(October 14, 2009) -- The Long Beach Group of the Sierra Club today (Oct. 14) urged Mayor Bob Foster and the LB City Council to do all they can to convince Tesla Motors to locate its new automobile plant in the city.
In a release issued amid indications that a plan appears to be advancing to locate a major movie studio ("Long Beach Studios") at the former Boeing 717 Assembly plant site (NE corner Lakewood Blvd./Conant St), the LB Group of the Sierra Club Group says that news makes it "equally, perhaps even more, important for the city to aggressively court Tesla and its green business."
[Release text] "Long Beach should be encouraging ‘green’ industries and doing it all it can to encourage them to locate here," said Gabrielle Weeks, chair of the local Sierra Club’s executive committee. "Green businesses like Tesla are not only good for the city, but good for the environment, good for business, and good for the people who can work locally, instead of commuting to distant sites."
Weeks said the Long Beach executive committee unanimously voted to support Tesla’s relocation to Long Beach for the jobs and the green technology it will bring. She said the group was "disappointed by the mayor’s apparent lack of enthusiasm for the project. We just don’t understand why the mayor, a former utility company CEO of all people, appears less than enthusiastic in bring the electric car company here."
Before making public the Long Beach Group’s vote, Weeks left multiple messages with staff members in the mayor’s office to discuss the Sierra Club position. There was no response.
Weeks emphasized that the Long Beach Group was sympathetic with Downey’s bid for the plant, but believes that environmentally, Long Beach is the better option.
"In the area surrounding the former McDonnell Douglas plants (where Tesla is considering a site) there are thousands of ex-aerospace workers with transferable skills and manufacturing know-how," said Weeks. "These workers can transition quickly to other production work, helping us develop a workforce that will attract yet other green industries."
"At the same time, Long Beach can provide jobs that workers can commute to by bus, bike, or a short drive. Cutting the carbon footprint, putting people to work, encouraging green industry are reasons why the local Sierra Club backs Tesla," said Weeks.
The local group, which has a membership of 3,000, is not opposed to siting a movie studio in the area. However, the group cautioned against the city putting all its eggs in the basket of an industry in difficulty.
"Sony has cut way back on its film production," Weeks observed. "Studios are firing executives almost wholesale in a desperate search for a 21st century business model."
"Electric cars," she added, "are the future."
"What we don’t understand is why Mayor Foster and the city haven’t been more aggressive in courting the company. The most aggressive advocate has been Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske. We applaud her effort and are ready to assist her -- and the city -- in any way we can."
LB Group chair Weeks (and spouse Coby Skye, who's a member of the LB Group's Executive Committee) are unabashed electric car fans. As LBReport.com reported in January 2009, they drive their own electric vehicle: a 1999 Geo Metro that they converted, mainly homebrew style, replacing its 20th century internal combusion propulsion with 21st century electrical power.
The underlying Geo was donated...and there were associated conversion costs: an A/C Kit ($11,000), batteries ($2,500), brakes/suspension work ($500), other items (about $300) plus some professional services ($2,500 for welding, wiring, etc.)
LB Mayor Bob Foster also drives an Electric Car around town...although it's a manufactured model.
The Long Beach Group is part of the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club. The group has more than 3,000 members and encompasses Cerritos, Hawaiian Gardens, Lakewood, Long Beach, Los Alamitos, Signal Hill and Seal Beach.
