Something Old, Something Nuch

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - A note to Mayor Garcetti/Hertzberg/Caruso/Perry/Chick/LaBonge/Wesson/Nuñez/Alarcon (hah! That last one made me laugh as I wrote it) or whoever else envisions him or herself as having a chance to take the oath of office on July 1, 2013: You may want to rethink the idea of allowing other newly elected officials to approach the speaker’s podium on the day you ascend to power. It certainly seems like a magnanimous gesture, but you may get more than you bargained for.

• It’s Still Not Easy Being Green

  DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - One year after creating strict new environmental standards for large development projects, city officials are raising the bar again. The effort, spurred by the Community Redevelopment Agency, is generating concern from some housing developers, including nonprofit organizations.
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• New Plans for Historic Hotel

  DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - The vacant Embassy Hotel and Auditorium at 851 S. Grand Ave. may get yet another shot at returning to its former glory. New plans recently emerged to turn the historic building into a luxury boutique hotel.
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Heed Audit’s Recommendation and Raise El Pueblo Rents

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - At the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument, an unsettling and long-preventable situation is hitting the already cash-strapped city of Los Angeles in the pocketbook. Now it is time for elected officials, led by 14th District Councilman José Huizar and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (who formerly held Huizar’s Council seat), to step forward and, once and for all, effect change.

• Delgadillo Had Positive Steps in Downtown

  DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - Rocky Delgadillo last week finished his term as the Los Angeles City Attorney. His eight years will be remembered as tumultuous. Shortcomings will be noted, though critics should also recognize that he was part of several important efforts that have made the city, including Downtown, a better place. We hope that new City Attorney Carmen Trutanich, a man with significant potential and an outsider’s opportunity to unleash a fresh point of view, can follow up on the highlights of Delgadillo’s term.
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• Mediocre Mayor Needs to Show More in Second Term

  DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - This week, Antonio Villaraigosa will begin his second and final term as the mayor of Los Angeles. We hope that in the next four years he will focus squarely on the needs of the city and achieve the potential he missed, to much frustration, time and again during his first term.
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Bringing People Together Through the Arts

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - Grand Performances is one of the more remarkable public arts projects in the city of Los Angeles.

• O’Hurley So Good

  DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - Actor John O’Hurley is a veritable jack-of-all-trades. Perhaps best known as the wry and quirky catalogue tycoon J. Peterman on “Seinfeld” or as the winner of the first season of “Dancing With the Stars,” O’Hurley has credits in television (including hosting “Family Feud”), film and on Broadway. He’s also a musician, author and businessman.
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• The Bard Is Back

  DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - William Shakespeare’s play As You Like It, a tale of returning to a simpler time, not to mention escaping persecution by hiding out in the woods, included one of the most famous theatrical quotes of all time: “All the world’s a stage.”
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