Garcetti To Lead L.A.’s Upswing

(This article originally appeared in the May 28th, 2013 edition of the Century City News)

By Michael Douglas Carlin

This was perhaps the best election in the history of Los Angeles because we had two very capable politicians. We typically feel compromised with the “lesser of two evils” choice. We typically have no good candidate and must decide who will harm us less as the criteria for selection. I have felt this for years during almost every election at the local, state and federal levels.

But we all know both Wendy and Eric from their many visits to Century City over the years. We have grown to respect them both as public servants and we know that they both love this city. Many people were in a quandary about which of them to back for mayor. I remained officially neutral during the primary even though I was personally leaning toward Eric.

There we were with two weeks to go and the most recent poll was that Wendy was up by one point. The previous polls had showed Eric up by seven points. Wendy announced that Eric’s election campaign was “in free-fall.” It looked grim at that moment for his chances of winning. Wendy was being declared the winner without a single vote having been certified.

That is when I actually decided to not just support Eric but to volunteer my time. Both would be good for Los Angeles but I knew that one of them would be better. I reckoned that Eric had not received the support of the unions largely because he had stared them down during tough negotiations. That for me was the deciding factor. Eric will do it with poise and a smile on his face but he is going to be able to renegotiate with special interests -- all special interests -- including unions to get our budget back on track. Eric was the clear choice for mayor and the perception was that his campaign was crumbling.

But Eric wasn’t nervous -- at least he wasn’t showing it. I got invited to four Eric Garcetti events in a single week. He was out campaigning and raising money. When big endorsements like Bill Clinton and Barbara Boxer were coming to Wendy, Eric was connecting with the people. When big money was pouring into the Greuel Campaign, Eric was going to dinners, lunches, and breakfasts to raise a little money at each. He was on the phone making calls and he was texting. He was personally answering his emails. He was working non-stop to turn the momentum his way.

One political analyst told me that Wendy would have the edge in voter turnout because the unions have a machine to get out the vote. Polls showing her losing by a couple of points would easily be made up by voter turnout. But Eric had a machine of his own. I volunteered on the Saturday before Election Day in Sylmar at a motion picture catering company to make calls to get out the vote. We worked in a boiler room calling from printed sheets of registered voters. We were canvassing Los Angeles to ask voters to turn out on Election Day. I found out later that this was just one of many rooms making calls.

Eric had assembled his machine to turn out the vote. I arrived in Studio City at 9am on Election Day to make more calls. We worked until about three in the afternoon but some were planning to stay on the phones until 8pm. Each of us probably only made a few hundred calls. But when you multiply that by the number of volunteers across the city I am certain that this had an impact. Was it a game changer? We will never know.

Later that election day we arrived at the Hollywood Palladium and early returns had Wendy up by almost two points. There were lots of nervous stares in that room but as the evening wore on Wendy’s lead was in free-fall. Eric went on to win the election. He is the right person for the job and he has a vision for Los Angeles that is good for the people of this city. As Dan Schnur, Director of the USC Institute of Politics, pointed out Eric Garcetti gets to sit across the table from the unions clear of any debts- he gets to say, “Not only did you not support me but you pulled out all the stops to oppose me so we sit here today with me owing you nothing. We can work out a deal now or wait for Richard Riordan’s Ballot Initiative for Pension Reform that could be much less favorable.”

That is the mayor we need right now in Los Angeles. Los Angeles is headed for an upswing and Mayor Garcetti will lead the way. We can all work with him to bring his vision from words into deeds – from theory to reality. We can all get on board the Eric Garcetti train to a more prosperous, human rights respecting, cleaner, greener, smarter self-sufficient Los Angeles. He needs us all to get on board. There is money to be made and a legacy to honor as well as a city that constantly reinvents itself for the better.

July 1st we can all sleep well knowing that Mayor Eric Garcetti is on the job.

The Century is America’s Version of The David

(This article originally appeared in the October 19, 2010 edition of the Century City News)

By Michael Douglas Carlin

It was a banking crisis at a time when art had reached new heights. A new priest, Savoronola, has arrived in Florence. He preaches that notes of protestation should be placed upon any art that is offensive. His sermons rise in popularity as the banks of Lorenzo Medici (known as Lorenzo the Magnificent) are failing around the world. Lorenzo’s financial upheaval causes his physical health to wan. Soon he is on his deathbed and he sends for Savoronala for a final confession.

Emboldened by the death of Lorenzo, Savoronola preaches that the art with the notes is to be destroyed. The Bonfire of the Vanities ensues. Paintings, books, cosmetics, statues and other representations of the times were piled high and burned with militant youths cheering at the urging of Guilermo Savaronola. Much of the wealth of Renaissance Florence is destroyed before Savaronla, himself, is burned at the stake for heresy. In the aftermath Florence lay in ruins.

A young artist carves away at a thirteen foot block of marble that other sculptors have rejected as flawed. We can all imagine the number of people that advised against this. He completes his statue a short time after the bonfires have consumed some of the most valuable art ever created. The process of moving the heavy statue takes many hours…lingering into the late night. Vandals come and attempt to destroy the statue by throwing rocks while it is being moved. The young artist fears that this statue and three years of hard work will be immediately destroyed.

Once the statue of David (who in bible times had battled the giant Goliath) reaches its final resting place, Michelangelo is so fatigued that he heads home and collapses sleeping until late afternoon the next day. When Michelangelo arrives in the town square his heart, already distraught over the attempted vandalism, sinks from the thousands of notes attached to the statue. He assumes that these notes are of protestation like the ones Savoronola incited. When he arrives at the statue he begins reading. To his astonishment they are notes of praise. They are thanking him for redeeming Florence. The David inspired hope for a brighter future. The David symbolized independence, and triumph over a giant by a small boy. The David was the greatest work of art ever achieved.

Now, five hundred years later, we have a similar banking crisis that has left much of the American economy in ruins. In the midst of this upheaval an entrepreneur, Stephen Ross, has been busy carving a statue in Century City. In this era of trillions of dollars, a single piece of property has elevated bedrock to a new height.

I have been writing about the impossible situation that The Century occupies: luxury condominiums at a time when real estate is sketchy. I have been saying that you should delay your purchase because you might get a better deal later. That was before architect, Phoebe Yee, gave me a tour of the property. What I expected to find was a builder that cut corners at a time when money supplies tightened and credit was frozen. I expected a building. What I discovered is a work of art. No expense was spared in creating the ultimate living experience.

I have been in every building in Century City. I have been on the roofs of several. There is a feel when you get up on the higher floors. Many of the buildings in Century City feel vibrations and swaying. The Century has a much different feel. It is as if somehow the architect and builder were able to rise up the bedrock to the top floors. It literally feels as if it is a statue carved out of solid marble.

Every detail has been anticipated to create the ultimate living experience. Balconies to entertain, separate entrances for services, layers of security built in, landscaping to provide an oasis feel in the midst of busy Century City, downstairs rooms for dinner parties, downstairs offices and maids quarters, guest suites for visitors, as well as all of the amenities you would expect like exercise facilities, valet parking, twenty-four hour security, and a dog park.

If there was an offering for a share of the statue of David there would, no doubt, be a flurry of bidding for this one of a kind work of art. I believe that The Century is so uniquely situated that there will never be a duplicate or an equal. The Westfield project on the corner of Avenue of the Stars, The JMB property on the corner of Constellation and Avenue of the Stars, the Century Plaza Hotel property, and the property at 10000 Santa Monica Boulevard will all be successful projects but the limited supply of units in The Century will always be thought of as a work of art.

Like all fine art, there is a limited supply. When I look at The Century now, I don’t see a building I see the statue of David that has classed up the Century City skyline. The David stands there and taunts the other developers that are working on their projects to “one up” it. The nature of development, that is usually handled by awarding contracts to the low cost bidder, will always keep this work of art above the others as clearly this was built in a manner where every element was seen as an opportunity to ascend at a time when conventional wisdom saw this as folly. Now this decadence and opulence taken to new heights serves to elevate humankind into a type of living that may never again be attained.

The big question has always been, if Candy Spelling is moving in and when. Now that I have experienced The Century, I no longer ask that question. I am confident that with all of the billionaires vying for a safe place to command their fortunes that The Century provides an unprecedented opportunity and very soon you might be wishing you had not waited to make your move.

When you look at the Century City skyline from now on, I would bet that you would see a daring gamble that was just like Michelangelo’s gamble five hundred years ago. Each of them took about three years to construct and each of them seemed foolish, given the times, but each of them are an inspiration to remind us that creativity attains new heights in some of the most challenging of times.

Stephen Ross, I was one who formerly threw rocks at the unveiled new statue in Century City, now I congratulate you on your vision in creating a tremendous work of art that I may never live in but I will always appreciate as a one of a kind legacy that will outlive us all.

FREE BLUE SHOT WITH A CHASE - ER

(This article originally appeared on August 10, 2010 in the Century City News)

by Michael Douglas Carlin

There is an arrogance in a bank that gets $25 billion dollars in TARP Funds and then spends $138 million to purchase two corporate jets and a hanger to house them. That arrogance starts at the top and can flow straight down to the branch manager. In fact, an incident inside the CHASE branch in Century City had a customer escorted out of the bank because he asked for change. The police were not called, no pepper spray was used and no arrests were made. But CHASE said to Sam Sharif, owner of Ummba Grill, we don’t want you here if you are going to be so demanding by asking our branch to keep a stock of five dollar bills around. The branch in the Palisades wants Sharif’s business and the business banker there has had a suitable relationship with Sharif for over six years going back to her time at Citi. Sam from Ummba isn’t the sort of man you would expect to be a trouble maker… in fact, Sam is one of the happiest people in Century City and Ummba has HAPPY HOUR all day on Monday and Tuesday and from 11-7 on Wednesday through Sunday. They offer half off all beers, well drinks and house wines and five dollar appetizers, five dollar specialty drinks, six dollar martinis, and twenty dollar specialty pitchers. Sam was so upset at being escorted out of the bank by security that he began a drink special at Ummba. For every customer that closes an account at CHASE he is offering a free blue shot with a “CHASEer”.


My blood boiled when we bailed out the banks and foreclosed on the little guy. Now that I have talked to the folks at CHASE in the media relations department who stood by the decision to throw Sam out of the bank it is bringing back the anger of the bail out. They are too big to fail. They no longer have to compete so having change for merchants isn’t a concern for CHASE anymore. They can’t lose. They don’t have to write loans. They don’t have to give customer service. Billions of dollars were given to them that they didn’t work for and that has led to this arrogance. I asked the Media Relations guy why they didn’t approach this straight up with Sam and call him up and ask him to take his money to another bank. He said, “We don’t want him to move his money. We just wanted him out of the bank.” That pretty much sums it up. They want our money but they no longer want us around. They no longer want to offer us the products we need. A merchant needs change and I wouldn’t blame Sam for being upset that his bank not only didn’t provide a tool he needed to run his business they refused to provide it and were incensed when he asked for it. The bank is appropriately named CHASE because they CHASE their customers away. It is time that we all stand up and toast Sam who had the audacity to ask for five dollar bills so that he could make change in his restaurant. It is time that we all stood toe to toe with Sam and didn’t wait for CHASE to CHASE us away. It is time that we voted with our dollars and moved all of our money, NATIONWIDE, out of the hands of arrogance and into banks that treat customers with respect and dignity.

They can continue to be arrogant as long as we support that arrogant behavior. I asked the media relations department to call Sam and work something out with him to make him happy because of his mistreatment. I told them that I didn’t want to write this story and that maybe they should offer him change for his restaurant whenever he needs it, or free checking for a year. But in the end all that happened is the two great managers at the Palisades Branch reached out to Sam on a personal level and told him that they stood by him for his loyal patronage and that there was nothing they could do.

Ummba Grill is an icon within Century City and is located at the Century City Mall. Pictured on the front cover is an amazing staff. It is the hip and happening place every summer as they have the best patio in West Los Angeles. Their patio is booked for events nightly and their success has led to large balances that are going to be moving to another bank, pronto. Those large balances are also leading to a second location at the best mall in Los Angeles – Santa Monica Place. This is the American Dream - two men who made good on their investment and won the hearts and stomachs of a finicky crowd to not just please but to exceed every expectation of their customers. Ummba Grill is the best Brazilian Restaurant North of the Border and people come back time and time again. I have held hundreds of events at Ummba and always had the best service from the staff and incredible food. When Abraham McDonald won the Oprah Winfrey Contest his celebration party was at Ummba Grill.

The time has come to focus all of that TARP anger on a single bank. So let’s satisfy that anger by voting with our dollars and pulling every last one of them out of CHASE. Let’s see how arrogant they are when all of their customers have left. If we focus this anger on a single bank, CHASE, we can send a signal to other banks that we are not to be mistreated when we ask for something a bank should provide in our business or in our life. We can send a message that America is a place where you must compete and provide products we need and customer service or we will CHASE you out of our country – that you are not too big to fail. Sam has offered a free shot with a CHASEer, what will other companies offer those that pull funds out of CHASE? Get on board!!!!

Sam is inviting all of Century City to come get a free blue shot with a CHASEer on Wednesday night the 18th of August beginning at 5pm. Come and show your support of Sam as a man who demanded that his bank provide him with change. Come slam your shot and then CHASE it down in support of Sam. Then tweet and retweet this information to all of your friends and families in America so that we can make a statement that banks shouldn’t be incensed when we ask for something we need.

Our Galaxy has 100 billion stars. The Universe has 400 billion galaxies. We can see all of this and have yet to identify a single planet that can sustain life as we enjoy it. We should therefore protect Mother Earth at all costs.

(This article was originally published on July 27th, 2010 in the Century City News)

THE LAST RESORT


Our Galaxy has 100 billion stars. The Universe has 400 billion galaxies. We can see all of this and have yet to identify a single planet that can sustain life as we enjoy it. We should therefore protect Mother Earth at all costs.

Truth exists. The more fully you align yourself with truth the better your life will be. Frustrations come from being out of harmony with truth.
Why Conservatives and Liberals should begin hugging their nearest tree.
I remember being a part of America as a kid and swept away with the newest hit on the airwaves. I must have been one of the first to buy the album, Hotel California. I played that album over and over on my record player. I was warned that I would damage the record but that didn’t stop me from listening to it again and again. I know I thought that I would just go down to the record store and buy another because I was living in the disposable era of America. I am quite sure that I was not alone in discovering what I thought was an obscure tune on the other side of the album called “The Last Resort”. I would sing that song, off key, for hours on end because I connected with the simple meaning.

“Who will provide the grand design?
What is yours and what is mine?
Cause there is no more new frontier
We have got to make it here.
We satisfy our endless needs and justify our bloody deeds.
In the name of yesterday and in the name of God.
And you can see them there on Sunday morning.
Stand up and sing about what its like up there.
They call it Paradise, I don’t know why.
Callin’ some place Paradise, kissing it goodbye.”

We, as Humanity, are obsessed with finding PARADISE. Milton’s Paradise Lost, the Bible’s Garden of Eden, Dante’s Inferno all talk about the qualities of PARADISE. There are many names for Paradise: Nirvana, Heaven,Elysian Fields,Tian, or Janna. There have been many great migrations throughout history looking for the greener grass… for Paradise. Columbus gave Europeans the “New World” where men and women could carve out their own personal Paradise. The Vikings migrated to the Mediterranean, Iceland and Greenland as well as the Continent of North America. Today finding our own Paradise has become a little more complicated. Nearly Seven Billion people occupy the planet and every single landmass has been identified and mapped. Today’s flight from our circumstances includes the dream of Space Travel to another Planet. The fact is that there is no place to go. Our neighboring planets are uninhabitable. Our moon is uninhabitable. The only home we know is Earth. The time is upon us as humanity to face this fact and to be careful about the choices we make to keep our home safe and comfortable. At least for the next five billion years.

WHEN I WAS YOUNG I BECAME A MORMON
Like the line from the song I was looking for the grand design. I was searching for answers. I was on a quest to find more. I found the message of the Mormons very interesting in my youth for a number of reasons.
I still have many friends and family in the Mormon Church and have no axe to grind. I still have many beliefs that are couched in Mormonism. Their eleventh article of faith is: “We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.” I would add to it a provision for the ever growing population of agnostics or atheists to not worship at all.

Star Trek was a popular television series at the time I joined Mormonism. Close Encounters, ET, Alien and Star Wars all created alternate space based realities that appealed to my sense of adventure. I was easily swept up in the belief that there were many planets to visit and that aliens were plentiful.

Mormons have as one of their core beliefs the promise of being good in this life results in a reward that would lead to the right to have your own planet and become a lesser God in charge to design and implement a plan for that planet. I have since thought that entire concept through and have no interest in that much responsibility. Additionally, if there are other planets out there to design we have yet to discover a single instance of a Mormon ruled planet.

A very good friend of mine was the production executive on “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”. He influenced me by letting me in on a secret that the researchers didn’t want to get out at the time the movie was released and that was that all of their research up to that time had led to the conclusion that there is nothing else out there. Since the release of the movie we have progressed so much. We created the Hubbell Telescope, other ground and space observatories, radio telescopes, sent numerous probes to the four corners of our solar system and we have recorded images millions of light years away. However, so far not a single planet has been discovered that is confirmed to be able to sustain life as we experience it.

THE GOLDILOCKS MISSION
Life is around us in many forms: Viruses, Bacteria, Micro Organisms, flora and fauna. Some life forms can exist in extreme conditions. The possibility that Alien Life Forms exist is highly probable. Stephen Hawkins has warned us that the best course of action with Alien Life Forms is to simply steer clear because of the threat they might pose to Humans if they are found to exist. Space is a gigantic place. The odds of us finding intelligent life before it finds us is rather slim. In the 50’s SETI was formed to find life on other planets. Just how many planets are they looking on?
Let’s look at some numbers. In our own galaxy there are 100 billion stars. In the part of the Universe that we can see there are another 400 billion galaxies. If we assume an average of 3 planets per star that becomes an unfathomable number of planets out in the Universe. Environments that can sustain human life are very rare, even on our own planet. Extreme conditions of floods, fires, earthquakes, volcanoes, tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, droughts, are known to take human life. Man made disaster also can destroy life.

We all remember the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Too hot or too cold, too hard or too soft, too big or too small were all countered with the solution that was just right. Our own planet is “just right”. If we were spinning significantly faster we would be too cold to sustain life, if the earth were spinning significantly slower we would be too hot during the day and too cold at night to sustain life. We are also just right when it come to distance from the Sun. A little more distance from the Sun and we would be too cold and a little more near the Sun and we would be too hot.
Water is another element necessary to sustain life. Too much water and there is no ability to sustain life, too little water and there also is no ability to sustain life. Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide are elements that sustain life, as are plants,nutrients, animals, and insects, microorganisms, viruses, bacteria, minerals and sunlight. Each element is important to the overall ecosystem.
“The Goldilocks Mission is the first dedicated organization to set, as its goal, the travel to and the colonization of another truly livable planet when it is discovered. This may take many decades before this mission leaves earth and possibly many more, depending on future developments and discoveries in propulsion in space and time travel, before it arrives at its new home.”
-Dr. Spencer Brown

Criteria for a sustainable planet:
1. A star in the same class as our sun or perhaps a red dwarf.
2. Dense planet like our Earth.
3. High metallic content.
4. Not too hot or too cold.
5. Enough water but not too much water.
6. Plate tectonics and geological activity.
7. Presence of Carbon Dioxide and Oxygen.
8. Absence of noxious gases or acids in concentrated amounts.
9. Absence of noxious bacteria.
10. Absence of noxious viruses.
11. Foundation for complex chemistry.

To further complicate the search for a place to go is the fact that even though we have developed the ability to get into Space we have no means to travel the, perhaps, hundreds of million light years away to get there. The myth that there is a place to go will elude us for thousands of years at best.

If we do find a place to go and we develop the means to get there we will have to wrestle with the moral issue of displacing other life forms to preserve our own existence.

TIME IS OUR MOST IMPORTANT COMMODITY
We have a home right now called Earth and time is ticking away.

EARTH DAY
There was a method to the madness of walking two Llamas from Mann’s Chinese Theater, in Hollywood to Century City. The entire endeavor was without any commercial interests. One day a year we have a day that honors our great home, Mother Earth. One day a year it is O.K. to have our motivations be about not profiting but giving back. Our goal was to honor Earth Day…not just any Earth Day but the 40th anniversary of a day dedicated to being grateful for a place to be. Our Home. Brett Stevens, Stuart Wilde and I walked with the Llamas and traffic stopped to photograph us in Los Angeles with these majestic animals.
I got a telephone call from my son when he saw the picture on the AP wire. He was mocking me for walking with the Llamas calling me the tree hugger that I am. I silenced him with a few words. We wanted to send a message that people could walk more and drive less. Emits less exhaust, saves precious oil, costs less, takes traffic off the road and burns calories – I don’t see anything here you are against. In fact I don’t see anything here anybody is against. Everybody I know of all political persuasions wants a clean environment. No one wants one industry to cause other industries to perish due to pollution. In fact, all of us want people to take responsibility for their own actions – good or bad.

An environmental disaster caused thousands of birds to perish. The oil spill widened being carried by winds and swells. Seals and dolphins were washing up on shore dead with oil clogging the blowholes of the dolphins leading to a painful and horrific lung hemorrhaging. The BP spill you ask? No, this was the oil spill of 1969 which was the impetus to getting momentum behind the very first Earth Day. Said Fred L. Hartley, President of Union Oil Company: “I don’t like to call it a disaster, because there has been no loss of human life. I am amazed at the publicity for the loss of a few birds.”

Forty years later we have coinciding with the celebration of Earth Day another major environmental disaster that threatens the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. The oil will virtually kill the fishing industry in the area and the toll to bird wildlife will be catastrophic. There was the loss of life in this disaster and Tony Hayward said to the Guardian Newspaper, “The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean: The amount of volume of oil and dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume.” If we don’t hold them accountable they try to minimize the effect and skip responsibility.

Now is the time for all Americans to come together to prevent disasters of this magnitude. In Los Angeles we have representatives from every single country in the world. The most diverse population that has ever existed resides within our city limits. We have the ability to turn 2011 into the biggest Earth Day ever to march from downtown Los Angeles to the Santa Monica Pier with our Llamas in tow to create an International Earth Day where men and women from all cultures, political affiliations, religions, and walks of life celebrate our home on Earth without any commercialization of the event. After the successful march we could have the participants reach back to their homelands to encourage participation from every recognized nation on the globe.

Senator Gaylord Nelson created the first Earth Day. We congratulate him on this accomplishment. We can make the day much more meaningful by following in his footsteps. We can use our own footsteps to honor the only home we have ever known and the only home that we can see with our monster telescopes that can sustain life as we know it.

Thomas Storke spoke after the Santa Barbara Spill, “Never in my long lifetime have I ever seen such an aroused populace at the grassroots level. This oil pollution has done something I have never seen before in Santa Barbara – it has united citizens of all political persuasions in a truly nonpartisan cause.”

We can give meaning to the loss of life – flora and fauna by coming together on April 22, every year and honoring our home – Mother Earth. Who will march with us on this Earth Day? We are making plans to celebrate Earth Day in 2011 with another Llama Walk and we invite all to join us.

© 2010 Michael Douglas Carlin. All Rights Reserved.

Llama Walk on Earth Day

(This article originally appeared in the May 10th, 2010 edition of the Century City News)

by Michael Douglas Carlin

So many of you have called, written or emailed asking about the Llama Photos on Earth Day. There was a method to the madness of walking two Llamas from Mann’s Chinese Theater to Century City. The entire endeavor was not commercially motivated. One day a year we should have a day that honors our great home, Mother Earth. One day a year it is O.K. to have our motivations be about not profiting but giving back. Our goal was to honor Earth Day…not just any Earth Day but the 40th anniversary of a day dedicated to being grateful for a place to be. Our Home.

I got a telephone call from my son when he saw the picture on the AP wire. He was mocking me for walking with the Llamas calling me the tree hugger that I am. I silenced him with a few words. We wanted to send a message that people could walk more and drive less. Emits less exhaust, saves precious oil, costs less, takes traffic off the road and burns calories – I don’t see anything here you are against. In fact I don’t see anything here anybody is against. Everybody I know of all political persuasions wants a clean environment. No one wants one industry to cause other industries to perish due to pollution. In fact, all of us want people to take responsibility for their own actions – good or bad.

An environmental disaster caused thousands of birds to perish. The oil spill widened being carried by winds and swells. Seals and dolphins were washing up on shore dead with oil clogging the blowholes of the dolphins leading to a painful and horrific lung hemorrhaging. The BP spill you ask? No, this was the oil spill of 1969 which was the impetus to getting momentum behind the very first Earth Day. Said Fred L. Hartley, President of Union Oil Company: “I don’t like to call it a disaster, because there has been no loss of human life. I am amazed at the publicity for the loss of a few birds.”

Forty years later we have coinciding with the celebration of Earth Day another major environmental disaster that threatens the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. The oil will virtually kill the fishing industry in the area and the toll to bird wildlife will be catastrophic. There was the loss of life in this disaster and Tony Hayward said to the Guardian Newspaper, “The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean: The amount of volume of oil and dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume.” If we don’t hold them accountable they try to minimize the effect and skip responsibility.

Now is the time for all Americans to come together to prevent disasters of this magnitude. In Los Angeles we have representatives from every single country in the world. The most diverse population that has ever existed resides within our city limits. We have the ability to turn 2011 into the biggest Earth Day ever to march from downtown Los Angeles to the Santa Monica Pier with our Llamas in tow to create an International Earth Day where men and women from all cultures, political affiliations, religions, and walks of life celebrate our home on Earth without any commercialization of the event. After the successful march we could have the participants reach back to their homelands to encourage participation from every recognized nation on the globe.

Senator Gaylord Nelson created the first Earth Day. We congratulate him on this accomplishment. We can make the day much more meaningful by following in his footsteps. We can use our own footsteps to honor the only home we have ever known and the only home that we can see with our monster telescopes that can sustain life as we know it.

Thomas Storke spoke after the Santa Barbara Spill, “Never in my long lifetime have I ever seen such an aroused populace at the grassroots level. This oil pollution has done something I have never seen before in Santa Barbara – it has united citizens of all political persuasions in a truly nonpartisan cause.”

We can give meaning to the loss of life – flora and fauna by coming together on April 22, 2011.

Jeff Garrison is Fiscally Green®

(This article originally appeared in the August 25th, 2009 in the Century City News)

Stonefield Josephson’s President Promotes His Firm as:
“Accountants for Your Green World”

Is accountant and Stonefield Josephson President Jeff Garrison more plugged in to his solar panel than his calculator? Does he prefer a carbon footprint analysis to an audit analysis? Is Garrison, in fact, the green accountant ambassador? While the White House appointment has yet to materialize, it is clear that Garrison’s interest and activities in eco-friendly arenas beyond spreadsheets is altering the geeky, numbers-obsessed image of the accountant, while doing something good for the environment.

“I’ve never worn a pocket protector,” he says. Instead, Garrison, who has led the Los Angeles-based full-service accounting firm Stonefield Josephson since 2002, prefers to spend quality time with his kids and run on the beach with his dog. You can see him doing so in an advertising campaign to show the firm’s personality. “Accountants aren’t dorks,” says Garrison.

To prove it, the company maintains a “Back Porch” section on its website (www.sjaccounting.com) to showcase the private passions of its CPAs, which range from art collecting to surfing to cooking. On the site, CPAs offer recipes for paella, chicken tarragon, and other favorite dishes, and Garrison himself suggests wine pairings. Exposing the firm’s soft side helped it reach its annual revenue, says Garrison, as well as attract clients from successful rock acts and the hippest clothing venues to numerous “green” companies.

“Green business has moved rapidly from the periphery to the mainstream,” Garrison states. “It now holds promise for businesses of every size in every sector. There is, in fact, a growing trend in which more and more people are deciding whether or not they use a company based on its environmental orientation. I believe that if companies don’t alter their habits to fit in with the changing viewpoint of the population, they will soon be left behind by their quicker, smarter rivals. Being more environmentally friendly makes great business sense in many ways.”

Stonefield Josephson takes its commitment to the preservation and restoration of the planet seriously. Its sustainability practice, termed Fiscally Green®, and under Garrison’s leadership, is working to implement sustainability techniques and promote environmental responsibility within both home and office. It is introducing eco-friendly business practices and developing strong business alliances with like-minded companies that share the firm’s passion for protecting the environment and promoting responsible ecological practices that benefit the commercial sector and the community at large.

By reducing waste, developing energy conservation efforts and facilitating community outreach programs, Stonefield Josephson is committing to sustainability as a path to creating business value. Employee engagement in sustainability is an essential component of Stonefield Josephson’s green initiative – one that creates an energized and passionate team environment. “Encouraging our employees to reduce their carbon footprint, and guiding them in how to do so, is just one of the ways we’re making that happen,” notes Garrison. “Stonefield Josephson is proud to be one of the first accounting firms to embrace sustainable practices and become responsible stewards of the environment.”

“Green is a path for creating significant, durable business value,” states Garrison. “Green represents a way of seeing our business and the challenges it faces through a new lens that can bring exciting new opportunities for us into focus. Green business offers opportunities to put money back in the pockets of owners, shareholders and employees by cutting wasteful spending on excessive resource use. We are sold on green’s triple bottom line (TBL) of economic, environmental and social benefit – not just for our clients, but also for ourselves.”

While Garrison is all for the warm, fuzzy aspects of the sustainability movement, his level of expertise runs deeper and continues to deepen and evolve over time. He explains, “Fiscally Green® is dealing regularly with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, with emphasis on: Title IV: Energy and Water Development, IRS codes, and U.S. Treasury grants. If all these green opportunities don’t create a warm, green feeling in business owners’ hearts, they will most certainly create a warm, green feeling in their wallets.”

Garrison concludes, “Embracing a greener lifestyle isn’t just about helping to preserve equatorial rain forests, it can also mean improving your health, padding your bank account, and, ultimately, improving your overall quality of life. Bottom line for our firm -- green business is smart business. Going green provides cost savings as well as a competitive advantage in the marketplace.”


For more information or questions about Fiscally Green® or Stonefield Josephson, please contact Jeff Garrison, President, at 310.432.7456 or jgarrison@sjaccounting.com.
Stonefield Josephson, Inc.
2049 Century Park East
Suite 400
Los Angeles, CA 90067

JMB LEADS IN SUSTAINABILITY

(This article appeared in the May 14th, 2012 edition of the Century City News)

JMB THE PILLAR OF THE COMMUNITY

By Michael Douglas Carlin

Those are pretty heavy words – “The Pillar.” In the case of JMB these words have never been more fitting. Their position in the community has been earned over a lifetime of doing the right things for Century City, Los Angeles, California, America and now Mother Earth. On numerous occasions they have transformed patches of dirt into architectural works of art. They have earned a reputation of improving society every time they embark on a venture. They have risked billions of dollars and been tenacious to unveil skyline transformations that rewarded the risk handsomely. Each of their Century City investments improves the revenue of the City of Los Angeles, adds upscale office space, and converts a patch of dirt to the highest possible use.

No wonder politicians flock to them, investors court them, top managers vie for positions in their company, and vendors struggle to get their attention. JMB has roots to almost every single building within Century City. They have placed their mark indelibly upon the landscape of what has become the financial capital of the West Coast. The entire time they have been working hard to bring the dream of Century City to fruition it has been an uphill battle. Yet JMB has always found a way to win. They worked with local neighborhood groups on the details of every project to design and fully integrate their buildings into the fabric of the community.

But what would we expect from the pillar of the community? The have brought tax revenues, created jobs, added value, put capital to good use, and provided an increased quality of life for so many people. But there is so much more that JMB has done as the pillar of the community. For years they maintained the common areas within Century City at a substantial cost that will never be repaid. Now they are leading the way through their sustainability initiatives. Constellation Place was the first building in Los Angeles to become LEED EB Certified and in 2010 they attained LEED EB Gold Certification. They installed solar panels on the rooftops of two parking structures that reduce daytime demand of energy by 29%. And recently they have installed Bloom Fuel Cell Power Generators that power 33% of the building’s power demand and reduced emissions by 30%.

When we look at what is wrong with America let’s put it into context of what is right with America. Hardworking people continue to improve patches of dirt into their highest uses. They get well paid for being risk-takers. We need to celebrate their accomplishments and encourage more of this sort of activity to get America back on track. Perhaps Judd Malkin, Jody Talintino, Vallery Hall, and Sarah Shaw are interested in running for a higher office… perhaps their plan for a better tomorrow is a good one and we should all get out of the way and let them continue doing what they have proven they can do… to perfection.

JMB Installs First of its Kind Bloom Energy Fuel Cell Servers in Los Angeles to help reduce carbon footprint by nearly 30 percent in its Constellation Place Office Building

JMB Realty announced the reduction of Constellation Place’s carbon footprint by nearly 30 percent through the installation of Bloom Energy ServersTM. The state of the art fuel cell power generators will produce 400 kW of power and supply approximately one-third of the building’s electrical demand.

“JMB is excited to be Bloom Energy’s first high-rise, class A office installation. As the first of its kind in Los Angeles, Constellation Place continues to set a precedent in its ongoing commitment to green technology and reducing its carbon footprint,” said Sarah Shaw, Vice President Development and Operations for Constellation Place. “These servers, combined with the existing photovoltaic system, enable JMB to offer its tenants a greener office environment while generating significant savings.

Bloom Servers, adapted from NASA technology, each occupy a space equivalent to the size of an average parking space and contain thousands of Bloom fuel cells - flat, solid ceramic squares made from a sand-like powder- which convert air and natural gas into electricity via a clean electrochemical process, while reducing carbon emissions.

Bloom Energy is a Distributed Generation (DG) solution that is clean, reliable and affordable all at the same time. Bloom’s Energy Servers can produce clean energy 24 hours per day, 365 days per year, delivering faster payback and greater environmental benefits. And while other DG systems may require lengthy installations, sunny locations, or demand for consistent heat load, Bloom Energy systems are easy and fast to install, practically anywhere. “JMB is demonstrating that building owners and operators can create value from clean and reliable sources of energy,” said Bill Thayer, Executive Vice President Sales and Service at Bloom Energy. “Serving its tenants and its own environmental goals affordably makes this a perfect project for Bloom Energy. We are proud to work with a leader like JMB.”


With this energy-producing initiative, JMB Realty joins an elite list of Fortune 500 Bloom Energy customers including E-Bay, Fed-Ex, Google, Staples and Walmart.

About Constellation Place

Located in the heart of Century City on Constellation Boulevard, Constellation Place was built by an affiliate of Chicago-based developer, JMB Realty Corp. In June 2008, Constellation Place became the first high rise office building in Los Angeles to receive the USGBC LEED® Silver certification in the existing building category. Constellation Place has since gone through the recertification process and achieved LEED® Gold Certification.

Eco-Warrior Leads Assault On Climate Change

(This article appeared in the January 24th, 2012 edition of the Century City News)

By Michael Douglas Carlin


Ask David Nahai about the state of affairs in America and he thunders back, “Congress needs to get its act together.” He is referring to the gridlock that paralyzes our political system and he is referring to the uncertainty of Congress ignoring important issues that need solutions now. David Nahai is the foremost authority on the two problems that are facing humanity and he hails from Century City. Where humanity will get energy and water are daunting challenges that face us for our future. David is optimistic that solutions are available but we need to make many changes in how we live. “There is a tremendous interplay between water and energy, 20% of California’s energy is spent to pump water from one place to another.” Clearly the cheapest and cleanest energy unit comes from the energy unit that isn’t used. Changing how we get our water could provide us with significant savings on the energy frontier. David is an expert in the field of water and energy and he talks fluidly about both sides of the equation – production and consumption. Clearly he knows how to preserve every drop of our precious resources… but he also has a vision for how humanity will conquer the daunting challenges that face us.

He encourages small businesses and individuals to make changes now that are voluntary warning that down the road those changes may become obligatory. David proudly wears the monikers of environmentalist and entrepreneur. He tells everyone that going green is a double entendre – meaning that you reduce humanity’s carbon footprint while at the same time making money. The green rush in California is fueling our economy. The green rush is our future.

He speaks candidly about DWP’s challenges that lay ahead. Coal will soon be eliminated as an energy source and DWP is working hard to transition to cleaner sources of energy. David refers to the DWP website for a wealth of information about rebates and incentives for going green. This information is a great resource to make more money or to shave the costs of any household or business. He is quick to point out the green initiatives at Watt Plaza where he offices. Watt has been one of the early adopters of green technology to conserve water, recycle, and reduce their carbon footprint.

With Los Angeles being the tipping point of the world on the green frontier, we in Century City might just be the tipping point of the tipping point. David is available as a lawyer and consultant. He speaks regularly at green conferences worldwide. For more information about David go to
www.davidnahai.com

Biography

H. David Nahai has an extensive record of success in both the private and public sectors, as a lawyer, CEO, government official, environmentalist, business owner and community leader.

Nahai is a partner in the law firm of Lewis, Brisbois, Bisgaard & Smith and is a co-chair of the Firm’s national energy, environmental, water, and real estate practice. Nahai is also the President of David Nahai Consulting Services, LLC and is Senior Advisor to the Clinton Climate Initiative.

David Nahai Consulting Services advises and assists public and private entities involved in the environmental sector, with particular emphasis on renewable energy, energy efficiency, water conservation and wastewater treatment and recycling projects.

The Clinton Climate Initiative is a division of the Clinton Foundation. The mission of the Clinton Climate Initiative is to bring about the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale through specific project partnerships with governments around the world.

Until October, 2009, Nahai served as the Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the largest municipal utility in the United States. In this capacity, Nahai oversaw more than 9,000 employees and an annual budget of more than $4.5 billion. Nahai resigned as CEO in October, 2009, but served as consultant to LADWP until December 2009.

Nahai was nominated as LADWP’s CEO by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and confirmed by the City Council in 2007. He served for two years on the LADWP Board of Commissioners prior to becoming CEO. He was appointed to the Board in 2005 and became Board President in 2006.
Nahai led an overall transformation of the LADWP that included the unprecedented expansion of the utility’s renewable energy portfolio; the origination and execution of the City’s groundbreaking Water Supply Plan; the attainment of historic reductions in water consumption in the City; the realization of record breaking energy efficiency levels; and the launch and implementation of water and power infrastructure improvement programs. Under his leadership, the LADWP increased its renewable energy portfolio from 3 percent in 2005 to around 15 percent by the end of 2009, and achieved the completion of Pine Tree, the nation’s largest municipally owned wind farm, and the Lower Owens River Project, viewed as the most extensive river restoration program in the United States. Additionally, Nahai oversaw the creation of the Los Angeles Solar Plan, the most ambitious solar program of any municipal utility in the U.S. Under Nahai’s leadership, LADWP garnered numerous environmental awards, including the 2008 Climate Change Leadership Award from Green California and the 2009 Los Angeles Heritage Award from Project Restore.
In addition to his expertise in the energy field, Nahai is widely recognized as a leading expert on water issues. He served for over 10 years on California’s Regional Water Quality Control Board, which safeguards the quality of surface, ground, and coastal waters in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, an area with over 11 million residents.

At the Water Quality Board, Nahai served under three different Governors. He was first appointed by Governor Pete Wilson, and re-appointed by both Governor Gray Davis and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Nahai was elected to an unprecedented four terms as Chairman of the Board in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2006.

Nahai is credited with reinvigorating the effectiveness of the Water Board and spearheading some of its most aggressive programs, especially in the area of coastal protection. During Nahai’s tenure, the Board was awarded the Environmental Leadership Award by Keep California Beautiful, in appreciation of the Board’s pioneering work in the area of urban run-off pollution. The Water Board’s prestigious annual awards have been named the “H. David Nahai Water Quality Awards” in recognition of his service. He resigned from the Board in 2007, upon accepting the CEO position at LADWP.

Nahai began his career in the private sector as an attorney three decades ago, working at some of the United States’ largest and most respected law firms. He started at Loeb & Loeb and was a partner at Memel, Jacobs, Pierno, Gersh & Ellsworth, at Finley, Kumble et al and at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan. In 1992, Nahai formed Nahai Law Corporation, specializing in real estate, corporate, environmental and commercial law. He divested his interest in the firm in 2007.

As a transactional real estate and environmental lawyer for 30 years, Nahai has represented clients and performed transactions at the highest levels, working on complex matters and supervising teams of attorneys. Nahai is an AV rated lawyer.

Nahai has been the recipient of numerous awards and commendations. In 2003, he received the Environmental Champion Award from the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters. In 2008, he was honored as an environmental leader by Heal the Bay. He has been twice honored for community leadership.

Nahai sits on the Boards of the California League of Conservation Voters and Heal the Bay, and has served on the Boards of numerous charities, including the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, the Iranian American Jewish Federation, and the Jewish Community Foundation.

Nahai holds graduate and post-graduate degrees in law from the London School of Economics and the University of California at Berkeley, and was a Visiting Scholar at Berkeley.

Nahai is a frequent speaker and radio and television guest regarding environmental, climate change, water, and energy issues.

Garcetti To Lead L.A.’s Upswing

(This article originally appeared in the May 28th, 2013 edition of the Century City News)

By Michael Douglas Carlin

This was perhaps the best election in the history of Los Angeles because we had two very capable politicians. We typically feel compromised with the “lesser of two evils” choice. We typically have no good candidate and must decide who will harm us less as the criteria for selection. I have felt this for years during almost every election at the local, state and federal levels.

But we all know both Wendy and Eric from their many visits to Century City over the years. We have grown to respect them both as public servants and we know that they both love this city. Many people were in a quandary about which of them to back for mayor. I remained officially neutral during the primary even though I was personally leaning toward Eric.

There we were with two weeks to go and the most recent poll was that Wendy was up by one point. The previous polls had showed Eric up by seven points. Wendy announced that Eric’s election campaign was “in free-fall.” It looked grim at that moment for his chances of winning. Wendy was being declared the winner without a single vote having been certified.

That is when I actually decided to not just support Eric but to volunteer my time. Both would be good for Los Angeles but I knew that one of them would be better. I reckoned that Eric had not received the support of the unions largely because he had stared them down during tough negotiations. That for me was the deciding factor. Eric will do it with poise and a smile on his face but he is going to be able to renegotiate with special interests -- all special interests -- including unions to get our budget back on track. Eric was the clear choice for mayor and the perception was that his campaign was crumbling.

But Eric wasn’t nervous -- at least he wasn’t showing it. I got invited to four Eric Garcetti events in a single week. He was out campaigning and raising money. When big endorsements like Bill Clinton and Barbara Boxer were coming to Wendy, Eric was connecting with the people. When big money was pouring into the Greuel Campaign, Eric was going to dinners, lunches, and breakfasts to raise a little money at each. He was on the phone making calls and he was texting. He was personally answering his emails. He was working non-stop to turn the momentum his way.

One political analyst told me that Wendy would have the edge in voter turnout because the unions have a machine to get out the vote. Polls showing her losing by a couple of points would easily be made up by voter turnout. But Eric had a machine of his own. I volunteered on the Saturday before Election Day in Sylmar at a motion picture catering company to make calls to get out the vote. We worked in a boiler room calling from printed sheets of registered voters. We were canvassing Los Angeles to ask voters to turn out on Election Day. I found out later that this was just one of many rooms making calls.

Eric had assembled his machine to turn out the vote. I arrived in Studio City at 9am on Election Day to make more calls. We worked until about three in the afternoon but some were planning to stay on the phones until 8pm. Each of us probably only made a few hundred calls. But when you multiply that by the number of volunteers across the city I am certain that this had an impact. Was it a game changer? We will never know.

Later that election day we arrived at the Hollywood Palladium and early returns had Wendy up by almost two points. There were lots of nervous stares in that room but as the evening wore on Wendy’s lead was in free-fall. Eric went on to win the election. He is the right person for the job and he has a vision for Los Angeles that is good for the people of this city. As Dan Schnur, Director of the USC Institute of Politics, pointed out Eric Garcetti gets to sit across the table from the unions clear of any debts- he gets to say, “Not only did you not support me but you pulled out all the stops to oppose me so we sit here today with me owing you nothing. We can work out a deal now or wait for Richard Riordan’s Ballot Initiative for Pension Reform that could be much less favorable.”

That is the mayor we need right now in Los Angeles. Los Angeles is headed for an upswing and Mayor Garcetti will lead the way. We can all work with him to bring his vision from words into deeds – from theory to reality. We can all get on board the Eric Garcetti train to a more prosperous, human rights respecting, cleaner, greener, smarter self-sufficient Los Angeles. He needs us all to get on board. There is money to be made and a legacy to honor as well as a city that constantly reinvents itself for the better.

July 1st we can all sleep well knowing that Mayor Eric Garcetti is on the job.

Citizen of the Year

(This article originally appeared in the May 13th, 2013 edition of the Century City News)

by Michael Douglas Carlin

A year and a half I have sat next to Carl Schlossberg who has recently been named Citizen of the Year by the Century City Chamber of Commerce. I have sat next to him at the Art Council and the Sculpture Committee meetings and I have been his student. I have listened to his eloquent talks about the importance of art. I have learned to appreciate so much more the expressions of artists that enrich our lives. I was there that very first day when he presented his vision for the very first curated public art show along Avenue of the Stars. He bridged the gap for all of us newbies to public art by showing us how it would look. He spoon fed us until his vision became our vision. He spoon fed the building managers, city officials, board of the Chamber, sponsors, landscaping experts, building inspectors, and publicity people. We all had the experience of a lifetime as we walked the project through from inception to fruition. We all learned from his skilled hand and benefitted from knowledge he spent his lifetime acquiring.

We grew from the experience. We were all touched by his passion for the arts. We all borrowed his tremendous stature in the world of art and it is time to recognize the heft he has brought to Century City to match the heft that is all around us within this “one of a kind” community.

The previous Citizens of the Year have all been worthy recipients but honoring Carl Schlossberg has a special sweetness as he has giving us the gift of art to appreciate in Century City.

2013 CENTURY CITY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
CITIZEN OF THE YEAR EVENT HONORS
CARL SCHLOSBERG AND
ROBINS, KAPLAN, MILLER & CIRESI L.L.P.


The Century City Chamber of Commerce announced its Citizen of the Year honorees for 2013: Carl Schlosberg, Fine Arts Dealer and Curator, and Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P, a litigation-focused law firm that has gained national recognition for its pro bono representations. An awards luncheon will take place at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza on Thursday, May 23, 2013. For more than 30 years, the Century City Chamber of Commerce has selected an individual and company who exemplify excellence in corporate and community relations to bestow its highest civic recognition award, Citizen of the Year. Keynote Speaker, Dan Schnur, Director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC, will address the audience at this annual event that attracts more than 200 civic leaders and business professionals from the greater Los Angeles area. As an expert in political strategy, campaign communication and government reform, Dan will share insight on the race results for Los Angeles’ Mayor, City Controller and City Attorney, which are held two days prior to the awards luncheon.

Carl Schlosberg, the 2013 Individual Citizen of the Year, has been a fine arts dealer for more than 40 years. He has exhibited sculpture in the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills to the fields and parks of Malibu. Carl’s most recent project was as curator of the one-mile outdoor exhibition, “Gwynn Murrill on Avenue of the Stars.”

Carl has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles magazine, Daily News and other notable publications. Carl has been Chairman of the Sculpture Garden Committee of the University of Judaism; has led private tours of major sculpture gardens in the Northeast; and is a founder of the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and the Skirball Cultural Center. He currently chairs the Sculpture Committee of the Century City Chamber of Commerce Arts Council.


The 2013 Corporate Citizen of the Year, Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P., is a litigation firm with clients from Fortune 500 corporations and emerging markets to entrepreneurs and individuals as both plaintiffs and defendants. The firm, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary and has more than 240 lawyers located in Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York and Naples, FL, has long been recognized for its pro bono work.

Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P. has received The National Law Journal’s 2011 Pro Bono Award and was selected as a Pro Bono Firm of 2010 by Law360. The American Lawyer ranked the firm eighth in the country in the 2011 Pro Bono Survey, and twice named the firm to the A-List (2007 and 2004). The firm has also regularly received a top ranking for litigation from Chambers USA and was chosen as a “Go-To Law Firm” by Corporate Counsel. Its Century City office is comprised of approximately 40 attorneys and is the recipient of the Citizen of the Year award.

“We are thrilled to name Carl Schlosberg and Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi as our Individual and Corporate Citizens of the Year,” says Susan Bursk, President and CEO of the Century City Chamber of Commerce. “They are dedicated to serving the needs of those in the local community and beyond, making them very deserving of the award.”

Sponsors include Century Park, Watt Plaza, Fox Studios, Williams Data Management, Westfield, The Plaza, Constellation Place, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, L.L.P., and Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P. The 2013 Citizen of the Year Awards Luncheon begins at 11:30 a.m. To reserve your seat or company table, please visit the Chamber’s website at: www.centurycitycc.com or call the office at 310-553-2222.

The Century City Chamber of Commerce is a vibrant and dynamic organization, and one of Los Angeles’ most active, involved and relationship-driven chambers. The Chamber places special emphasis on its members working together through its councils to build better relationships and create effective programs and events that help businesses expand their reach into the marketplace. For more information on the Chamber, visit our website or contact our office.

Worldwide Board President of Legal Administrators Keynoted Leadership Luncheon

(This article was published in the Century City News on April 17, 2012)

Legal Volunteer of the Year Awards - April 10

The International Board President of the Association of Legal Administrators presented the Volunteer of the Year award to Luci Hamilton, Director of Administration and Finance at Karlin & Peebles in Beverly Hills, at the Leadership Luncheon hosted by the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators (GLA ALA) on April 10, 2012 from 11:30-1:30 at the Omni Hotel located at 251 South Olive Street in downtown Los Angeles.

Keynoting the luncheon was Karen Griggs, CLM, the National President of the Association of Legal Administrators, an organization with over 10,000 members worldwide. Griggs is the Executive Director of Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice, L.L.C., in Kansas City, Missouri, named as a 2012 “Go-To Law Firm.”

As Volunteer of the Year award recipient, Hamilton is recognized for her work with GLA including her life-changing “Members-In-Transition” program chaired by Hamilton. Hamilton held educational and inspiring gatherings for administrators looking for work and for anyone who believes that we all are in transition as we grow as professionals and leaders. Dedicated to the pursuit of continuing education, Hamilton tirelessly shares her knowledge and expertise for those seeking the ALA service mark of a Certified Legal Manager or CLM. Hamilton attended almost all of the CLM classes, teaching several herself. Hamilton was GLA ALA’s 2004-2005 Board President and additionally volunteers in local and national organizations including Pasadena City College, the Veterans’ Affairs Department, the “Women at Work” high school outreach programs and UN Women – The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women.
Shaun Morrison, of Glendora, Office Administrator for Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP in Century City, was installed as the 2012 GLA ALA President. Says Morrison of her new role, “GLA has inspired excellence in our profession and I am proud to be President of this compelling organization.”

Cost of the luncheon was $30 for members, $35 for non-members. Event question contact Terri Oppelt, toppelt@strook.com.

For more information, contact:
Shaun Morrison - smorrison@allenmatkins.com - 310-788-2400
Luci Hamilton - lhamilton@karlinpeebles.com - 323-648-4645

ABOUT GLA ALA: The Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators (GLA ALA) is a 350-person nonprofit membership organization that provides opportunities for educational enrichment, professional and personal development, community service, and the exchange of information to improve the quality and professionalism of management in legal services organizations. www.glaala.org

ABOUT KAREN GRIGGS, CLM: Karen Griggs, CLM, is the Executive Director of Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice, L.L.C. in Kansas City, Missouri and the 2012-2013 Association of Legal Administrators National President. Griggs has been a member of ALA since 1984.

ABOUT SHAUN MORRISON: Shaun Morrison is the incoming Board President of GLA ALA. Morrison serves as the Office Administrator for Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP in Century City.

GLA ALA 2012 President Shaun Morrison, Office Administrator for Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP in Century City, with keynote speaker and the National President of the Association of Legal Administrators, Karen Griggs, CLM, and GLA ALA 2011 Past President Jean Jewell, CLM, Administrator of Kelley Drye/White O’Connor, at the Leadership Luncheon hosted by the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators (GLA ALA) on April 10, 2012 at the Omni Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. During the event, Luci Hamilton was presented with the Volunteer of the Year award and Shaun Morrison was installed as the 2012 GLA ALA President. Photo by Jess Block

Century City Real Estate Report

(This article was published in the Century City News on April 17, 2012)

By Bess Hochman

Positive Signs Of Real Estate Recovery On Luxury L.A. Westside

Recently sales from the beach to Bel-Air and Beverly Hills have been seeing a resurgence of activity not seen on the Westside since the height of the real estate bubble five years ago. Some attribute that to the stock market rebound and lower prices attracting the high end buyer. We are even seeing multiple offers!

Case in point, a 5 bedroom post and beam residence in Beverly Hills designed by A. Quincy Jones asking about 6.5 Million Dollars stimulated several offers last month. It was reported to be under contract at over the asking price going out at 6.625 Million Dollars. Real Estate agents from Brentwood, Bel Air, Beverly Hills and the Pacific Palisades are all reporting movement on the high end in their neighborhoods.

Another optimistic sign is houses are on the market for a shorter period of time before selling according to Realtor.com. It reported the median number of days a Westside home sat on the market about a year ago was 115 days compared with only 88 days now. The numbers reflect a 23% decline year over year in the number of days on the market before a home goes under contract.

More signs of a real estate recovery are reflected in reports and comments made by respected real estate tracking services in the last couple of weeks. These reports include studies concerning rent increases, housing affordability and foreclosure rates.

USC’s Lust Center for Real Estate expects rents in Los Angeles will rise by about 8% in 2012 with total growth of 9.6% by the end of 2013. This is more evidence that we are in a real estate upswing. While this is not good news for renters, it is a good incentive to buyers of investment properties. The rise in rents in Los Angeles, Orange County and other areas of Southern Californian reflect a national trend in the apartment sector.

The fact that housing affordability is at its highest level ever is another positive for the market says mortgage tracker CoreLogic. In spite of concern about another wave of foreclosures, Realty Trac which tracks foreclosures, reports foreclosure activity during the first 3 months of the year hit its lowest quarterly total since the last quarter of 2007. While foreclosure activity remains high by historical levels, it is lower than the peak levels over the last few years.

According to Realtor.com data showing the Westside median list price down about 5% from a year ago, reduced prices are attracting more interest. With high end sales on the rise, buyers are no longer assured that the house they saw on the market last week will still be available a few weeks later. Keep in mind the high end market is not reflective of all price spectrums so be sure to consult a real estate expert in your area to provide you with current information about sale trends in your neighborhood.

To find Luxury homes and condos, including short pays and foreclosures in your area or for a free consultation, contact Bess at 310.291.4111. Bess Hochman is a Real Estate Broker & top producer for more than 15 years. Bess is also distinguished by holding a law degree. Her high-end clientele include celebrities, attorneys, and other professionals that understand the value of a real estate broker with legal expertise and experience. A native of Beverly Hills, Bess credits her success to repeat referrals by her satisfied clients.

Contact Bess:310.291.4111.E-mail: Bess.CenturyCityNews@yahoo.com
* The sources of information may or may not have been based on information from the combined /Westside Multiple Listing Service as of 4-13-12. Some listings may not be available as of publication.
c. 2012 Bess Hochman
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“Bess is a master negotiator!” says Michael Donaldson, attorney & author of Negotiating For Dummies

Supreme Court decision in Brinker v. Superior Court provides clarity to employees and employers, will reduce costly litigation

(This article was published in the Century City News on April 17, 2012)

In a unanimous ruling, the California Supreme Court determined in Brinker Restaurant v. Superior Court that employers are “not obligated to police meal breaks and ensure no work thereafter is performed.” Among other issues, the court finally answered the question of what it means to “provide” a meal break. The court’s opinion stated that an employer satisfies this obligation if it relieves its employees of all duties, relinquishes control over their activities and permits them a reasonable opportunity to take an uninterrupted 30-minute break and does not impede or discourage them from doing so.

“We commend Brinker for seeing this case through the judicial process to an end that will benefit employers from countless industries,” California Restaurant Association President + CEO Jot Condie said. “Employers have spent millions fighting and settling frivolous lawsuits on these issues and now have some clarity on how to move forward in compliance with the law.”

The court ruled that employers aren’t required to ensure that no work is done during a meal or rest period. The ruling provides much-needed clarity and relief to operators on an issue that has plagued the California courts with countless lawsuits that have been a significant source of costly class-action litigation for numerous industries.

Employers wishing to capitalize on the flexibility that Brinker provides should immediately ensure that they have written policies in place advising employees of their right to take meal and rest breaks, and emphasize the timing of those breaks. The court also made clear that employers may not in any way pressure employees to work through their meal breaks by way of “ridicule or reprimand.”

“It’s more important than ever to train management staff on the proper way to handle these breaks,” said Condie. “The bottom-line from Brinker is that those 30 minutes belong to the employee and they can choose for themselves how to spend that time.

“We’re hopeful that as the second-largest private employer in the state, the restaurant industry can get back to dedicating more time and resources to employing Californians, reducing the state’s nearly 11-percent unemployment rate, and helping the economy recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression,” Condie said.

Social City News by Marci Weiner

(This article was published in the Century City News on April 17, 2012)

By Marci Weiner

GENESIS AWARDS & JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
Multi-talented Carrie Ann Inaba, best known as one of the three judges on Dancing with the Stars,served as Host for the 28th Genesis Awards. These awards are presented by the Humane Society to honor news and entertainment media for raising public awareness of animal issues.

This year’s recipient of the prestigious Wyler Award was Ian Somerhalder, Star of the TV hit series the Vampire Diaries. He was recognized for his dedication to animal advocacy and spreading the word about such issues as shark fining, fur in fashion and endangered species.

Other awards were presented to Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Outstanding Feature Film) The Colbert Report ) whaling issues) and the Ellen DeGeneres Show for Outstanding Talk Show, which dealt with dog fighting and puppy mills.

Among the celebrity presenters were Bill Maher, Jason Ritter, Sophia Bush, Rose McGowan, Mobyand Cloris Leachman – but the one who received the most applause was adorable Uggie, the show-stealing terrier from The Artist. Everyone wanted to pose with the precocious pup.

Kudos to Beverly Kasky, senior director of Hollywood Outreach Program and producer of the Genesis Awards – which will premiere as a one-hour special on Animal Planet on May 5th.

Another event, which you won’t want to miss, is the 7th Annual LA Jewish Film Festival, which runs from May 5-10th. They kick off their excellent line-up of 26 films with an opening night star-studded red carpet celebration and premiere of the authorized Documentary, Tony Curtis: Driven to Stardom. Some of the celebs who are in the film, will participate in a discussion proceeding the film, including Theresa Russel, Mamie Van Doren, Marian Collier and Jill Vandenberg Curtis. Others invited to attend include: Shirley Jones, Theo Bikel, Hugh Hefner, Consul General of Israel, Tia Carrere, and the stars of The Artist, Penelope Ann Miller & Ed Lauter. Wonder if Uggie will be in attendance?

For a full schedule of the films and events being offered, please check out their website www.lajfilmfest.org Remember their motto: “Our films aren’t just selected, They’re Chosen.”

Love Buzz - RECEIVING FROM THE HEART

(This article was published in the Century City News on April 17, 2012)


By Anita De Francesco, MA
Relationship Specialist

Are you a giver or a receiver? It is said that giving is a way to open to the higher power while receiving is a way to connect to the universe. When we receive we allow the positive flow of another’s gifts to circulate through our system. We give ourselves the permission to let someone in. I believe if we can’t receive then we lack a sense of worth, loss and possibly guilt. Some people would rather give because they don’t know how to receive . When we receive there is a warmth in the heart that begins to open up with joy; a warmth that surrounds the chest and heart areas with love and attention and a feeling of love that circulates through the rest of the body. Is this hard to receive? Receiving comes in many forms such as taking a compliment, or a material gift or a smile or even a touch. When we allow ourselves to receive there is a certain love that we show ourselves that no one else experiences but you. Receiving is a way of connecting and opening your heart to your own feelings. You may not like a gift that someone gives you but the question is how well do you receive it? Do you receive it with anger, disappointment, and frustration or with love even if they didn’t know what you needed or wanted. Did it ever occur to you that people are trying their best to please us in any way they can. When you go to a restaurant and you didn’t like the dessert that was homemade from this family owned restaurant; do you label it as being bad food or do you instead say to your heart, they tried their best to please me the customer and they did put effort into it and I should appreciate them for their love; they are doing their best. We forget to look at what other people have available to give from their hearts. We only give what we are able to and what we know. When we receive we teach ourselves and others the real meaning of love and in essence we get smarter and sharper.

Are you a terrible receiver and caught between the heart and the words thank you? Do you over give and forget you have boundaries? Giving and receiving are what connect us to the fundamental experiences of life and interdependence. When we give unconditionally we also long to receive deeply and liberally and to feel the meaning of being touched, nourished and transformed by others. It is others who help us transform into the next dimension of our being.

Let us take it a step further, are you a giver or receiver in the bedroom and do you have a hard time asking for what you want and deserve to receive? This practice of receiving begins in everyday life activities before it can even have affect in the bedroom. Receiving can be challenging as we live in a world of selfishness and when we receive with open heart it can sometimes look like selfishness. To remove the selfish and get away from the “take” requires intention and love. Good intention when giving helps people open to a different level that allows them to feel and appreciate. This can be contagious. If we are cold hearted and hateful then receiving can get lost and become taking. There are takers out there and we need to teach them to appreciate everything even the little things that they are given from others and the universe. The universe gives us so much everyday; and yet we don’t take notice. The old saying is better to give then to receive is not true. It is good to have a balance between the two. When we allow ourselves to receive our levels of dopamine rise which is the hormone of feeling good. Receive with confidence and courage. Anthropologist Marcel Mauss examined gift economics and concluded that there is no such thing as a free gift. He claimed that one has no right to refuse a gift, if so it shows a fear of having to reciprocate. So when you receive do you feel obligated to give back such as in holiday or birthday times? The old tit for tat theory. If you receive with open heart and confidence those false feelings of obligation will dissolve. We give to show love and affection and we should also receive with those same feelings. In China the practice of reciprocity is so profound that it is the basic rule of being a person. They believe in repaying ones gratitude with more than what they received. For example if they honor one arm they repay back in honoring ten arms. Every culture has its own way and values when it comes to giving and receiving. In China they also believe in refusing the gift over and over before finally receiving it. I guess working for it so to speak, climbing the ladder of karma and worth.

Sometimes receivers feel weaker and fear having to let down their ego in order to be humble and kind. Part of receiving is giving up control, resistance, armor and defense. Even when we give advice people reject that because of their frail egos may have to open to the heart of receiving. If we are not a good receiver we can lose respect from others in the sense that they may take advantage. Everyone deserves to receive in many ways which says I can and deserve to receive love.

Receiving is one of the most intimate gifts of life and if you miss this part of it you are not living. My advice is to accept what your partner is giving and find the connection. Receiving can heal your pain and is very empowering so I recommend faking it for a while until that heart opens and connects to the whole experience
Do you feel stuck and in a rut, depressed or anxious or overall sluggish? I practice Reichian, Gestalt, somatic movement, and counseling/bodywork integrative therapies which involves focused breathing to help stimulate the emotions thus re-patterning the nervous system. I help you to focus on the negative voices and thoughts that create the stress and to resolve those unwanted interruptions that get in the way of your life process. Those stiff armored muscles that block sensation and energy flow will eventually soften.

The rage sitting in the muscles will unfold allowing more feelings of pleasure, more creativeness, freeing blocked energies and sexual dysfunction. Modern society has forced the human character to live in unnatural ways holding back basic needs and instincts. This process of breathing deeply sends messages to the brain which is an effective way to release anger, to let go of baggage, and to feel more alive and trusting thus living in a higher self esteem.

Anita De Francesco, M.A.
www.tantrawisdom.com
info@tantrawisdom.com
310-210-1464