Frank Gehry’s been working for about a year on a pro bono “master plan” to revitalize the river. Also, for younger Californians and new Californians, AirTalk hosts an historical primer on the riots. Then, while landing a new and better job is great, it’s equally important to know how to leave your old one.
Is Frank Gehry right for the LA River revitalization?
Some critics are concerned Frank Gehry will turn the LA River into a vanity project.
The LA Times broke the news Friday that Gehry’s been working for about a year on a pro bono “master plan” to revitalize the river. Plans to restore the natural areas of the river have been in the works for years but a successful master plan for the 21st century hasn’t yet panned out.
Gehry is perhaps best known in LA for his design of the Walt Disney Concert Hall and for stand-alone landmark buildings throughout the world, which makes a master plan for a 51-mile river that runs through 14 cities and that will inevitably require some serious conservation considerations, a bit of a career outlier.
Friends of the LA River (FOLAR) worries Gehry's efforts could jeopardize a $1.3 billion plan approved by the Army Corps of Engineers last month to restore an 11-mile stretch of the river near Elysian Park. A spokesman for the city told the LA Times that Gehry’s plans, which are largely unknown at this point, would build on, not interfere, with existing plans.
Read more about the LA River
Guests:
Christopher Hawthorne, architecture critic for the L.A. Times, and his new piece broke the news about Gehry's work on the LA River
Lewis McAdams, co-founder of Friends of the Los Angeles River
Stakeholders break down controversial proposed county health agency merger
Los Angeles County’s Department of Health Services, Department of Mental Health, and Department of Public Health could all become a single entity if a proposal passes that would merge the three departments into one agency.
The proposal was first discussed at an L.A. County Board of Supervisors meeting in January at the suggestion of Supervisor Michael Antonovich. He and Dr. Mitchell Katz, interim director of the L.A. County Health Services Department, say that merging the departments would streamline the process of providing care to patients, remove many of the bureaucratic aspects of the process, and ultimately cut costs for L.A. County.
Opponents, many of whom are mental health professionals or work with those who suffer from mental illness, worry that mental health might be put on a back burner in the new agency and that many of the programs and specialists that provide individualized care for specific mental illnesses would be victims of the restructuring process.
There’s also concern that with the new consolidated agency, directors of the mental health arm would have less of a say in the operation and administration of the department because, under the proposal, the heads of the three departments that merge would all report to a single agency head.
Do you agree with the proposal to merge these county health agencies? What is at stake for the groups directly affected? Will patient care be streamlined or complicated if the merger goes through?
Letter from Public Health Commission and Stakeholder Draft Transcript
Guests:
Dr. Mitchell Katz, Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. He has been pushing the proposal to merge the three health agencies.
Dr. Jonathan Fielding, former Director of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and the County Health Officer. He is Professor of Health Policy and Management, and Pediatrics at UCLA
Bruce Saltzer, Executive Director of Association of Community Human Service Agencies
Should names, addresses of lawn rebate recipients in LA be disclosed for accountability?
The city of Los Angeles and the Metropolitan Water District disagree over whether the names and addresses of people and companies who received turf removal rebates from the MWD should be made public.
The skirmish points to a growing debate statewide about whether water-related data should be more transparent.
The Metropolitan Water District spent more than $340 million on its popular turf removal program. After initially withholding the information, Metropolitan told the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power it intended to release first and last names of applicants and recipients of turf rebates, as well as specific street addresses, in response to requests made under the California Public Records Act.
As a result, homeowners and businesses that have received rebate money could find their data made public within a week.
To read the rest of the story, click here
Guests:
Molly Peterson, KPCC’s environment correspondent who’s been covering the story
John Kotler, professor of journalism at USC and a lawyer who practices media law. One of his areas of expertise is getting legal access to government records.
Joe Ramallo, Communications Director at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP)
Watts Riots of 1965: Angelenos recount what lit up the powder keg
For younger Californians and new Californians who have little knowledge or understanding of what transpired 50 years ago, AirTalk hosts an historical primer on the riots.
What were the demographic and economic realities of the time? Why did a police stop of a young man spur six days of rioting over miles of LA that culminated in $200 million in fire damage alone? And, in the aftermath, how did it impact politics of Angelenos?
Joe Hicks and his young family were living in Watts at the time. What he experienced over those six days inspired him to become a civil rights advocate and spend his career focused on race relations.
Professor Lorn Foster of Pomona College was fresh out of high school and living with his family just outside the curfew zone. Larry speaks with Foster and Hicks to recount race relations at the time; a contentious chapter in LAPD history; and their personal experiences as the riots surged.
If you were living in LA at the time, what are your memories and takeaways?
Guests:
Lorn Foster, Professor of American Government and Politics, Pomona College; Foster's current project is "Black Migration to Los Angeles, 1910-1950: the Role of the Black Church in Social Mobility;" Foster grew up in Los Angeles
Joe Hicks, Vice President of Community Advocates, Inc., a nonprofit organization that advocates innovative approaches to human relations and race relations in Los Angeles city and county; Hicks grew up in Watts
Don’t burn bridges: The how-to guide to leaving your job on good terms
Gone are the days when workers would stay at one job until they retire. Career changes today are as common as job changes, given the changing demand of the economy.
A lot has been made about the importance of networking in a job search. While landing a new and better job is great, it’s equally important to know how to leave your old one.
Call us at 626 893 5722 to share your job-quitting stories – both good and bad ones.
Guest:
Liz Ryan, CEO and Founder of Human Workplace, based in Boulder, Colorado. Liz is a former head of human resources at a Fortune 500 company