Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Occupy L.A. Cost City and Taxpayers $4.7M, Report Says
Photo by David Freid via the LAist Featured Photos pool
()
The numbers are in, and they are about $2 million higher than first anticipated: Occupy L.A.'s City Hall encampment, and its ultimate clearing, cost Los Angeles taxpayers $4.7 million, according to a report released today from City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana.
That increased price tag for the protests, two-month-long camp out, and subsequent restoration of the City Hall lawn is due to newly reported costs to police Occupy L.A. the final tab for repairs at City Hall, explains City News Service.
City Councilman Mitche Englander thinks that this grim fiscal report should be a warning to his colleagues who were so quick to "approve" of the encampment last October that maybe they should think such endorsements through a little harder. "For every resolution or position the city might take, there's a cost,'' Englander said, citing L.A.'s ongoing fiscal crisis.
The City gave the Occupy LA protesters a pass by letting them set up on the lawn at City Hall October 1, 2011; the group said they'd stay until at least December 1, and the City Council said they could stay as long as they wanted. Turns out they didn't mean that, and on the night of November 29, 2011, the city and the Los Angeles Police Department raided the encampment, arresting over 200 people, including many who were not even in the park or part of the encampment.
Support for LAist comes from
As it turned out, the initial support of the Council and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is what the Occupiers referred back to time and time again when those same civic leaders indicated they were ready to do whatever was necessary to get the protest site at City Hall dismantled.
The damage to the lawn at City Hall prompted a full makeover (hello, official plant of Los Angeles!) and the city has received $411,508 in donations and rebates to cover the cost of the restoration. Plus, the City has long said it will take some budget cuts to help make up the cost of the encampment.
But another set of recent numbers shows that more than half of surveyed Angelenos support the Occupy movement. A report released earlier this month from the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University indicates 53 percent of Angelenos agree with the Occupy movement and its values, with respondents indicating they "strongly agree" or "agree" on the survey.
Perhaps a new survey querying how many Angelenos support having to pay their portion of the $4.7 million cost might yield different results.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs. -
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons Thursday after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
Best of LAist