The Business Improvement District for Westwood Village moved to
allocate money towards completing a comprehensive audit.
At a meeting held yesterday morning, the Executive Committee
approved the designation of approximately $20,000, plus or minus 10
percent, to pay for a fully certified audit to be completed by
local firm Cannon & Company.
The BID also voted to retain operations director Tara Hannah for
six more weeks to help complete the audit, a decision that will
entail paying a salary and additional one month severance pay worth
about $15,000 total.
A comprehensive audit of the BID’s finances was called to
uncover more than $750,000 in unaccounted capital improvement
funds, thought to be caught up in the city’s administrative
loops.
Since the audit was requested three weeks ago, Hannah said she
has only been able to uncover information for one of three years
under investigation.
Members of the committee unanimously approved the allocation of
funds except Phillip Gabriel, owner of local business Scrubs
Unlimited, who questioned how the BID could be spending more money
before repaying debt.
“It’s like we are going to shirk the responsibility
to pay the vendors what we owe them,” he said.
But Jeff Abell, owner of Sarah Leonard Jewelers and an Executive
Committee member, said the audit was required by law.
“We have to audit to determine what we owe and what other
money we might have coming to us,” he said.
Although the exact debt figure is unknown, Gabriel said the BID
owed about $15,000 to UCLA to cover services provided by Community
Service Officers and at least $15,000 for street cleaning services
provided by the firm One Source.
He also stated that had the BID not allocated funds yesterday,
the approximately $40,000 in funds remaining would have been
sufficient to cover all debts incurred.
Los Angeles City Clerk Mike Carey explained to the board that
$220,000 allocated to the BID for street maintenance this year was
as yet unused and could be allotted to cover all maintenance bills
since July 1.
There would then be enough money to continue a reduced, $15,000
a month maintenance program in Westwood Village for the rest of the
fiscal year, which would be administered by the Westwood Village
Community Alliance, the BID’s parent organization.
All debts prior to July 1, and the money owed to UCLA for CSO
services, would have to be paid at a later date to be
determined.
The Executive Committee also approved a motion to grant
committee chairman Frank Ponder the right to make day to day
planning decisions necessary in helping along the audit
process.
“The reason is that there are quick decisions that need to
be made as BID winds down which don’t allow the time
necessary to call a board meeting,” Ponder said.
There was also discussion about whether the Farmer’s
Market would be released to another sponsor for it to maintain
operations in Westwood Village.
The BID concluded it would be wiser not to allow the
Farmer’s Market to pass into other hands at this point.
Sponsors who do not have a stake in Westwood’s economy might
not be as considerate of problems caused by the market, such as
parking.
Decisions about the liquidation of assets and further dealings
with the self-sufficient Farmer’s Market were postponed to
next meeting.
Some committee members called for vacating the BID’s
office. Ponder said it would cost more at this stage to move and
establish temporary headquarters elsewhere than to pay one more
month of rent before the organization is dissolved.
The next BID meeting will occur in December at a date to be
determined.