Amid Coronavirus Fears, LA City Council To Hold Its First Zoom Meeting

The Los Angeles City Council will meet Friday using a teleconferencing app that’s become familiar to a lot of us working from home right now: Zoom.

Earlier this week, Council President Nury Martinez canceled both remaining regularly scheduled Tuesday meetings in March over technical challenges and safety issues in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

Martinez plans to be at City Hall in council chambers for the meeting, along with key staff and personnel from the City Clerk’s and City Attorney’s offices, according to her spokesman Rick Coca.

The rest of the 15-member body will teleconference from their offices or homes.

To prevent the spread of coronavirus, journalists and the public will not be allowed in the chambers, but can connect online or on the phone.

The council’s set to tackle several pieces of legislation with the goal of softening the pandemic’s blow on LA. workers and renters.

On the agenda:

• Protections for tenants
• Helping workers laid off because of COVID-19 get their jobs back
• Added safeguards for grocery, drug store and food delivery workers
• Requiring all employers in the city to offer two weeks of paid sick leave.

The City Clerk’s office also has a new online comment portal here.

UPDATED FRIDAY March 27

Council President Martinez's office sent instructions to dial in to the meeting:

• To give a public comment, dial (669) 900-6833 and use Meeting ID No. 459 499 150, then press #. Press # again when prompted for participant ID.
• Media and the public can also follow live on lacity.org/government/follow-meetings/city-council-meetings

Live Council meetings can also be heard via phone at (213) 621-City (Metro), (818) 904-9450 (Valley), (310) 471-CITY (Westside) and (310) 547-CITY (San Pedro Area).