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Title:
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Consideration of the Adoption of a Resolution which Supports the Los Angeles Air Force Base and Opposes any Relocation Attempt of the Space and Missile Systems Center.
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City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends City Council consider adoption of a Resolution which supports
the Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) and opposes any relocation attempt of the
Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC).
BACKGROUND:
At the January 26, 2015 City Council Meeting, Vice Mayor O’Leary received the City
Council’s consensus to direct the City Manager to place this item on a future agenda.
DISCUSSION:
President Obama has recently proposed in his budget that there be a new round of
Base Realignments and Closures (BRAC). The LAAFB and SMC, located in El
Segundo, may be under consideration for potential realignment and closure for the
2015 or 2017 closure periods.
Jointly, it is estimated that these facilities directly employ over 5,800 military, civilian,
and contract workers and indirectly employ an additional 11,800 Los Angeles County
residents. The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation has
conveyed the following reasons why the SMC’s location in the Los Angeles region
is critical to national defense:
Meeting Date: 03/09/15 Item Number: A-2
CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM: Consideration of the Adoption of a Resolution
which Supports the Los Angeles Air Force Base and Opposes any Relocation
Attempt of the Space and Missile Systems Center.
Contact Person/Dept.: Shelly Wolfberg Phone Number: (310) 253-6008
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X] Date: _______________
Public Notification: Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation-SoCal
Jobs Defense Council; Agenda and Meetings – City Council (E-Mail) (03/03/15)
Department Approval:
Martin R. Cole (03/03/15)
City Attorney Approval:
Carol Schwab (by H. Baker) (03/02/15)
Chief Financial Officer Approval:
Jeff Muir (by M. Noller) (03/03/15)
City Manager Approval:
John M. Nachbar (03/03/15) City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
1) The LAAFB’s location in the most populated county in the nation and
on the Pacific Rim is of strategic geopolitical importance to our national
defense and is also relied on heavily due to this location by other
military commands throughout the state as well as the nation.
2) Los Angeles County remains the top location for aerospace and
defense in the nation—home to major prime contractor operations,
such as Northrop, Lockheed, Boeing, Raytheon, and Honeywell, as
well as more smaller and mid-sized companies in the aerospace and
defense supply chain than any other location in the nation.
3) Los Angeles County’s institutions of higher learning also graduate
more engineers than anywhere else in the nation and have developed
sophisticated programs at community colleges and universities to
meet the needs of our Nation’s aerospace and defense industries well
into the future.
4) Both the proximity to a significantly large system of aerospace and
defense companies coupled with an unmatched skilled workforce to
support this system provides LAAFB with unparalleled built-in benefits
to advance its mission.
5) Given the diversity of workforce employed at SMC (with military as well
as civilian employees and contractors) and the lifestyle many of the
civilian and contractor employees have grown accustomed to in the
Los Angeles Region, any relocation attempt with SMC would trigger a
disruption and risk at a time when SMC’s role in our national defense
could not be more important.
Dating back 10 years, at the February 14, 2005 City Council Meeting, the City
Council discussed the closure of LAAFB as part of the 2005 BRAC process. At that
meeting, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2005-R004: supporting the
retention of the Los Angeles Air Force Base.
On February 3, 2015, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted
unanimously to approve the following recommendation, as submitted by Supervisor
Don Knabe:
“Send a five-signature letter to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and
Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James expressing the Board’s firm
support of the Los Angeles Air Force Base and stating that any relocation
attempt of the Space and Missile Systems Center would be detrimental to
national defense and the mission of the Los Angeles Air Force Base; and City of Culver City, California
Agenda Item Report
send a five-signature letter to the Mayors of the County’s eighty-eight cities
encouraging them to pass resolutions in support of the Los Angeles Air
Force Base and the Space and Missile Systems Center to the Secretaries
of Defense and the Air Force.”
On February 6, 2015, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors sent a letter to
Mayor Sahli-Wells requesting similar support for the LAAFB and SMC from the City
Council. The League of California Cities’ Los Angeles Division has indicated its
support, and the City Councils of the Cities of Cerritos; El Segundo; Hawaiian
Gardens; Hawthorne; Lomita; and Palos Verdes Estates have also voted in support
for this effort. On February 10
th
, the Los Angeles City Council referred a Resolution
on this issue to its Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee.
Tonight, the City Council has an opportunity to consider a proposed Resolution in
support of LAAFB and which opposes any relocation attempt of the Space and
Missile Systems Center.
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
There is no fiscal impact to support the attached resolution.
ATTACHMENT:
1. Letter from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, February 6,
2015.
2. Proposed Resolution.
MOTIONS:
That the City Council:
1.A. Adopt a resolution supporting the Los Angeles Air Force Base and
opposing any relocation attempt of the Space and Missile Systems Center and
direct staff to forward letters in opposition to the closure of LAAFB and SMC;
OR
1.B. Provide other direction as deemed appropriate.
MEETING DATE: March 9, 2015
AGENDA ITEM: Consideration of Adoption of a Resolution which
Supports the Los Angeles Air Force Base and Opposes
any Relocation Attempt of the Space and Missile
Systems Center.
ATTACHMENTS
Pages
1. Letter from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors,
February 6, 2015.
1-2
2. Proposed Resolution 3-4
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