GOLF WAR LANDS CITY IN ROUGH; L.A. COUNCIL IN MIDST OF DISPUTE OVER ENCINO-BALBOA CONTRACT.Byline: Rick Orlov Daily News Staff Writer A range war has broken out in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. - a golf range war. The battle lines Battle Lines may refer to:
It has placed the City Council squarely square·ly adv. 1. Mathematics At right angles: sawed the beam squarely. 2. In a square shape. 3. in the middle of a dispute that involves the tens of thousands of golfers who use city courses every month, golf course employees, city unions and Mayor Richard Riordan's office. The dispute shows how much power the unions wield wield tr.v. wield·ed, wield·ing, wields 1. To handle (a weapon or tool, for example) with skill and ease. 2. To exercise (authority or influence, for example) effectively. See Synonyms at handle. and will test whether the council will invoke To activate a program, routine, function or process. its power to overrule The refusal by a judge to sustain an objection set forth by an attorney during a trial, such as an objection to a particular question posed to a witness. To make void, annul, supersede, or reject through a subsequent decision or action. mayor-appointed commissions. ``This has all the elements of what is going on throughout the city today,'' said one official, who asked not to be identified. ``You have the council against the mayor, the council flexing its muscles and the unions showing they can get the council to respond.'' A City Council committee is supposed to review the entire matter and come up with a recommendation in two months on whether to grant a 10-year contract to run the Encino-Balboa course to the company that offered the most money and promised to make the most improvements to facilities. The situation involves American Golf Corp., the Santa Monica-based firm that manages 275 golf courses across the country and in the United Kingdom. In its original bid in 1996 to win the 10-year Encino-Balboa concession for the pro shop and driving range, American Golf was ranked fourth behind then-concessionaire California Golf Centers, Family Golf of New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of and a group called Golf L.A. Partners. But a private company, Economic Research Associates, later said it had erred in its evaluation of American Golf and improved its scores, making it eligible for consideration for the contract by parks commissioners. California Golf Centers, which has operated Encino-Balboa, pulled its bid after the city rejected its plan to sell the concession to Family Golf. After interviews with Family Golf and American Golf, the commission recommended that American Golf get the interim contract as well as one for the longer term. On the basis of immediate improvements to the poorly run facility, more investment over time and higher return to the city, the commissioners chose American Golf. ``We did everything in public,'' said Recreation Commissioner Leroy Chase. ``The fact is the staff erred and we, as a commission, did what we thought was responsible. ``The city will be getting more money from this concession, and American Golf is willing to pay for improvements out of its own pocket without reimbursement Reimbursement Payment made to someone for out-of-pocket expenses has incurred. from the capital improvement fund. That leaves more money to make other improvements. I am willing to stand before anybody to defend what we did.'' The issue blew up at a council meeting last week when the interim contract was approved. ``Our concern was that it pass the light-of-day test,'' said Julie Butcher, business manager of Service Employees International Union Local 347, who sought the council review. ``We talked to members and pointed out our concerns. Some of them had the same concerns we did and just wanted to make sure all the procedures were followed.'' Behind the scenes, a lot more was going on - maneuvering that reflects the political struggles that have taken over City Hall. The sore point for Butcher and others was that American Golf President Dick Price had contributed $50,000 to the Riordan-backed measure creating an appointed Charter Reform Commission - a commission, ironically, whose members were mostly elected with public employee union support. Chase said the contribution did not enter his mind in considering whether to award the contract. But Butcher said it was something she was concerned about. ``We always worry about how it looks when these large corporations get involved,'' she said. ``Certainly, they have the right to contribute. But we all wondered at the time what they would expect later on. It's sort of, where is the quo in the quid pro quo [Latin, What for what or Something for something.] The mutual consideration that passes between two parties to a contractual agreement, thereby rendering the agreement valid and binding. ?'' Also, there is a latent Hidden; concealed; that which does not appear upon the face of an item. For example, a latent defect in the title to a parcel of real property is one that is not discoverable by an inspection of the title made with ordinary care. hostility toward American Golf as the result of a Riordan-inspired attempt - later dropped under pressure from unions and golfers - to look at privatizing city golf courses. ``It is something we are constantly aware of and looking out for,'' Butcher said. Despite assurances from park officials that such a privatization privatization: see nationalization. privatization Transfer of government services or assets to the private sector. State-owned assets may be sold to private owners, or statutory restrictions on competition between privately and publicly owned effort has been permanently dropped, American Golf officials say it is something that is used against them. Related issues of whether the company is unionized and whether it pays prevailing wages A prevailing wage is the median wage paid to workers in a specified locality. Scope Prevailing wage may include both wages and benefits. It incompasses the compensation for a worker given for performed labor. also are used against them falsely, officials say. ``There's a lot of misinformation mis·in·form tr.v. mis·in·formed, mis·in·form·ing, mis·in·forms To provide with incorrect information. mis about who we are, what we're about, what our intentions are,'' said Joe Guerra, American Golf executive vice president. ``There has been a lot of confusion over what our proposal is. It is simply to run the driving range and pro shop.'' In an effort to show its good intentions, Guerra said the company restocked the pro shop - virtually empty for the past two months - with $80,000 in merchandise. It also put out new mats on the driving range and 50,000 new range balls. ``We wonder why someone would do that for a month-to-month contract,'' Butcher said. ``It doesn't seem worth it.'' But Chase said the company was doing what several others said they would do under similar circumstances. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO (ran in Bulldog Edition Bulldog edition refers to an earlier edition of a newspaper or other print publications. For instance, the Sunday New York Times publishes its bulldog edition, about 100,000 copies, for distribution around the country, at about noon on Saturday. only) A pair of golfers stroll toward one of the greens at the course. Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News |
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