Chick Urges City to Keep Better Tabs on Property

City Controller Laura Chick proposed Thursday that Los Angeles overhaul the way it manages its multibillion-dollar real estate holdings, calling for a central database to keep track of what the city owns.

A year after an audit by the controller found that the real estate portfolio was poorly managed, Chick also proposed that the city develop a five-year plan to determine which properties should be sold and which should be put to better use.

In addition, she recommended that private real estate experts be hired to handle the sale, purchase and lease of properties that are now dealt with by city employees.

“Unfortunately, I have found there is no overarching vision and no strategic plan, but instead the city handles its very valuable real estate on an ad hoc, piecemeal and transactional basis,” Chick said as she sent her detailed proposal to the City Council for consideration.

Council members Wendy Greuel and Jack Weiss said they have been working with Chick and will press the plan in the council.

“A world-class city like Los Angeles should not manage its real-estate like an amateur,” Greuel said.

The city has two databases of property overseen by council-controlled departments, but they don’t include all of the land and buildings owned by proprietary agencies, including the Department of Water and Power.

That, Chick said, has led to instances where the city has spent millions of dollars on private leases even as surplus city properties sat empty.

The city leases space in 219 locations for $37.8 million annually. Some of the leases were so poorly negotiated that they are on month-to-month terms that cost 30% more than market rents, Chick said.

The controller said a perfect example of the shortcomings of the current system was the council’s recent decision to buy the Transamerica Broadway Building in downtown Los Angeles when it was still not certain which departments would be moved into the structure.