Local News in Brief : Lawndale Tightens Purse
Lawndale City Council members, still reeling from the discovery last month that the city lost more than $1.6 million in a speculative securities deal, have tightened controls over the treasurer’s office and adopted a formal investment policy.
Several city officials predicted that a planned $3.3-million Civic Center expansion project will be put on hold until the city’s financial condition is clearer.
The council, meeting in a special session, required that both the city manager and assistant city manager review monthly treasurer’s reports. It also ordered the city’s staff to determine if the city’s funds can be managed by a bank on an interim basis until a new treasurer is appointed.
City Manager Paul Philips has been acting treasurer since Ray Wood, who made the bad investment, was fired in October.
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