L.A. Business Is Taking the Lead

Contrary to “City’s Social-Change Agenda Has Business on the Defensive” (May 5), the business community is coordinated, engaged and proactively pursuing a public policy agenda in Los Angeles focused on strong economic growth.

As the head of downtown’s premier business advocacy organization, I can assure you that the business community is meeting with local, state and federal officials on a nearly daily basis to promote area economic growth, affordable housing and job creation. We partner with many other civic and community organizations to promote our agenda of jobs and housing, including organized labor when our mutual interests align.

Working independently and together, L.A.’s business organizations have launched many successful initiatives in recent years that are having a profound effect on Los Angeles. Recent examples include tax reform, sensible political redistricting, new rules for converting aging office buildings into housing and building a cooperative relationship with City Hall to expedite housing development downtown and across the city.

The business community has also successfully organized to stop or contain public policy agendas that we believe are harmful to our economy, such as inclusionary zoning, community impact reports, the hotel-to-condo-conversion moratorium and the “big-box” ordinance that was designed to limit growth of large retail chains

As the story correctly noted, it is true that the profile of the Los Angeles business community has changed significantly. However, our small and medium-size companies want to provide the same economic growth and opportunities as did the corporations formerly headquartered here.

The collective business voice in Los Angeles -- and our agenda of jobs and housing -- is unified, loud and clear.

Carol E. Schatz

President and CEO

Central City Assn.

Los Angeles

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As a resident of Los Angeles and an employment and labor law attorney, I am particularly concerned about the increased distance I see developing between labor and business leaders.

It is important for labor and business leaders to work together to create a climate that attracts and provides incentives to top companies, while also ensuring their commitment to providing quality jobs with good pay and benefits to workers.

Angela Reddock

Collins, Mesereau,

Reddock & Yu

Century City