The post An Explanation of Bonds appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The post How to Become a Good Investor appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

To begin with, start talking to your children about money when they are young. Even preschoolers can start to learn about the basics of money, such as the value of coins and bills, how to make purchases, and the importance of saving. As they get older, you can gradually introduce more complex financial concepts, such as budgeting, investing, and credit. When my four sons were young, my husband and I created a “chore” sheet. We listed chores, such as clear the dinner table, fill up the dishwasher, dust the cobwebs and put away their toys.

Each of those chores had a monetary valuation, and if they performed those chores, they could earn money. They loved that idea and learned the concept of work as a way to make money to buy things they wanted. As they got older, the chores became more sophisticated and got bigger, such as fold the laundry and put it away, wash the car and sweep the driveway, but the money got bigger and they liked that as well. To incentivize them even further, we made a deal that when they earned $10, we would match it and that worked brilliantly! We were also lucky because they didn’t have the desire to play video games.

While not as challenging as talking about the birds and the bees, the goal is to help them develop a positive relationship with money and teach them the skills they need to be financially responsible adults. Here are some tips about how to talk about money.

Use age-appropriate language and don’t overwhelm your children with too much information at once. Start with the basics and gradually add more complexity as they get older.
Be positive. Don’t make your children feel guilty about wanting things or about making mistakes. Instead, focus on the positive aspects of financial responsibility, such as the freedom and security that it can bring.

Make it fun. There are many ways to make learning about money fun. One of these ways is to play board games. A bit old fashioned but very effective and provides family time where you are actually talking to your kids. The goal is to make learning enjoyable for your children so that they are more likely to remember what they’ve learned.
There are many board games that can help children learn about money and have fun doing it. Some of these games are specifically designed for teenage children, while others can be adapted for use with younger learners. Here are a few examples:

EASY MONEY by the Parker Brothers and MONOPOLY by the Milton Bradley Company. These very similar games are designed to teach children about the value of money in real estate. They’ll experiment with buying and selling, building, borrowing, banking and mortgaging. In other words, making money.

PAY DAY by Parker Brothers/Hasbro. In 15 minutes, players will earn a paycheck, pay outstanding bills, and have the opportunity to make deals on property and earn money from it (passive income for the win!).

THE ALLOWANCE GAME. After a few rounds, kids will become familiar with counting money and saving it, too. The game board is full of different chores to do which earns them cash, so expect the kids to get lots of ideas about doing work around the house.

THE STOCK EXCHANGE GAME. Here the players take big risks early and then switch to safer buys later as retirement approaches. The player with the most money at retirement wins the game, just like in real life.

These are just a few examples of games that can help children learn about money. There are many other games available, so you can find one that is appropriate for your child’s age and interests.

Another way to teach your children is by getting them to read books of which there are several age-appropriate ones to buy. For little ones, 7 and up, there’s “The ABCs of Economics” by Connor Boyack and Elijah Stanfield or “My First Book of Money Basics” by Sara Kale. As they get a bit older, there’s “Understanding Finance” by Linda Connor. And remember, there are lots of other choices to seek out. These are just a few.

Talking to your children about money is an important part of parenting. By starting the conversation early and making it fun, you can help them develop a positive relationship with money and the skills they need to be financially responsible adults.

The most important thing when talking to your children about money is to be open and honest. Don’t be afraid to talk about your own financial situation and let them know that it’s okay to make mistakes. After all, no one’s perfect, right? The goal is to help them develop a positive relationship with money and to teach them the skills they need to be financially responsible adults.

The post Teach Your Children About Finance appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

First, start early

The sooner you start saving for retirement, the more time your money has to grow. Starting early can provide you with a significant advantage in building your retirement savings. This is due to the power of compounding, which enables your money to grow over time, i.e., your earnings earn more earnings. The average rate of return of the S&P, with reinvested dividends from January 1,1993 to December 31, 2022, was 9.62%. This is based on the total return index of the S&P 500. If you have a 401(k) plan, contribute as much as you can, up to the annual maximum. The more you save, the more money you will have for retirement. Another benefit of maximizing your 401(k) contributions is that the money you put into the traditional 401(k) is pretax, so it has the added benefit of reducing your taxable income. If you don’t work at a company that offers 401(k) benefits, there are other vehicles you can use such as traditional Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), ROTH IRAs, and Deferred Compensation plans, just to name a few. Plus, one of the best benefits of all retirement plans is the tax-deferred nature of qualified retirement plans, i.e., you don’t pay taxes on realized gains and you only pay ordinary income on withdrawals. Tax deferral removes a massive drag on your money that is otherwise present in saving for retirement in ordinary taxable accounts. The distinctions in these plans can be found online or by asking your advisor.

Take Advantage of Employer Contributions

Many employers offer a matching contribution to their employees’ retirement accounts. If your employer offers this benefit, make sure you contribute enough to get the full match. This employer matching is essentially free money and can significantly increase your retirement savings. It is important to fully understand the benefit your employer is offering as it varies from company to company.

Diversify Your Investments

Diversification is crucial in managing risk and maximizing returns. Invest in a mix of stocks, bonds, and other assets that align with your goals and risk tolerance. Consider using low-cost index funds or target-date funds to achieve diversification. There are many choices that are available to you now, so educate yourself as to what these choices are. It is advisable to have a larger allocation to stocks when you are younger, as you have a very long time before you will be taking distributions from these plans.

Keep Fees Low

Fees can eat into your investment returns over time. Be aware of the fees associated with your retirement accounts and choose low-cost investment options where possible. For example, choose index funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with low expense ratios.

Rebalance Regularly 

Rebalancing your portfolio involves adjusting your investment mix periodically to maintain your desired asset allocation. It helps manage risk and maximize returns. Rebalancing can be done annually or semi-annually, depending on your investment strategy. Try not to fall into the trap of “TRADING” your account by buying and selling frequently.

Delay Social Security if You Are Able To

Delaying Social Security benefits can increase your retirement income significantly. You can start collecting Social Security benefits as early as age 62 but delaying until age 70 can increase your monthly benefit by up to 8% per year. The information as to what your Social Security Benefits will be is easily available on the Social Security Website. There is a tool on the site that will allow you to model out your benefits depending on when you start to take your social security. In most cases, unless you need the money, delaying when you begin to receive your social security is beneficial. This is something your advisor can help you with.

Consider a Roth IRA

A Roth IRA is an excellent retirement savings vehicle that offers tax-free withdrawals in retirement. Contributions to a Roth IRA are made with after-tax dollars, and qualified withdrawals in retirement are tax-free. There are many advantages to using a ROTH IRA and if your employer offers a ROTH 401(k), it is worthwhile considering as these funds are always going to be tax free when you take distribution. The primary difference is you are using after-tax dollars to fund this. Again, these are decisions you should discuss with your advisor.

Get Professional Help

Consider working with a financial advisor or planner to help you develop a retirement plan that aligns with your goals and objectives. A professional can help you develop a personalized plan and provide valuable guidance on investment strategies, risk management and tax planning.

In summary, maximizing your retirement accounts requires a disciplined approach to saving, investing, and managing risk. Starting early, contributing the maximum, taking advantage of employer contributions, diversifying your investments, keeping fees low, rebalancing regularly, delaying Social Security, considering a Roth IRA, and seeking professional help are all strategies that can help you achieve your retirement goals. With consistent effort and discipline, you can maximize your retirement accounts and enjoy a financially secure retirement. 

Rebecca Rothstein works with high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions, helping them advance their wealth management goals. She began her career as a financial advisor in 1987 at Bear Stearns. She spent 10 years with Deutsche Bank Alex Brown and 13 years with Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management (formerly Smith Barney) before joining Merrill Lynch. As a Managing Director at Merrill Private Wealth Management, Rebecca focuses on wealth management, tax minimization, and estate planning strategies for affluent clients. She also works with corporate officers, devising liquidity and diversification strategies for concentrated positions. Rebecca has garnered a number of national honors as a financial advisor. Barron’s magazine named her one of the “Top 100 Financial Advisors in America” from 2007 successively through 2012. Barron’s also named Rebecca one of the “Top 100 Women Financial Advisors in America” from the inception of the list in 2006 successively through 2012, profiling her in the 2012 issue. In 2017, Rebecca was recognized by the national publication Forbes, which named her one of “America’s Top Wealth Advisors.” In 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 Rebecca was again recognized by Forbes, which named her the #1 of “Top Women Wealth Advisors.” Rebecca is very active in the community. She is the Chairman of the Board and Founder of Teen Cancer America (a global charity founded by Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend). She is also a Co-Chair of the Childhood Autism Board at UCLA, which helps children who have been diagnosed with autism, developmental disabilities, and behavior disorders, and she is a board member of the UCLA Health System. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys cooking, sailing, and participating in a number of charitable efforts. She has four sons and splits her time between Incline Village, Nevada and Beverly Hills, California with her husband Ron.

The post Maximizing Retirement Savings appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

Asset Allocation is a well-known and understood concept in the world of investing. It is widely used to help determine how your money should be divided across different asset classes which include cash, stocks, bonds, insurance, and real estate. Your short, intermediate, and long-term investment goals should have an influence on these decisions. Are you investing for your retirement, saving for a down payment on a house, investing for your children’s college tuition or building wealth for the long term? One of the most important discussions you should have with your financial advisor is to help them to understand your investment goals. Always remember, this is your money, not the advisors. Once this is understood these goals will influence and determine your asset allocation decisions. 

Assessing your risk tolerance is a very important part of determining in which areas you should invest. How much risk are you willing to take on in your investment portfolio? Higher risk investments may offer higher potential returns, but they also come with a greater risk of loss and volatility. This discussion must include, but not be limited by, helping you determine your level of risk tolerance. 

Consider your time horizon. The length of time you have to invest should influence these decisions. If you have a longer time horizon (let’s, say you’re in your 30s), you may be able to take on more risk in your portfolio. However, as you hit your 50s and 60s you may want less risk. Some of the most important considerations are your age and where you are in your life cycle.

Diversification of investments can help to reduce risk and volatility. In many cases, it can help improve adjusted returns by investing in bonds, stocks, insurance, and real estate. Diversification is a well-known technique that should be used to reduce the overall risk of your portfolio and can help smooth out longer-term returns by reducing volatility. 

Each asset class has its own risk and return characteristics. Once you have formulated a general strategy, then it’s appropriate to determine the percentages of stocks/bonds/real estate, cash and other assets that you may own or want to own such as jewelry and art. The right mix will be arrived at by having this conversation with your advisor.   

Over the last year as interest rates have risen at the fastest pace in decades, even cash and short-term cash management tools like interest-bearing deposit accounts, money market funds, U.S. Treasury Bills and CDs have come back into favor as an asset class to deliver extremely compelling returns versus traditional checking and savings accounts. If managed correctly this could add an additional 4-5% in return on idle assets that have been yielding zero or near zero for years.  

Once you have assessed your investment goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon, you can determine your target asset allocation. A sample asset allocation could be something like 40% equities, 40% bonds and 20% real estate. This is meant as an example only and not something that necessarily applies to you. Decisions related to your specific percentages is what you and your advisor should determine. Your finances can and should be reviewed regularly to make certain you are aware of external forces that may suggest a shift in the investments, as well as to make sure that the investment plan is working towards accomplishing your stated goals. These goals are always subject to change, which is one of the reasons for ongoing, frank discussions between you and your advisor. Also, it’s important to monitor your portfolio regularly and be prepared to adjust as needed because over time your portfolio may drift. For example, as you age your allocations can easily change from higher risk to a more conservative approach so rebalancing your portfolio is very important. 

In many cases, a great deal of your funds are invested outside of tax-deferred accounts such as IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts) and pensions. Therefore, in these types of investment accounts, there will be times that you are tempted to sell because the investment landscape frequently changes due to external forces such as higher interest rates, inflation, and recently, a pandemic. These types of market conditions can be nerve-racking and cause you to want to sell but you must carefully consider this action because doing so will most likely cause a tax event. An advisor should always make certain that you are aware of how you will be taxed and how this will impact your outcome. 

Monitor your portfolio performance. Regularly monitoring your portfolio performance can help you make adjustments as needed. Be a partner with your advisor. Be clear about what you want the outcome to be and ask questions. An experienced advisor will answer your questions and then be able to recommend a plan that will achieve your goals. 

And finally, stay informed. The investment landscape is always changing, so it’s important to keep up with market trends and economic conditions that may impact your portfolio. One of the ways to do this is by watching financial news programs, reading financial publications, and setting up bi-annual meetings with your advisor to review your portfolio. 

The post The Basics of Asset Allocation appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

When a spouse passes away, estate taxes can be due within nine months. In some cases, there are also costs that are due earlier. To meet these tax obligations, some families will borrow against assets or liquidate those assets, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

One popular way of addressing your wealth transfer goals is by using irrevocable trusts funded with life insurance.  There are two basic types of trusts revocable and irrevocable. For the purposes of wealth transfer it is important to focus on irrevocable trusts (also known as gift trusts), as assets held in these trusts are not included in your taxable estate for estate tax purposes. With an Irrevocable Trust the trustee controls how assets are managed, has legal control over the assets determining how they are distributed and used, has a fiduciary responsibility to act in the best interest of the beneficiaries, and the terms can’t be altered without legal proceedings. The key point being that the assets in the irrevocable trust are held outside of your estate. This is not a complete list and you should discuss the differences with your estate attorney to be certain that the trust they draft for you aligns with your specific goals.

Utilizing insurance strategies can help to manage risk and provide liquidity for you to pay estate taxes or other expenses. If the insurance has been structured properly it creates a financial safety net and the policy’s death benefit will be excluded from the insured’s taxable estate for transfer tax purposes. Additionally, because life insurance proceeds are free from any income tax, effectively your beneficiaries will receive the money tax free.

There are two basic types of life insurance options. Term life insurance lasts for a specific pre-determined period of time, while permanent life insurance lasts your entire lifetime as long as the premiums are paid. Term life is an affordable solution for temporary short-term needs like paying off a mortgage and it can provide income replacement during peak earning years or while raising a family but it has no residual value at the end of the term. Permanent life provides lifelong death benefit protection, protects your family by providing financial security upon your death, can fund final expense at death and builds cash value that accrues over your lifetime. This can provide a way for people to save for future expenses such as retirement or college tuition.

Benefits from a life insurance policy can help cover expenses such as mortgage payments, paying off debt like car loans, living expenses and credit cards, and funding future education costs for children. It’s important to name beneficiaries because by doing so you will alleviate the burden of your death on loved ones and allow them to grieve without having to worry about financial matters. Furthermore, life insurance can be used to make a substantial charitable gift by naming a charity as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy.

In addition to insurance there are other important elements of estate planning to become familiar with such as The Federal Estate Tax Exemption. This is a specified amount that is exempted from estate tax and is reduced dollar for dollar. For example, in calendar year 2023, the federal exemption amount is $12,920,000 per person or $25,840,000 per married couple. That means that if your estate is valued at $50 million, the first $25,840,000 (for a married couple) is not subject to estate tax but the balance of approximately $24,160,000 will be subject to estate tax. This is where insurance becomes very valuable as the insurance will pay into the estate to pay some of the estate taxes due and then the heirs will not be forced to sell assets to pay the estate taxes.

Additionally, everyone gets the opportunity to make an annual gift to anyone they want to and the amount can vary from year to year. In 2023 that annual gift amount is $17,000. The annual gift is not counted against your lifetime exemption.

From a business standpoint insurance will protect your business from the unexpected. If you own a business, you can take out life insurance policies to protect it. You can set up a buy/sell succession strategy, create a business loan collateralization plan and have key person protection. For example, in case of the death of a key member of the team the death benefit can be used to buy out the deceased owner’s share of the business, ensure that the business continues normal operation of the company providing financial security for your family.

Many of us will need long-term care when we get older. To cover long-term care costs, some individuals buy life insurance policies with long-term care riders. These can provide financial assistance for care in the event of a chronic illness or disability thus preserving the value of an estate. This long-term care insurance either as a rider or as its own policy has become very popular since more people are living longer.

Finally, not only will you have peace of mind knowing your family will be taken care of but owning a life insurance policy will also give your family members peace of mind knowing they will be taken care of in the event of your death. This can be especially important for individuals with dependence on those who are the primary breadwinner in their families.

As you can see, it’s very important to plan ahead and it’s never too early to start these discussions. By including insurance as part of your overall estate plan, you can ensure that your assets are used as you intend so your beneficiaries are provided for in the way you choose, which can help maintain the value of your estate.

The role of your financial advisor is to work with you and other professionals to help you make good choices in choosing the proper insurance, identifying products and solutions that help you pursue your investment goals, and give you access to trust services. And lastly, remember to seek a qualified estate planning attorney and a tax professional to join your team to develop your comprehensive wealth transfer planning
strategy. 

Rebecca Rothstein works with high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions, helping them advance their wealth management goals. She began her career as a financial advisor in 1987 at Bear Stearns. She spent 10 years with Deutsche Bank Alex Brown and 13 years with Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management (formerly Smith Barney) before joining Merrill Lynch. As a Managing Director at Merrill Private Wealth Management, Rebecca focuses on wealth management, tax minimization, and estate planning strategies for affluent clients. She also works with corporate officers, devising liquidity and diversification strategies for concentrated positions. Rebecca has garnered a number of national honors as a financial advisor. Barron’s magazine named her one of the “Top 100 Financial Advisors in America” from 2007 successively through 2012. Barron’s also named Rebecca one of the “Top 100 Women Financial Advisors in America” from the inception of the list in 2006 successively through 2012, profiling her in the 2012 issue. In 2017, Rebecca was recognized by the national publication Forbes, which named her one of “America’s Top Wealth Advisors.” In 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 Rebecca was again recognized by Forbes, which named her the #1 of “Top Women Wealth Advisors.” Rebecca is very active in the community. She is the Chairman of the Board and Founder of Teen Cancer America (a global charity founded by Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend). She is also a Co-Chair of the Childhood Autism Board at UCLA, which helps children who have been diagnosed with autism, developmental disabilities, and behavior disorders, and she is a board member of the UCLA Health System. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys cooking, sailing, and participating in a number of charitable efforts. She has four sons and splits her time between Incline Village, Nevada and Beverly Hills, California with her husband Ron.

The post The Role of Insurance in Wealth Management appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

Experience: Look for someone who has been in the financial industry for several years and, preferably, has a “team” of specialists. The reason is that often the team members will have more expertise in a variety of topics whereas a sole advisor might not have as much knowledge as one of their team members. Another good idea is to choose someone who has seen different types of market conditions and has a track record of helping clients achieve their financial goals given the fluctuations of the markets. This will give you confidence in their ability to provide guidance and support as you work towards your financial goals. Experience matters a lot in this business!

Qualifications: The financial planning industry has a number of professional licenses and certifications that advisors must earn to demonstrate their knowledge and skills. These include, but are not limited to, a Series 7 license and a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) certification. It’s important to make sure the advisor you choose has the necessary licenses and qualifications to provide professional quality advice.

Fees: Make sure that you understand how a financial advisor charges for their services, including any upfront or ongoing fees. Some advisors charge an hourly rate, while others charge a percentage of the assets they manage. Some charge commissions. Choose an advisor who can charge a fee structure that you are comfortable with and is best suited to your financial goals. Generally, working on a fee basis aligns the advisor with their client’s interests so be certain to ask how you will be paying for their services.

Services offered: When considering a financial advisor, it’s important to determine what services they offer and whether they are compatible with your needs. Have the advisors delineate exactly what you can count on them for, some of which include generational planning, buying and selling of stocks, lending, asset allocation and retirement planning, just to name a few. Make sure to choose an advisor whose services meet your specific needs and goals. Some advisors may offer a comprehensive financial planning package that includes everything from budgeting and debt management to investment advice and retirement planning. Others may offer à la carte services, allowing you to choose the specific services you need. Consider your needs and goals and choose an advisor whose services meet your expectations.

Investment philosophy: Your advisor should understand your investment philosophy and approach to risk management to ensure you are both on the same page. Investors are usually classified into three main categories based on how much risk they can tolerate. Would you prefer to be aggressive, moderate, or conservative with your money? Knowing your risk tolerance level helps advisors plan your entire portfolio and will drive how they invest for you. Your investment philosophy should be based on your personal financial situation so it’s essential to be clear about what you are expecting from your advisor. Don’t expect them to guess. This is an important relationship and all these things should be discussed thoroughly. This will require you to be forthcoming about your own expectations and goals. And, keep in mind that as your relationship with the advisor continues, these things will change over time. A lot of this will depend on your age and the ages of your family members. An advisor who understands what you want will be better equipped to help you make informed investment decisions that will satisfy your long-term financial goals.

Communication style: The communication style of a financial advisor is also an important factor to consider. Choose an advisor that you feel comfortable working with and who has a communication style that you like. You will need to be clear about your expectations. Some people want to be in contact frequently, others quarterly, some less often. Consider your own communication preferences and choose an advisor whose style works best with your preferences. Good communication builds trust and ensures that your advisor is able to provide the support and guidance you need. Always take the time to review the monthly statements that are provided by the firms. Look for an advisor who is responsive and proactive and who is willing to take the time to fully understand your needs and concerns. Strong communication is essential for a successful advisor-client relationship.

Client base: It can be helpful to choose a financial advisor who serves a client base similar to your own circumstances, as they may be better able to understand and address your specific needs and concerns. They will be more familiar with the unique financial challenges and opportunities you may face and will be better able to provide tailored advice and support. Similarly, if you are approaching retirement, you may want to look for an advisor who has experience working with clients in your age group and has a strong understanding of the financial considerations that come with retirement and generational planning.

Conflict of interest: It’s important to make sure the financial advisor you choose does not have any conflicts of interest that could influence the advice they give you. This includes receiving commissions for recommending certain products or services and receiving commissions for buying and selling stocks. As mentioned above, working on a fee basis aligns the advisor with their client’s interests. So, choose an advisor who is transparent about their fee structure and any potential conflicts of interest.

References: Asking for references from current clients can be a helpful way to get a better understanding of a financial advisor’s work style and effectiveness. These references can provide valuable insight into an advisor’s communication style, knowledge and expertise, and overall approach to working with clients. They can also help you get a sense of the level of support and service you can expect from an advisor and their team.

Compatibility: Trust your instincts when choosing a financial advisor. Choose someone you feel comfortable working with and who you believe will have your best interests in mind. Consider their communication style, personality, and overall approach to financial planning. It’s important to find an advisor who you feel comfortable discussing your financial situation with and one who you believe will provide sound and unbiased advice.

In summary, there are a number of factors to consider when choosing a financial advisor. Look for an advisor who has experience, qualifications, and a track record of helping clients achieve their financial goals. Understand how they charge for their services and make sure their fee structure is compatible with your needs. Trust your instincts and choose an advisor that you feel comfortable working with and who you believe will have your best interests in mind. 

Rebecca Rothstein works with high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions, helping them advance their wealth management goals. She began her career as a financial advisor in 1987 at Bear Stearns. She spent 10 years with Deutsche Bank Alex Brown and 13 years with Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management (formerly Smith Barney) before joining Merrill Lynch. As a Managing Director at Merrill Private Wealth Management, Rebecca focuses on wealth management, tax minimization, and estate planning strategies for affluent clients. She also works with corporate officers, devising liquidity and diversification strategies for concentrated positions. Rebecca has garnered a number of national honors as a financial advisor. Barron’s magazine named her one of the “Top 100 Financial Advisors in America” from 2007 successively through 2012. Barron’s also named Rebecca one of the “Top 100 Women Financial Advisors in America” from the inception of the list in 2006 successively through 2012, profiling her in the 2012 issue. In 2017, Rebecca was recognized by the national publication Forbes, which named her one of “America’s Top Wealth Advisors.” In 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 Rebecca was again recognized by Forbes, which named her the #1 of “Top Women Wealth Advisors.” Rebecca is very active in the community. She is the Chairman of the Board and Founder of Teen Cancer America (a global charity founded by Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend). She is also a co-Chair of the Childhood Autism Board at UCLA, which helps children who have been diagnosed with autism, developmental disabilities, and behavior disorders, and she is a board member of the UCLA Health System. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys cooking, sailing, and participating in a number of charitable efforts. She has four sons and splits her time between Incline Village, Nevada and Beverly Hills, California, with her husband Ron.

The post How to Choose a Financial Advisor appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

“For me, this actually exceeded my wildest dreams,” Bosse told the Courier. “It’s the first time after two very challenging years, that we as a community can finally come together again. We can smile together again, touch one another together and just celebrate each other and celebrate what we love the most about our community, which is that it feels like an extended family. Tonight felt that way. Tonight felt like coming home again.”

The relatively new eatery opened on Feb. 15 at 235 N. Canon Drive, occupying the two-story old Bouchon space at Beverly Canon Gardens, which closed in 2017. The restaurant comes from Tommy Salvatore, formerly the manager at Craig’s in West Hollywood, and the kitchen is helmed by Executive Chef Vartan Abgaryan. According to Salvatore, Tommy’s was “thrilled” to be the first participating business. 

“This is another outstanding event that Mayor Bosse is doing to bring the community together,” Beverly Hills Fire Department Chief Greg Barton told the Courier. “It really shows off what the city has, what the restaurants are, and what’s available.” 

“It was a wonderful community event,” Arts and Culture Commissioner Karla Gordy Bristol told the Courier.

“Just being able to look around and see faces that I used to see and meet new residents that have moved here over the last two years, and this is their first face-to-face experience with Beverly Hills,” Bosse told the Courier. “It’s a way to really showcase our incredible businesses and for the businesses to really experience what the Beverly Hills way is, which is an extended family. It’s welcoming, it’s loving, and you just felt this vibrancy and electricity tonight. So, the best is yet to come because this is the first, and it just feels magnetic.”

The next Business with Bossee events will be held on May 19 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at Chaumont Bakery and on May 23 from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Alfred Coffee Beverly Hills. Special offering details are expected to be announced soon.

The post Business With Bosse Begins in Beverly Hills appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

But more than three years later, the Board and the public had yet to hear from the committee. That was, until March 4, when the three members of the CCAC presented an update on district construction projects at a study session on offering a mostly positive take on the controversial and expensive efforts. Board members expressed frustration with the committee, saying that a group tasked with transparency had operated with anything but.

“Even this committee being here tonight and giving us a presentation now after years, from what I understand, is further evidence of the fact that we have not had the proper accountability and governance on this construction program,” said Board member Gabriel Halimi.

“Just by the fact that we’re having this conversation tonight, and all of a sudden, all this information is being thrown at us, it’s just further showing us that we have a problem on our hands,” he said.

The committee itself has a mostly symbolic role in the construction process. Only one committee, the Citizen Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC), is required by law. The CBOC has been meeting since 2009.

But the tension on display in the meeting has grown out of concerns over the management of hundreds of millions of dollars in voter-approved bonds for school improvement projects. At an October study session, it was revealed that the program was running a $129 million shortfall.

In 2008, voters passed Measure E, allowing the district to issue $334 million in bonds. Another bond measure, Measure BH, passed in 2018, authorizing the district to issue another $385 million in bonds. Together, the bonds provide funding for modernization, seismic retrofits, new buildings, and improved security.

But even as voters debated and ultimately passed Measure BH, some began to express doubt in the handling of the funds. Then-Vice Mayor John Mirisch opined against Measure BH in a 2017 blog post on his campaign website, arguing that the School Board had failed to deliver results with the Measure E funding.

“We should not be giving this District another dime until BHUSD can right the ship; until it can prove it deserves our trust to spend an additional $400 million on top of the $344 million from Measure E; until it provides our kids with the kind of education they deserve; and until it stops breaking promises to parents and voters,” Mirisch wrote.

In part to address some of the concerns regarding oversight of the construction projects, in May 2018, weeks before Measure BH would pass, the Board approved the formation of the CCAC.

The idea for the committee was proposed by Don Blake, the owner of the company overseeing the bond programs, Team Concept Development Services (TCDS). 

He said that he had used a similar model in his work at another school district. CCAC would offer support “to complete construction projects on time, within budget, and at minimum risk,” Blake said.

As laid out by Blake, members of the committee would be selected by himself and Superintendent Dr. Michael Bregy. Both Blake and Bregy would also advise the committee, which would meet monthly and release quarterly reports to the Board.  

While Measure E already required the district to have an oversight body, the CCAC, Blake made clear that his proposal would serve more of a communications function, relaying information to the public.  

“This is a group of people that can communicate how we actually do this,” Blake said.

Former Board member Howard Goldstein, who expressed support for the proposal, praised Blake in 2018 for opening himself up to oversight.

“I think that speaks volumes for you, quite frankly,” said Goldstein, who now serves on the committee.

Over the three years since its formation, CCAC has not released any report to the Board. Additionally, critics have pointed out that the committee does not hold public meetings, nor has it released minutes or documents from its meetings. 

March 4 was the first time the Board heard from CCAC. Although the committee was originally envisioned with five to six members, only three sit on it currently, including Goldstein, Jason Rund, and Ted Fentin.

Bregy explained the lack of quarterly reports, saying that the committee did not have “information to share to the Board” up until March 4.

“But it has been an active committee,” he said. CCAC has met 22 times since its inception, according to its March 4 presentation. 

Pointing to the completion of two buildings on the Beverly Hills High School campus, B1 and B2, Fentin said that the bond management program was working. Members of the committee touted that buildings B1 and B2 had come in on time and under budget, with savings of $9 million.

“In my opinion, we are on the right course, albeit with bumps in the road. I’m in the construction development business, we all are facing them. But our bond management and our building program is working. It ain’t broke, so as the saying goes, I don’t think we need to fix it,” said Fentin.

Fentin also presented a new “midrange” estimate of the program’s cost overruns, previously reported at $129 million in October but now put at $69 million. The update was received with skepticism by certain board members and came with the caveat that it included $20 million in state funding that had not yet been applied for. Without that, the revised figure sits at $89 million.

“Regardless of which shortfall amount you consider correct, $89 million or $129 million (both are speculative), the fact is that the modernization program is delayed and short the funds necessary to complete the projects promised in Measure BH,” said Board President Mary Wells in a statement to the Courier.

Pam Johnson, Program Manager for TCDS, said that both the $129 million and $69 million estimates are correct.

“The 129 million is [the] worst case scenario if you bid the projects in 2024. The CCAC’s numbers are presuming that you go ahead right now,” Johnson said, attributing the difference to rising construction costs.

Board member Noah Margo defended the committee against accusations of poor transparency, asking his fellow board members what they “feel is not being transparent.”

“I don’t feel like I’m ever getting duped. I don’t feel like I’m fooling the community,” Margo said. The confusion on the subject, he said, stemmed from the sheer quantity of material and information to process.

“We clearly have an issue with transparency and accountability when it comes to our bond construction program making it difficult to evaluate and ensure that we have received the best value for our taxpayer dollars,” Wells told the Courier. 

According to Wells, the Board is in the process of reviewing the program and its stewardship under TCDS and intends on issuing a request for new potential managers.   

With Looming Bond Shortfall, Board Hears from CCAC for First Time appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The Council then turned to the project’s draft development agreement.

A development agreement functions as a contract between the city and the developer–in this case, Oasis West Realty and Cain International. The agreement assures the developer that the city will not change pertinent regulations during the term of the agreement and will grant certain entitlements that would otherwise conflict with the city’s codes (excessive height, for instance). In return, the city can extract certain demands from the developer as concessions.  

The marquee item of the draft development agreement, negotiated by an ad hoc team of city staff, council members, and attorneys, is a $100 million public benefit fee. The unprecedented sum would absolve the development from the responsibility of providing affordable housing, as is required by the city’s Interim Inclusionary Housing Ordinance. 

As stated in the draft agreement, “Developer’s Public Benefit Contribution under this Agreement fully satisfies any and all affordable housing fees, or exactions, that are applicable to the Project during the Term.”

The project would also apply a 5% municipal surcharge (essentially a higher Transient Occupancy Tax) to the new Wilshire Building luxury hotel rooms and, in 2030, to the Beverly Hilton starting. Along with that, the project would pay EMS fees to the city, which help the city recoup the revenue lost by allowing residential developments on commercial sites. In the development agreement, the city would receive 2% on first time sales and then 3% on subsequent sales. These would generate revenues for Beverly Hills “in perpetuity” after their implementation, according to Director of Community Development Ryan Gohlich. 

City staff who helped negotiate the agreement, along with City Council liaisons Vice Mayor Lili Bosse and Councilmember Lester Friedman, characterized the agreement as historic in the benefits afforded to the city.  

Bob Baradaran, an attorney who served as special counsel to the city for the project, described the package of public benefits as “the most lucrative and richest direct public benefit package in favor of any city in the state of California and probably the country.”

But Councilmember John Mirisch raised concerns about the arrangement. Despite the nine-figure public benefit fee, the EMS fees, and the municipal surcharge, Mirisch argued that the development would not be paying its fair share to the city, especially in terms of affordable housing. He pointed to higher EMS fees in comparable cities like London, Paris, New York, and San Francisco ranging from 5.95% to 15% and suggested that the project could shoulder higher fees for the purpose of affordable housing. 

Mayor Robert Wunderlich revealed a late-breaking change to the project’s southern access. In an earlier meeting, the Mayor had expressed concern that the design forced anyone coming from Santa Monica Boulevard to enter the gardens through a courtyard elevator located inside the property, which Wunderlich suggested might not be “particularly welcoming.” But on Thursday, Wunderlich announced a pending change that would allow the public to enter from Santa Monica Boulevard via an elevator and ramp immediately accessible to pedestrians. 

The Council was unable to complete the approval process at the May 27 meeting and agreed to meet again on June 1 at 2:30 p.m.

The Beverly Hills City Council has moved forward with public hearings on the historic proposed One Beverly Hills project, a luxury hotel and condominium development that would reshape the city’s western Wilshire Boulevard and Santa Monica Boulevard gateways. In extensive questioning, the Council asked the development team about accessibility to the project’s vaunted public gardens, management of the gardens, and concerns over a timeshare-style fractional ownership offering. The Council also discussed a controversial move by lawyers for the project’s developer to pressure a local couple into withdrawing a public comment in advance of the meeting. 

If approved, One Beverly Hills would be one of the largest developments in Beverly Hills’ history.  

“When opportunity is presented, you have to seize it. You have to know when the moment is here,” said Oasis West Realty CEO Beny Alagem, who is developing the project alongside Cain International. “We finally have the opportunity to do something remarkable, to bring a new level of architecture to our great city, to build exquisite gateways on both Wilshire in Santa Monica that announce the vibrancy and excellence of the city of Beverly Hills, to plant magnificent botanical gardens, to move the Beverly Hilton into the future, to ensure it remains the center of our community life, and to infuse a new level of energy and excitement in Beverly Hills.”

The design of the seven major buildings and the project’s extensive 8-acre garden received universal praise from the Council. Mayor Robert Wunderlich, however, flagged concerns over the accessibility of the 4.5-acre public garden from Santa Monica Boulevard. As the designs stand now, people coming to the gardens by way of Santa Monica would have to either travel through the development, walk through Merv Griffin Way, or walk around to Wilshire Boulevard. 

“Would it be possible to have an attractive outdoor escalator [or] an attractive outdoor elevator that might be more immediately apparent to someone showing up on foot?” Wunderlich queried. 

One Beverly Hills President Ted Kahan responded that the current design provides ample signage directing visitors taking Santa Monica to the gardens through a courtyard elevator. 

Wunderlich also criticized the project for what he viewed as a “car-centric” approach. Kahan was unequivocal in his response: “There is no project in Beverly Hills that’s given more attention to multimodality than this project. Zero, ever.”

The Council also puzzled over a fractional ownership program proposed by the development called the Private Residence Club, which would make 37 fully furnished residential units available to owners for 30-day increments. According to the applicant, interested parties could purchase one-twelfth of a unit, with the option to buy more time if desired. As became clear through the council members’ questions, owners would not own a specific unit, nor would they have the option to decorate or personalize the unit. Rather, they would request specific dates to stay in whichever similar unit were available. 

Councilmember Lester Friedman raised some concerns with the program, “which is a new concept in the city of Beverly Hills.” He asked how it differed from a timeshare.

“This is not a resort timeshare product,” Kahan said, pointing out that the value of the asset could appreciate and would require payment of property taxes. “This is an ownership product.”

While Kahan assured Friedman that the Private Residence Club would not participate in “the large national exchange programs” that allows owners in one area to swap units with owners in another, he later clarified that the program would allow exchanges “on a very limited basis.”

The applicant advocated that such arrangements generate more revenue for the city and local businesses.

As 4.5 acres of the project would function as a public park, the Council expressed interest in how the public’s stake in the park would be preserved and how the city could exert oversight. The current plans indicate that the gardens would be managed by a non-profit conservancy. Celebrated local landscape architect Mark Rios, who designed the gardens, likened the arrangement to Central Park in New York City and Millennium Park in Chicago (though both parks are owned by their respective cities). 

Gold said that he had seen nonprofits deviate from their mission in the past. “I would ask that as a condition of it, that the city has some significant ability to, for lack of a better word, control what this conservancy does,” he said.

George Mihlstein, an attorney representing One Beverly Hills, offered to “work with staff, perhaps on the concept that each year the 501(c)3 will present a work plan and budget for the year and subject to review by the city and comment by the city.”

The One Beverly Hills team seemed to reverse a previous commitment that “the Botanical Gardens will never be closed for private events at the hotel,” as Kahan said at the April 8 Planning Commission hearing. “Actually, I think we agreed on a condition the other day with staff that would allow the conservancy to have…six events per year,” Kahan said in response to a question from Bosse. 

The Public Comment

When members of the public tuned into the May 25 City Council Special Meeting on the proposed development, they heard comments from dozens of residents–over one hour in which residents praised the project as an environmentally sustainable masterpiece, condemned the project for its height and scale, and questioned the timing of the hearing during a pandemic.

In a move that drew reproach from certain members of the City Council, lawyers representing Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills and One Beverly Hills developer Beny Alagem pressured longtime residents Andrea and Rick Grossman to retract a comment they submitted to the Council, alleging that it contained defamatory statements. 

The issue came to light in a lengthy letter submitted to the City Council by Planning Commission Chair Peter Ostroff, who wrote to the Council in his personal capacity. 

“This conduct is troublesome because it is apparently intended to inhibit by intimidation public participation regarding the project,” Ostroff wrote.

Ironically, the Grossmans’ comment nonetheless wound up in the public record through Ostroff’s letter, which reprised the comment in full. The comment referenced a Wall Street Journal article about a lawsuit by the Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel alleging, among other things, that a former Peninsula employee gave proprietary client information to the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. 

On May 23–two days after emailing their comment to the members of the Council–the Grossmans received an email requesting the couple to “immediately inform” the Mayor and City Council that they retract the statement and their request to have it read into the record. The letter accused them of engaging “in defamation that appears specifically designed to cause significant harm to Mr. Alagem personally and to the proposed development of the multi-billion One Beverly Hills project in Beverly Hills.” 

Councilmember John Mirisch viewed the maneuver as a subversion of the democratic process. He called to investigate the matter and look into how the city could stand behind residents in similar situations. 

City Attorney Laurence Wiener stated the law clearly protected the Grossmans in this case. “Anyone can be sued for anything,” Weiner said, but California law protects people from claims of defamation by legislative privilege, “which is the ability to address whatever matter is before the City Council on official business.” 

Other council members voiced concern of their own over the actions, with Councilmember Lester Friedman, himself an attorney, saying this might be a case of an “overzealous” attorney. Or, as Councilmember Julian Gold, M.D., put it, “lawyers gone wild.” 

Vice Mayor Lili Bosse echoed calls to look into how the city could protect residents in these cases, though she repeatedly stressed that “we obviously don’t know the full story.” 

Wunderlich described the letter as “heavy handed and could serve to stifle public comment” given the power and resource disparity between the multi-billion-dollar project and a resident.

At the end of the night’s questions, Mirisch pressed Kahan on whether the development’s lawyers would cease sending similar letters to residents in response to comments in the future. After a tense back and forth,Kahan gave a single word answer: “Yes.”

By press time, the City Council had convened for a May 27 meeting in which they are scheduled to present their comments about the project. 

The post One Beverly Hills Project Moves Forward in City Council appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

Looking to the Future of Beverly Hills with Mayor Robert Wunderlich

The event kicked off with a conversation between the newly installed Mayor, Robert Wunderlich, and Chamber President and CEO, Todd Johnson, outlining his vision for Beverly Hills during his term.

“We greatly support the distinctiveness of our small businesses,” Wunderlich said. “But I think what we want to support more is the uniqueness of the operations here. We want them to feel different. We love our small businesses, and there are heartening success stories there as well. I mean there’s Xi’an and Cafe Roma with their outdoor dining. They joined together to create an outdoor space that they could share, and both benefit from. It’s an example of a rising tide that lifts us all. Being a place that will support outdoor dining that wants to have the residents and visitors come there…let’s create an attractive environment, and it’s good for all of us.”

Despite the pandemic, Wunderlich noted the successful opening of AMIRI on Rodeo Drive and Sant’olina restaurant on the rooftop of the Beverly Hilton. Johnson noted the Chamber, in partnership with the city, offers counsel for businesses in Beverly Hills that need help applying for a loan or PPE preparedness. Similarly, the city’s OpenBH program proved invaluable for restaurants, retailers, salons and faith-based businesses who might have otherwise closed permanently due to pandemic related restrictions. 

“We might have had an image in the past, maybe people thought we were aloof, maybe people might have thought we’re haughty, we’re Beverly Hills. And in today’s world, I think we have to demonstrate that we want things that fit us, and we want things that fit our brand. But we’re here to help.”

Restaurant Reinvention with the Original Celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck

Wolfgang Puck joined Johnson to discuss restaurant reinvention, the art of hospitality and his Spago flagship restaurant on Canon Drive. “This is the mother of all of the other ones,” Puck told Johnson about Spago. “People always ask me, why do you spend so much time in Beverly Hills. I said this is the mother. I have to take care of the mother because she’s found all the other venues.”

“It’s an iconic location,” Puck said of Spago. “I think the city is iconic. I think the press you can get here is better than almost anywhere.”

By applying for a Special Event permit through the city’s OpenBH program, Spago installed an outdoor dining tent directly in front of restaurants’ existing brick and mortar to accommodate more customers. While the City Council extended the program through the end of the year, the future of outdoor dining remains uncertain. “I hope I keep it forever,” Puck said of the structure. “Why? Because I have a big kitchen, so we can do parties outside or parties inside. And I think in the end, we’re going to have more people working, so it benefits everybody.”

“I would not use the inside of the restaurant for like a la carte business,” Puck noted, should the tent remain permanent. “I will use it for parties. Or I would use the outside for party business, and the inside for a la cart business.”

State of Luxury with Ann Shatilla

Emmy Award-winning TV news producer and strategic communications PR consultant Ann Shatilla held her annual “State of Luxury with Ann Shatilla” signature event. The event shared insider tips and advice for luxury PR and marketing in an increasingly virtual market. “Today’s luxury client is deliberate and careful about purchasing and spending,” Shatilla said. “Clients now dig deeper into two things: the meaning and the purpose of the brand that they connect with.”

According to Shatilla, luxury keywords for 2021 are: transparency, values and ethics. “Brands that are putting their company values into action are seeing the results during this pandemic. Many of today’s consumers are actively looking to buy from a company associated with social, environmental, and political ideals.”

In defining luxury business for 2021, Shatilla underscored five points that companies should keep in mind to reach their consumers. “Remember this: cultural values, race, gender, sexual equality and income equality.”

The biggest disruptor defining luxury in 2021 is comfort and wellness, according to Shatilla. “Comfort and wellness are set to define luxury across the board for the rest of this year and beyond,” Shatilla said. “Call it comfort consumerism. It’s an alignment of luxury and well-being. People are now choosing purchases in the pursuit of consolation, luxury is no longer about a price point, it’s about relevance.” 

The post Beverly Hills Chamber Hosts Spring Collaborative appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

“Am I missing something here, or are we doing pretty darn good?” asked Councilmember Julian Gold.

“We are in a very fortunate position, Councilmember,” said Director of Finance Jeff Muir.

The total sum for the year provides funding for 54 projects, including the Metro Rodeo Station North Portal Project, comprehensive urban forest maintenance and management, the development of a more self-sufficient water production system, the expansion of electric vehicle chargers and the update of the Pavement Master Plan. The budget also includes funding for improvements and maintenance for existing infrastructure and property, such as the completion of the bowling alley and pool house restoration at Greystone Mansion, repair of damaged sidewalks along Robertson Boulevard and install ADA-compliant ramps, and replacement of the water main along Coldwater Canyon Drive.

For comparison, last year’s CIP appropriation clocked in at $58.8 million.

Staff highlighted capital improvement accomplishments over the last fiscal year–a period marked by uncertainty and austerity. Nonetheless, the city plugged the last of the 19 oil wells by Beverly Hills High School, began a streetscape plan for Wilshire and La Cienega Boulevards, trimmed all the pine trees in the city, repaved 5.9 miles of streets and 5.1 miles of alleyways, and finished replacing all the streetlights in the city with energy efficient LED lighting.

“It’s unbelievable that we were able to accomplish as much as we did during this year of COVID,” said Councilmember Lester Friedman.

With many of the city’s revenue streams disrupted by the pandemic, the city sought to defer and even cut payments on programs wherever possible. Like last year, city staff with Finance and Public Works went through the CIP and flagged projects to keep that met the following criteria: necessary on a regulatory or safety basis, contract is made or imminent, and/or will be cheaper if done sooner. At the same time, staff labeled projects where “project timing allowed for funds to be deferred into future years, or where funds could be released for now until it is more fiscally feasible to proceed,” Muir said.

Overall, staff identified $34.8 million in project funds which could be reduced in the upcoming fiscal year. About half of those funds, $16.9 million, represent permanent cuts and the remaining $17.9 million comes from deferred payments that the city will pay in later years.  

The CIP budget draws money from multiple funds, each of which is earmarked for specific types of projects. The largest source of CIP funds is the Infrastructure Fund, which comes entirely out of the city’s General Fund and amounts to $97.3 over the next five years, based on the proposed CIP budget. The city generates most of its revenue for its General Fund from its business sector. The Infrastructure Fund covers projects like the Metro North Portal, decorative lighting, street and sidewalk improvements.

Staff identified more than $3 million in Infrastructure Fund expenditures that could be postponed until a more financially prudent time, including costs for subway mitigation, street light poles replacement, and streetscape improvements on Wilshire Boulevard and Santa Monica Boulevard.

The city went through other funds in a similar manner, identifying $3.8 million in reductions and deferrals in the Capital Assets Fund and $13.2 million in the Parking Funds.

Despite the savings, the city will still have to take large sums from the General Fund to support infrastructure. The city routinely transfers $5 million from the General Fund into the CIP budget, but over the next five years, the city must take $78.5 million out of the General Fund. Given the pandemic’s impact on parking and lease revenues, the Parking Fund will require a $6 million transfer from the city’s reserves to keep it solvent in the next fiscal year. Similarly, the Stormwater Fund will need a transfer of $3.3 million.

“I just want to make sure…that in funding these capital projects, we’re not going to short our general services and that we’re going to be able to provide services at the level that the community has come to expect,” Councilmember Julian Gold said.

Muir answered with a preview of next Tuesday’s meeting on the proposed operating budget, saying, “The proposed operating budget is, essentially, a status quo budget of existing city services. There are no proposed reductions of city services.”

Looking out to the future, Councilmember John Mirisch asked Muir about possible federal funding opportunities. Muir said that staff is “actively monitoring” the progress of the $2 trillion infrastructure bill before the Senate and the still-pending details of the latest federal relief package for additional sources of funds.

With consensus among the Council, Finance and Public Works will present the proposed operating budget on May 11 and then bring both proposed budgets before the Council for full adoption on June 1. 

The post Beverly Hills Approves Rosy Capital Improvement Budget appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

As we embarked on uncharted territories and unusual times, my goals for the new year were to care and support our local community. Community caring for community as we UNITE AS ONE. We set goals to focus on local programs for youths, veterans, the elderly and those displaced from their homes; the most at risk and vulnerable members of our society. I’m proud to share the new heights our club reached through our new programs and initiatives. Rotary has a very rich history. As one of the first service organizations in the world, we proudly support local and international projects to promote peace, fight disease, homelessness and hunger. We thrive to promote education and provide clean water wells. That’s just a fraction of what we do!

In this past year, we used the Zoom platform to host speakers from all over the world! Our speakers were timely, relevant, intellectual, cultural and, most of all, inspirational.

We are nearing our 100-year anniversary for the Rotary Club of BH. As part of my planning for the future, we started the President’s Club and adapted a Long-Range Plan. We created and launched a new website, updated our social media platforms, created a monthly newsletter and started promoting the #UnitedAsOne #ServiceAboveSelf and #bhRotary hashtags.

One of my goals was to have as many members engaged and involved in our club as possible so we launched several new groups and committees. We now have a Real Estate Roundtable, a Women’s Roundtable, a COVID Task Force, a City Occurrences Committee, a 50 and Under Club, Walk and Talk Tuesdays, a Wine Club, a Social Action Club and a Sunshine Club.

I am especially proud of our fundraising efforts, which took off with a $50,000 gift from an anonymous member. Despite the challenges of this year, our fundraising goals reached all-time highs through our Holiday Party that featured comedian Jay Leno. Our International Foundation and Local Charitable Foundation awarded tens of thousands of dollars in grants to worthy recipients that were recommended by our members. Our Women’s Round Table awarded close to $30,000 toward programs to combat Child/Human Trafficking, a cause very dear to my heart. Our member-supported BH Rotary Charitable Foundation also contributed nearly $100,000 to a number of worthy causes, and we donated almost $80,000 to programs directly impacted by COVID-19.

Rotary is about service, and I am proud that we launched the Shawn Saeedian Service Above Self Award and had Shawn as the first recipient. We collected blankets and toys for those in need and we passed out masks and hand sanitizer to our most innocent and vulnerable population, when those items were sparse, high in demand and hard to find. We continued to provide school scholarships to students at both Beverly Hills High School and The Buckley School where we sponsor their Rotary Interact Clubs. We look forward to celebrating our Annual Vocational Service Awards given to local Police, Fire, Postal, City and members of BHHS or Buckley School staff this Monday.

As my tenure draws to a close, I am in awe of the meaningful relationships that we managed to foster during a pandemic. As Rotarians, service above self is our motto and a way of life. I am grateful to and proud of my Board and club members for stepping up and working hard to selflessly serve our community, #UnitedAsOne. 

Sharona R. Nazarian

President

Rotary Club of Beverly Hills

#BHRotary #UnitedAsOne

Follow us on FB BHRotary

Instagram BHRotary

Website http://bhrotary.org/ 

The post Nazarian Shares Highlights of Year as Rotary Club President appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

In the same way that an agenda dictates the direction of a City Council meeting or commission hearing, the city’s yearly priorities map the goals and focus of the city’s many branches. The City Council Priority Setting Session for the fiscal year 2020-21 was a casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the last year, city staff deferred to the priorities of the prior year while also following City Council directions in regards to the evolving civil unrest and public health crisis.

Councilmember John Mirisch pushed for reviving the Southeast Task Force, a task force convened by then-Mayor Barry Bucker in 2011 to form recommendations on how to improve the southeast of the city. In 2019, with the approach of the Metro D Line, the City Council combined the Strategic Planning Committee and the Southeast Task Force into a single committee–a move that Mirisch said sometimes “muddled” the issues and decentered the concerns of residents.

“I think there was some confusion in combining it to strategic planning. The main purpose of this–Barry Brucker established the committee way back when–was to get the vision of the residents for what they would like to see…and to get their feedback,” Mirisch said. 

The Council also set the city’s rent stabilization policy as a “high priority,” as Vice Mayor Lili Bosse put it. Director of Community Development Ryan Gohlich said that the city would focus on furthering the work of the Rent Stabilization Commission, which is in the process of developing a new ordinance on relocation fees.

“I think this is going to be a very front and center concern for many people as we are coming out of post pandemic, both for the tenants and the landlord. So, I think we have to put a lot of focus on working with the Commission to help the tenants and the landlords through this next year and the years ahead,” Bosse said. 

Similarly, the Council also agreed to continue prioritizing inclusionary housing in the next fiscal year. In previous years, the city passed an Interim Inclusionary Housing Ordinance and contracted with an advisory firm to conduct a study on the topic. The ordinance establishes a requirement that multi-family housing developments include affordable units or pay an affordable housing fee. According to Gohlich, city staff will present the Council with the completed study and bring forward a permanent inclusionary housing ordinance.

The Council unanimously agreed to prioritize the promotion of arts and culture in the city. Councilmember Julian Gold expressed concerns over the costs of maintaining certain pieces of public art, apparently referring to the sculpture “Hymn of Life: Tulips,” by Yayoi Kusama. The city is currently paying more than $600,000 to refabricate the enormous, fantastical flower sculpture in bronze after the steel-framed plexiglass design showed signs of wear. 

“I have a little bit of concern over what has been ongoing issues with the art that we purchased in terms of our ability to keep it pristine and the costs to us of having to redo these things,” Gold said. He suggested a “best practice review” to determine “what we should be looking for that will create issues, or maybe having some form of curation that helps prevent them.”

The council members unanimously hailed the success of the OpenBH program over the last year, which allowed stores and restaurants to extend onto outdoor public right of ways to allow for the safe continuation of commerce. The Council expressed a desire to continue the momentum of the program even as the city comes out of the grips of the pandemic. 

“We tried it. People love it. It is coming back to the City Council agenda very soon,” Mayor Robert Wunderlich promised. 

The Council signed off on prioritizing studying the creation of a city operated health department. According to Assistant City Manager Nancy Hunt-Coffey, the city will hire a consultant to study the proposal, which first came about in response to Los Angeles County Department of Public Health restrictions on outdoor dining during the winter COVID-19 surge.

Additionally, Hunt-Coffey said the city was “beginning exploring having our own office of a city prosecutor.” She said the item would move to the City Attorney’s office for further investigation over the next fiscal year. Much like the interest in a health department, the impetus for a city prosecutor stems from discontent with Los Angeles County–in this case, with District Attorney George Gascón. 

Both Wunderlich and Bosse said they would like to fast track the priority. “Because, as we’ve seen,” Bosse said, “it’s really important that people in our community feel safe and that if there are crimes, that there are consequences to [them].”

Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD) Interim Chief Dominick Rivetti and Assistant Chief Marc Coopwood presented on the priorities for the department. Beverly Hills will seek to hire 20 police officers and five communications dispatchers over the next fiscal year, bringing the department up to full deployment of 150 officers. The goal would not see fruit for some time; it takes about 18 months from the application process before an officer can be deployed. 

Coopwood said that the Department will study the feasibility of a Civilian Response Unit that would respond to non-violent calls involving vulnerable members of the community. “This is the new way that our industry is reimagining policing, to have civilians, mental health clinicians, social workers go out to the calls that traditionally go to law enforcement,” Coopwood said, explaining that these civilian groups could better deescalate some situations and have more expertise interacting with those community members. 

Coopwood presented another goal for the department, the formation of a “Business District Team” that will focus specifically on matters in the Business Triangle. Coopwood explained that the move would build on a “hugely successful” pilot program from the summer. 

The Police Department will also bring a proposal to the Council to extend the contacts with the two armed private security companies through the next fiscal year, citing concerns of more demonstrations and protests. 

Though neither Coopwood nor Rivetti presented the objective, the draft City Council Priorities attached to the staff report lists implementing a new Unmanned Aircraft System program and the ambitious goal of lowering overall crime by 20 percent. 

The Council indicated unanimous approval of the priorities and objectives presented by BHPD, though Councilmember Mirisch renewed a few suggestions for police accountability and reform. Mirisch brought up the idea of supporting the formation of “an independent investigative and prosecutorial authority that specifically deals with potential police abuse or brutality,” not just for Beverly Hills, but for California. 

“The connection between the DA’s office, in general, is so intertwined with the police that in some cases we’ve seen, it’s impossible to have that arm’s length distance to create justice,” Mirisch said. 

The post City Council Discusses Big Priorities for New Fiscal Year appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

“Businesses generally succeed in Beverly Hills,” Todd Johnson, President and CEO of the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce told the Courier. “There’s some that don’t for different reasons, but, for the most part, it’s the safest city in the country. Regardless of what’s taken place, we’re still extremely safe, extremely friendly and walkable.”

Each year, the Chamber, in partnership with the city, travels to New York City in the fall and San Francisco in the spring to scout new businesses to bring into Beverly Hills. The trips are made by Todd Johnson, who is accompanied by the Mayor, Vice Mayor, and the City Manager. 

According to Johnson, the Japanese sportswear brand Onitsuka Tiger, which opened in February at 474 N. Rodeo Dr., came as a result of the Chamber’s trip to New York in the Fall of 2019. The Rodeo Drive location is Onitsuka Tiger’s third brick-and-mortar store and its second flagship in North America. “We were pretty intricate in helping them get through the process of opening,” Johnson told the Courier. 

To celebrate the Beverly Hills opening, the 2400 square foot Rodeo Drive location will carry exclusive limited-edition items including sneakers with “Beverly Hills” embossed on the side. The Rodeo Dr. store is also the first to sell the Onitsuka Tiger brand’s children’s collection.

“When prospective businesses reach out to us, we put them in contact with real estate guys that can help, landlords and that kind of thing to help them find exactly what they’re looking for,” Johnson said. “We’re in talks with probably a half a dozen other businesses, including a lot of restaurants that are in New York who are interested in coming out here.”

The city’s efforts to help restaurants expand their outdoor dining capabilities manifested with the OpenBH initiative, which allows businesses to temporarily expand to adjacent areas such as parking lots and the public right of way. However, even with OpenBH, new restaurants looking to obtain an Open-Air Dining Permit must still pay hefty fees. “Any restaurant is able to obtain an OpenBH permit free of charge, but permanent outdoor dining continues to be subject to the City’s normal application process and associated fees (with the exception of the lease fee),” Ryan Gohlich, Director of Community Development, told the Courier. “The City has always charged a fee for these types of applications, and the fees are based on periodic fee studies that are conducted to ensure that the City’s fees are in-line with the cost of providing services and the staff hours associated with application processing.”

On South Beverly Drive, six new establishments are opening, including the upscale bakery Sweet Lady Jane (214 S. Beverly Dr.) and a new 100 percent grass-fed Wagyu steakhouse called Mat? (239 S. Beverly Drive), founded by the group behind Sugarfish, where Panera used to be. 

“There are some vacancies on South Beverly, but it’s also a very walkable neighborhood and walkable,” Johnson told the Courier. “It’s also just a little more affordable than up in the triangle.”

Total Body Nutrition, a sports nutrition shop, recently opened at 193 S. Beverly Dr., and San Francisco-based coffee chain, Philz Coffee (233 S. Beverly Dr.) is slated to debut soon. SBE’s affordable to-go sushi spot, Krispy Rice, and Ben and Jerry’s ice cream shop are also opening soon on the 200 block of South Beverly.

After a slew of slow months and incalculable losses, existing retailers on South Beverly are excited to have new neighbors and hope for more pedestrian traffic.

“Things are slowly picking back up,” Adriana Caras, owner of LeSwim (238 S. Beverly Dr.) swimwear boutique told the Courier. “And now, suddenly, it’s like a surge. I have been busy all day. So now with everything opening, I’m kind of on the fence if we should extend our lease past April and stay longer.”

“I’m honestly very excited about having all these restaurants open up,” Jenny, the manager at Peruvian retailer Cottoniere (245 S. Beverly Dr.) told the Courier. “It’s been super dead here, we almost had to close. We’re hoping that when the new restaurants open, more people will come through.”

On Canon Drive, Nusr-Et–a new steakhouse helmed by Turkish chef Nusret Gökçe, known globally as the “Salt Bae,”–is expected to open on April 30 next to Spago. Spanish restaurant Tatel (453 N. Canon Dr.) is also opening at the former Nic’s Beverly Hill location, but has yet to announce a date. Jennifer Fisher Jewelry, a celebrity cult-favorite jewelry brand, recently opened its door at 450 N. Canon Dr. Christian Louboutin, known for luxe, red-soled shoes, also opened a Los Angeles flagship at 477 N. Rodeo Dr. in March. 

With the advent of the parklets and more outdoor dining, the business triangle has been vibrant with new energy and crowded streets. As a result, some retailers have even started staying open later, as more people are out shopping and dining.  “We’ve always been wanting a little more energy and nightlife, because Beverly Hills kind of rolls its street up at 6 p.m.,” Johnson told the Courier. 

Coming soon to North Beverly Drive is the popular salad chain, Sweetgreen (245 N. Beverly Dr.) as well as Erewhon Market (399 N. Beverly Dr.), the upscale health-food store known for its organic, locally sourced and sustainable groceries.

Taking over the former Roxbury Café location, Impasta (459 N. Roxbury Dr.) is offering fan-favorite pasta dishes with zero and low-carb noodles options. “I wanted to open Impasta in Beverly Hills not only because there is a certain type of prestige and notoriety associated with it,” Harrison Litvack, owner of Impasta, told the Courier. “But from a business standpoint, it’s central geography in the greater Los Angeles area allows people to access our yummy and nutritious food more easily.” While the physical restaurant space hasn’t opened yet for patrons looking to dine-in, Impasta began taking to-go orders in February. 

At 434 N. Camden Dr., Beverly Bar restaurant is also gearing up to open, with a menu focused on American-style food. J Watson Fine Art will be opening at 9410 Dayton Way, enticing art collectors and enthusiasts with the gallery’s collection of limited-edition paintings by artists such as Pino, Vidan, G. Harvey, Morgan Weistling, Antoine Blanchard, Peter Max, M.& I. Garmash and more.

In perhaps the sweetest news of all, John Kelly Chocolates chocolatier boutique opened at 9523 S. Santa Monica Blvd. Their specialties include truffle fudge and walnut-caramel clusters. 

In addition to the new storefronts, Johnson pointed to other projects underway in the city.  “You’ve got the One Beverly Hills project coming, the Chanel store remodeling, the LVMH hotel… and Saks has big plans for that little section down on Wilshire where Barney’s used to be. I think we have so much to look forward to over the next year.”

The post New Business is Booming in Beverly Hills appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

“All things considered, we find ourselves in a bit of a better position than anticipated, and some reason for guarded optimism on signs of recovery,” Director of Finance Jeff Muir said at the March 16 Study Session.

Although the city currently faces a deficit of $12.8 million, Muir cautioned that this estimate “assumes everything plays out exactly as it is in the budget,” which he said rarely happens. With business tax receipts trending upwards, decreases in forecasted salaries and benefits, a slight reduction in overtime, savings from the Early Retirement/Voluntary Separation Program, and staff vacancies above and beyond what had been previously assumed, Muir reported a projected deficit for the fiscal year of $7 million. Additionally, Muir said that the city will benefit from reimbursements for COVID-19 related expenditures and from money from the recently passed stimulus package.  

Beverly Hills draws most of its revenue from four sources: transient occupancy tax (a levy on hotel guests paid by hotels); property tax; business license tax; and sales tax. As of its latest tabulation, the city estimates its 2021 budget as slightly less than $230 million.  

The pandemic dealt a uniquely debilitating blow to the city’s coffers. Public health restrictions all but shut down local hotels. In an effort to assist the hospitality industry, the city halted payments of the transient occupancy tax (TOT). At the same time, commerce in the city came to a halt as shopping destinations like Rodeo and Canon became possible viral vectors, sending sales tax figures plunging.

The city recognized the threat at the outset of the crisis and sprang into action to mitigate the fallout. The city implemented a series of spending reductions and offered employees the option of early retirement programs, including CalPERS Two-year Retirement Program and Cash Incentive Program. As of the Feb. 28 deadline, 40 employees opted for the CalPERS program and 25 elected for the Cash Incentive Program, saving the city $6.4 million. 

“Assuming many of the one-time measures we employed in this year’s budget to reduce expenditures are reversed going into next year, we’re forecasting an approximate deficit of $4.6 million for next year and just under a million dollars for the following year,” said Muir. 

The City Council heard later at the March 16 Regular Meeting recommendations for new city commissioners from various commission interview panels. Four commissions face upcoming vacancies necessitating replacements–Human Relations, Arts and Culture, Design Review, and Planning. Each panel consisted of two council members and the respective commission chair and vice chair. 

Interest was high, with between seven to 12 applicants vying for the one vacancy on each commission. If approved by the council, each incoming commissioner would start the day after the departure of their predecessor. For the Human Relations Commission, the panel recommended Rose Kaiserman to replace outgoing Commissioner Henry Blumenfield, whose term concludes on December 31, 2021. For the Arts and Culture Commission, the panel landed on Pamela Beck to take over for outgoing Commissioner Stephanie Bond, who leaves on June 30, 2022. The panel for the Design Review Commission endorsed Marshall Peck to replace Commissioner Ilona Sherman, whose term concludes on December 31 of this year. Finally, the Planning Commission panel recommended Terri Kaplan to the seat currently occupied by Andy Licht, whose term ends June 30, 2022.

The Arts and Culture Commission panel also suggested that the Council discuss at a later meeting possibly expanding the commission from five to seven members. The recommendations for commissioners will be placed on the formal consent agenda at a future city council meeting.

Vice Mayor Robert Wunderlich expressed excitement at some of the new faces in the applicant pool and encouraged them to remain involved in civic life. For those perhaps discouraged by not making the team in this latest round, he pointed to an upcoming seat on the Architectural Commission. Applications open up next week. 

The post New Budget Forecast and New Commissioners Introduced appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The Commission also discussed a possible ordinance to enable greater construction of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) in order to meet the city’s RHNA requirements. The hearing comes as the Commission draws closer to presenting a Draft Housing Element, which it estimates will take place in April or May of this year.

The subject of ADUs drew considerable interest from the commissioners. “I don’t think this is going to solve our RHNA numbers,” said Commissioner Myra Demeter about ADUs. “But I think that, generally, many, many people are interested. They have elderly parents, they have kids coming back from college.”

Every eight years, cities and jurisdictions around the state draft a new Housing Element, a part of the General Plan which considers the housing needs of the community and anticipates how that need will change. With the housing cycle currently underway, localities are preparing their Housing Elements for approval by the State.

The core component of the Housing Element is the RHNA, an evaluation of the number of units needed in the next eight years and the land use plans and regulations necessary to accommodate them.

The State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) first determines the housing needs in each region of California by examining population data. The agency also considers economic and demographic trends, overcrowding, and overpayment of rents and mortgages. The number that HCD calculates gets passed to a local regional planning agency–the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), in the case of Beverly Hills–that looks at more local data and distributes the total among its jurisdictions.

In 2019, as cities across California grappled with soaring rents and a homelessness crisis, HCD announced an ambitious goal of about 3.5 million new units over the new Housing Elements cycle. Southern California’s share of the load came out to 1.3 million units. For Beverly Hills: 3,096 units. In comparison, in the last housing cycle, Beverly Hills’ allotment was only three.

Although city staff advised that RHNA appeals were rarely granted, the City Council nonetheless instructed staff to file an appeal to SCAG requesting a reduction to 1,486 units. In total, 52 other jurisdictions in Southern California also filed RHNA appeals. On Jan. 13, SCAG held a public hearing for the appeals, rejecting all but two, including that of Beverly Hills. However, as a result of the two partially successful appeals by Riverside County and the City of Pico Rivera, SCAG had to redistribute the units subtracted from their allotments. This increased Beverly Hill’s RHNA number by eight.

While the city is required to plan for a certain level of growth and take efforts to facilitate it, the RHNA is “not a development mandate,” the staff report notes. Jurisdictions must ensure that bureaucratic hurdles like zoning and planning do not obstruct development, but they do not need to build housing or issue permits themselves. But, if the state determines that a jurisdiction has not done enough to foster development, it can withhold certification of its General Plan. This results in loss of certain state funds, more frequent updates to the city’s Housing Element, and loss of control over housing project decisions.

Cities face similar penalties for not meeting their RHNA obligations. Jurisdictions will have to implement a streamlined review process to approve housing development projects.

At the March 11 meeting, commissioners heard the results of an online survey conducted as a part of its public outreach for the Housing Element process. The survey received responses from 81 people by March 2, the majority of whom live or work in the city. Most respondents have lived in Beverly Hills for 21 years or more, own their home, with an age range of 56 to 74 years old. Though a small sample, the staff report compiled for the hearing claims that “the results have provided insight into the various perspectives of community members regarding how or in what ways the city should accommodate future housing needs in Beverly Hills.”

Among the results, 70 percent of respondents answered that they were “very satisfied with their housing situation.” People who replied to the survey listed maintaining a diverse housing market and maintaining the character of existing neighborhoods as “very important.”

Lower down on the list of priorities, respondents indicated as their least important concerns: “ensuring that children who grow up in Beverly Hills can afford to live in Beverly Hills, providing shelters and transitional housing and services for the homeless, integrating affordable housing to create mixed-income neighborhoods, and establishing programs to help at-risk homeowners keep their homes.”

Most people who participated in the survey expressed support for greater density in mixed-use zones and multi-family residential zones, taking advantage of the future metro stations. Staff expect to release a second online survey by the end of March.

In addition to mixed-use zoning, the city hopes to meet its RHNA goals by incentivizing the construction of ADUs, additional structures that share a lot with a primary structure (like a guest house, for instance). Given the lack of vacant land in Beverly Hills, ADUs take advantage of the city’s large number of single-family residences. For HCD to count future ADUs toward the city’s RHNA requirement, the agency will evaluate ADU permitting trends and the extent to which city regulations encourage ADU development.

“I think that if we can at least meet or exceed the state standards, we will be demonstrating good faith to HCD in our efforts to accommodate to the overriding purpose of the Rena allocation,” said Commissioner Thomas Hudnut.

As the staff report notes, a scant nine ADUs were permitted in the city in 2020. At that rate, the city would barely scratch two percent of its RHNA allocation. But the city’s current ADU regulations adopted in 2017 have already become outdated. The staff report suggested updating the ADU ordinance and adding additional incentives to boost RHNA credit.  

Some recommended incentives include increasing the maximum height from 16 feet (which prevents two-story ADUs) to 22 feet and two stories in the Central Area, and 18 feet and two stories in the Hillside Area. Staff also recommended streamlining the review process and reducing the parking requirements. 

The post Planning Commission Examines Housing Solutions appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The Commission has traditionally promoted its objectives with the annual Embrace Civility Award, Civility Month observances, Kindness Week and the Kindness Taskforce. The Commission’s newest member, Noelle Freeman, proposed extending the HRC’s commitment to civility into the virtual realm. “Seeing how people interact differently online was really what sparked my interest in this, and there hasn’t been an effort to take our civility statement online,” Freeman told the Courier. “When you’re behind a computer screen and there isn’t that sense of ownership, it’s much easier to say and do things that you wouldn’t otherwise say to someone’s face. So, maybe that’s having the Commission create a plan or have ambassadors of this online facility so they can step in when there’s cyber harassment.”

Freeman proposed expanding the HRC’s current Police Department personnel and common complaint form, which allows the Commission to hear and help resolve complaints from BHPD, to all staff. “Really, the goal of this is to allow residents a place to feel heard, and also fulfill our full charge, which states that the HRC is authorized to receive citizen complaints concerning interactions of city employees with the public,” she noted.

“We have made it our charge to say our embrace civility statement at the beginning of our Commission meeting, which sets the mood to be civil,” Vice Chair Karen Popovich Levyn said. “My idea is to expand this to all the Commissions, and perhaps they will make their own statement at the beginning of their meetings.” Other Commissioners were supportive of the idea. 

Last year the HRC added the homeless initiative to its charge. Since then, the Commission has implemented the homeless initiative into its monthly agenda. While the official homeless count this year was not conducted due to COVID-19, last year’s count was 16. According to James Latta, the city’s Human Services Administrator, two homeless people died in Beverly Hills over the last six months. 

“One of them died of an overdose and the other we’re not sure,” Latta told the Courier. “But typically, they die of a medical issue that could have been easily managed if the individual had access to services and wasn’t prevented by mental health issues, like hearing voices or paranoia, from going to a hospital. We don’t have a coroner report, but chances are, she probably died of something simple, like high blood pressure that could have been treated easily.” According to Latta, both of the individuals had been living on the streets of Beverly Hills for roughly 13 years.

“We offer people assistance, but all of that takes a lot of staff time and between the Rangers and P.D., everyone has been stretched thin with the protests and COVID-19,” Latta told the Courier. “So, it’s been challenging. Some of the homeless population is suffering from psychosis and they think people are after them. So, we do our best to engage them, let them know that the services are available, but the laws are such that you can’t hold someone against their will.”

Commission Chair Ori Blumenfeld spoke of the need for a mental health contracted social worker who can assist law enforcement with administering expeditious 5150 (involuntary mental health detention) holds in ongoing case management services.  

The post Human Relations Commission Discusses 2021 Work Plan appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The Economic Sustainability Plan was presented by David Bergman, director of the urban planning and economics firm Lisa Wise Consulting. “Sustainability, to our mind, really was the ability to react to unknown changes in the environment [and] to be able to absorb shocks,” said Bergman. 

The city first enlisted Lisa Wise Consulting to draft an Economic Sustainability Plan in the wake of the Great Recession, which forced the city to make large cuts to its budget. The City Council at the time felt that austerity on its own would hurt the city more in the long term by dealing a blow to the services expected by its residents and guests. This, in turn, would harm the city’s main revenue sources: the taxes from hotel guests (Transient Occupancy Tax), sales taxes, property taxes, and business taxes.

The city contracted with Lisa Wise Consulting once again in 2018 to update the plan for another four-year period. The update was nearly finished when COVID-19 stuck a stick in the spokes. “We asked Lisa Wise Consulting to look at the trends that were existing pre-COVID, what trends came out of COVID, and then which of these are going to be lasting trends in the retail, hotel, and commercial sectors,” said Deputy Manager Gabriella Yap.

“The City, like all other municipalities, will be affected by the COVID-19 crisis for years to come,” the report reads. “The approach to this Economic Sustainability Plan Update is not to overcorrect from the COVID-19 pandemic, but rather focus on economic strategies and actions that increase the City’s resiliency to market downturns and geopolitical risks and uncertainties.”

The report notes how key sources of revenue for the city were already facing difficult circumstances. For years, the retail market has received bleak prognoses as consumers spent more and more money online. Even luxury markets, which enjoyed relative insulation from the trend, saw declines. But following the explosion of COVID-19, these trends accelerated, and Beverly Hills experienced a rise in commercial vacancy rates.

More than any other business in Beverly Hills, hotels have suffered the most in the era of COVID-19. But even prior to the freeze in international travel, Beverly Hills saw increasing competition from other regional rivals like downtown Los Angeles and West Hollywood. 

“They wake up every morning wondering how they can eat your lunch,” Bergman said about West Hollywood.

Beverly Hills has over 10 million square feet in office space. Following shelter at home orders in response to the virus, many of those square feet became vacant. But, again, even prior to the mass migration to Zoom, Beverly Hills saw the decline of major tenants in entertainment and media.

“When HBO moved from Santa Monica, they didn’t move to Beverly Hills,” Bergman said. He added that he expects major shifts in how Americans work in the wake of the pandemic, saying, “We’re going to see dramatic long term employment destruction.”

But Bergman and the report also provided solutions and opportunities to combat these trends. He stressed the importance of pivoting away from international to local customers. “Public opinion surveys are suggesting that, although we’re all anxious to get out of our house, we are reluctant to engage in a lot of tight public spaces like airplanes,” he said.

The report makes dozens of recommendations in an “action plan” for the city. The recommendations range from increasing height limits to accommodate development, to implementing valet-only parking on Rodeo Drive, to rebranding city staff as the “Business Concierge Team.”

Councilmember Lili Bosse felt that the schedule outlined by the report for some of its goals dragged its feet. “It’s a great report, but the timeline on a lot of the action items is too far out and I feel very confident that this council, along with the input of our community, can get a lot of this done much sooner.”

Councilmember John Mirisch, however, sounded a note of caution. “While there are certain things that we can and should do as soon as we can, there are other things we need to be a bit cautious about,” he said.

In another agenda item during the Feb. 16 Study Session, the Council reviewed the new state eviction protection and how it fits together with its own protective laws. It also received a staff report that detailed issues in its rental protections for tenants impacted by COVID-19.

Governor Gavin Newsom signed on Jan. 29 an extension to the state’s eviction moratorium through June 30. The bill, Senate Bill 91, also establishes the State Rental Assistance Program to allocate the $2.6 billion in federal rental assistance California will receive. The program funnels aid to both renters struggling with payments due to the COVID-19 pandemic and also landlords.

Under the measure, landlords are prevented from evicting tenants who pay at least 25 percent of their rent and attest under penalty of perjury that they have been impacted economically by COVID-19. The State Rental Assistance Program will begin accepting applications from property owners and tenants in March.

The councilmembers reflected that the city had to do more to educate its residents about the protections in place for them. “Not a day goes by that I don’t hear from quite a few tenants who feel like they’re not getting the information they need,” Councilmember Bosse said.

Deputy Director of Rent Stabilization Helen Morales highlighted a legal forum on Feb. 24 at 6 p.m. to provide an overview of the new and existing laws regarding tenant’s rights. More information is available at www.beverlyhills.org/rent.

Finally, during its Regular session on the evening of Feb. 16, the Council honored the 12 years of public service by Director of Community Development Susan Healy Keene, who is retiring later this month. City Manager George Chavez ticked through a list of accomplishments, which include updates to the city’s General Plan, improving mobility and transportation in the city, preserving the city’s history in her work with the Historic Preservation Programs. Most recently, she helped establish the Rent Stabilization Office. 

But Chavez also revealed a little-known fact about Keene. “Susan has a secret talent,” he said. “She’s a stand-up comic. And she has kept us entertained her entire 12 years that she’s been here with us. Thank you for all the laughs Susan.”

“We’ve been so lucky to have you. And I hope that we haven’t given you too much new material for your stand-up comedy,” Councilmember Bosse told her.

“There’s still more challenges ahead, but I think there’s many more great opportunities. So, I thank you again for the opportunity I’ve had here,” Keene said.

The post City Council Addresses COVID-19 Fallout appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The $3 million of Phase II COVID-19 Response Grants is being directed to local Jewish nonprofits. Some $1.5 million was awarded to 16 organizations, all current or former Foundation grant recipients. Those recipients include theatre dybbuk, Hillel at UCLA, USC Hillel, the Pico Union Project, the Jewish Graduate Student Initiative, Silverlake Independent Jewish Community Center, The Miracle Project, Fuente Latina, Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles and JQ International.

“All of us at The Foundation are grateful to provide support during this time of extraordinary need. For me, the silver lining of this pandemic, if any, is how family, friends and colleagues–and the community and beyond–have banded together to surmount this once-in-a-lifetime crisis,” added Schotland.

www.jewishfoundationla.org

The post Jewish Community Foundation of L.A. Awards $3 Million appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The last round of funding grants was awarded to 19 organizations that provide services to seniors, homeless, cover physical and mental health, culture and more. To learn more about past recipients, go to www.beverlyhills.org/humanservices.

To qualify, an applicant must provide a service that meets a community need including but not limited to social services, community health and education. The City will once again be accepting applications for cultural grants as well this year. The applicant must be, or partner with a 501c.3 organization. The applicant must return completed application by email to humanservices@beverlyhills.org or mailed and postmarked no later than Feb. 1, 2021, 5 p.m. to the Beverly Hills Human Services Division.

To apply, contact Human Services at 310-285-1006, or go online to www.beverlyhills.org/cagf.

The post Beverly Hills Community Grants Available appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The event also featured a live auction in which a 1961 MGA Outlaw restored by the museum broke records and became the highest-selling MGA in history. The proceeds generated from the sale of this vehicle and the other auction lots benefit its exhibits and the Hammertime education programs, which includes The Bruce Meyer Automotive Scholarship, which supports vocational training and internships.

“Our 26th Annual Gala Celebration was our most successful gala to date,” said Petersen Automotive Museum Executive Director Terry L. Karges.

“Each year, the gala is our largest fundraising event. The pivot to a virtual event posed some challenges, but the ongoing support from our donors, community, and our partners made it all possible. The proceeds generated will help us continue our work educating students and inspiring the next generation of car enthusiasts through The Petersen Automotive Museum Foundation and the Hammertime Global Education Initiative,” Karges added.

The 1961 MGA roadster was donated to the Petersen in 2011; it has since been restored by the museum’s in-house team of technicians over the last five years. The car is finished in black over red leather and is powered by a rebuilt and over-bored 1,622cc inline-four-cylinder engine.

Modifications included an MGB cylinder head, Weber side-draft carburetor, performance camshaft, stainless steel exhaust system, and oversized pistons. The car is also equipped with a four-speed manual gearbox, Sebring-style windscreen, chromed wire wheels, front disc brakes, and Jaeger instrumentation. The car sold for $115,000 – $35,000 more than the second highest-selling MGA on Bring a Trailer.

“Digital programs for remote learning have become more important than ever,” said Petersen Automotive Museum Board Member Michael Armand Hammer. “The Hammertime Global Education Initiative allows us to teach kids about the history and future of the automobile in a compelling and easily accessible way. We’re grateful for the funds generated through this year’s gala, and we can’t wait to continue sharing our passion with students around the world.”

Petersen.org.

The post Petersen Automotive Museum Gala Raises Record Funds appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

“The Chamber is fortunate to lead a world-class community of the most unique and innovative businesses. Each year, we celebrate the amazing business community and honor exceptional winners.  The awards selection process was challenging with so many deserving entries,”said Chamber President and Chief Executive Officer Todd Johnson.

Fred Hayman Visionary Award Honoree

The Fred Hayman Visionary Award honors “an individual(s) or business who has brought their unique vision of Beverly Hills to life by positively uplifting, supporting, and influencing the business and residential communities and beyond.”

This year’s winner is Courier Publisher John Bendheim. “John Bendheim is a staple in the community of Beverly Hills, both personally and professionally. His contributions both financially as well as advisory positions, have been instrumental in leading this community forward for many years and he continues to do so,” said the Chamber’s statement.

Above & Beyond Award Honorees

Above & Beyond Award honorees are “businesses who lead by example by going above and beyond in their business practices and while contributing to causes supporting the Beverly Hills and surrounding communities.”

This year, the award winners are:

Cedars-Sinai Health System

“Cedars-Sinai Health System has been a force in the Beverly Hills and greater Los Angeles community, especially since the pandemic outbreak. They have been great leaders in fighting the COVID-19 virus and dealing with the hospitalizations of patients with it,” said the Chamber.

Meraki Fitness (Small Business)

“Meraki Fitness Owner Anna Stavaridis immediately pivoted at the beginning of the pandemic by converting her services to a virtual environment, welcoming existing and new Chamber and community members. While balancing a wide dimension of impacts from the mandated quarantine, Anna immediately provided online services to adapt to our new world, adopting technology with ease, and guiding others to shift their businesses as well,” said the Chamber.

Innovation Award Honorees

The Innovation Award honors “businesses who excel in having created and implemented an original idea, which demonstrates marketplace success and practical development.”

The honorees are:

Spago Beverly Hills

“When in house dining reopened and then quickly pivoted again to only outdoor dining, Spago Beverly Hills had already arranged to be one of the first dining establishments to utilize Open BH. They applied for both a dining permit and liquor license immediately and were able to utilize the stunning art mural wall that was erected to help mitigate some of the Metro construction issues as well as the streetscape. In addition to these efforts, they have been extremely careful regarding mandates with their staff (testing regularly) and guests regarding safe distancing, masks wearing, sanitizing ensuring the utmost safety for all,” said the Chamber.

UMBERTO (Small Business)

“UMBERTO Beverly Hills, a 12,000 square foot salon, home to 20 cutting, styling and coloring chairs – (offering color, highlights, balayage and keratin treatments) seven nail stations that offer gel, nail art, manicures and pedicures, has transformed its parking lot into a luxury outdoor salon. The “Open Air Salon” has a vacation vibe with music filling the air. The space is covered by white sails, white mirrors and pots of white roses throughout the space. The asphalt has been painted light and dark gray stripes to give it a carpet-like feel,” said the Chamber.

The honorees will be  recognized during the Beverly Hills Back to Business Fall Virtual Collaborative on Oct. 21.

The post Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce Announces Golden Palm Honorees appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

The Courier first broke the story that EDD fraud is impacting the City in its Sept. 11 issue.

Subsequently, BHPD released a statement on Sept. 16 providing additional details about the investigations. “Earlier this month, the Beverly Hills Police Department learned criminals were fraudulently obtaining EDD benefits loaded onto EDD debit cards using stolen identities. The monetary value placed on the cards by EDD can be as high as $20,000. Cardholders are able to withdraw up to $1,000 per day, per card. Suspects have traveled primarily from out of state to obtain these fraudulent EDD cards in California. The suspects will most often have numerous EDD cards in their possession with other people’s identities, along with large amounts of cash. They will then use the cards to lease short-term rentals, rent luxury vehicles, dine at restaurants and purchase high-end merchandise,” said the statement.

In California, the EDD allows individuals eligible for Unemployment Insurance, Disability Insurance and Paid Family Leave to receive payments in the form of a Bank of America debit card. The card can be used to make purchases and withdraw cash. The EDD also offers Digital Cards–a prepaid Visa debit card–similar to the physical card option. Both forms of EDD cards are being targeted by individuals in Beverly Hills and throughout the county and state.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the EDD has paid out more than $81.8 billion in unemployment benefits since March. A Sep. 10 report released by the Department shows a startling sudden influx in initial unemployment claims from recent weeks.

For the week ending Aug. 22, the total number of people claiming benefits in all programs was 29,605,064, an increase of 380,379 from the previous week. For the week ending August 29, the state of California saw the largest increase in initial claims nationwide, with the addition of nearly 23,000.

In mid-August, Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer issued a warning, alerting the public of thieves using stolen Social Security numbers to apply for and receive unemployment relief–in the form of EDD cards–in their unknowing victims’ names. “All this is adding extra strain to our state’s over-burdened unemployment network at a time when record numbers of Californians desperately need benefits,” Feuer noted.

On Sep. 14, BHPD officers arrested a Kentucky man after confiscating two handguns and over $30,000 in cash found on his person. The arrest, which the BHPD confirmed also involves EDD fraud, took place outside of Cartier, a boutique specializing in fine jewelry and luxury timepieces. The Courier obtained an exclusive video from the scene that captured the suspect repeating, “I’m not from here,” while officers seized cash and other contraband.

On the same day, the BHPD released a community alert describing the trend as: “Suspects posing as customers may possess fraudulent EDD cards that are not in their name; High dollar amounts are preloaded on the cards; Purchase of high dollar items with the fraudulent cards or large amounts of cash.”

Working with businesses to mitigate further escalation, the BHPD urged retailers to require all customers to present a valid form of government ID, ensuring the name on the credit card matches. Businesses were also advised to limit one EDD card per customer as payment and require a physical card as opposed to a digital wallet.

The Courier has learned that the parent corporations of prominent retailers in the City are urging an immediate, indefinite hold on accepting EDD cards as a form of payment.

On Sep. 16, luxury retailers such as Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Vacheron Constantin and Piaget began informing customers prior to entering that EDD cards would no longer be accepted. Most businesses in the Triangle have since followed suit–including restaurants.

In an effort to strengthen anti-fraud operations, the BHPD is working with local, state and Federal law enforcement agencies, including the Los Angeles Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, California Highway Patrol, the United States Secret Service, U.S Postal Inspector’s Office, U.S. Department of Labor and the Internal Revenue Service.

“There are millions of tax dollars being spent fraudulently as a result of this trend,” Police Chief Dominick Rivetti said in the Sep. 16 release. “The Beverly Hills Police Department is also working closely with our business community to keep them well informed of this trend in an effort to mitigate these crimes within our City.”

The BHPD is encouraging the public to call the Department at 310-285-2125 or submit an anonymous tip by texting BEVHILLSPD followed by the tip information to 888777.

The post BHPD Confiscates Nearly $3 Million in EDD Fraud Arrests appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

Beverly Hills announced its citation policy in April, when the state’s number of COVID-19 infections was trailing behind counterparts on the East Coast. Those numbers have now taken a turn for the worse. In the last few days, California has unseated New York as the state with the highest number of viral cases in the country.

Along with other cities in Los Angeles County, Beverly Hills has tapped the breaks on reopening the economy in recent weeks. Los Angeles County began to relax closures on businesses including salons and bars on June 19, but by July 13, had re-imposed restrictions on indoor services as infections rose.

As of July 23, Beverly Hills has issued approximately 42 citations out of a total of 4,292 contacts made with individuals and businesses, said City spokesperson Keith Sterling. Twenty-five of the citations were issued to individuals for not wearing face coverings; two for not social distancing and 16 for businesses out of compliance with safety mandates.

Cited businesses as of July 23 include: Benheart; Caffé Roma; Chef Ming’s Kitchen; Estiatorio Louka; Heritage Wines; MCM; Pliny; Prospect Gourmand; Rite Aid; Via Alloro; Blasteran; the Office Building at 340 N Camden; Pauly Solo Fitness; Ocean Prime; Gelato-Go and Frida Cantina Frida Mexican Cuisine.

The Courier was unable to obtain comments from the cited businesses before press time but will include them in next week’s issue.

“All persons shall wear face coverings when they leave their homes or places of residence if that person has potential to come within six feet of another person not a member of their household,” wrote Beverly Hills Mayor Lester Friedman in a reminder email sent out on Friday. Face coverings must also be worn by all employees at businesses and restaurants in the City.

Under the City’s Municipal Code, the penalty for individuals cited for not wearing a face covering is $100 for the first offence, $200 for the second, and $500 for the third and subsequent offenses. Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Manhattan Beach, and Calabasas have all announced similar steps in enforcing the safety measures.

Los Angeles County Director of Public Health Dr. Barbara Ferrer issued a sobering statement this week: “Every family that loses a loved one to COVID-19 is left with a void in their lives that they will never be able to fill. A lax attitude to this virus can be deadly for someone you love. You could be infected, not know it, and pass the infection to someone you love who may not be as lucky as you. Please be caring of those around you, wear a face covering, maintain physical distancing and practice hand hygiene. It can save lives,” she said.

Beverly Hills will staff booths throughout the business district and parks on Fridays and Saturdays to answer the public’s questions about face coverings and safety measures.

The post City of Beverly Hills Cites 16 Businesses for COVID-19 Infractions appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

Rent Subsidy for Landlords and Tenants

Residential landlords and tenants will get a financial reprieve following direction from City Council to move forward with a rent subsidy.

“We certainly have concurrence…that this is a program that we want to go forward with,” Mayor Lester Friedman said. “I do think we need to get the biggest benefit for the dollar. I think saving both a landlord and a tenant should be our priority.”

Originally proposed by Vice Mayor Bob Wunderlich last month, the July 21 Study Session marked the first time the Council formally discussed the item. Following discussion, Council directed staff to return with a cohesive plan to subsidize tenants and landlords unable to pay rent due to circumstances related to COVID-19. The City of Beverly Hills is a renter-majority City.

In March, the Council enacted a temporary moratorium on evictions for non-payment of rent by residential tenants impacted by COVID-19. Once the emergency ends, tenants have 12 months to pay back rent that was not paid during the declared emergency. However, if the tenant fails to pay rent when the emergency declaration is lifted, the landlord will have grounds to evict the tenant for failure to pay rent.

“Although City Council has enacted a residential moratorium on evictions, once the ordinance is lifted many residents will be faced with evictions because of their inability to pay rent,” states the July 21 staff report, which was authored by Director of Community Development Susan Healy Keene and Deputy Director of Rent Stabilization Helen Morales. “To ensure tenants maintain their occupancy and avoid eviction, the rent subsidy should cover rent as it becomes due once the urgency ordinance is lifted.”

The City Council must determine the amount to allocate for the subsidy as well as the source of funds. “I think we should add $1 million to this,” said Councilman John Mirisch. According to the staff report, $537,000 may currently be available to fund the subsidy.

Morales detailed multiple options for implementing the subsidy, including the staff recommendation to provide it to the 166 tenants who have filed the COVID-19 Form with the City. The total cost to the City would be $498,000 in such a scenario if the City offers a rent subsidy of $1,000 for three months per household. Another scenario would be to pay the total monthly rent that the tenant is unable to pay once the urgency ordinance is lifted, which would require $730,530 for a three-month rent subsidy.

In moving forward, the Council also expressed support for giving priority for residents with children who attend Beverly Hills schools, in addition to teachers within the school district. According to the staff report, as of May 2018, 42 percent of the total Beverly Hills Unified School District (BHUSD) enrollment resided in rent-stabilized housing.

“It supports our residential community,” said Vice Mayor Wunderlich. “I absolutely think this is the right thing to do.”

Expanding Businesses

Following last week’s direction from Council, staff detailed the possible expansion of the OpenBH program for businesses to utilize additional outdoor space. The program was created in response to the COVID-19 regulations that have significantly reduced revenue for businesses throughout Beverly Hills. Over 20 businesses have already availed themselves of the program, which allows the temporary expansion of services to adjacent areas such as parking lots, sidewalks, and metered parking spaces (parklets) through a Special Event Permit.

“We already are a pedestrian friendly City, and this is an opportunity for us to become more so,” said Vice Mayor Bob Wunderlich.

While stopping short of recommending staff further explore full street closures in various parts of the business district, the Council was united in helping businesses further expand into outdoor areas. Costs to the City include a combination of waived permit fees, loss of revenue from parking meters and paying for various traffic control measures. The program currently waives the $800 special event permit fee that each participating business is issued. To date, the City has waived $21,600 in special event permit fees.

“The program has received positive feedback from the business community and residents alike,” states the July 21 staff report, which was authored by Marketing and Economic Sustainability Manager Laura Biery and Special Events and Filming Coordinator Magdalena Davis.

Throughout the City, various businesses have been successful in creatively pivoting operations to utilize the OpenBH programs, including Matsuhisa, which now offers dining on its parking lot and Color Me Mine, which now offers pottery-making outdoors.

Mayor Lester Friedman underscored the importance of ensuring that augmented operations don’t bring more crowds who fail to abide by appropriate social distancing measures.

“With the resurgence of the COVID-19 virus, we really should be staying at home,” he said.

“This is a matter of public health and safety…from that all else follows,” said Councilman John Mirisch, who emphasized the need for increased enforcement.

The Council heard from several members of the business community, the majority of whom were largely supportive of expanding the program as long as it did not include closing streets.

“It would be selfish of me to promote a policy which benefits me while negatively impacts my neighbors,” said Estiatorio Louka owner Vasili Kotsiovos. “Accessibility is key in allowing our business owners to operate and expand in ways that benefit each personally. Closing access to the street will make it more difficult for our community to reach and support us.”

“This would kill off an already fragile retail situation,” cautioned Carroll Custom owner John Carroll, in reference to the possible closure of Canon.

According to the staff report, there was not “overwhelming” support for a full street closure on South Beverly Drive and North Canon Drive among the business owners surveyed. “Businesses were however supportive of parklets or smaller scale expansions into the roadway that continued to preserve some parking and travel access,” stated the report.

“I wholeheartedly support this program and its expansion,” advocated Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce CEO Todd Johnson. “We’re in a different world right now.”

The post Beverly Hills City Council Debates Subsidies and Closures appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

“This is really not a sales tax increase. It’s a revenue protection measure,” said Councilman John Mirisch at the July 14 City Council Study Session.

The upcoming ballot measure, which requires a majority of the vote to pass, would only be levied if a sales tax initiative for either Los Angeles County or a Special District qualifies for an upcoming election and is approved by Los Angeles voters. In the absence of such a measure, county agencies would be able to take money that would otherwise go to Beverly Hills.

Of the current  9.5 percent sales tax on all purchases made in the City, 8.5 percent goes to the state, Los Angeles County, and other special districts (such as Metro for Measure M), while the remaining one percent is returned to the City. If the proposed additional 3/4 cent sales tax does go into effect, the City would retain the entire increase as general fund revenue.

In forecasting out potential revenue from the 3/4 cent sales tax increase, the July 14 staff report authored by Policy and Management Analyst Cynthia Owens forecast a $15.9 million increase for Fiscal Year 2020/21. The total potential revenue to the City from sales tax, if the measure passes, would be $37.6 million. In making that forecast, Owens compared that to the total potential revenue from sales tax the City would have realized for FY 2018/19, which would have been $65.5 million. The FY 20/21 revenue includes a “realistic” predicted decrease due to COVID-19, according to Owens.

“It should be noted that the maximum sales tax rate increase in Beverly Hills could decline in future years below the 3/4 cents currently available due to other future county sales tax measures,” Owens warned the City Council.

Given that the maximum tax rate allowed under the law in L.A. County is 10.25 percent, Owens characterized the proposed upcoming Beverly Hills ballot measure as a safety protection measure in order to allow the City to keep those potential sales tax revenues for local purposes.

While the City Council was united in its direction to staff to prepare the measure in time for the November ballot, all five Council members expressed displeasure with having to bring a tax to the voters. Particularly given how impacted everyone’s finances are as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Council members underscored the importance of effectively crafting the ballot measure language.

“In my mind this is unfortunate,” said Vice Mayor Bob Wunderlich, who criticized the public policies that had placed Beverly Hills in this position. “Only the people who don’t take this protective measure will be bearing the burden for others.”

Of the 88 cities in Los Angeles County, Owens said that 31 cities have approved sales tax rates above the Los Angeles County base amount of 9.5 percent, with 25 of those having approved increases up to the maximum amount of 10.25 percent. Most recently, on July 6, the West Hollywood City Council voted in support of placing a 3?4 cent sales tax initiative on the Nov. 3 ballot.

“I think the appetite for that 3/4 cents in sales tax is going to be very high from any of the districts that surround us. Now it doesn’t protect us from the state, but certainly it does protect us from the county and Metro, and anybody like that. I think this is a good idea,” said Councilman Julian Gold.

The Council is expected to vote on the ballot measure language later this month in order that it can be ready by the Aug. 7 county deadline to qualify for the November ballot.

The post Beverly Hills Voters Could Find Sales Tax Measure on November Ballot appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.

Councilman John Mirisch, the single “no” vote, said he did not support the budget given that it failed to reimagine operations in a more efficient way. 

The new operating expenditure budget represents a decrease of $30.3 million from the 2019/20 operating expenditures of $449.1 million (including interfund transfers). The operating budget for the fiscal year 2019/20 included total revenues of $515.2 million. 

While the current operating budget, which draws more revenue than the total amount budgeted to expend, may give the appearance of relative fiscal prosperity, the City’s Capital Improvement Budget, which will be considered for adoption in July, will use a great portion of the apparent surplus. In addition, the City’s General Fund provides a more accurate glimpse into the City’s need to draw its purse strings tighter. 

The City’s General Fund, over which the Council has discretion, is one of several City funds, each of which must be used for specific purposes. General Fund revenues, which are expected to decrease by 17.1 percent (not including interfund transfers) over the adopted FY 2019/20 budget according to Budget and Revenue Officer Don Harrison, have been particularly impacted by the COVID- 19 pandemic. Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) is slated to decrease by $20.1 million; sales tax is forecast to drop $13.7 million; and business tax is projected to decrease $12.3 million. 

“We are in uncharted territory. This is something that we haven’t experienced,” said Mayor Lester Friedman. 

This year’s proposed General Fund expenditures of $221.1 million (excluding interfund transfers) represent a $25.1 million decrease from the 2019/20 budget. In fact, according to Director of Finance Jeff Muir, the City had originally expected to increase this year’s General Fund fiscal budget before the pandemic hit. 

Staff worked with the COVID-19 Ad Hoc committee to develop a strategy of using multiple avenues for reducing expenditures. In addition to transferring $6 million from the infrastructure Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) fund to the General Fund, such measures include an eight percent budget reduction in departments’ supplies and services accounts, implementing a hiring freeze for non-critical positions, and suspending charges and replacements of various vehicles and equipment. 

Even with the anticipated $19.9 million budget balancing measures, the Council still needed to decide during its June 29 meeting how to alleviate a forecasted $4.2 million General Fund budget deficit. 

While the Council stopped short of taking specific measures to address the budget deficit, which the Council learned just before the vote would increase millions as a result of higher annual insurance renewals, members were united in passing a balanced budget. The Council also agreed to allocate an additional $100,000 to its Nurse Practitioner Program as well as $418,000 to enhance its stockpile of extra emergency food and water supplies. 

“At the end of the day, I think the budget that we approve has to be balanced,” emphasized Councilman Julian Gold, the first member of the City Council to comment on the proposed budget. He emphasized that in moving forward with budget talks in the coming months, Council and staff should consider how to best replace services that had been taken from the budget. “I do think that we have to be mindful of the fact that we are moving money around to balance our budget.” 

The budget passed by Council included all salary and benefit increases approved through MOUs since the previous budget adoption as well as $5 million to pay down the City’s unfunded PERS liability. To alleviate the forecasted $4.2 million General Fund budget deficit, the Council agreed to increase the amount required to be reduced from employee costs by $2.1 million and allow $2.1 million to be funded through its Budget Stabilization Reserves. 

Harrison projected the City would realize a $2.4 million net savings this year if 25 employees avail themselves of an early retirement offer. There also may be the opportunity to realize more savings by carving further into funding for Capital Improvement Projects. 

“Given the COVID-19 pandemic and the sudden and unforeseen economic impacts, along with the disruption of normal City operations resulting from the recent protests, consideration of the Capital Improvement Budget has been separated from the operating budget and will be brought to the City Council for consideration and adoption in July,” stated the June 29 staff report, which was authored by Harrison and Muir. 

In anticipation of approving the budget, the Council also unanimously voted on June 29 to approve agreements with three business partners that help the City thrive. The agreements included: $148,000 to the Rodeo Drive Committee for marketing purposes (up $18,000 from the previous year); $304,000 to the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce for business attraction and retention (down $43,000 from the previous year); and $2.7 million to the Beverly Hills Conference and Visitors Bureau (CVB) to promote the City (down $1.9 million from the previous year). 

CVB CEO Julie Wagner told the Courier that after learning the City was projecting a 40 percent decrease in TOT revenue, the CVB’s board and staff “hunkered down” to proactively shave 40 percent from its budget. 

“Everything we’ve done we’ve done voluntarily,” Wagner told the Courier. 

In addition to furloughing seven employees on April 2, the CVB cancelled most of its international endeavors and asked its vendors to pause. In addition, the CVB cancelled all sales missions and trade shows, while still working on avenues to help keep Beverly Hills forefront in people’s minds. 

Wagner said the CVB was preparing to launch a new campaign later this summer entitled “Something to Feel Good About,” which centers around safety, self-care, shopping local, and simple pleasures. 

“I just think it’s going to be a hard six to 12 months,” Chamber of Commerce CEO Todd Johnson told the Courier. “We always look forward to collaborating and working with the City on different projects that they deem necessary. We will deliver our continued excellence while working through this incredibly challenging and yet opportune time that we’re all facing.” 

The post City Council Approves $418.8 Million Budget for Beverly Hills appeared first on Beverly Hills Courier.