CommentsEASTSIDER-The rumor mill is cranked up over DONE deploying staff to try and force a single set of Bylaws on Neighborhood Councils, while the General Manager gives interviews.
DONE Does DONE
As noted in CityWatch by our own Liz Amsden,
“Rather than addressing this significant impediment to democracy first, DONE moved forward to set up meetings, often in conjunction with these very NCs, to discuss proposed bylaw changes, changes that could further erode the ability of many stakeholders to participate in the NC system.”
Say what? This is nuts. What we have seen from BONC and DONE over the last few years is in 100% opposition to what the Charter changes of 1998 contemplated. Instead of grassroots up, we have authoritarian top-down imposition of increasingly suffocating “mandatory” fiats by both entities.
You’ve got an elected official, Jose Huizar, putting the fix in to defeat Skid Row’s attempt to get out from under their large Neighborhood Council, even as he proposed boundary adjustments that give something like 4000 people in Hermon their very own NC.
You’ve got BONC obsessing about Codes of Civility for volunteer Board members, since they can’t suppress free speech of stakeholders, and setting up a kangaroo court system for removing Board members who don’t kiss DONE’S ass.
And of course, while Rome burns, the new Department Head, Raquel Beltrán, is giving words of wisdom interviews to the media about Neighborhood Councils.
There are two videos, one 10 minutes and the other 30 minutes. In what I characterize as puff pieces, recorded on February 5, she emphasizes how DONE’s support role needs to be tailored to the different Neighborhood Councils’ needs. Funny how there is no mention of unilaterally ramming one-size-fits-all Bylaws down the 99 councils’ throats. And she still hasn’t visited all of them. Duh.
Most of the interview is diametrically the opposite of DONE’s actual actions. Duh times 2.
Highland Park and Lincoln Heights
In Highland Park, at a recent meeting, it turned out that the proposed (by who?) set of Bylaws had a hook in it -- the President of the Neighborhood Council would unilaterally appoint all the Committee Chairs. This may be in the other NC Bylaws proposed by DONE, so read the fine print.
Over in Lincoln Heights, there are a couple of hot issues. On the personnel front, consistent with this article, DONE staffer Mario Hernandez has been in hot water ever since he was moved out of the Los Feliz Neighborhood Council following a scathing letter from the NC to Grayce Liu dated December 12, 2017.
At Lincoln Heights, Mario unilaterally ordered the NC Board to attend a “mandatory training,” conducted by none other than -- Mario. And after Mario was redeployed to Lincoln Heights, in a complaint against him back in January by Board member Richard Larsen, the complaint seemed to go off into the void, despite presentations to BONC when DONE failed to take action.
In May, after Mario filed a Stress and Harassment Claim against the City itself, Larsen asked DONE to appoint another DONE rep for Lincoln Heights. As of this writing, no joy for Lincoln Heights.
Who to Blame and our Secret Trump Card
Notwithstanding talk, it is clear that BONC and DONE are controlling the 99 Neighborhood Councils, rather than implementing the Charter requirement to nurture and support them.
Witness the COVID-19 virus reaction. Quick response for getting back to business for the City Council, the DWP and other agencies, except, guess who? All Neighborhood Council meetings were shut down until further notice.
And when they finally did start to reopen, there was absolutely no plan to allow the many stakeholders who don’t have updated computers with video cameras and microphones, or accommodations for those who have need. You know, the folks Neighborhood Councils were specifically designed to conduct outreach to and represent.
And most of all, under the leadership of Eric Garcetti, you have the trivialization of Neighborhood Councils. The only use he had for them during the CODID-19 Stay at Home policy was to shut them down. Hard.
So, enough waiting. Here the secret: The City of Los Angeles cannot get rid of the Neighborhood Councils, period! That’s right, no matter what we do and how we operate, we are immune as a practical matter. Why? Because the only way to get rid of the NCs is to have another Charter Change on the Ballot.
Think about it. There is not a snowball’s chance in hell that Mayor Eric Garcetti is going to allow any Charter change on the ballot relating to Neighborhood Councils. It would be the absolute proof of his lie that he gave a damn about the Neighborhood Council System he touted so much back in the day.
The truth would come out that it’s all on him. He appoints all of the BONC Commissioners. He appoints the General Manager of DONE. So if this noble experiment dies the death of a thousand cuts, we know he could care less. But the very idea of a Charter Amendment doing away with the system could cook his bid for his next job in DC.
MESSAGE: Not a chance of Hiz Honor doing anything. So let’s use the leverage and start pushing back.
(Tony Butka is an Eastside community activist, who has served on a neighborhood council, has a background in government and is a contributor to CityWatch.) Edited for CityWatch by Linda Abrams.
