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BEVERLY HILLS VOLUME XXXXVII NUMBER 43 $135 PER YEAR - $1.25 PER COPY •
THIS ISSUE
Beverly Hills resident and Roxbury Park volunteer turns 104. 4
www.bhcourier.com
SINCE 1965
November 2, 2012
Election Day Tuesday: TAXES, TAXES, TAXES, TAXES! By Matt Lopez and Marla Schevker Tuesday is Election Day and when Beverly Hills residents step up to the ballot box, they might also be stepping into a world of seemingly never-ending tax
hikes. Tax increases are a common theme of this year’s election, with several measures and propositions aimed at increasing taxes, with threats to cut funding from important areas like public
education if these tax hikes are not passed. Beverly Hills residents will be asked to vote on Measure J, a 30-year extension of the halfcent sales tax called Measure R that voters approved in 2009 and
is set to expire in 2039. Measure J, if approved, would expire in 2069. Proponents of Measure J include Metro and the Los Angeles (see ‘TAXES’ page 8)
Costs Force School District To Increase K-8 Food Budget Updated from bhcourier.com Dior unveiled its revamped new look on Rodeo Drive last week. 4
Former BHHS star Erik Munzer leads college team to soccer championship. 5
Peninsula hotel inspires new illustrated mystery children’s book. 5
Silverado art show featured works by people battling Dementia. 13 •Arts & Entertainment •Health and Wellness •Birthdays
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SCHOOL SPIRIT —Horace Mann students dressed up in Halloween costumes for the annual school parade on Wednesday. Pictured above from left is the fifth grade “Ostrich Family” of Thomas Recupero, Eden Lavian, Omid Nourmohamadian, Nathan Maryamian and Aaron Melloul. For more photos see page 20. Courier Photos by Laura Coleman
By Matt Lopez The Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce has taken the unprecedented measure of endorsing the Metropolitan Transit Authorit’s funding efforts and in doing so, broke away from the
By Matt Lopez Pioneer Hardware has serviced the Beverly Hills community for more than 80 years, but that run may come to an end if the City is successful in increasing the hardware store’s rent in
stance taken by many other local chambers and went against the position taken by the Beverly Hills Unified School District. It did so, apparently, without (see ‘CHAMBER’ page 15)
January. Pioneer has been in Beverly Hills since 1926 and in 1988, moved into a City-owned building at 315 North Crescent Drive. Former Mayor Joe Tilem, (see ‘RENT’ page 15)
A LONG DAYS NIGHT — Those who attended LACMA’s second annual Art + Film Gala honoring artist Ed Ruscha and filmmaker Stanley Kubrick described it as “an oy vey evening”. Rambling speeches and a disappointing dinner. A high celebrity quotient (how many know a Bob Rauschenberg or a Cy Twombley work of art?). But thanks to our loyal trustees, checks were written totaling $3.5 million.
Editorial from Rabbi Pressman AND MORE Announcements Real Estate Rentals Sales and More
(see ‘LUNCH’ page 8)
City Could Hammer Pioneer Hardware With New Rent
Oscar Buzz Begins for The Impossible starring Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts about the 2004 Tsumani Catastrophe in Thailand; Who Knew Tom Wolfe Writes With a Pencil
CLASSIFIEDS
The move is expected to have ramifications that will ripple across the school district in the face of millions of dollars in cuts that need to be made by December. “We took a step backwards as a board in terms of our fiscal responsibility as a board,” Goldberg told The Courier. “[It] was a mistake.” Chief Administrative Officer Dawnalyn Murakawa-Leopard determined that it was impossi-
Chamber Goes Against School Board, Endorses Measure J
George Christy, Page 6
• • • • •
By Laura Coleman The Board of Education voted 4-1 on Tuesday to expend over $350,000 from the general fund on food services through June. Board president Brian Goldberg was the lone ‘no’ vote at the Oct. 31 special board meeting where the board spent less than an hour deciding to expend up to $180,000 more to have Choicelunch provide food service at the K-8 level than it unanimously voted to do on Oct. 23.
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More photos in George Christy’s column on Page 6.
Getty Images Photo
BETTY’S BACK —Hollywood legend Betty White, a Beverly Hills High graduate, appeared at the Beverly Hills Athletic Alumni Association Hall of Fame dinner last Thursday night at the Beverly Hilton. White (class of ‘39) was honored as the inagural inductee in the BHHS Performing Arts Alumni Hall of Fame. Pictured above is current BHHS football players Cameron Paysinger(left) and Vincent Torres (right) escoring Betty into the dinner. For more photos, see page 19.
Beverly Hills Post Office Moves Forward With Relocation Plans By Matt Lopez The United States Postal Service (USPS) inched closer to relocating its Beverly Hills office to a smaller building somewhere in the City. USPS spokesman Richard Maher confirmed to The Courier that USPS has been given authorization to move to sell its 167,000 square foot property at 315 North Maple Drive. Maher said the property is currently up for sale through
CBRE Group, Inc. While that property holds roughly 7,000 post office boxes, Maher said the USPS is scouting nearby locations, looking for a much smaller 10,000 square foot building that would hold only 3,500 P.O. boxes. That number, however, is much more than is currently being used at the 315 N. Maple Drive location. Maher said the (see ‘USPS’ page 20)