The Courier Honors Our Fallen Heroes On Sunday, Sept. 11
BEVERLY HILLS VOLUME: LI
NUMBER 37
THIS ISSUE
BHPD Explorers were honored by the City Council this week. 4
Beverly Hills Tennis Tournament will raise money for BHPD.
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$135 PER YEAR - $1.25 PER COPY
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By Victoria Talbot Thursday, Wanda’s third round of legal challenges to the Hilton Initiative were tossed out by Judge Mary H. Strobal, meaning the language in support of the Initiative will remain exactly as it was written. Yesterday’s victory for the Hilton follows Tuesday’s court action, where the City of Beverly Hills was ordered to rewrite the Ballot Question for the Hilton Initiative by a judge, who deemed it, “false, misleading and biased.” Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James C. Chalfant ruled Tuesday that the City’s Ballot
Open Forum On Hilton Initiative Tentatively Set For Sept. 29
Architects of the loss, Wanda’s Harvey Englander confers with Rohan a’Beckett.
Question regarding Measure HH was false, biased and misleading
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George Christy, Page 6 Mark Vieira Has Delivered A Collection Of 420 Glamorous Portraits In George Hurrell’s Hollywood, Published By Running Press. A Book To Cherish For Collectors
CLASSIFIEDS • Announcements • Real Estate • Rentals • Sales • and More
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By Laura Coleman Plans for a 1.5-hour debate forum on the Hilton initiative tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 29 in the evening began to take shape at yesterday’s City Council Ad Hoc Committee meeting. The upcoming debate will be hosted by the League of Women
Voters in council chambers. City spokesperson Therese Kosterman said she reached out to the League to moderate an issue forum at the behest of the City Council who wanted to ensure that the forum was moderated fairly–something
and ordered the Ballot Question to be revised. In addition, the Judge confirmed that Measure HH creates a
new publicly accessible 1.7acre garden for residents. “This was the second
(see ‘HILTON FORUM’ page 20)
(see ‘HILTON LAWSUIT’ page 20)
New School-Building Bond, Measure Y, Heads To Beverly Hills Voters
The Beverly Hills High football team lost its home opener to Nordhoff. 21
•Arts & Entertainment •Fashion •Birthdays
September 9, 2016
City Of Beverly Hills, Wanda Three Time Losers On Hilton Initiative
Real Estate’s Stacy Gottula announces her move to The Agency. 10
Former mayor and bestselling author Robert K. Tanenbaum takes on Beverly Hills Police compensation 35
SINCE 1965
A DOG’S WORLD — Beverly Hills went to the dogs Tuesday when the City opened its long-awaited community dog park. Pictured, from left: Vice Mayor Nancy Krasne, Parks & Rec Commission Chair Frances Bilak, Mayor John Mirisch, Tina Sinatra (with Rosy), Councilmember Julian Gold, Councilmember Lili Bosse, Marcia Wilson Hobbs (with Bear) and Assistant City Manager George Chavez. See page 22 for the full story. Photo by Victoria Talbot
Sierra Drive Residents Fight To Retain Neighborhood Character By Victoria Talbot A coalition of homeowners and residents calling themselves the Sierra Drive Committee are challenging the City’s determination not to require a design review process that would include notice, public hearings and rights of appeal for a single-family home pro- NEIGHBORHOOD FEEL — Local residents on posed at 515 N. Sierra Sierra Drive are fighting to keep 515 Sierra (pictured) from being “Mansionized” by developers. Drive. The corner may be historic structures by Master the new poster child for modern Architects that make up their mansionization and protecting val- neighborhood. The home at 515 ued cultural heritage in architectur- was built in 1941 by Gerard R. al assets, in a City where homes Colcord for residential real estate are knocked down without fanfare developer B.W. Tye Company. It and built anew as frequently as was sold to radio producer Robert designer changes styles. L. Redd and his wife Gabrielle. A tree-lined street of pictur- Their daughter Mary-Robin lived in esque homes constructed in the the home until its sale in 2015. 1940s, residents are proud of the (see ‘SIERRA DRIVE’ page 23)
By Laura Coleman Beverly Hills voters are one step closer to weighing in on whether or not to approve a $260 million school-building bond in the upcoming Nov. 8 election after the County dubbed it Measure Y. The designation follows last month’s 3-2 vote by the Board of Education to place the needed bond on the ballot. “Children in our schools deserve better. Not only is this a critical time in terms of providing them with the facilities that they require, but it sends such a strong message to our children: that we believe in them, and that we are investing in them,” said Board President Howard Goldstein. The board was unable to
secure the four votes needed to pass a Proposition 39 bond, which would have required a 55 percent ‘Yes’ vote to pass, so it will go on the ballot as a General Obligation bond, requiring two-thirds – 66.7 percent – of voter approval. The bond language reads as follows: “To improve aging Beverly Hills schools, upgrade inefficient heating, cooling/electrical systems causing significant maintenance cost savings redirected to classroom instruction, upgrade/repair classrooms, libraries/science labs, replace deteriorating restrooms/leaky roofs, complete deferred maintenance projects, provide modern classroom technology (see ‘MEASURE Y’ page 23)
BIG QUESTION? — Renee Zellweger stars in Bridget Jones’s Baby, the follow up to her previous Bridget Jones’ films. She becomes pregnant and hassles the big question of who is the Daddy? Colin Firth or Patrick Dempsey? Renee is one of the rare stars that pays for her Red Carpet gowns by Carolina Herrera. For more photos, see George Christy’s column on page 6.