I was one of the few people to stay up past midnight to address item A-7. I had requested ten minutes to speak, and Alex Fisch denied me that and said I would only get what other speakers would get.
At least six people requested that I speak for them which is equivalent to 12 minutes time. I was given three minutes, 180 seconds, to discuss a lawsuit with potential exposure to the City of millions of dollars. This pattern of Exclusionary Politics is unconscionable. The City Council today is a three person oligarch rather than a small town local democracy.
If I had more time, I would have said that the Best, Best and Krieger letter did not exonerate the Council People who engaged in the questionable contact with the Union. Best, Best and Krieger are not the independent counsel I called to investigate, they are the defense attorneys for the City. They are a financially interested party as they stand to make tremendous attorney’s fees win, lose or draw. The City can only lose even if it wins because of the extraordinary amount of attorney’s fees a case like this will generate.
I read the District Court’s order regarding the denial of the extraordinary remedy of an injunction, and I believe that it is flawed and based on a false premise and authority of limited value. It could be overturned by the Ninth Circuit and would likely be overturned in the United States Supreme Court. More important, an injunction is an extraordinary remedy in equity and only given when there is irreparable harm. The Hospital could always be made whole by a judgment requiring Culver City to pay them the monies they expended, plus interest, plus their attorney’s fees. One day Culver City may be looking at a judgment of over $5,000,000.00 at time when these ambitious politicians are out the door. Not repealing or stopping payments under the ordinance is legislative malpractice. I ask that you agendize discussion and a motion to repeal the statute or toll the payments until this case is settled or determined at the next Council hearing.
Mayor Fisch is also trying to bring a YIMBY led initiative to filter public comment through the Prytaneum Platform – a Zoom type platform for town hall style meetings that uses artificial intelligence to filter out dissent to the YIMBY agenda.
To Mayor Fisch and Vice-Mayor Lee. The Hospital ordinance was quid quo pro between the two of you to each garner political support and pro bono favors from CA-YIMBY and the Union. Culver City cannot afford your political ambitions. Therefore, I make the following Call to Recall:
When government is dishonestly exercised by those who put their political ambitions over common good a community must act. Mayor Alex Fisch and Vice Mayor Lee have placed their political aspirations over the interests of Culver City. They have enmeshed us in an unnecessary lawsuit showing their double-dealing and violations of the Constitutional rights of others. They are promoting the near total elimination of R-1 housing in the service of outside, corporate interests which will irrevocably cause gentrification and environmental damage.
They sow division with a false narrative that “up-zoning” will increase diversity, despite knowing it will dislocate our City’s middle class and people of color. During his election campaign, Mayor Fisch misled us because he knew that telling the truth about choosing his political ambition over representing our City would not elect him.
He is attempting to suppress our voice by importing a YIMBY AI platform named Prytaneum promoted by the YIMBYS and Christopher Elmendorf of UC Davis that will filter out citizen’s voice who dissent from their goal of destroying R-1 zoning and therefore sacrificing our environment for hyper gentrification for the benefit Big Tech and Dark Money.
These actions are incompatible with Culver City values. These proposals will dramatically increase density without provision for necessary additional infrastructure and ensure that our City is exposed to rapacious development. They will cause permanent harm to the existing ethnic and economic diversity of Culver City and if you don’t resign, you must be recalled. People of Culver City, I call to recall Alex Fisch and Daniel Lee. I ask all my fellow Culver Citizens who love our City to join in our efforts to save Culver City. Please join the call to recall and help us save Culver City from self-serving politicians.
— Ron Ostrin
Culver City