwood and Mar Vista.
“It is critically needed if we ever get to the point of creating housing for middle class and working class people,” Rosendahl said. “Many of my residents, children and grand-children, can’t afford to live in the 11th District.”
The opposition argues that the measure would actually make homes unaffordable by adversely increasing property taxes.
“It’s a property tax that is levied only on property owners and we don’t think that is the way to go to make affordable housing,” said Joel Fox, president of the Small Business Action Committee.
Measure R would loosen term limits on City Council members, from two four-year terms to three four-year terms. It aims to restrict lobbyists from making campaign contributions, requires contractors to comply with lobbying laws, and requires ethics training, among other things.
The camp encouraging voters to approve the measure feels the government needs tougher reform.
The League of Women Voters of Los Angeles supports the measure, partially because it extends term limits — something it does not support.
“It means a good qualified person may stay in office as long as they are doing a good job,” said Marilyn Albertson, a member of the Board of Directors speaking on behalf of the League.
Albertson said LWV is supporting the measure because it would require greater disclosure, and prevent people in office from “playing musical chairs.”
The opposition camp is asking voters to reject the measure because it believes it was written by lobbyists.
“It was done without any input from neighborhood councils, or for that matter, any group except the League of Women Voters and the Chamber of Commerce,” said Doug Epperhart, president of Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council.
The West Los Angeles Neighborhood Council has also come out against Measure R.
The measure is a great deal for developers who want to continue working with those city council members who “they already bought,” Epperhart said.
Measure R would restrict developers from making campaign donations, but would not prohibit them from asking their clients to do the “dirty work” for them, he added.
“Personally, I think they should call it the ‘save the developer some money initiative,’” Epperhart said.
Measure J would provide flexibility in designing new fire stations by amending the previous voter-approved Proposition F, passed in 2000, by allowing stations to be constructed on one or more sites within close proximity of each other. The two sites would be less than a collective two acres.
Proposition F, in its current form, limits construction to a single two-acre site, rather than spreading it out. The measure has been endorsed by LA Fire Chief William Bamattre and Councilman Eric Garcetti.
The measure would have no fiscal impact to the city’s debt or the general fund, according to Fujioka.
If the measure passes, it will provide the city the flexibility of where to place regional stations and save money, according to an impartial analysis by Gerry Miller, chief legislative analyst, on Smartvoter.org.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 1, 2006. Read the original PDF.