It’s the Best $1,000 Lunch in Town

Like most Los Angeles residents, bathhouse operator Peter Sykes had never held a meeting with Mayor James K. Hahn, let alone been invited to lunch with the chief executive. So when Sykes’ City Hall lobbyist suggested he spend $1,000 to dine with the mayor, he took his advice.

Over a gourmet meal at a private club on Bunker Hill, Sykes chatted with the mayor and raised issues he feels are important. “I wanted to know his philosophy going forward about the gay community,” Sykes said.

He came away from the political fund-raiser impressed with Hahn and confident his money was well spent. So did most of the 10 other business owners, union leaders and developers who attended the invitation-only fund-raiser.

In addition to their choice of herb chicken or sesame-crusted sea bass, contributors say they got to hear from the mayor on where the city is headed, and each had a chance to make an impression on Hahn during the hour-plus exchange of ideas. Several said they left the lunch with the hope that the next time they need help at City Hall, someone other than a low-level bureaucrat will take their call.

“All I expect is that you will get your phone call returned so you can air your issues,” said Scott Schaffer, president of City Cab and one of those who attended the Sept. 9 lunch with Hahn.

The event in an elegant, wood-paneled room at the City Club provides a window into a political process that most Los Angeles residents will never experience, where political relationships are forged with campaign contributions and private conversation.

“It’s no secret that making campaign contributions helps get access,” said City Hall lobbyist Steven Afriat, who held the fund-raiser and included on the invitation list eight clients whose interests he represents at City Hall.

“My advice to anyone who does business with the city is it’s smart business practice to be active in this process,” Afriat said. “I think there is an advantage if you do business with the city to get to know the mayor.”

That’s often hard to do, even for contributors.

In the 2001 election, Hahn raised $5 million from 9,300 contributors. Campaigning on such a grand scale means many contributions must come from telephone solicitations or large events in banquet halls where donors have no more contact with the candidate than a handshake as the man of the hour heads for the door.

Since Hahn launched his reelection fund-raising effort in April, nearly two years before the March 2005 election, he has been spending more time on small events such as the Sept. 9 lunch, where 10 to 20 people write a check for the $1,000 maximum political contribution allowed by the city.

So far this year, Hahn has attended more than a dozen small fund-raisers. In one week in July, Hahn went to three small fund-raisers held by city airport contractors.

Hahn fund-raisers have been held in recent months by lobbyists such as Afriat, the construction and design firm HNTB, the public relations firm Fleishman Hillard, and city commissioners, including Planning Commissioner Mitchell Menzer, who held a separate event before Afriat’s lunch.

Although some hosts call Hahn’s campaign to volunteer to fund-raise, others are requested to do so by Hahn supporters. Hosts directly coordinate the events with campaign fund-raising consultant Annette Castro, who also did work for Richard Riordan when he was mayor. Castro reports to political strategist Bill Carrick, who also played a leading role in Hahn’s 2001 election campaign.

“I think that’s the trend now, because people know if they go to those big dinners at the Century Plaza they may not even see you and you may not even see them,” Hahn said. “I like the smaller events because we can talk about different issues. It allows me to hear different viewpoints. Me giving a 20-minute speech in a big hotel really isn’t a dialogue with people.”

The people invited by Afriat to the Sept. 9 fund-raiser represent a cross-section of Los Angeles interests.

Sykes, who attended with his chief financial officer, Rosa Kline, runs two gay sexual encounter clubs in Hollywood and North Hollywood; Schaffer runs one of the biggest fleets of cabs in the city.

Joining them at a large rectangular table with Hahn were Ken Pressberg, whose firm operates the Beverly Plaza Hotel; Jeff Seymour, a consultant whose firm has helped telephone companies win city approval of cellular antenna sites; and lobbyist Tom McCarty.

Several men with real estate interests were on the guest list, including Jack Spound, a principal in a large real-estate investment firm; Joe Lumer, co-owner of L and R Investments, and developer Richard Weintraub.

Police Protective League Director Peter Repovich and LAPD Command Officer Assn. Director Jim Tatreau rounded out the list.

Many of those in attendance have pending requests for city planning approvals, building permits or contracts; others have concerns about how their business will be affected by city projects such as the expansion of Los Angeles International Airport. The up-close-and-personal nature of the lunch held a major appeal for those who attended, some of whom have gone to large banquet-hall events in the past.

“It was like the difference between going to a sporting event where you sit high up in the stands and see things far away, and sitting behind the bench right next to the players,” said Pressberg, who sat next to Hahn.

Afriat also invited Menzer and featured him prominently in the invitations. “Please join City Planning Commission Chair Mitch Minzer and me for an intimate luncheon with Mayor James Hahn,” said the invitation signed by Afriat.

Menzer stepped down as chairman of the Planning Commission before the fund-raiser but remains a member of the panel. His attendance, and prominent mention in the invitation, was troubling to campaign reform advocates because many of Afriat’s clients must do business with city planning officials. Some campaign watchdogs have urged the city to prohibit commissioners from engaging in fund-raising.

The invitation “looks like it’s linking the city business with campaign contributions. The appearance is very unfortunate,” said Robert Stern, president of the Los Angeles-based Center for Governmental Studies.

Menzer declined to comment. Afriat said he does not see a conflict of interest in having Menzer attend his fund-raiser. Afriat said most of his clients with planning issues are seeking permits from the Planning Department staff or lower-level boards and do not require approvals from the Planning Commission. Nobody talked to Menzer at the lunch about their projects, the lobbyist said.

“I have never appeared before the citywide Planning Commission since Hahn has been mayor,” Afriat said.

Although the press was not allowed in, interviews with 12 of those who attended the lunch, including Hahn, paint the picture of a relaxed meal and lively conversation with the mayor.

After some small talk, Hahn gave an overview of his plans for the city, including details and reasoning behind his $9-billion plan to modernize LAX. He also spoke of his work to streamline the building permit system and establish a $100-million trust fund to develop affordable housing in Los Angeles.

The housing campaign was of particular interest to developers in the room, who said afterward they are glad the city is supporting more residential construction.

“The mayor is well-informed about what is needed,” said Weintraub, who is planning a condominium high-rise on Wilshire Boulevard at Malcolm Avenue.

Weintraub’s project needs approval from the Planning Department’s Design Review Board, but the developer said he did not pitch the proposal to Hahn or Menzer during the lunch.

Neither did Pressberg bring up his firm’s desire to get permits for a small renovation, Pressberg said. The police union leaders said they attended the lunch to show support for the mayor, not to talk about pay contracts.

After Hahn’s remarks on his plans for the city, contributors weighed in with their own observations about what needs to be fixed.

There was general talk about how the city can do a better job of processing planning and development permits. Schaffer told Hahn that the taxi industry had concerns about the mayor’s plan to move passenger drop-off areas at LAX a mile from the terminals.

“I said, ‘Oh, come on, Jim,’ ” Schaffer recalled. “It’s going to have horrible repercussions. It’s not very user-friendly.”

Afriat said it would have been “unsophisticated” for anyone to more directly ask Hahn during the lunch for help with their business.

“It would be just inappropriate to mix business with politics. I don’t allow that,” Afriat said.

Afriat, who organizes many fund-raisers, says political fund-raising can open doors but does not guarantee favorable treatment on the other side. He points out that his clients include strip club owners who unsuccessfully sought to stop the city from adopting a ban on lap dancing.

Hahn, who signed the lap dance law, said he was not put off by the presence at the Sept. 9 event of the operators of sexual encounter clubs or the lobbyist for strip clubs.

“People who run responsible adult businesses in the city are business owners like others. I’ve got to hear a wide range of viewpoints from a lot of different people,” Hahn said.

Sykes said that there was no talk during lunch about how the mayor could help his Hollywood club, which was cited Sept. 12 for “conducting a sexual encounter establishment” for five years without a special Planning Department permit. A special permit is required because the club is within 1,000 feet of the Hollywood Regional Branch Library and other protected facilities.

Hahn’s office has not contacted building officials to smooth the way for the permit, said Dave Keim, a manager at the Department of Building and Safety.

Nonetheless, the president of the Central Hollywood Neighborhood Council was troubled that Sykes and Kline were able to get private time with Hahn just by writing checks.

“It feels like they get an unfair advantage,” said Debbie Wehbe, the neighborhood council leader.

Hahn said the fund-raisers do not provide supporters with a quid pro quo opportunity for favors. What contributors get is more innocent than that, he said.

“I think they get a chance to have more direct dialogue with me about issues of citywide concern,” Hahn said. “How we move forward with an airport. How we make a neighborhood safer. How do we bring more housing to the city?”