It was a packed house at the Bell Community Center last night as a newly elected city council was seated for the first time. The small city has been rocked by allegations of corruption by the former city administrator, Robert Rizzo, as well as seven other city officials. But residents were feeling hopeful last night that Bell could fight its way out from under the mountain of debt and bad press left over from the Rizzo scandal. The new mayor, Ali Saleh, told the audience of more than 250 residents that there’s a long road ahead, the city has to slash its budget by a third. So what’s the plan? How will the new council erase the legacy of the last one and bring Bell back to fiscal solvency?
Guests:
Jeff Gottleib, Senior Staff Writer, Los Angeles Times
Ali Saleh, newly elected Bell Mayor
Nestor Valencia, newly elected Bell City Council Member
Christina Garcia, resident of Bell Gardens; member of The Bell Association to Stop The Abuse (BASTA)