As I have said throughout my campaign, the City and the people should be allies not adversaries. There must be less confrontation and more cooperation; less government by litigation, and more government by thoughtful legislation borne out of thorough, reasoned debate.
The City Attorney can make that happen. As City Attorney, I, Noel Weiss, will make that happen.
As a private citizen, I have been committed to doing what I can to make the system work better for the people, help bring the City together, and have our system better reflect its core social values and principles:
For Homeowners & Communities:
1. Filing the first challenge to the SB 1818 Implementation Law to correct the political malpractice practiced by the City Council in passing and implementing the ordinance;
2. Working with the Valley Village Community to fashion practical construction mitigation conditions and (contrary to what the City Attorney said was possible) negotiate (what I believe to be the first and only) affordable housing conditions as part of the tract map entitlement process where the community is empowered to enforce them, not just the City Attorney (a creative approach);
3. Fighting to try to get AB 283 enforced by the Planning Department so that the zoning laws are in sync with the General Plan, Community Plans, and Specific Plans;
4. Working with the San Pedro Community against the Pointe Vista project;
5. Fighting for the Fairfax Community by getting the law changed to rezone neighborhood areas to incorporate height limitations on R-3 parcels so that the character and scale of neighborhoods is maintained;
6. Working to advise Neighborhood Councils in Studio City, West Los Angeles, and Venice in an effort to try to get the zoning laws properly applied and the Councils better informed about the various options that exist;
7. I have been a member of the Watts Gang Task Force since October, 2006. So I understand the problems of Watts. I also understand how pro-active, positive community action can bring down the crime rate (it is down 50% year over year in Watts). Included in that effort was persuading the City Attorney’s office to establish a protocol and mechanism whereby kids and adults can get off of gang injunctions and become productive members of their community.
What I have done in these examples is done all the time for the special interests who pay lawyers and lobbyists. But it has rarely been done (if at all) by a public policy advocate who has not been paid by anyone to advocate for a policy and has nothing personal to gain except the self-satisfaction of doing something positive, and leaving behind a positive legacy. This type of advocacy is what we should expect from our elected officials, and is the type of representation that I would continue as City Attorney.
Isn’t it time that Los Angeles had a City Attorney that is able to successfully fight for ALL Angelenos, and not just the special ones?
Noel Weiss For Los Angeles City Attorney 