WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENTS
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From: Max Brockman
To: City Clerk
Subject: public comment (non-agenda) - 6/14 City Council Regular Meeting Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022 8:41:06 AM
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In June of 2020, a group of civil rights protesters from the Black Future Project came to Beverly Hills to protest our city’s love affair with racist policies. These protesters did not engage in violence. They did not threaten our residents. They did not use hate speech. Though they did play loud music after dark. Oh, the horror...
These non-violent protesters were met by an army of Beverly Hills Police officers, who drove out in riot gear, deployed tear gas, beat the protesters with sticks, and shot them with non-lethal projectiles. The officers conducted 27 arrests.
Comically, the BHPD later attempted to justify their brutality by claiming that this peaceful civil rights protest for Black lives reminded our residents of the Holocaust. None of you publicly denounced this ignorant, offensive statement.
The City then prosecuted the peaceful protesters. Though, to the surprise of no one, these charges were thrown out by a judge who declared our city’s targeted ordinance to be unconstitutional.
Then, on May 21, 2022, a very different type of protest came to Beverly Hills.
A truck carrying neo-Nazis who have terrorized our city with anti-Semitic fliers for months drove through our streets, harassing and threatening our residents. They screamed despicable anti-Black, anti-Arab, and anti-Jewish hate speech. And, like the civil rights protesters of June 2020, they played amplified sound.
The neo-Nazis drove all over our city, screaming revolting lies about the Holocaust being fake.
Apparently the BHPD determined that this did not remind our residents of the Holocaust. The BHPD did not greet these neo-Nazis with riot gear. They did not deploy tear gas. They did not beat them with sticks or shoot them with non-lethal projectiles. They did not arrest them. Our city did not prosecute them.
Instead, two BHPD officers twice pulled the neo-Nazis over and twice let them go with a warning. According to reporter Sean Beckner-Carmitchel, who viewed a recording of the encounters, the officers even complimented the Nazis on their hateful accents and shared smiles and laughs and shook their hands. The BHPD officers told the Nazis to notify them the next time they come to town so they can offer them cooperation. These exchanges were filmed and streamed live on the internet.
Three days later, this council voted 5-0 to provide our lavishly funded police department with a whopping 14% raise. The mayor called it a proud day for our city.
Shame. Shame. Shame. Police reform now.
From: Chuck Alpert
To: City Clerk
Subject: Public Comment on Item F-3 (Water Conservation) June 14, 2022, Adjourned City Council Reg. Mtg. 7 PM Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022 11:42:00 AM
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My name is Chuck Alpert. While I am a member of the Public Works Commission, I am submitting these comments in my individual capacity.
Once again, the City faces the prospect of the need to conserve water due continuing widespread drought conditions. Yet, for many residents calls for even greater conservation may seem ever more daunting.
Still, this drought is as serious as ever. Scientists reported earlier this year that the West's current megadrought is the worst in at least 1200 years. State officials worry Southern California won't have enough water to get through summer without unprecedented cuts – beyond those already announced.
The new water treatment plant is valuable addition to our supplies, but it is not a solution which eliminates the impact of the regional drought on Beverly Hills.
People in our community need to know what the problem is, how they can solve it, and be motivated to take action.
So, an important immediate step for Council is to adopt the measures proposed by the City Public Works Staff and the Public Works Commission including setting an aggressive target of 30% reduction of water use compared to 2013 levels, cutting back irrigation to two days a week within prescribed times of day and length of irrigation and limiting the use of daytime watering via a garden hose.
The harder task for all the water users in the city continues to be heed the need and take action to use less water. Your voice and leadership will be important step to that end.