BH Courier 02-17-2012 Edition

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Happy Birthday George, Abe, Franklin and Ronnie—See pg 18

BEVERLY HILLS VOLUME XXXXVIII NUMBER 7 $135 PER YEAR - $1.25 PER COPY •

THIS ISSUE

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BookEnds to hold annual Scrabble tournament and fundraiser. 5

By Richie Douchon Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, who is expected to be the next president of the world's most populous nation, came to Los Angeles yesterday for a quick visit which was expected to include a visit to the Port of Los Angeles, the announcement of an entertainment deal involving a major studio, and an economic forum downtown. Xi, whose visit is the first to L.A. by a high-level Chinese official in 13 years, also will watch Friday's Los Angeles Lakers game with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa before flying home. Analysts say the trip could offer an important Sino-American relationship-building opportunity in the shipping, tourism and entertainment industries. They also expect Villaraigosa and Gov. Jerry Brown to push hard for Chinese invest-

ment in a planned high-speed rail project from Los Angeles to San Francisco and regional L.A. County transit projects. Xi arrived at LAX from Iowa around 1:30 p.m. Brown and

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Zsa Zsa Gabor’s 95th Birthday Party; Placido Domingo Costars with Ana Maria Martinez In L.A. Opera’s Simon Boccanegra; Blonde Bombshell Brigette Bardot Is Back With “Fireworks Of Kisses” Editorial from Rabbi Pressman AND MORE

CLASSIFIEDS

READY FOR THE RED CARPET—Jeff Thisted (left) and Tamara Henry will be hosting The Courier's live telecast of the Night Of 100 Stars Oscar Gala on Sunday Feb. 26 beginning at 4 p.m. from The Beverly Hills Hotel. This may be viewed at foxnews.com and bhcourier.com. Broadcast sponsors include EDI Media, Vanilla Fire Productions, and 2 Rodeo.

Board Fails To Pass Resolution Opposing Feuer’s CEQA Bill

George Christy, Page 6

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Villaraigosa will be at LAX to welcome Xi, who experts believe will become China's president next year and hold the post for 10 years. The officials will then travel

to the Port of Los Angeles to visit the China Shipping terminal, which is undergoing a $121 million expansion that will more (see ‘CHINESE DELEGATION,’ page 17)

Methane Danger Moves Metro Terminus Station To La Cienega

Chief of Medicine Dr. Anton Bilchik returns to the John Wayne Cancer Institute. 12

• Announcements • Real Estate • Rentals • Sales • and More

February 17, 2012

CHINESE DELEGATION–China Jiangsu Province Secretary Luo Zhijun and the Jiangsu delegation was hosted by L.A. County Sup. Michael D. Antonovich and his wife, Christine, at a luncheon and tour of the Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens Wednesday. Pictured (from left): Huntington Library President Steven Koblik, Secretary Luo, Christine and Michael Antonovich. Photographed outside the Chinese Gardens of the Huntington, much of which was built in Jiangsu Province, dismantled and shipped to California and reassembled. Jiangsu Province has the highest per capita income of all provinces in China and is a “sister state” to California. Luo will participate in Friday's governors’ conference arranged by Gov. Jerry Brown in Los Angeles.

The Assistance League of Southern California celebrates Founder’s Day. 5

•Health & Wellness •Arts & Entertainment •Birthdays

SINCE 1965

Chinese VP Visits L.A.

Horace Mann participates in Science Olympiad competitions. 4

BH Girl Scouts celebrate annual Thinking Day.

www.bhcourier.com

By Marla Schevker Despite agreeing 4-0 at its last meeting to draft a resolution opposing Assemblyman Mike Feuer’s newly introduced legislation to speed up the judicial

process for all California Environmental Quality Act litigation for all state-funded rail projects, the resolution did not pass at the Board of Education meeting (see ‘RESOLUTION,’ page 16)

BHUSD To Refinance Bonds, Save Taxpayers $2.5 Million By Marla Schevker The taxpayers of Beverly Hills may soon be realizing a savings of up to $2.5 million after the BHUSD refinances its bond measures. The Board of Education gave

direction to continue with the 2002 Go Bond refinancing proposal and bring it back for official vote at its next meeting. The district is going to refinance the Measure K and Mea(see ‘BONDS,’ page 11)

Metro now plans to stop its Westside Subway Extention at La Cienega for the time being, making that station a “terminus” and thus almost 50 percent larger than planned. The extra space is needed to allow trains to shift tracks for the return trip. The La Cienega station expansion will cause much longer excavation times, larger excavations and impact the surface more. It also means that cement trucks delivering concrete, dump trucks removing dirt and equipment will enter and exit the subway tunnel at La Cienega and MOVIN’ ON—Paul McCartney was honored last week with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His a l b u m , Kisses on the Bottom, features fine performances of standards like Bye Bye Blackbird, plus guest appearances by Eric Clapton and Stevie Wonder. Inset: Nancy Shevell is Paul’s wife. More photos in George Christy’s column on page 6. Janet Gough / Celebrity Photo

Wilshire. Expert engineering sources tell The Courier that the change resulted from Metro engineers’ conclusion that methane problems in the La Brea – Fairfax link are so serious that the previous terminus station planned for Fairfax would be more difficult and expensive and the safety issues are significantly greater. The same dangers presented in this area exist in the proposed Constellation station location, but Metro refuses to discuss (see ‘LA CIENEGA,’ page 16)


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