o lease 10 city parking garages for 50 years or not? That is one of the current big financial questions, which the LA Times explores today. At issue is the $212-million budget shortfall that officials want to solve mostly with money from the reserve fund... more ›

Perhaps the most sobering news that came out of yesterday's 11-hour L.A. City Council budget committee session was a request to see a layoff plan that included police and firefighters. The current proposal to layoff 1,000 employees, which was not recommended by the committee late Monday evening, left public safety jobs off the table, but Councilman Bernard Parks, the former LAPD Chief, wanted to see the "grimmest picture" possible, according to the LA Times. The council is faced with a $208 million budget shortfall this year and will be up against a $484 million one come July 1st. more ›

Some people are a bit suspicious of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's last two vacations. The first, a trip to Africa, was right after his inauguration. The second was to Iceland, ending earlier this month. No matter who you are, you deserve a vacation, right? "Since the mayor is mayor 24-7, he does not accrue vacation or sick time," said spokesman Matt Szabo in an e-mail to LAist. "He has the discretion to take time away from the city as necessary." more ›

Last week, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa tweeted seven times, asking for fans for donations that would help offset the cost of Michael Jackson's public memorial service. Every tweet included a link to the city's website where the online donations could be given. more ›

If you follow (the person who ghost-tweets for?) the Mayor of L.A. on Twitter, you may have noticed, as LA Observed did, that he was happy to be at home after his vacation in Africa. "Good to be back in LA!" he remarked. more ›

CityWatch is reporting that Gloria Jeff, fired Los Angeles Department of Transportation General Manager, wants her job back. "She says the Mayor … who did the firing … did not give her an annual performance evaluation, gave her no explanation for the firing and demanded that she resign within 21 hours." A spokesman for the Mayor, Matt Szabo, countered: “Gloria Jeff received numerous indications from the mayor’s office that her management of the Department... more ›

- LAVoice is looking for a new editor - LAVoice - Darin Erstad goes to the Chicago White Sox - LA Times - 2 bodes and 3 dead dogs found in Granada Hills house fire - CBS2 - Gehry building torn down - CurbedLA - Press Deputy for the Mayor, Matt Szabo, gets poked at - LAO - $75,000 for leading to the capture of the Ski-Mask Bandits, who have robbed more than 200... more ›

Martini Republic takes local blogs to task today for their (our) anemic coverage of La Gran Marcha yesterday. Joseph is probably right but it's interesting, we didn't find round the clock posts about the significant event on MR's angeleno blog either. more ›

Everyone is talking about what may become the most important speech in George W. Bush's presidency. We've been struggling to find a local connection, but the truth is that this is a national story that significantly effects all of us. It is a speech most people on both sides of the political coin never thought Bush would make. An outright call for big government from a Republican President that, while short on specifics, is intended to help the poor...at least the poor of the gulf coast. As Slate notes from the New York Times article, it isn't a national war on poverty. more ›

In the aftermath of tragedies, people say and do some pretty stupid things. Like Reverend Lewis Logan of Bethel AME, who says that Katrina is a Black woman seeking retribution on the South for its history of racism (Matt Szabo). LAist might be a little color blind but the faces we see on TV dealing with this storm seem decidedly black and impoverished. And, regardless, what the hell kind of abuse of religious faith is that? Obviously Reverend Logan went to the same school of ministry as those in the group Columbia Christians for Life who believe hurricane Katrina looks like a fetus at 6 weeks of pregnancy and thus must be the lord's assault on America for its pro-choice ways. (Ms. Musings) more ›

We’re not really sure when we stopped paying attention to the inconsistencies and broken promises spouted by the political leadership of Los Angeles. “We” not only being the writers of LAist, but also the editors of the Times and the City’s citizens. The instant broken promise we are referring to “Stem Cellgate” as Bob Hertzberg’s former verbal hatchet man, Matt Szabo, called it. (Check his blog out; it’s quite good.) Over and over again mayoral candidates have talked about bringing jobs to the City, especially encouraging biomedical industries. So, why exactly did we concede this major coup to Emeryville, among others? more ›