City Council Gives Woo His Own Hollywood Development Panel

The Los Angeles City Council voted 9 to 2 Tuesday to eliminate an elected advisory council for the controversial Hollywood redevelopment project and replace it with a group appointed by the area’s councilman, Michael Woo.

The advisory council, called a project area committee, had been set up three years ago to give residents more of a say in the redevelopment of the Hollywood area, a project marked by bitter clashes between pro-development business leaders and anti-development homeowners.

The redevelopment project was designed to revive the fading glory of the old Hollywood area. Under the plan, lots with old buildings are being sold to developers, who are planning high-rises and hotels. The Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, in charge of the project, has the authority to condemn land and sell it to developers.

The dispute took on citywide importance because of the famous location of the project and because the redevelopment agency has been under increasing criticism that it has been misusing its condemnation, or eminent domain, power to help land developers. The CRA has strongly denied that.

While this was a victory for the CRA and for Woo, it was a small one in the larger picture of the redevelopment dispute.

Still before the council are proposals to increase the legislative body’s supervision of the agency, which is in charge of huge redevelopment projects downtown, as well as smaller ones in the San Fernando Valley and a proposed major project in South-Central Los Angeles.

Under the arrangement, the committee, elected in balloting supervised by the League of Women Voters, had the authority to advise the CRA but had no final decision-making power.

‘Forum for Wacky Behavior’

Woo told his colleagues that the elected advisory council had become “a forum for wacky behavior” with some members “posturing” and pursuing agendas that he said had little to do with the shape of the project.

He pushed through an advisory body consisting of three committees dealing with the areas of social needs, planning and transportation and development. Woo has not yet named appointees to the new advisory group.

Norton Halper, a Hollywood activist, told the council that its action violated state law requiring such committees.

Legal Action Threatened

And the project area committee members threatened legal action.

Attorney Orry Korb said in an interview that state law requires such committees in redevelopment projects.

He said the law also requires the redevelopment agency to pay the costs of such committees, including providing office space and some staff.

Although Woo had the majority of his colleagues solidly behind him, Councilman Nate Holden strongly attacked Woo for ending the life of an elected group.