Is L.A. City Councilman TONY CARDEAS Hi-Jacking the LAX Concessions Process? (Are We Handing It Over To Organized Crime Ring?)

[HERE'S SOMETHING SOMEONE TOOK THE TIME TO TYPE AND EMAIL, AND THE THOUGHT DOES INDEED TRIGGER MY BIPOLAR, EVEN WORSE...SO I CAN AT LEAST COPY AND PASTE IT INTO THIS BLOG POST FOR OTHERS TO SEE.]

Zumadogg,

I read your post on Cardenas and his sister. Are you aware of how Tony Cardenas has personally hijacked the LAX Concessions process and is refusing to hold public hearings?

Cardenas somehow lucked into the position of Chair of the Board of Referred Powers, which is in charge of looking into the LAX RFP. This happened because the airport commissioner "neglected" to inform anyone that he owned $1 million in CPK stock while he was overseeing the bidding process for the airport. No matter, HMS Host and CPK lost every bid and are about to be kicked out of the airport after 45 years. But not if Cardenas can help it.

He has held fundraisers at companies that are part of the HMS Host group, at the same time he has canceled at least 5 meetings on LAX at the last minute. According to others on the Board of Referred Powers, Cardenas has made it his personal mission to upset the LAWA decision and force a redo. I wonder how much Camachos is paying him, or HMS Host.

Keep an eye on the news. He can't turn enough board members himself, so he is using procedural tricks to keep this thing from ever concluding.

[SOUNDS LIKE LAX CONCESSIONS ARE ABOUT TO BE TAKEN OVER BY A SOPHISTICATED CRIME RING. NJ has Tony Sorprano. LA has Tony Cardenas.]

I Would Expect Villaraigosa To Fire A Handful of City Workers This Week To Send A Message To Unions (Give Back, or else)

WED 7AM UPDATE: Alright, I can release the info now. 15 LAX workers have been, or will be fired today or tomorrow. Not EAA related...but EXEMPT employees. It's all just a strong arm tactic by Villaraigosa to get the unions to take what they mayor is offering, even though that greedy, dummy messed it all up, himself. HEY OBAMA...I THOUGHT YOUR FEDERAL STIMULUS MONEY MEANT FEDERALLY-FUNDED JOBS LIKE THESE LAX JOBS WEREN'T GOING TO BE LOSSED? Hey Obama...I warned you about Antonio. BETTER START PAYING MORE ATTENTION TO ZD, SON!

Yes, even though there should be plenty of money to prevent firings in certain departments (I thought the stimulus money was going to help prevent firing; even if it wasn't being used for HIRING), I wouldn't be surprised to see Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaragiosa fire a handful of city workers this week to help disprove his own comments that LA is a world class city, but more importantly, if the unions don't take those concessions, it will be a lot more than a handful next time, pal.

I can't even believe he would do this, cause it's not real, just a stunt...so hopefully he won't. But ZD has a sixth sense feeling that he will. Like Asia said, "Only Time Will Tell." Talk to you on Thursday about this more. Maybe tomorrow afternoon.

LA Daily Blog EXCLUSIVE: Detailed analysis of Los Angeles World Airport (LAWA) Money Being Spent On LAPD at LAX (and THAT whole Tug-o-War)

It's funny, as I was reading this, the voice of someone I know popped into my head as though he were reading it. Wish I knew, for sure. Anyway, this is complicated as hell and there's no way I am even going to try to read it, let alone follow it, but it's the type of thing YOU may big, baby. So have a happy time reading this fun stuff, you civic nerd. But hey, at least I copied and pasted it (I should have said, "by Zuma Dogg" and taken credit for it all!:

to zumadogg@gmail.com date Sat, Jun 27, 2009 at 2:16 AM subject Shedding Some Light mailed-by gmail.com

Reply

Attached you will find a breakdown of LAWA (Los Angeles World Airports) money being spent on housing LAPD at LAX. The total cost to house the substation alone is 16 million dollars that LAWA pays. Why? When there is a police department dedicated to LAX (Airport Police). It's called Airport Revenue Diversion. If you recall Mayor Riordan took money from LAWA during his time as Mayor in one lump sum, but when the FAA found out he was forced to pay it back. Now it appears as though the current "powers at be" are doing the same only keeping it under the radar with city mandates requiring departments like LAXPD the Port Police and General Services to use LAPD's Academy. Why should LAXPD use an academy that cost LAWA nearly 3x more than the fully accredited Rio Hondo Police Academy. As far as this Airport Revenue Diversion goes just recently LAWA has been audited by the FAA over the use of Airport Funds to advertise at LAX for the benefit of the City of LA (google LA INC). Airport funds need to be spent a certain way and can not be diverted to the general fund. Perhaps the FEDS will do another audit and the city being forced to repay the diverted money they don't have now (we are talking millions), then how is that going to leave the city???

Now this document shows that a Capt. 2 for the LAPD substation is making a Base Pay of $148,267 but in the end LAWA is being charged $ 363,610 . Now i know that the Capt 2 is not taking home $ 363,610 so where is the difference going ? Supposedly LAWA is also paying for the benefits and "pensions" of the LAPD personnel at LAX along with Div. OH (Overhead) why charge for overhead when LAWA provides everything (building, equipment, pencils, paper etc.) I use the Capt 2 as the example but as you can see there are many different positions LAWA is paying for, again WHY? LAXPD can handle the job at the Airport. Why is it that the City of LA only charges the Airport Police to book suspects at their jails, School Police, Port Police, CHP don't get charged yet the Airport Police gets charged for booking, oh I mean LAWA gets charged again.This info is just the tip of the iceberg so to speak. Now Jack Weiss has been the "Mouth" if you will, that has called for study after study to try to show a need for LAPD to take over LAXPD (The CTI study cost $900,000) it came back saying that LAXPD is clearly capable of taking care of the policing at LAX. Yet LAPD still has a presence at LAX that isn't needed especially when Pacific Div is 3 miles away. I'm sure the residents of the City that are paying higher trash bills to have more cops on their streets would love to have the approx 150 LAPD offficers in their parts of the City to protect them.

Oh wait, I forgot some of them are in their parts of the City Like the Bomb Squad and Bomb K9 resources that are being paid for (Equipment too) by LAWA to work at Dodger Stadium, The Kodak Theater, Staples Center and other City High Profile Events all on LAWA's Dime. Again, Airport Revenue Diversion!! And don't think for one second that the Mayor, Jack Weiss, Gina Marie Lindsay, Director James Butts (since arriving LAPD presence has grown), LAXPD Homeland Security Section Chief Erroll Southers, LAXPD Chief George Centeno, LAXPD Asst Chief William Thompson, LAXPD Asst. Chief Frank Fabrega (All New LAXPD Command Staff Brought in By James Butts) can't possibly claim they DON'T Know what's going on.... Come on now. LAPD has grown in numbers since the arrival of Butts and his Buddies (Literally Check their relationships out) yet LAXPD is having their numbers cut, but wait I thought that LAWA was a proprietary agency??? My thought is as long as LAXPD is around then you always run a chance of a whistle blower shedding some light on the revenue diversion, but if LAPD were to merge with LAXPD then no one from LAPD would talk about the illegal revenue diversion going on to the city's general fund because LAPD would benefit from it.

I will end this email for now with a question. If LAWA is paying into the LAPD personnel's pensions is the CITY of LA also paying into to them and if so why should there be a double payment into a pension fund?? Unless the extra proceeds maybe going to an investment company that is ........... wonder if the dots connect to something I've read before on a blog somewhere????

Brought to you NOT by LA Times or any other paid media reporter.

Click picture to view full document

Hello Shady And Inefficient Villaraigosa LAX Appointment Gina Marie Lindsey (After Reading The Allegations, I Can See Why Villaraigosa Hired You!)

VILLARAIGOSA COMMISSIONER PROFILE: Gina Marie Lindsey, for Fentress Architects, I mean the people of Los Angeles' LAX.


[Pictured: Goober's last name was "Lindsey," too.]

I guess I should like Gina Marie because she told Villaraigosa's IBEW to go pound sand over their less than competitive bid for the LAX runway light contract and she gave it to an other than IBEW union. The mayor needed treatment for third degree burns to his face, he was, and still is, so steaming mad. Almost have to have sympathy for the mayor, things are going so badly for him.

BUT, there is still the issue of cahootism over the LAX expansion, and although the City gave itself an "A-o.k." regarding the controversy in her awarding the Tom Bradley Food Court Expansion to Fentress Architects, rather than a company inside L.A., Zuma Dogg's phone didn't just ring over this matter, to mention it to me for nothing.

And when I read some of this, it's just par for Vilaraigosa's commission appointment course.

I WONDER HOW THIS COMPANY GOT THE CONTRACT? I WONDER HOW COMPETITIVE OTHER BIDS WERE? I AM CERTAIN THAT NO ONE PROFITED OR BENEFITED FINANCIALLY BY THE DECISION TO AWARD THE LAX EXPANSION PROJECT TO DENVER'S "IMPROPERLY PROCURED" FINEST? (Right?)

Gina Marie Lindsey, the former Seattle-Tacoma International Airport aviation director and key figure in the controversial $3 billion third runway and airport renovation project, is on the hot seat in LA this week: Director of LAX for the past year, she'll be asked to explain why she awarded lucrative airport contracts to two of her former companies. (See, Villar is liking her already!)

Reports the LA Times:

Lindsey has been dogged by accusations that she manipulated the contracting process in order to hire two companies that she previously worked with — DMJM Aviation Inc. of Florida, and Fentress Architects of Denver. The companies were awarded project management and architecture contracts worth almost $67 million, although other companies were initially preferred during the selection process.

From May 6, 2008
Former Port of Seattle aviation director accused of manipulating LAX contracts

The Los Angeles Times has reported that the Port of Seattle's former aviation director Gina Marie Lindsey has gotten into some hot water down in Los Angeles, where she is director of LAX and three other airports.

The story credits Lindsey for pushing through some big projects at the aging LAX facilities. But the Los Angeles Times also described how Lindsey -- who oversaw SeaTac Airport during the period when the Washington state auditors found $97.3 million in wasteful spending and pervasive violations of state law and port policy in the improper award of contracts to favored companies - is accused of steering two LAX construction contracts worth $67 million to firms she had worked with in the past.

From the L.A. Times:

In the last two months, Lindsey has managed to get through the board of airport commissioners more than $106 million in engineering, architectural and project management contracts related to the modernization projects.
...
Lindsey has been dogged by accusations that she manipulated the contracting process in order to hire two companies that she previously worked with -- DMJM Aviation Inc. of Florida, and Fentress Architects of Denver. The companies were awarded project management and architecture contracts worth almost $67 million, although other companies were initially preferred during the selection process.

While Lindsey was at SeaTac Airport, she helped usher in a $3-billion capital improvement project, including the construction of the Third Runway, demolition and reconstruction of a concourse, and major refurbishments. The international arrivals hall was named the Gina Marie Lindsey Arrivals Hall in her honor.

Lindsey was at the Port of Seattle from 1993 to August 2004, during which time many of the improper procurements found by the state's auditors occurred. After Lindsey left the Port of Seattle, she went to work for McBee Strategic Consulting, a D.C.-based lobbying firm which subsequently received $600,000 in consulting contracts from the Port of Seattle.

SO WHAT DOES ANTONIO VILLARAIOGSA DO...HE APPOINTS HER COMMISSIONER!

And this is old news to some, but HELLO, GINA MARIE SHADY-VILLARAIGOSA-COMMISSIONER-APPOINTMENT LINDSEY. ZD's cell phone just rang to start warming me up on this story. SO I GUESS IT AIN'T OLD NEWS, YET!