OurLA, by Chelsea CodyTuesday, 09 February 2010

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa made an appearance before the City Council Tuesday to encourage swift decision making on layoffs, department cuts, and other budget balancing measures.

The audience, comprised mostly of city workers, city council representatives, and community activists, jeered and booed the mayor upon his arrival and at his assertion that layoffs are inescapable.

Rejecting the reasoning of several council members who said the budget crisis could be resolved without layoffs the mayor said, “We can’t continue to say no to everything. We can’t say no to layoffs, no to furloughs, no to department eliminations…The fact is we can’t sustain this business model.”

The mayor’s sense of urgency and emphasis on cutting 1,000 jobs may stem from his realization that should the city go bankrupt he could be held personally responsible.

For nearly two hours the mayor heard and answered questions from members of the council. The interaction was peppered with discussion about the unanimity of the mayor and the council, a response to recent media reports stating that their was growing rift between the two.

Villaraigosa promoted the privatization of the city’s parking garages and meters. He also called for private ownership of the Los Angeles Zoo and convention center, arguing that the city can no longer be all thing to all people.

Also at stake is the city’s credit rating which is under closer surveillance by finance firms and credit rating agencies all over the country. In November of last year Fitch downgraded the city’s credit rating due to oversized debt. The downgrade then raised interest rates making it more difficult and more expensive for the city to borrow money.

Read more about the mayor’s address to the council, here.