Mayor Says L.A. Is Open for Business

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa touted the city’s commitment to attracting new businesses and getting Angelenos back to work during a town hall meeting Tuesday morning inside the plant of a streetcar manufacturer in Chatsworth. Villaraigosa, however, acknowledged that he and his advisors did not have all the solutions to the city’s economic woes.

“These streetcars are a great example of what’s possible in this town,” Villaraigosa said to a crowd of more than 100 people inside TIG/m Modern Street Railways’s cavernous workshop, a blue open-air double-decker streetcar serving as a backdrop. Villaraigosa was joined by city Councilman Mitchell Englander and Matt Karatz, the mayor’s newly selected deputy mayor for the Office of Economic and Business Development. “We want to acknowledge you, the fact that you’re growing,” he said. 

With the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana area coping with an 11.1 percent unemployment rate, according to the Department of Labor, Villaraigosa said spurring job creation and supporting small businesses would be his top priority.

“As the economy soured, we needed to be more entrepreneurial,” Villaraigosa said. “There are ways to cut our taxes and ultimately bring in more revenue. By the time I get out of [office], I will figure out how to do that.”

Among the successes and initiatives Villaraigosa highlighted in pursuit of this goal were the city’s slashing in half the application period for opening a new restaurant; the opening of major tax revenue-producing businesses, including the Pacoima Costco and a BMW dealership; and providing tax incentives to businesses that move into and employ residents of underserved communities.

Englander stressed his commitment to keeping light industry and manufacturing in his district, which encompasses Chatsworth, Encino and the northwest San Fernando Valley.

“This will be the new growth of jobs in Los Angeles,” Englander said of TIG/m and other manufacturers located in the business park along Deering Avenue. TIG/m manufactures self-powered old-fashioned and modern streetcars.       

Karatz said he would work to ensure the city can “provide better customer service” to help small businesses win their fair share of the $2 billion in contracts the city awards annually.  But, he said, it was critical that Angelenos suggest ways the city can make opening and operating a business in Los Angeles easier.

“We are very much open for business. We are here to listen to you,” said Karatz, 39. “We don’t have most of the answers. You have the answers.”

During the question and answer session, a handful of citizens expressed their concerns. Among their suggestions were that the city invest in rooftop solar power panels, provide more incentives to keep businesses in Los Angeles, and make the city contract bidding process easier for small businesses.

The mayor was receptive and Karatz urged citizens to leave him their business cards and suggestions.

“I’m going to look into it!” Villaraigosa said. “Somebody will respond.”