Good morning and welcome to LA on the Record, City Hall's newsletter. Rebecca Ellis, with help from my City Hall colleague, David Zarniser, brings you the latest news from around the county.

The Civic Center in Downtown Los Angeles is home to many iconic buildings.

At one end of Gloria Molina Grand Park stands Los Angeles City Hall, an Art Deco masterpiece that has appeared in more than a dozen civic-themed films, including “LA Confidential” and “Chinatown.”

At the opposite end is Grand Avenue, home to the Music Center and Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall, whose gleaming curves draw a constant stream of tourists.

Then there's Kenneth Hahn Administration Hall, the center of county government and a sort of sibling to the nearby masterpiece: old, unremarkable looking, and, above all, There is a possibility of collapse The next big earthquake.

Faced with a daunting renovation project, the county is considering upgrading to something a little fancier, in a move that real estate experts say could change the face of downtown.

“It's going to have ripple effects in every direction.” Nick Griffin“It's the 800-pound gorilla in this scenario,” said the executive director of the Downtown Center Business Improvement District.

County officials met behind closed doors for more than an hour on Tuesday to discuss the deal to purchase Gas Company Tower, a 52-story downtown skyscraper that was considered the pinnacle of Los Angeles office buildings when it was built in 1991.

The county also is considering acquiring space at the Los Angeles World Trade Center for employee parking. The building is at 350 S. Figueroa St., about a 10-minute walk from the tower, at 555 W. 5th St.

John CookHe heads the county's asset management department. Thomas FaughnThe county's senior attorney, Greg WilliamsOn Tuesday, receivership was placed on both properties. agendaThe county says the deal is still being negotiated and ultimately must be approved by the Board of Supervisors.

For the county's CEO, who is leading the negotiations, it's a chance to avoid costly renovations and get the prime property for $215 million – a bargain compared with its pre-pandemic valuation of about $600 million. Kit MiyamotoA member of the California Seismic Safety Commission, he said seismic upgrades to the hall itself could cost tens of millions of dollars.

It's still early days, but some in the downtown real estate community are excited about the idea of ​​the county government expanding deeper into the city's core.

“Gas Company Tower is a flagship office building,” An Nguyen“This move will lead to increased pedestrian traffic into the downtown core,” Jonathan McClellan, chief strategy officer for the Central City Association, a Los Angeles business group, said in a statement.

Griffin, of the Downtown Center Business Improvement District, knows how he wants to go about it: Move the county courthouse to the Gas Company Tower, demolish the Administration Building and build a park in its place, essentially expanding Grand Park.

Griffin paints this as a win-win scenario: the famous skyscraper is once again Zombie Building issues that plague the city center. County employees would get a more glamorous and safer place to work, the downtown would get impressive green space, and it would potentially draw more people to the city center.

“It could really transform that whole area,” he said.

He's not the first to propose the idea. Former Superintendent Gloria Molina It was her dream to come up with the plan for Grand Park, Miguel Santanaher former chief of staff.

With Los Angeles' office market struggling, now is a smart time to do it, he said.

“This is a great move for taxpayers,” said Santana, now president of the California Community Foundation. “It's effectively a sell-off.”

But not everyone is ready to see county employees leave the Civic Center in downtown Los Angeles.

Supervisor Janice Hahn Hahn was “staunchly opposed” to the idea from the start, arguing that county services should not be moved from Los Angeles' only civic center, Administration Hall, named for Hahn's father, legendary former Supervisor Kenneth Hahn.

The rest of the executive team has remained silent. Asked to comment on the proposal, four other executives said they were open to the idea or simply didn't know enough about it yet.

Things may change when I return from Paris. Lindsay Holbert and Hilda Solis He flew overseas over the weekend to attend the Summer Olympics with politicians in Los Angeles.

They will be back in the hall next week.

current situation

— Seat replacement: Councillor Marquise Harris DawsonThe councillor, who is set to become council president on September 20, decided this week to step down from all council committees, paving the way for his colleagues to take up key roles. Tracy Park Councilman Harris Dawson takes over the powerful Budget Committee seat. Imelda Padilla He served on the City Council's Housing and Homelessness Committee and is a City Councilman. Current Price They will sit on the committee that oversees preparations for the 2028 Olympic Games. The appointments were made by the Council Chair. Paul Krekorian.

— The moment he took office as mayorSpeaking of Harris-Dawson, he spent most of the week as acting mayor while the mayor was out of office. Karen Bass I was in Paris Because of the Olympics, the role of acting mayor is usually filled by the speaker of parliament, but Krekorian was in France.

— Pacoima Pit Stop: Governor Gavin Newsom President Trump visited Pacoima on Thursday to continue his rally against homeless camps and criticize Los Angeles County officials for a lack of urgency in their response. Newsom praised Bass“We're not going to let homeless people get away from home,” she said, harshly criticizing the county's efforts while acknowledging the progress the city has made in addressing the crisis. As you'll recall, Los Angeles saw a 10.4% decrease in street homelessness last year, compared with a 5.1% decrease in the county, according to the most recent local count.

Metro Morass: The fight to make Metro buses and trains safer Stephanie Wigginsthe agency's chief executive officer, and Gina OsborneOsborn, who was previously the transit system's head of security, was fired in March and filed a lawsuit this week alleging he was wrongfully fired for raising concerns about the way law enforcement patrols the transit system. Meanwhile, a woman was assaulted at a Pasadena light rail station on Wednesday.

— Superman Reassessment: Members of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors have long been adamant that there should be no replacement facility for Men's Central Jail once it closes. Now, they appear to be reconsidering their policy, discussing the possibility of building a new facility to replace Men's Central Jail. The conversation comes after Sheriff Robert Luna reported that three-quarters of county inmates are facing charges serious enough that they are ineligible for diversion programs, a figure that some advocacy groups have disputed.

— Building a bubble: Two bills are gaining momentum. One would require protesters to give eight feet of space to people entering abortion clinics, houses of worship and other facilities across Los Angeles County. Both the City Council and county supervisors are considering creating “bubble zones” for protests. The bills are a response to violent altercations and disorderly protests outside universities, synagogues and other venues.

— Expanding the circle: Mayor Bass said this week that the city's CIRCLE program, a team of unarmed experts who respond to homelessness, Expanding to the westStarting Aug. 25, CIRCLE teams will be working in areas including Palms, Mar Vista, Westchester, Playa Vista and Playa del Rey.

— Home sharing issues: The Los Angeles Police Department says it lacks the resources to enforce new home-sharing regulations that target Airbnb, Vrbo and other platforms. The regulations, approved by the City Council last year, would require new police permits for short-term rental and hotel operators. The LAPD has asked for a one-year delay in enforcement.

— Gang Crackdown: FBI agents and sheriff's deputies on Tuesday arrested dozens of members of the Florencia 13 gang in South Los Angeles, which killed a Los Angeles Police Department officer two years ago. Prosecutors unsealed an indictment charging 37 people with a slew of crimes, including fentanyl trafficking, racketeering and three murders.

— Kuhl Summer: Former Sheriff Alex Villanueva's Criminal charges against former county supervisor Sheila Kuell In the end, due to a decision by the state attorney general, not much was accomplished. Rob Bonta The investigation was closed without charges being filed. Villanueva said the findings “smell of official corruption.” Kuehl called it a complete exoneration. “There was nothing and it was all fabricated by the sheriff,” she said.

— Boost your businessLos Angeles “heritage” businesses — those that have been in business in the city for at least 20 years — are eligible for city-funded grants of up to $20,000, which are intended to help businesses affected by the pandemic.

— Ticket Time: Former Mayor Antonio VillaraigosaWhile running for governor, Villaraigosa gave a lengthy interview to The Times' Gustavo Arellano, at the end of which he was issued a $63 parking ticket — a financial misdeed that turned out to be his own fault: Villaraigosa had raised parking fines six times in his seven years as mayor.

Quick Hit

• Where is Inside Safe? The mayor's homelessness program did not move to any new locations this week. Instead, the effort returned to previous encampments in South Los Angeles, Harbor City, Hollywood and the western San Fernando Valley. The bus team said 30 people had taken shelter indoors.
• Plans for next week: The City Council Prevent demolition of rent-controlled apartments in Boyle Heights In the near future.