briefs cont.

from page 5

Brown to join Kaiserman as Beverly Vista PTA copresident

Alison Brown was elected Tuesday morning as Beverly Vista executive vice president for the 2012 2013 school year. Brown will be co-president with Rose Kaiserman, who Alison Brown took over the role of co-president after Noah Margos election to the BHUSD Board of Education in November. Kaiserman was profiled in Beverly Hills Weekly Issue #641. Brown, a 1989 Beverly High graduate, is also daughter-in-law of former Mayor Ed Brown. When asked if her father-in-laws public service influenced her involvement with the schools, Brown said, I just really feel strongly about the schools and want to make a difference at [Beverly Vista]. Brown said she and her husband Michael wanted their children Ethan, a fourth grader, and Arden, a second grader, to attend Beverly Hills schools like they did. Alison attended El Rodeo while Michael attended Hawthorne. It feels wonderful [to have our children in the district] and were happy that theyre following in our footsteps and that the school district is still as good as it is, Brown said. Brown said her family was attracted to the district because of small class sizes, range of programs, enrichment classes, technology and great teachers and families. Moving back to Beverly Hills also brought Browns children into the same city as both sets of grandparents, including her parents Herb and Elaine Stein. Its a great support system, Brown said. After graduating from UC Berkeley, Brown earned her law degree at Pepperdine University School of Law. Brown works as a part-time family lawyer in Century City. Im really excited to help our school and make a difference, Brown said.

Luxe Rodeo Drive announces Mueller as new GM

Luxe Hotels announced Wednesday Marcus Mueller has been named the new general manager of the Luxe Rodeo Drive Hotel. Mueller has held leadership roles at Marcus Mueller luxury hotels in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States. Prior to joining Luxe Hotels, Mueller was Director of Rooms at Hotel Bel Air, Front House Manager at the Connaught Hotel in London, England and Duty Manager at the Excelsior Hotel Ernst in Cologne, Germany. I am delighted to be joining the Luxe Hotels brand, for it has always stood out as the gold standard among luxury boutique hotels, Mueller said in a statement. In particular, the Luxe Rodeo Drive Hotel holds a special connection with the Beverly Hills community-at-large and is a recognized Beverly Hills institution. As such, I look forward to creating a close bond with the surrounding business community, our many supportive partners, international guests, and local Beverly Hills residents. Mueller received his diploma in hotel management from the College for the Hotel, Restaurant and Brewing Trade in Munich, Germany and is a member of several industry organizations including Amicale International de Chefs de Reception et Sous Directeur, United Kingdom and of Golden Keys (Clefs d Or), Germany. Marcus comes to us with a wealth of luxury hotel experience, Luxe Hotels Founder and Chairman Efrem Harkham said in a statement. He is internationally recognized for his commitment to exceptional service standards. His global background, coupled with his intimate understanding of the hospitality industry, will be a great asset to our hotel.

waste rates by 3 percent, the Public Works Commission was not prepared to accept the rate adjustment, said to reflect a cost-of-living increase. The commissioners would like to see [a lower rate], so we are actively working on a proposal for a smaller rate increase, Commission Chair Peter Foldvary said. Although the City has a six-year contract with Crown Disposal, the proposed rate change reflects an increase in the Citys administrative costs, vehicle maintenance and other costs related to trash collection, not an increase in the Crown Disposal contract, Foldvary said.

When asked if the Commission has a target percentage for the increase, Foldvary did not respond with a specific figure. The reason the consultants are engaged is so they can come up with a benchmark to say that with that increase things can be kept in the black. Its up to the city council eventually to try to improve that and the commission assists in that process looking at details before it gets to the city council, Foldvary said. The 3 percent is by no means the final proposal to the city council. The Public Works Commission has briefs cont. on page 9

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Page 7

I still havent recovered from it, and I got the realization during a Human Relations Commission meeting. Nancy Hunt-Coffey had come in to give us a report on the [renovations] that theyre doing at the library. She started talking about this new fairytale room theyre building for the very youngest patrons of the library. I was listening to her and I said, Why dont you call it the Enchanted Woods Room and have the Friends of the Library raise money to have some fantastic artwork established in the room? For the past 30 years, the Friends of the Library has supported a collection for the childrens department called the Enchanted Woods Collection, [which] is a collection of several hundred first-edition, hand-painted works for very young children by prominent authors. Its never really had a home. In conjunction with the contractor, the architect and Hunt-Coffey, we have been talking to different artists and I think were coming close to finding an artist to paint a mural in the room. Thats going to be a beautiful piece of original public art and the room is going to be two stories high. Its going to be so motivating to children to come in and have their first connection to literacy and reading be in this immersion atmosphere. Were going to continue to support and fund programs in the future in this room and hopefully get some special furniture and continue to support the collection, because the collection and programming are vitally important to what the Friends do. We hear you have an edible garden in your front yard. Tell us about that. I have gardened in the City since I was briefs cont. from page 7 been known to make an effort to get the best deals possible for the City. The Weekly reported in Issue #586 that the Commissions involvement in negotiations for the no-bid contract with Crown Disposal in December 2010 led to over $3.9 million in savings over the six-year life of the contract. Last month, the Commission formed a subcommitteespearheaded by Vice Chair Joe Shooshani and Commissioner Barry Pressmanfor fiscal responsibility that will look at areas the Commission can help with cost savings in the Public Works department. The Commission continues to study a proposed increase in the Citys water rates, Foldvary said. Every two years the Public Works department reviews its rate structure to see if any adjustments, i.e. raises, need to be made for the following year, Foldvary said. This involves solid waste, water, and storm water and sewer [services]. There will be no change in the rates of sewer and storm water services, Foldvary said, but the City is looking at an overall water rate increase of about 7 percent due to increased operating costs of the Municipal Water District, which supplies about 90 percent of the Citys water. Foldvary pointed out consumers water bills cover not only the water supply, but also the maintenance of MWDs infrastructure, including pipes, pumps, aqueducts, and reservoirs.

seven years old. The very first piece of corn I picked when I was seven years old just hooked me and Ive had a garden ever since. At this house I didnt have any really good sun, so my garden was mostly in pots and planters. Then about a year and a half ago I was out in the front yard worrying about the water rates going up. I thought, why dont I get rid of the lawn and put in a garden? So I did, and the very first month that I was using a drip system instead of sprinklers, our water usage dropped by 40 percent. I established a goal for myself a year and a half ago of eating something from my garden every day of the year and I do it and most people I know are eating something from my garden every day, too. Tell us about the proposal to start a community demonstration garden at Greystone Mansion. That grew out of something else that happened on the commission about two years ago. The commission decided to help the City to participate in Big Sunday, a citywide volunteer weekend. It usually happens the first weekend in May, and hundreds of different organizations all over the city participate and encourage all of their members to perform a community service on that day. We had some activity going on in our library on big Sunday a couple of years ago, and the next year Temple Emanuel called me and said, What are you doing about Big Sunday this year? We as a commission didnt have anything specific planned so I decided by myself to work with Temple Emanuel [to encourage the community to knit and crochet baby items for Temple Emanuels Baby The Commission is still working on its recommendation to present to the City Council. The Commission will next discuss the water rates on May 10 at 8:30 a.m. The City Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the water rates May 15.

Bundles collection]. Last year, the person from Temple Emanuel [said they wanted to do something outside]. I came up with the demonstration garden. Although thats not actually going to be occurring on Big Sunday, its going to be a year-round community service project for anyone in the locale, not necessarily just Beverly Hills, who wants to participate. This is another idea that the city has been unbelievably supportive of. They are willing to rototill some property up at Greystone next to the greenhouse, put in [an irrigation] system, [and provide] compost. Ive been reaching out to the community, gathering people together who love gardening and want to help. Im very impressed with the number of people who are going to participate. On May 23, were having our first organizational meeting at Greystone at 10 a.m. and were going to decide exactly what we want to do and how. Were going to visit the site and make a final decision on whether its going to go forward. Tell us about your family. I am the third in four generations in my family who have lived in Beverly Hills and [have] gone to school here. My grandfather [Benjamin Balos] built the third house that was built on Trenton Drive. My mom [Sherma Balos Frank] grew up and went to El Rodeo. I went to Beverly Vista and Beverly High. My two sons [Jared and Robert] went to Horace Mann and the high school. I got married in 1978. My husband [Mark] was my classmate at USC Law School. [Mark practices law related to] commercial business transactions and real estate.

[Im no longer practicing law but I did] bankruptcy law. I was in-house counsel for a bank. I decided a long time ago that I could do a lot more good as a community activist. My younger son [Jared] went to USC undergrad and is now in his second year of law school at Loyola. He also sings in a band called The Everyday Existers. My older son [Robert] is in his third year of getting his PhD at USC in molecular biology. Theyre both in the city for which I feel infinitely grateful. Im very proud of both of my sons. My older son lives with his grandfather [Alan Frank, M.D.] very close by because that way my father doesnt have to be alone at night. He makes my dad feel very secure and theyre both scientists, so they have a lot to discuss. I also have a brother who lives in the City, Andrew Frank. My oldest son and the garden at Greystone have motivated me to go back to school and get a Master of gardening certificate from UCLA Extension. Im in the middle of that. Its so interesting learning about plant biology. Whats the highlight of serving on the commission? The greatest thing about the commission for me has been the access that it has given me to meet all kinds of people that work with and for the City. The greatest thing about being the head commissioner this year is I get to go to the mayors cabinet meetings and its been fabulous to hear whats going on [with the] other commissions and interface with the other commissioners. A lot of [things they look at] are related to things that I work on and thats been really great.

Looking Beyond poker tournament Tuesday night

Looking Beyond, a Beverly Hills-based charitable organization dedicated to creating awareness and enriching the lives of children with special needs and disabilities, is hosting a poker tournament and designer silent auction at the Beverly Hills Hotel this Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Since Looking Beyond was founded 12 years ago, the organization has supported programs including the UCLA Intervention Program for Children with Disabilities, Etta Israel Youth Program, the Star Bright Foundation, and the No Limits Theater Group. Last years poker tournament and silent auction raised over $250,000 for the organizations cause. To purchase tickets, visit http://lookingbeyondla.eventbrite.com/. briefs cont. on page 10

Playboy Jazz Festival Master of Ceremonies Bill Cosby (left) with Playboy Jazz Festival President Emeritus Dick Rosenzweig

Free Playboy Jazz Festival community concert in Beverly Hills May 6

The Playboy Jazz Festival is coming to Beverly Hills May 6 for a free community concert in Civic Center Plaza at 3:30 p.m. The community concert will feature Jose Rizos Mongorama nine-piece, Latin-jazz ensemble, which explores the early Mongo Santamaria charanga-jazz material of the 1950s and early 1960s. Rizo is host of KJazzs Jazz on the Latin Side. The Beverly Hills community concert is being held in connection with the 2012 Playboy Jazz Festival, which will take place June 16 and 17 at the Hollywood Bowl. This years lineup features Ramsey Lewis, Ozomatli, the Christian McBride Big Band, Shelia E. and Boney James. Bill Cosby is master of ceremonies. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit playboyjazzfestival.com. April 19 - April 25, 2012 Page 9