Media Advisory
April 3, 2009
Contact: Graciela Geyer ggeyer [at] scopela.org
First-in-the-Nation Green Jobs Ordinance Could Curb Staggering Local Unemployment
Council to vote Wednesday on City-wide Green Retrofit that would create jobs, save public money, cut CO2 and revitalize LA’s inner city
Los Angeles, CA—As Angelenos confront 11% unemployment, and federal officials look to cities and states for “shovel ready” projects to create jobs, the LA Apollo Alliance will bring an ordinance to a council vote for a green retrofit of city buildings that would create a green jobs training program to connect underserved communities to careers in the new green economy and has the potential to create hundreds of good jobs. Inner city residents, labor leaders, and environmental advocates with the Los Angeles Apollo Alliance, an unprecedented local coalition of community, labor and environmental organizations, will testify on behalf of the green jobs initiative.
With rising unemployment, Angelenos are looking for ambitious alternatives to jumpstart the economy. “I have lived in South Los Angeles for 20 years. I have seen all the good paying jobs leave my community. It’s time to invest in South Los Angeles and create good-paying jobs in our green industry for our youth and people like myself,” said Oria Green, a 53-year-old former home healthcare worker who has knocked on doors in South LA for the green jobs campaign.
Inner city communities have long been facing chronic unemployment, underemployment and high concentration of low-wage jobs, in 2006 South LA’s poverty rate was double that of the county as a whole. The historic ordinance would be the first of its kind in the country, and serve as a model for how the new green economy can revitalize inner city communities and create a path out of poverty for disadvantaged workers. The ordinance will be a local economic stimulus, the kind of project President Obama designated as a key component of our economic recovery, and eligible for federal stimulus funding. In addition it could save the city up to six million dollars annually in utility costs according to the DWP.
“This ordinance is an innovative local solution to a national and global problem. This shows Los Angeles is a leader in the effort to create a green economy that works for everyone,” said Councilman Herb Wesson. Wesson along with Council President Eric Garcetti and Mayor Villaraigosa signed the Apollo Challenge in August 2006 to create green jobs, training, and build a local green economy that prioritizes low-income communities and workers.
WHO:
Community residents, workers, environmental advocates, Councilman Herb Wesson, Council President Eric Garcetti, Kate Gordon Co-Director National Apollo Alliance
WHAT:
- City Council Vote on Green Jobs & Citywide Green Retrofit
- Report Available Growing a Grassroots Green Jobs Movement in South LA
WHEN: Wednesday April 8, 2009 10:00AM
WHERE: City Council Vote, Council Chambers Rm 340 at 10:00 AM
Spokespeople Available Immediately Following Vote in Media Room behind Chambers
(HCED Committee Vote, Rm 1010 at 8:00 AM)
VISUAL: Community members show support with green jobs flags. Blown up Graphs.
The Los Angeles Apollo Alliance is a coalition of over 25 local community, labor, and environmental organizations working to ensure an environmentally sustainable and economically prosperous future for all Angelenos and our diverse communities.
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