MAYOR DECLARES MISSION A SUCCESS VILLARAIGOSA SAYS HE FINALIZED $300 MILLION IN INVESTMENTS IN L.A.

Byline: RICK ORLOV Staff Writer

Declaring his 14-day Asian trade mission a success, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Monday that he'd planted seeds for Los Angeles' economic growth in other countries while learning about the competition the city faces in the future.

At a City Hall news conference, Villaraigosa said he returned with a renewed commitment to invest in the infrastructure of Los Angeles.

``Folks, I tell you that if we are going to compete in the future, we need to make the investments in our ports and airport, in our transportation system, in our buildings. We have to make this a priority.

``You look at what some of these cities have done. With subways and a maglev system and bullet trains that are 40 years old and they're still way ahead of us. We need to make that commitment to invest in ourselves.''

The $500,000 trip to China, Korea and Japan was Villaraigosa's first extended tourist and trade trip. He said he hopes to take similar trips to Mexico, Latin America and Europe.

``We have to get our message out,'' Villaraigosa said. ``We are the second-largest city in the United States, have the busiest ports and the No. 1 destination airport for foreign travelers.''

On the trip, Villaraigosa said, he finalized agreements for more than than $300 million in foreign investment in Los Angeles, visited the city's tourist office in Beijing and expanded the ``See My L.A.'' promotional campaign.

``We laid the foundation for future collaboration and economic development between L.A. and our trade and tourism partners. Our mission established and strengthened relationships that will pay lasting dividends.

Gary Toebben, president of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, one of 50 business leaders on the trip, said it was an important mission on a variety of fronts.

``We visited both our partners of the future and our competitors of the future,'' Toebben said. ``You can't build a world-class city without seeing what other cities are doing.''

David Fleming, incoming chairman of the chamber, said the trip also provided a vision for future decisions that are needed locally.

``We couldn't have picked a better place to visit at a better time,'' Fleming said. ``It is part of what Los Angeles has to do in the future. What they have done there in the last 10 years is amazing and we have a long way to go to catch up.''

Villaraigosa said he came away impressed with the architecture of the Asian cities and the need to instill a sense of the style of Los Angeles.

``We have 77 new buildings going up and there is no reason we can't incorporate artistic designs in them,'' Villaraigosa said. ``The `See My L.A.' campaign features the Disney Hall because of its unique design. We should do that in all our buildings to make them stand out.''

Councilman Dennis Zine, who accompanied the mayor, saw that the city needs to operate more efficiently -- from its airports to its public transportation system.

``They are way ahead of us,'' Zine said. ``We have a long way to go to catch up to make sure we have public transit available at every large location in the city so we can move people and goods around.''

Also on the trip were officials from L.A. Film, which oversees location shooting in the city. Agency President Steve MacDonald said he met with the executives of several top Japanese advertising agencies to discuss a drop-off in commercial shooting in Los Angeles.

``Part of it was the impact of Sept. 11 on the world, but we also have a lot more competition from other American cities,'' MacDonald said. ``We were able to tell them what we offer and try to get them to come back to Los Angeles to film.''

rick.orlov(at)dailynews.com

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ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Some highlights of Mayor Villaraigosa's two-week trip through Asia:

China:

Opened L.A. tourism office in Beijing, the first U.S. city to do so.

Met with Chinese officials to discuss support for Los Angeles' bid for the 2016 Olympic Games.

Announced first Pacific Port environmental conference.

Discussed environmental efforts for cities.

South Korea:

Signed a rivers-revitalization effort with Seoul officials.

Obtained commitments of more than $300 million in investments in Koreatown.

Japan:

Expanded the ``See My L.A.'' program to attract more tourists.

Viewed mass-transit and airport improvements.

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ACCOMPLISHMENTS (see text)