The union that represents hotel workers is canvassing Beverly Hills, hoping to place on the ballot a referendum that would shoot down the City Council’s approval in November of a luxury hotel to be developed by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton. The signature drive has already resulted in a dispute with the Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD).
Unite Here Local 11 is exercising its rights under California law by attempting to put the ordinances approving the project in front of the voters. Representatives from the union have knocked on doors and stationed themselves along sidewalks asking for signatures on two different possible ballot items. One is whether to reverse the City Council’s approval of Cheval Blanc Beverly Hills, the planned hotel plus retail and private club on the 400 block of Rodeo Drive for which the Paris-based LVMH is set to spend about $1.1 billion in order to complete. The other is whether the city should go back to the drawing board on a development agreement made with LVMH, which includes LVMH providing more than $26 million in public benefits and $2 million more to city art programs.
