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L.A. Mayoral Candidates Spar In South Los Angeles

Denise Guerra |
January 18, 2013 | 7:05 p.m. PST

Staff Reporter

The mayoral candidates take a breather to pose for a photo with the SCLC. (Aaron Liu/Neon Tommy)
The mayoral candidates take a breather to pose for a photo with the SCLC. (Aaron Liu/Neon Tommy)
Cloteal Cook-Wong has lived near Gramercy Park in South LA since 1967.

Since then, she's seen jobs, banks and grocery stores move out of her neighborhood. She questions why the area hasn't changed for the better.

“I think someone just lost interest in the area,” said Cook-Wong.

Cook-Wong was one of more than 100 people in attendance at the mayoral forum sponsored by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference on Thursday as part of their weeklong celebration of Civil Rights Leader Martin Luther King, Jr.

“We’re bringing people to you and not you to them,” said Rev. William D. Smart Jr., president of the Los Angeles chapter of the SCLC.

The candidates sparred over medicinal marijuana, gun control, funding for the Crenshaw Line, and fixing streets and potholes for more than two hours at Mt. Gilead Baptist Church. They also discussed their plans for pension reform and the economic revitalization of South Los Angeles.

Cook-Wong said that while she thought all the candidates did well and had good intentions, she still had her reservations.

"You just hope that whoever gets elected is really going to do what they said they'd do," she said.

One issue that the candidates discussed in depth: how to address unemployment in Los Angeles. City Councilman Eric Garcetti focused on “guaranteed summer jobs” for youth. He also highlighted his work with Los Angeles Community College and LAUSD to teach students entrepreneurial skills -- and then left early due to a scheduling conflict.

City Controller Wendy Greuel shifted the issue from job training to bringing more businesses to the region.

“Every day I am mayor, I will call businesses [and say] -- here is a location I’d like you to move in to,” said Greuel.

City Councilwoman Jan Perry, who has represented the South LA district since 2001, calmly stated that she had "already demonstrated job creation" through the construction and development that she’s helped bring to Downtown LA. Perry also highlighted the need to bring city tax revenue further south.

Attorney and broadcaster Kevin James referenced his business improvement package and repeatedly accused his opponents of being a part of a dysfunctional municipal bureaucracy that has poorly managed city funds.

“My three city hall opponents are suddenly business friendly,” said James. “Business tax reform has been thwarted for years.”

According to James’s campaign site, his business improvement package will involve eliminating the calculation of business taxes by “gross receipts,” and streamlining the permit process.

Rev. Bob Gay, former deputy for Los Angeles’s first African-American City Council member Gil Lindsey, moderated the event. Gay said candidates do not usually travel this far into South Los Angeles, which differs from the neighborhood closer to USC.

“There are bigger churches there," said Gay, "and more unemployment here.” 

A recent poll conducted by ABC 7 shows most Los Angeles voters are undecided over the election, but prefer Garcetti over Greuel, 26 to 18 percent. Perry and James both tied around 12 percent.

Mary Christian, a retired Supervisor for LA County’s Probation Department, was still undecided after the forum. She had hoped that the candidates would be more specific, but said she was “just happy that it happened, and that it happened in this community.” 

The next mayoral forum is scheduled for July 19 at USC Bovard Auditorium at 8 am.

You can reach reporter Denise Guerra here or on Twitter @deniseimrad.



 

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