Today on AirTalk, we discuss a new agreement that allows LA's homeless to keep an unlimited amount of personal items; Larry also talks with Simon Woods, the CEO of the LA Philharmonic, about the challenges of managing an arts organization in today’s world; and more.
Los Angeles To Allow Skid Row Homeless Residents To Keep An Unlimited Amount Of Personal Items
After months of closed-door negotiations, the city of Los Angeles has agreed not to put a ceiling on how much property homeless people can keep on skid row and adjoining streets.
The city will, however, have the authority to destroy hazardous materials that could pose a public health risk and dispose of “bulky items” like sofas and refrigerators blocking the street.
In response to the 2016 lawsuit, Carl Mitchell et al. vs. city of Los Angeles, the city has also agreed to give better notice of cleanups and to pay plaintiffs $645,000 in legal fees and damages.
While some homeless advocates think this is a landmark agreement, local businesses and residents have expressed concerns about sanitation, trash, and lack of regulated enforcement of the terms of the agreement.
Guest:
Gale Holland, reporter for the L.A. Times covering homelessness and poverty; she tweets
Debating The Parcel Tax That Would Fund LAUSD Expansion
Los Angeles Unified School District and United Teachers Los Angeles are teaming up to ask taxpayers for more funding.
Measure EE goes to the ballot box next Tuesday, June 4, months after the district and teachers’ union went head to head over teacher contract negotiations. The conflict led to a six-day teacher strike, ending with an agreement that included a cap on class sizes, teacher pay raises and full-time nurses at every school, among other things. Now, the district needs to raise money to see the agreement through – which is where Measure EE comes in.
Measure EE would create a 16-cent-per-square-foot parcel tax on residential and commercial properties in the school district. If it’s approved, it would raise about $500 million per year for LAUSD, for a total of $6 billion over 12 years. If it fails, LAUSD likely won’t have the funds to make the changes promised in the contract agreement.
Advocates say Los Angeles severely underfunds its public school system when compared with other major cities, like New York and Boston, and this tax is a step in the right direction. Critics say LAUSD needs to manage its existing funds better.
Larry speaks with LAUSD superintendent Austin Beutner, UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl and more to prepare you ahead of the June 4 vote. What are your questions about Measure EE? Call us at 866-893-5722.
Guests:
Kyle Stokes, education reporter for KPCC; he tweets
Austin Beutner, superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District; he tweets
Alex Caputo-Pearl, president of United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), the teachers’ union
Jerry Neuman, chair of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce; partner at the law firm, DLA Piper in Downtown
Susan Shelly, vice president of communications, Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
May The Force Be With You: Disneyland’s New Star Wars Land Opens Friday
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will transport visitors to the Black Spire Outpost on the Outer Rim planet of Batuu.
At 14 acres, it’s the largest expansion to the park since it opened in 1955, and it’s designed to be a fully immersive experience. Visitors will be asked whether they want to join the Resistance or the First Order. They’ll be able to drink at Oga’s Cantina, a pricy stop that resembles the cantina where Rodian bounty hunter Greedo fired the first shot at Han Solo in “A New Hope” (or was it Han who shot Greedo first?) There will be no theme park signs to direct guests to their destination. Stormtroopers will stop periodically to question passerby about where they’re going. Visitors will even be able to buy their own custom-made lightsabers – of course, for a hefty price.
Galaxy’s Edge will also add two rides to the park – but only one, “Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run”, will be open Friday. The second ride, “Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance”, will open later this year. Disney has not yet set a date.
Until June 24, guests will need reservations (which come in four-hour increments) to visit Galaxy’s Edge. After that, the land will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis – and when it inevitably reaches capacity, Disney will close the entrance and use a virtual queue to notify visitors when there’s space for them to enter.
Larry sits down with a reporter and an industry expert to talk about the groundbreaking opening and what it means for the theme park industry in California and around the world.
Guests:
Hugo Martin, reporter covering airlines, the hospitality industry and theme parks for the Los Angeles Times Business Section; he tweets
Dennis Speigel, president of the Cincinnati-based International Theme Park Services, which is a global consultant to the leisure and theme park industry
Burnout From Work Is Now A Mental Health Issue, According To The World Health Organization
A new, expanded definition of “burnout” by the World Health Organization (WHO) characterizes it as a “syndrome.”
While burnout is included in the previous version of WHO’s disease handbook, the ICD-10, it used to only be defined as a “state of vital exhaustion,” whereas the new definition ties it to work related stressors.
The new definition gives more legitimacy to those experiencing serious workplace stress and makes it easier for them to seek professional help.
WHO has also announced that it plans on developing evidence based guidelines on mental well being in the workplace.
Larry talks to Torsten Voigt, a sociologist who co-authored a review of existing studies on burnout in 2017 and is an expert on the issue.
We reached out to the World Health Organization for comment. They are unable to join us today.
Guest:
Torsten Voigt, professor of sociology at RWTH Aachen University in Germany who co-authored an influential review of existing studies on burnout in 2017
LA Phil CEO On The Famed Orchestra’s Place In Today’s Multicultural Los Angeles
How do you keep a traditionally Euro-centric organization like the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra continually relevant in a multicultural and decidedly un-European city like L.A.?
It’s a question that L.A. Phil CEO Simon Woods has been working to address since he took the position with the orchestra at the start of 2018, just months after he stepped away from his old position leading the Seattle Symphony Orchestra to take over for Deborah Borda, who left the L.A. Phil to take a job as president of the New York Philharmonic.
Looking at Woods’ bonafides, it’s no surprise he was a top choice for the role at the L.A. Phil.
Woods studied music composition and conducting at Cambridge University and was a record producer for EMI at Abbey Road Studios before shifting to the world of orchestral management where he had stints with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the New Jersey Symphony and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra before taking the CEO job in Seattle.
Today on AirTalk, Simon Woods sits down with Larry Mantle to talk about his vision for the future of the L.A. Phil, the challenges of managing an arts organization in today’s world and how the L.A. Phil sees itself in a dramatically reshaped Los Angeles.
Guests:
Simon Woods, chief executive officer of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra