(June 24, 2009) -- LB City Hall blacked out live video of June 23, 2009 City Council public testimony (conducted under CA's "Open Meetings" law) prior to the Council entering a closed session on the LB Museum of Art Foundation.
Photo source: City of LB website.
[Note: The LB Museum of Art at 2300 E. Ocean Blvd. is unrelated to the Museum of Latin American Art on Alamitos Ave.]
The video feed wasn't sent to LBTV 8, FIOS or City Hall's webcast link...but it was sent to City Hall's internal "intra-net" where city officials were able to watch it in City offices.
The blackout on the Art Museum Foundation proceeding was the opposite of live video that was provided of public testimony preceding the Council's recent closed session on a possible exchange of city-owned property for SE LB open space/wetlands.
The Art Museum item comes as City Hall faces a $40-$50 million deficit (spending exceeding revenue) with taxpayers facing the prospect of reduced services, increased fees and furloughed workers...and now a potential payout of $3 million that taxpayers weren't supposed to pay.
The payout stems from City Hall's failure for nearly a decade to ensure payment by the private Museum Foundation -- which City Hall continues to pay over $500,000 annually to run the city-owned museum -- of the $3 million principle on a city-floated debt bond used to expand the Museum's facility. City officials and the Foundation said in 1999 that the $3 million debt principle would be paid by the Foundation so taxpayers wouldn't pay it.
Today, the $3 million sum remains unpaid by the Foundation...and LB taxpayers now face the payout they weren't supposed to pay on Sept. 1, 2009.
Instead of providing video of June 23 public testimony on the Museum Foundation item, City Hall's channel showed pre-produced items including a history of "successes" under former Mayor Beverly O'Neill that (among other things) omits any mention of the Art Museum debt bond. That debt was approved, with O'Neill presiding, in a four minute Council item in Sept. 1999...after which her administration and successive City Councils failed to protect taxpayers by ensuring payment of the sum.
LBReport.com has made available archival audio of that 1999 Council proceeding as well as its accompanying documents. To access these materials, click here.
The Museum Foundation item was inherited by Mayor Bob Foster in mid-2006...whose administration has also failed thus far to protect taxpayers from an approaching $3 million payout. That payout will occur unless a Council majority takes actions in the coming weeks to prevent it. Exactly what took place in the Council's closed session isn't known, except that no legally required reportable action took place.
As of 6:00 a.m. June 24, video of the public portion of the Art Museum proceedings was not available on City Hall's website. Accordingly, LBReport.com plans to seek access to the City Clerk's audio recording of the proceedings in the coming hours...and will make it available on-demand on LBReport.com...so LB taxpayers can hear exactly what was said and by whom in the public portion of the proceeding on this major taxpayer issue.
