RIORDAN ON THE RADIO; MAYOR TAKES HEAT ON CALL-IN SHOW.Byline: Rick Orlov Staff Writer 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. Mayor Richard Riordan Richard J. Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is a Republican politician from California, U.S. who served as the California Secretary of Education from 2003–2005 and as Mayor of Los Angeles from 1993–2001. Riordan ran for Governor of California unsuccessfully in 2002. found himself on the hot seat Wednesday, being grilled by the public on everything from speeding in the Sepulveda Pass Sepulveda Pass (el. 1130 ft. / 334 m.) is a mountain pass through the Santa Monica Mountains in Los Angeles, California. It is often called Poop-Out Pass, a phrase once used by now-deceased traffic reporter Bill Keene. to sloppy sanitation workers picking up the trash. ``We'll get on it,'' Riordan said to several callers on his monthly ``Ask the Mayor'' show on radio station KFWB-AM (980). The mayor also defended the city's enforcement of the smoking ban in bars and restaurants as a common-sense approach to the law that took effect more than 18 months ago. ``I think we should hold the owners responsible,'' Riordan said in response to one caller about the warning notice policy that has been in effect during this first week of city enforcement of the law. ``What I have said is there has to be a little bit of common sense,'' Riordan said. ``We can't have the police and others spending a lot of time on this. But I do think you have to go after the business establishment and they will self-police.'' Later, Riordan defended the smoking ban. ``The law is the law,'' Riordan said. ``When this first came out there were a lot of predictions that we would lose to tourists from France and Japan and other countries where they smoke. But the fact is, we haven't lost business. I think people have become used to going outside to smoke.'' The mayor spent most of the hour fielding complaints. One woman complained about speeding along the Sepulveda Pass from Valley Vista to the Getty Center Getty Center, art museum complex in Brentwood, Calif. operated by the J. Paul Getty Trust. It consists of six buildings on 124 acres (50 hectares) located on a spectacular promontory overlooking Los Angeles. . ``It's like it's an autobahn,'' the woman caller, Paula, told Riordan. ``I'm just driving a little Honda Civic The Honda Civic is a compact car manufactured by Honda. It was introduced in July 1972 as a two-door coupe, followed by a three-door hatchback version that September. With the transverse engine placement of its 1169 cc engine and front-wheel drive, like the British Mini, the and feel like I should pull over sometimes.'' Riordan said he would talk with the Los Angeles Police Department "LAPD" and "L.A.P.D." redirect here. For other uses, see LAPD (disambiguation).  This article or section is written like an . about the problem, but said part of it stemmed from a state law adopted
10 years ago that took 80 percent of the revenue of speeding tickets.
``What that means is it costs municipalities money to issue speeding tickets, but we should enforce the law,'' Riordan said. And, in a mutual-admiration segment, Councilman Joel Wachs Joel Wachs served for several terms as Los Angeles City Councilman for the 2nd district. He was first elected by defeating incumbent James B. Potter. While in office, Wachs chaired the Public Works Committee and vice-chair of the Environmental Quality & Waste Management called in to the show to congratulate and thank Riordan for his support for neighborhood councils Neighborhood councils are governmental or non-governmental bodies composed of local people who handle neighborhood problems. They can be found in many cities throughout the world. . ``Six years ago, when we were both running for mayor and he made the runoff, he asked me what it would take for my support,'' Wachs recalled. ``I told him I didn't want anything for myself, but wanted to see his support for neighborhood councils. ``He promised he would and here we are today, looking at having neighborhood councils in 18 months,'' Wachs said. ``That will be his legacy to the city.'' |
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