Welcome to L.A. TACO’s daily news briefs, where we bring our loyal members, readers, and supporters the latest headlines about Los Angeles politics and culture. Stay informed and look at it closely.
—Westlake: Councilmember Euinesses Hernandez unveiled a new $10,000 shade/light structure dubbed "La Sombrita" at a bus stop in Westlake that looks like a giant cheese grater attached to a pole. Needless to say, most people aren't convinced it's worth spending just under $10,000 on each to maybe keep one or two people comfortably out of the sun. City and Metro officials see "La Sombrita" as a more affordable, easier way to bring shade to bus stops, when considering not all bus stops have the floor space for a full bus shelter. They're testing four "La Sombritas" out as a part of a test-pilot program. [Streets Blog/Twitter]
—City Hall: On Thursday, the Los Angeles City Council voted to approve an amended version of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass' budget. Councilmember Eunisses Hernadez was the only member of the council to vote against the $13 million budget proposal. After the vote, Hernandez said in a tweet: "Budgets are a statement of values—and a budget that allocates one quarter of our entire budget to LAPD while underfunding every other department and service does not reflect my values or the values of my constituents." The amended budget allocates more than $3 billion in funding for the LAPD and $1.3 billion to address homelessness. [LAT]
—Skid Row: Andy Bales, the longtime leader of the Union Rescue Mission in Skid Row, announced that he's resigning from his position after nearly two decades of service. [CBS LA]
—Echo Park: Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, a self-professed "abolitionist," is being heavily criticized for voting to increase the LAPD's budget. Soto-Martinez defended his vote by suggesting the LAPD is getting less money, even though their overall budget is projected to increase nearly $90 million from the previous year and Mayor Bass hopes to hire hundreds of more cops. In a statement, Soto-Martinez said: "This budget has about $1.85 billion in direct funding for the LAPD, compared to $1.877 billion in last year’s budget. That means direct funding for the LAPD decreased by about $22 million compared to last year." [Hugo Soto-Martinez]