L.A. council approves airport concession contracts

The overhaul of gift stores, beverage stands and restaurants at Los Angeles International Airport moved ahead Wednesday when the City Council approved the first round of new concession contracts and rejected further investigation of the bidding process.

Some of the outlets could be in place by summer, officials said.

The nine contracts, which affect Terminals, 4, 5, 7 and 8, were awarded on a 12-1 vote with Councilman Tony Cardenas the only holdout. Cardenas had urged his colleagues to postpone the vote and resume a probe by a special council panel into whether the bids were evaluated “fairly, responsibly and legally” by airport officials.

“There was lots of consternation and rush to get this process done,” said Cardenas, who chairs the panel, known as the Board of Referred Powers. “We were elected to make sure all processes are fair. We did the basic bare minimum to hear the protests [from losing bidders].... There are certain things we will never get answers to.”

Eight of 10 concessions contracts were assigned to the panel because of a potential conflict of interest involving Alan Rothenberg, chairman of the Board of Airport Commissioners who owned stock in a restaurant that figured in some of the bidding. The two remaining contracts were handled by the airport commission and sent to the council for approval.

After a two-month inquiry, panel members — except for Cardenas — recommended that seven of the eight contracts be approved by the full council.

On Wednesday, the retail contracts were awarded to XpressSpa, three joint ventures involving former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson and a partnership involving Johnson, the Hudson Group and Concourse Ventures, headed by Dale Mason Cochran, the widow of attorney Johnnie Cochran.

The council approved three food-and-beverage contracts for Areas USA, based in Florida, and one for THS-Marbella Food Service Partnership, which involves the Delaware North Companies, a longtime concessionaire at LAX.

“It’s good we are moving forward,” said Councilman Bernard C. Parks, who also sits on the Board of Referred Powers. “Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of requests for proposals. None of them are perfect. I believe we have cured every issue of concern. I want to assure the vendors that we are not sliding through the process.”

Gina Marie Lindsey, executive director of Los Angeles World Airports, said the bidding process would be reopened Thursday for a remaining food and beverage contract that was rejected by the council panel in September. She added that some of the new concessions might be in operation as early as July.

dan.weikel@latimes.com