BHCourier E-edition 100617

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All Together Now - Happy Birthday Mayor Bosse

NUMBER 40

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Robin Thicke To Perform At Holiday Lighting Celebration

One of the biggest stars in R&B will help Beverly Hills ring in the Holiday season this year. Mayor Lili Bosse confirmed to the Courier Thursday that “singer/songwriter extraordinaire” Robin Thicke is slated to perform at the City’s Rodeo Drive Holiday Lighting Celebration on Nov. 16. Thicke is a four-time GRAMMY nominee and a two-time Soul Train Award winner.

HURRICANE RELIEF – On Wednesday, the Beverly Hills Unified School District launched a fundraising drive to help fellow students, teachers and families in Texas recover from Hurricane Harvey. Pictured (front row, from left): 8th grade Beverly Vista students Sarah Lepkowitz, Sienna Wolfe and Jayden Bulexa; back row: Principal Christian Fuhrer and parent Mark Goldsmith.

THIS ISSUE

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Israel Cancer Research Fund “Unlocking Cures” Gala is Nov. 11 8 •Health & Wellness •Arts & Entertainment •Birthdays

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George Christy, Page 6 Dine, Dance And Make Friends During This Weekend-Long Greek Festival On The Campus Of Saint Sophia Cathedral At Normandie And Pico Boulevards. Free Admission On October 7

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

October 6, 2017

Beverly Hills City Council Members Vote Themselves Extra Year In Office

BREAKING NEWS

Michael Libow made a generous donation this week to the BHEF.

SINCE 1965

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WESTFIELD – To mark the $1 billion renovation of Westfield Century City, the mall partnered with the Infinite Hero Foundation. Pictured (from left): U.S. Veteran and actor JR Martinez, Infinite Hero Foundation Executive Director Laurie Baker, Mayor Eric Garcetti, Westfield Century City Co-CEO’s Peter S. Lowy and Steven M. Lowy, and Councilmember Paul Koretz.

Westfield Century City Unveils $1 Billion Transformation By Laura Coleman With 2,000 shades of lipstick, the new Nordstrom’s in Century City is all about having something for everyone. On Tuesday, just days after closing up shop at Westside Pavilion, Nordstrom Century City opened as a new anchor in tandem with Westfield Century City celebrating its $1 billion renovation. “This is a good moment for Los

Angeles,” L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti said at a press conference just before the shopping mall treated a well-dressed throng to musical performances by DNCE, Fitz and the Tantrums, and the Village People as part of Tuesday evening’s “grand celebration” party. “This $1 billion project really represents how strong this city is.” (see ‘WESTFIELD’ page 19)

Massry Prize Shines Light On Scientific Advances By Laura Coleman One day your gut biome, which is comprised of more than 40 species of bacteria and 20 species of fungus, will be something you freely discuss. Scientists are now predicting that microbiomes, invisible bio-communities of genetically distinct microorganisms abiding within us all, can be manipulated to engender better health and appearance.

In recognition of this health redefining exploration into microbial communities, tomorrow morning at Beverly Hills City Hall the Meira and Shaul G. Massry Foundation will name three pioneers in the field as this year’s Massry Laureates: professors Norman R. Pace (University of Colorado), Rob Knight (University of California, San Diego), and Jeffrey I. Gordon (see ‘MASSRY PRIZE’ page 23)

By Victoria Talbot Unbeknownst to most of the City’s voters, the Beverly Hills City Council members, led by Mayor Lili Bosse, including Vice Mayor Julian Gold and Councilmembers Lester Friedman, John Mirisch and Robert Wunderlich, unanimously voted to give themselves an extra year in office Tuesday afternoon. The agenda item debuted on the City Council Study Session agenda after business hours Friday evening. The City Council vote will mean that Mayor Bosse and Vice Mayor Gold will not be facing an election for nine years in office. In 2015, Gold and Bosse did not have an election because of Bosse’s unprecedented popularity. No candidates surfaced to oppose her run for office. Gold ran on

Bosse’s coattails and was swept into office without an election, though it is not clear he would have won had he been opposed by a viable candidate. Changing the date of Municipal elections is in compliance with State Senate Bill 415, the California Voter Participation Rights Act (Elections Code Sections 14050 – 14057), which requires cities such as Beverly Hills, that currently hold standalone elections, to change their election dates to coincide with statewide election dates unless voter turnout on municipal elections meets a threshold of 75 percent in the past four statewide elections. Turnout for the statewide elections showed 57.02 percent in 2010, 73.05 percent in 2012, 33.7 percent in 2014 and 75.79 percent in 2016 for (see ‘CITY COUNCIL’ page 19)

Planning Commission Sends 9200 Wilshire Back To The Drawing Board By Victoria Talbot Despite erroneous reports locally that the Planning Commission had approved the plans for a proposed mixed-use development at 9200 Wilshire Boulevard, the developer on Monday evening was given specific instructions for modifications and asked to return to the Commission. An Overlay Zone was approved with the project by the City Council in 2007; the proposed development reflects 2017 modifications by the developers. Despite overwhelming

Allan Alchech

VOLUME: LII

pressure from Arnold Rosenstein on behalf of New Pacific LLC for a resolution that would memorialize changes directed by the Planning Commission with implied approval prior to seeing the documents , Chair Lori Greene Gordon insisted that the Commission must review the documents without granting approvals for the modifications. Chair Gordon instructed staff to prepare a resolution that included her stipulation to review the documents, which (see ‘9200 WILSHIRE’ page 23)

T H E  TO M  A N D  R I TA SHOW — The 19th annual Greek Festival always enjoys the presence and support of Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson at the Saint Sophia Cathedral, where families gather for 3 days of good times. For more photos, see George Christy’s column on page 6.


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