It's just too big.

Don’t let the Hilton steal the Measure H election!

citizensrighttodecide — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:48:13 +0000

Don’t let the Hilton steal the Measure H election!

The Hilton has spent over $3.1 million during the campaign in an effort to buy this election; by contrast, the Citizens’ Right to Decide Committee, NO on measure H, spent only approximately $50,000. The Hilton’s Measure H campaign reached a new low mark in BH for dirty tricks and smear tactics and they are now prepared to spend hundreds of thousands more on expensive election attorneys in an attempt to buy the election.

We need to make sure that the Hilton does not use its deep pockets to try to buy this election.

Despite all money spent by the Hilton, over 7000 residents have said NO to runaway development and NO to a project that is too big for BH. After an initial Election Day lead of 68 votes, the NO side now trails by 40 votes after the latest round of tabulation.

Do not let Beverly Hills become Florida 2000!

If you have any information regarding possible voting irregularities, such as non-Beverly Hills residents or non-US citizens who voted on Measure H, please help us by calling (323) 782-1144. You can also call anonymously.

Your contribution to The Citizens’ Right to Decide Committee can also help pay for election attorneys who will protect the interests of all the NO on H voters and ensure that the Hilton does not steal this election. We are all in this together and hope we can count on your help. For Beverly Hills.

Please urgently send your checks to:

Citizens’ Right to Decide Committee

6303 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 201

Los Angeles, CA 90048

(323) 944-0910

ID number 1306876

Paid for by the Citizens’ Right to Decide Committee

The Battle for Beverly Hills

citizensrighttodecide — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 01:30:03 +0000

Your neighbors comment on how they see the impact of the proposed Hilton expansion.

Happy Hilton Halloween!

citizensrighttodecide — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:53:21 +0000

THE BEVERLY HILTON’S HALLOWEEN COSTUME

The Hilton has been selling their proposed exspansion as the addition of a “Waldorf-Astoria” hotel on their existing property. The fact is that in addition to the existing Hilton, the expansion not only includes a 12 story Waldorf, but also 8 story and 16 story condo towers. And, oh yes: the original Hilton will also remain.

The Hilton’s motivation in disguising this condo development as a new hotel is clear: condos cost the City money, as City Treasurer Eliot Finkel has stated. And for each new net square foot of hotel, Measure H allows the Hilton to build 4 square feet of condos. In other words, 80% of the net square footage being built by the Hilton consists of condo towers. Up to 130 new condos are planned, or the equivalent of 5 whole new city blocks. And while that’s great news for the Hilton’s profits, it’s bad news for Beverly Hills…

(Thanks to Halloween, the traffic has magically disappeared. Alas, once the bewitching hour is over, it’s back to full-scale, nerve-fraying gridlock at one of the worst and most jammed intersections in the state).

“It’s my way or the highway,” says the Hilton owner.

citizensrighttodecide — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 21:41:13 +0000

DON’T BE FOOLED BY HILTON

OWNER BENY ALAGEM’S THREATS.

The Hilton owner threatens: “If Measure H is defeated, that is the end of the project.”

NOT TRUE.

He is spending millions of dollars on lobbyists, including a battery of ex-mayors, television ads, paid focus groups, high-priced PR experts, paid door-to-door canvassers, glitzy brochures and mailers, and a storefront office in order to convince you that it’s all or nothing.

The Hilton developer claims that “there has not been a luxury hotel built in the United States in over a decade that did not have a residential component or a major government subsidy. That is the only way luxury hotels are economically viable.”

NOT TRUE.

The truth is as close as Westlake Village. The Four Seasons, Westlake Village was built entirely without condos or government subsidies and opened in November of 2006.

Economically viable: The Four Seasons Westlake Village was built without subsidies or condos.

It is clear that Beny Alagem defines “economic viability” not by whether he can secure financing for his expansion, but by how many hundreds of millions of dollars he can earn from the condo towers.

The Hilton owner paid $130 million for the Hilton, including a functioning hotel. The smaller adjacent property at 9900 Wilshire recently sold for $500 million, for land value only. On the basis of the Hilton’s current value, the Hilton developer has sufficient equity to secure financing for a new luxury hotel, without any condos. And a smaller-scale, luxury hotel on the Hilton property like the Peninsula, which generated $5.6 million in revenue to the City last year, has the potential to be just as successful — especially with the advantage of the Beverly Hills name, which means the hotel can charge premium rates.

A NO on H means that the Hilton owner will be back with a smaller hotel project very simply because it is in his own financial interests to do so.

The Hilton owner threatens: Without Measure H, the schools will lose money.

NOT TRUE.

In fact, the only money earmarked for the schools is a one-time fee of $2.3 million, of which $1.6 is budgeted for mitigation of adverse environmental impacts caused by the Hilton construction.

THE HILTON EXPANSION COULD ACTUALLY END UP COSTING THE SCHOOL DISTRICT MONEY.

Beverly Hills School District Board Member Dr. Brian D. Goldberg says: “I believe our independent mitigation measures will exceed the $1.6 school benefit fee and we may have to dip into the District’s general fund to ensure the safety and health of our students and staff.”

The Hilton owner threatens: “Without Measure H, the City will not receive $12 million in new revenue each year,” which the Hilton propaganda has claimed is vital for school, police and fire services.

NOT TRUE.

In 2007, the Hilton projected a net new annual income to the City from the expansion of $6.1 million. By 2008, the Hilton financial claim magically grew to $12 million. None of this projected income is guaranteed and NONE of it is earmarked for police, fire or schools.

DON’T BE FOOLED BY THE HILTON OWNER’S THREATS.

Only by voting NO on H can we force the Hilton to come back with a smaller luxury hotel project that is more in keeping with the character of Beverly Hills.

Only by voting NO on H can we get all the potential benefits of a luxury hotel without the disadvantages of massive condo towers. The Hilton expansion would include up to 130 new residences, the equivalent of 5 ENTIRE CITY BLOCKS. As City Treasurer Eliot Finkel has stated: condos actually cost our City money because of an increased demand for vital City services. His analysis concludes that the net annual loss to the City is $2000 per resident.

Only by voting NO on H can we go back and negotiate a better deal for the City, with more money earmarked for the schools. In fact, we already have a good example of what halting the expansion plan can achieve. It was only after the Citizens’ Right to Decide Committee managed to qualify the Hilton expansion for the November ballot that the Hilton offered the BHEF an endowment. If we say NO on H, we can go back and make sure that the schools really do get their fair share.

The Hilton owner threatens that without the Hilton expansion, Measure H, the City will be unable to pay for vital City services.

NOT TRUE.

According to the current City Treasurer: “The City is financially stronger today than ever before.” He says, “The strength of our City’s financial institutions stands in stark contrast to the national economy.” Beverly Hills can afford to do it right.

The Hilton’s paid lobbyists and spinmeisters have come up with a slick political slogan. They describe the Hilton expansion as “The right plan – the right fit.”

The right plan? The right fit? Maybe for Chicago. Maybe for Century City. Maybe for Dubai. But not for Beverly Hills.

Beverly Hills does not need 18 story condo towers. Beverly Hills does not need the massive Hilton expansion. Beverly Hills does not need Measure H.

VOTE NO ON MEASURE H.

It’s just too big.

NO on Measure H Kickoff Rally – Sunday, Sept. 14

citizensrighttodecide — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 04:13:39 +0000

CITIZENS RIGHT TO DECIDE COMMITTEE
Beverly Hills, California
www.justtoobig.com

Contact: Larry Larson
For Immediate Release
larry@larsonmgmt.com
323.782.1144

PRESS RELEASE

CITIZENS RIGHT TO DECIDE COMMITTEE – NO ON MEASURE H KICKOFF RALLY – SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14
Beverly Hills, Calif – September 8, 2008

Citizens Right To Decide Committee, a grass roots volunteer organization of Beverly Hills residents who oppose the expansion of the Beverly Hilton Hotel, will hold their NO on MEASURE H Campaign Kick-Off Rally on Sunday, September 14, 2008, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm at the home of Ruth Kraft, 622 N. Trenton Drive in Beverly Hills.

In May of this year, members of the Committee obtained sufficient signatures on a Referendum Petition to place the Beverly Hilton Hotel expansion on the November 4 ballot. The five Beverly Hills Planning Commissioners, who reviewed the project for seven months, unanimously rejected it as too big. It was passed by a slim 3 to 2 vote of the City Council.

Measure H, the Beverly Hilton Hotel expansion, will almost double the square footage and concrete at the Hilton site. Opponents contend that the site will be over developed with four huge structures – the existing Hilton Hotel, the 12-story Waldorf Astoria Hotel, an 8-story condominium, and a massive 18-story condominium tower. The 18-story condo tower would be 7 stories higher than the tallest building in Beverly Hills and 10 stories taller than the existing Hilton.

Opponents also assert that in all the Hilton’s glossy brochures there is no depiction of the height of the three proposed new towers. In fact, the Hilton admitted to the Los Angeles Business Journal “that a rendering of the entire project is not available.” (8/25/08)

The Hilton has claimed that with traffic mitigation measures, the traffic at Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards, one of the busiest intersections in California, will improve. Opponents argue that common sense dictates that congestion will significantly increase when the size of the Hilton almost doubles.

Larry Larson, Treasurer of the Citizens Right To Decide Committee, said Beverly Hills does not need any 18-story condo towers!

A visual drive-through of the Hilton expansion (the smaller version, before it got even bigger and higher)

citizensrighttodecide — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 04:49:19 +0000

Wondering just how big the proposed Hilton expansion would be? Here is a “massing model animation” which shows a visualization of how the Wilshire/Santa Monica triangle would look after the Hilton expansion is built. The visualization includes the 9900 Wilshire project.

Please keep in mind that since this animation was prepared in 2007, the Hilton expansion actually got BIGGER and TALLER. In fact, one of the condo towers which is shown in the animation to have some 13 stories, has now morphed into an 18 story structure, which would make it the highest building in Beverly Hills — that’s 7 stories higher than the current BH record-holder. The 18 story condo tower would also be over DOUBLE the height of the existing Hilton, which, as can also be seen in the animation, will remain.

Please also keep in mind that this animation of the smaller version of the Hilton expansion doesn’t depict any traffic. Or gridlock…