Candidates Debate Economic Issues

The five major candidates vying to become mayor of Los Angeles engaged in a spirited and at times humorous debate Thursday on the economic issues facing the city, including jobs, affordable housing and whether city leaders are hospitable enough to business.

Mayor James K. Hahn, who makes frequent reference to his public safety record, said he has improved the business climate by presiding over an 18% drop in crime, the creation of 40,000 jobs and reform of the city’s business taxes.

The mayor’s challengers -- state Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sun Valley), former Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg and council members Antonio Villaraigosa and Bernard C. Parks -- each pressed their case to the audience of about 250 real estate agents, developers, lawyers and bankers that they would do a better job of promoting the city than the incumbent.

“We have to have a mayor that gets up every single day and has a business head and then fights for businesses, fights to keep ‘em here,” Hertzberg said. Villaraigosa said Los Angeles needs “a cheerleader” who will relentlessly promote the city. And Alarcon talked of the importance of bringing “good-paying jobs.”

In contrast to previous debates over the last few weeks, the candidates devoted little time to attacking each other, instead delivering enthusiastic, if often vague, pitches on how they would handle such issues as homelessness and development.

Three candidates -- Hahn, Hertzberg and Parks -- spoke against a controversial proposal that would require developers to include some below-market units in new developments.

Housing advocates say the proposed policy, known as inclusionary zoning, would force developers to build badly needed affordable housing. But many developers and business advocates say such a policy would lead developers to build outside of the city limits. “It just doesn’t make any sense,” Hertzberg said. The mayor said he did not want to “do anything to stop that momentum” in new housing. And Parks flatly expressed opposition.

Villaraigosa, meanwhile, said he supported the idea in concept, noting that more than 100 cities in California have passed similar laws. But he also said the “devil is in the details,” and stressed that he did not want to drive construction from the city.

“It’s not either/or,” he said, one of several times the former union organizer exhorted the pro-business audience to give him a chance to show that despite his liberal beliefs he could be their advocate.

Alarcon said he needed to see specific proposals before he could take a position but that he was “not opposed in concept.”

The well-attended debate, sponsored by the Central City Assn. and held in a banquet hall at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, received positive reviews from business leaders, who noted its lighthearted atmosphere. “We always see the business side, and it was good to see a personable side,” said Oscar J. Edwards, founder of Computer Systems Integration and Configuration in Los Angeles. “They have a sense of humor. It was refreshing for me.”

Other attendees said the forum helped them tease out which candidate would be most business friendly. Scot A. McBeath, a marketing consultant for GVA Daum, said he believes Hertzberg and Parks held views that would be the best for businesses.

The candidates also were grilled about their records, sometimes in language that made it clear that the questioner viewed them with suspicion.

“Why should any business association endorse you?” the moderator asked Alarcon, noting that he had sponsored legislation in Sacramento that business groups “despised.”

Villaraigosa was queried about “extreme measures” that he supported in the City Council, among them a precedent-setting law that makes it more difficult for big-box retailers such as Wal-Mart to build superstores within the city limits.

Alarcon conceded that he is “a liberal Democrat,” and then argued that Los Angeles has a responsibility to work to eradicate poverty and help its citizens to build middle-class lives.

Villaraigosa, meanwhile, touted his record as a consensus-builder, noting that he served as speaker of the Assembly and worked with Democrats and Republicans to craft legislation.

With two or three forums a week, the candidates now greet each other with embraces and handshakes, like a group of performers who have learned to work well with each other.

Hahn said one of the candidates turned to him during the debate and asked: “How many of these were there last time?”

The mayor said he answered: “You don’t want to know.”