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Courier Exclusive: Bosse Announces Candidacy
THIS ISSUE
The Scene at Alex’s Lemonade
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Lili Bosse
By Ana Figueroa In an exclusive interview with the Courier, the Honorable Lili Bosse has announced her candidacy for the March 2020 City Council Election and her intention to run a grassroots campaign. Beverly Hills is Bosse's hometown and she has served the community in many positions over her lifetime. Bosse tells the Courier that her personal history as the only child of Holocaust survivors created her abiding sense of the importance of community and public service.
As mayor, Bosse initiated her Beverly Hills Healthy City program to address residential quality of life; transparency and efficiency in government; and a vibrant, successful business sector - healthy people, healthy government, healthy businesses. "I'm excited to continue the job I've been doing for our city,” Bosse tells the Courier. “I believe in positive, inclusive leadership and I believe that our community values my level of preparation, my work ethic and my grasp of the issues facing our city. We've achieved many of our goals, but now is the time to stay focused on our future - protecting our neighborhoods, supporting our business sector and constantly improving our city government. We have to be creative and flexible in today's challenging environment.” Bosse adds, "I'm going to campaign and work hard for every vote and I'm looking forward to a healthy, successful future for our beloved Beverly Hills."
City Council Denies Metro Request To Work During Holiday Season By Laura Coleman On Tuesday evening, the Beverly Hills City Council unanimously shot down a request by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) to permit work during the holiday moratorium. The City Council had approved a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with Metro in February for the design-build of the Wilshire/Rodeo Station in Section 2 of the Purple Line Extension project, which included holiday moratorium dates in which no work is permitted. “We negotiated the deal the way we did to protect our community,” Mayor John Mirisch underscored just before the council voted.
Metro had submitted a request to the city to waive the 2019 holiday moratorium between Thanksgiving Day through New Year's Day to allow the Rodeo Station piling work to continue. During the holiday moratorium, Metro is required to maintain all traffic lanes on Wilshire Boulevard, therefore requiring the removal of the K-rail used during piling activities. “I don’t see a compelling reason to do it,” Councilman Julian Gold said. “But I do think there is a compelling reason not to do it, in that this holiday season coming is critical to our businesses and we want to make sure we do everything we can to make that successful.” TRUMP IN TOWN– President Donald Trump’s swing through the Southland on Sept. 17 included a fundraiser in Beverly Hills which spawned both pro and antiTrump demonstrations in front of the Beverly Hills Hotel. Photo by Ana Figueroa
SINCE 1965
September 20, 2019
Large Turnout at the Neighborhood Watch Meeting Following Weekend Burglary
From Left: Sergeant Dave Dimond, Dr. Daniel Nazarian, Councilmember Julian A. Gold, Chief Sandra Spagnoli, Dr. Sharona R. Nazarian, Shirin Kahenassa, Councilmember Robert Wunderlich, Councilmember Lili Bosse, Councilmember Lester Friedman, and Captain Mark Miner.
By Sandra Sims An impromptu Neighborhood Watch Meeting took place on Sept. 16 at the City Hall Council Chambers. The Courier was in attendance at the meeting, in which a capacity crowd of concerned residents gathered following a residential burglary that temporarily shut down Rodeo Drive on Sept. 15. The Neighborhood Watch meeting was hosted by Beverly Hills residents Sharona Nazarian (current chair of the Commission on Alcohol and Other Drugs in Los Angeles County) and her husband Daniel Nazarian (current Vice Chair of the Beverly Hills Health and Safety Commission). In addition to residents, members of the City Council, the Mayor, City Attorney, City Manager, Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli and a handful of additional officers from the Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD) were in attendance. Sharona Nazarian opened the meeting by describing it as a platform for residents to voice concerns; obtain information shared by the police department about what is being done to protect residents; and find a positive course of action going forward. Chief Spagnoli and members of her department provided information via a slide show prepared by Sergeant Shawn Smollen regarding crime prevention, trends, and statistics. The chief told the Courier that she felt it important to have a team of officers present. “It’s great to get the answers from the boots on the ground and hear officers, the men and women in the department, the civilians who are really doing the job that can tell you with first-hand knowledge about everything going on in the community. So, we have a
team approach here. One team, one mission. This is about delivering that one team, one mission to the community,” said Spagnoli. Residential Burglaries Members of the BHPD told attendees that the most active days and times for residential burglaries are Wednesday and Thursday at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. According to Chief Spagnoli, the department has reduced its average response time to three minutes or less. The chief also stated that at least two patrol units are deployed in the flats each shift. Additionally, there are undercover units, a K-9 Unit and officer, as well as a citywide patrol officer. “Our shifts on the street are our priority,” Spagnoli told the audience. The Sept. 15 burglary that spawned the meeting took place at approximately 12:22 p.m. on the 500 block of N. Rexford Dr. A male adult suspect entered the residence and was confronted by a resident of the home. The resident fled the location and called the police, who quickly arrived and set a perimeter while verifying the suspect was still inside the home. The suspect refused police commands to exit the home, so additional resources were requested including the Beverly Hills Police SWAT team and LAPD air support. The suspect was heavily intoxicated and found hiding inside the home. He was taken into custody and charged with residential burglary and resisting arrest. Crime Trends and Statistics The BHPD also reported some city crime statistics at the meeting. The average number of homes burglarized has decreased to 12 per month as compared to 16 per month in 2018 and 18 per month in 2017. A representative from the city’s Crime Impact Team and (see ‘NEIGHBORHOOD’ page 17)