Posted by Craig (12.80.9.105) on July 21, 2001 at 15:06:36:
In Reply to: reply to power struggle posted by David on July 21, 2001 at 14:55:46:
Letting go of the Ambassador Hotel property is simply not an option by the LAUSD at this time. The school district has to show on their records that they have development property available for schools.
The paradox is that they know they have a controversial time bomb on their hands. To knock down the hotel would bring national attention to their problems and it would reopen the Belmont wounds, which they want to heal and disappear.
To wrestle the property out of bancruptcy court and resell is the best solution, but that, too, would lead to controversy among parents and politicians pressuring them to build schools and correct their own educational ills.
This is why there are no legitimate offers to save the property. As long as the property is ensnared in ongoing legalities, no one can move forward and purchase the property. This is a shame because the neighborhood is experiencing a turn around. Not only is The Ambassador exactly 2.2 miles from Staples Center, but the hotel's immediate vicinity is experiencing a migratory shift of Santa Monica residents, fleeing escalating rental hikes due to the abolishment of fixed rates.
So the LAUSD is caught in a beareaucratic mess, a legislative deer caught in political headlights.
The school district's own self-regulatory rules have made it impossible act in any direction with speed and fortitude.
Posted by Craig (64.12.102.161) on May 28, 2001 at 16:15:07