How will Los Angeles pay for bringing the NFL back to town? Trip on this – the cost of repairing L.A.’s crumbling sidewalks might fall on homeowners. New AirTalk series! Get to know a Republican candidate, first up: Michele Bachmann. Is the U.S. too political correct for its own good?
Is the NFL a yard closer to being (back) in LA?
Professional football is inching closer to returning to Los Angeles. City officials Monday announced a plan to finance a new NFL stadium downtown by issuing $195 million in bonds. The plan proposed by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the City Council also would require developer Anshutz Entertainment Group (AEG) to take responsibility for an additional $80 million in bonds in order to shield taxpayers from additional liability. AEG hopes to have the new stadium completed by 2016, bringing an entertainment “supercomplex” destination to downtown Los Angeles that would include professional football and basketball arenas, an improved convention center as well as live music venues, restaurants, hotels and shopping. How should Los Angeles finance a new NFL stadium downtown? And should they? How long will it be before we watch a pro kickoff in LA?
Guest:
Mark Lacter, contributor to LA Magazine; writes the business blog for LA Observed.com and talks about business with KPCC's Steve Julian Tuesday mornings
Trip on this – the cost of repairing L.A.’s crumbling sidewalks might fall on homeowners
Think no one walks in L.A.? Maybe it’s because nearly half of our 10,000-plus miles of sidewalks are in some state of serious disrepair. According to the Bureau of Street Services, fixing said sidewalks costs over $260,000 per mile. Tackling all 4600 miles of the cracked and root-infested walkways would exceed $1.2 billion. Under current law, the city is responsible for fixing our concrete paths. But there’s no money left in the General Fund to do it. So who should pay for the repairs? Councilman Bernard Parks has floated a plan that would require homeowners to foot the bill. Councilman Paul Koretz doesn’t think this is the right approach. As city officials duke it out, our infrastructure continues to crumble and the city has to cough up between three and four million dollars a year to cover law suits resulting from sidewalk accidents. And how about those potholes? Mayor Villaraigosa loves to tout his pothole filling program, but many L.A. streets continue to go months without large holes being filled. Why is it so hard for L.A. to keep up with street and sidewalk maintenance as neighboring smaller cities do? How does the city intend to pay for these much-needed repairs? Strap on your best urban foot gear or buckle your seat belts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride.
Guests:
Bernard Parks, Los Angeles City Councilman representing District 8 in South Los Angeles
Paul Koretz, Los Angeles City Councilman representing District 5 in West Los Angeles
The dems lose another one to sex scandal
Congressman David Wu of Oregon will resign from congress after a teenage girl accused him of unwanted sexual advances. This isn’t the first time Congressman Wu has found himself in hot water. Earlier this year his staff worried that he’d had a nervous breakdown when he sent them all emails that contained a picture of Wu in a tiger costume. His behavior had reportedly gotten more and more erratic since he divorced from his wife last year. Now Wu says he’ll stay on just until the debt ceiling debate is over, then he’ll leave the house to save his children, his family and his colleagues any more embarrassment.
Guest:
Peter Bhatia, Editor and Vice President at The Oregonian
New AirTalk series! Get to know a Republican candidate, first up: Michele Bachmann
A lot has been made about the weakness of the Republican field, but one of the more recent entrants into the race may change that. Minnesota Republican, Michele Bachmann announced during the FOX news Republican debates a couple months ago that she would be throwing her hat in the ring. She’s been a polarizing figure in American politics for several years now as one of the more conservative members of House of Representatives and one of the most vocal leaders of the Tea Party movement. She’s been lauded and denigrated for many of her policies and for the intense role her Christian faith plays in her politics. She’s also a biological mother of five and a foster mother to almost two dozen teenage girls, all of whom she homeschooled. How did Bachmann get her start in politics? What are her major policy positions? Just how far out on the fringe is she? And…is she electable?
Guests:
Shushannah Walshe, Independent Journalist, co-author of Sarah From Alaska: The Sudden Rise and Brutal Education of a New Conservative Superstar
Tom Scheck, Reporter, Minnesota Public Radio
Is the U.S. too politically correct for its own good?
Juan Williams was fired from NPR for saying during an interview that he felt anxious when he saw people in Muslim dress getting on his airplane. The firing became a public relations nightmare for NPR, but it gave Williams a platform to talk about how he thinks partisan ideology and political correctness stifle an honest exchange of ideas. In his new book, Muzzled: The Assault on Honest Debate, Williams explores how censorship and political correctness are playing out in society and media. Williams believes he was fired from NPR for giving his honest opinion and he compares this experience to politicians who are deemed traitors for attempting to work across party lines. Is the U.S. really as ideologically polarized as Williams posits? What examples do you see in the media and your own life? How can such obstacles to honest debate be overcome for the sake of progress and understanding?
Guest:
Juan Williams, author of Muzzled: the Assault on Honest Debate (Crown)