Strapped City Will Incur Millions in Additional Costs for Michael Jackson Event
Friday, July 03, 2009
ShareCalifornia just paid $53.3 million of its bills with IOU's promising that the state will repay vendors, taxpayers, and local governments with real cash in October.
It was just the second time since the Great Depression the state has taken such extreme measures.
Now the city of Los Angeles is girding for a Michael Jackson tribute at the Staples Center on Tuesday that could be the largest memorial event for an entertainer in history, drawing hundreds of thousands of fans and mourners.
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This means the cash-strapped city is looking at spending additional millions in planning and overtime for law enforcement, fire protection and cleaning services.
All at taxpayer expense.
"There's no precedent for this," Councilwoman Jan Perry, who is serving as acting mayor for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is on vacation in Africa, told the Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles City Councilman Dennis Zine also told the paper he was worried that the LAPD would not have adequate time to plan for the event of that scale, especially since many are already working overtime this weekend for the Fourth of July.
The memorial event for Jackson will take place at 10 a.m. on Tuesday July 7 at the downtown arena where the Los Angeles Lakers play.
When the Lakers won the NBA championship in June, private donors stepped in to pick up the nearly $1 million tab for providing police and fire protection and cleaning services for the ensuing parade and celebration.
"We're going to come together as a city," Villaraigosa said at the time. "The reason why so many people from the private sector came forward is because they know this town deserves to revel in itself for a day. We need it."
One of the major private donors for the Lakers parade was AEG, which owns the Staples Center, and is the concert promotion company behind Jackson's now-defunct tour.
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