Saudis Secret Stake in Marina

Hey, a deal is a deal, right? Wrong. All five county supervisors have received money (contributions) from Abraham Lurie, and let him violate the terms and conditions of his lease, our lease.

We’re talking major land in Marina del Rey that was shored up with county money and then co-ventured out into private enterprise so that the land could be developed and we, the county, would receive the rent and have the taxes paid.

Now this guy Lurie doesn’t pay his taxes, fails to develop a major parcel, goes into default (foreclosure) on loans, and slides in some Middle Eastern arms brokers as unnamed “secret” partners; all in clear violation of his land lease with us, the citizens and land owners of this county land.

Our guys say they didn’t know about the defaults on loans and tax liens, but maybe they didn’t want to know. The county recorder’s office and private services notify immediately of these types of delinquencies. And, the violations they did know about, well, they just let them slide by without any enforcement of the conditions of the lease.

I think the articles showed the tip of the iceberg and I encourage your reporting team to dig further into the hand-holding that’s going on. We don’t need this guy Lurie; anybody can do business poorly. Let’s call his leases and get someone in who can really develop these parcels and manage them correctly.

LORRAINE FARRELL

Santa Monica