The City star is being taken to court over stolen design allegations

It's all fashion fabulous in the big apple. That is until someone accuses you of stealing their designs and not paying up. And yes, Whitney Port, the finger is pointed at you.

At the centre of a court battle, The City star is being sued by former employee and fashion designer Adrienne Baravetto. According to Baravetto she did nearly all of the designing for Port's Eve & A clothing line for women when it started in 2007 and then was cut from the deal. Baravetto also claims that this said deal was an oral agreement in which Port would hand over 25 per cent of the company and pay her $80,000 (Dh294,000) annually.

TMZ.com revealed that the lawsuit was filed on Friday in Los Angeles against Port and her dad. They are yet to go to court.


Source:ahlanlive.com/

LA Fashion Weekend Shows Off a California Cool Style

Los Angeles Fashion Weekend drew a crowd of several hundred and a handful of celebrities to Sunset Gower Studios for a three-day taste West Coast fashion -- and a surprise wedding proposal on the runway, which, apparently, is also in this season.

The event kicked off Friday with the debut of White Trash Beautiful (www.wtbclothing.com) a new women's line by designer Nikki Lund and Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora. While Sambora was nowhere to be seen, the runway show turned into a family affair with Heather Locklear in the audience and the former couple's 12-year-old daughter Ava Sambora on the catwalk.

The rocker wear collection included distressed leather, barely-there skirts, zippers as ruffles, a few feathered headdresses and leather-looking lingerie with a zipper up the crotch (Ava wasn't wearing that little number). A few wardrobe malfunctions made the collection more risque than intended, but perhaps that was appropriate for a designer used to groupies.

Saturday's show focused on eco-friendly fashion with the Green Initiative Humanitarian Fashion Show with proceeds going to the by the Green Youth Movement (www.greenyouthmovement.org), and the show's carbon footprint being offset by planting trees around the city in the coming weeks.

Designers included Lizzie Parker and Emily Factor, little sister of Smashbox owners Dean and Davis Factor, but the scene stealer was new dress line Puridee (www.puridee.com) with one-of-a-kind organic gowns made of "peace silk." Artisans naturally dye the distressed-looking floor-length frocks and the silk worms used are allowed grow into moths (lucky worms). "It's almost like wedding dress gown line," says Mikey Koffman, L.A. Fashion Weekend's founder and producer.

Clearly, Koffman had weddings on the brain when she got down on one knee proposed to her girlfriend on the runway following the Saturday night show.

Fashion Weekend's finale on Sunday featured 100 different looks for men and women from four different designers -- Civil Society, Division E, Zanerobe and Buffalo -- and focused on LA street-chic (think of Nicole Richie on a relaxed trip to Starbucks) with fashion staples like denim, cargo pants, skinny jeans, short skirts, hoodies and pricey T-shirts. Zanerobe, a sporty men's and women's line, stood out by having models don hunter's hats and old-school sports equipment like golf clubs and croquets while working the runway.

While LA fashion shows are no match for those in New York or Milan, Fashion Weekend continues to grow despite a sour retail market. "We've doubled our size; we've doubled our seating capacity; we've doubled our nights," says Koffman, who fell into fashion after owning a custom motorcycle shop. "We've grown to into twice as big of an event just since last season (six months ago).... We're pretty much the only main runway show that's happening this season, so that's exciting."

Oh, and Koffman's girlfriend said yes.

Source:huffingtonpost.com/

L.A. City Council asserts control over proposed energy rate increase

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa contends that rejection of a proposed energy rate hike "would be the most immediate and direct route the bankruptcy the city could pursue.'' (Photo by Gary McCarthy)

By WIRE SERVICES

Story Published: Mar 23, 2010 at 4:36 PM PDT

Story Updated: Mar 23, 2010 at 4:41 PM PDT

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to assert jurisdiction over a proposed rate hike approved by the Department of Water and Power board and slated to kick in April 1.

The move gives the council authority to review the plan and either affirm it or reject it and send it back to the DWP with recommendations.

"I think the residents of Los Angeles, the ratepayers and businesses, as well as our environmental community, deserve a more transparent process,'' City Council President Eric Garcetti said. "We need to take incremental steps instead of -- in the midst of a recession -- putting a gun to people's heads and saying 'pass this increase.'''

The council's action came amid a warning from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's office, which contends that rejection of the proposed increase "would be the most immediate and direct route the bankruptcy the city could pursue.''

In a briefing paper distributed to council members on Monday night, the mayor's office asserted the DWP needed the rate hike or it would not be able to transfer $73 million into the city's depleted general fund.

The city -- which has a projected deficit of $685 million over the next 14 months -- had been promised that share of the DWP's surplus revenue months ago, and had already programmed it into the budget to pay for various expenses.

"If the city does not receive the additional $73 million transfer, it will run out of cash before the end of the fiscal year,'' the briefing paper reads. "Failure to meet basic obligations would send the city into a financial tailspin, leading to further downgrades and an inability to borrow to meet future financial obligations.''

Councilwoman Jan Perry said: "I think the DWP has put themselves in this situation in terms of the timing and putting themselves up against the wall.

"But I think we still have a responsibility to vet this on the public record, to be fully transparent, not reactionary, allow the ratepayers a chance to have input and to understand the full implications of this proposal,'' she said. "Anything short of that would be dereliction of our responsibilities as elected officials.''

Councilman Dennis Zine described the warning as an attempt "to hold us hostage.''

"This is a scare tactic, and I hope the people of Los Angeles don't fall for it,'' he said.

City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana addressed the council after personally speaking with the mayor, saying, "Let me be clear: the city of Los Angeles is not going bankrupt.''

"If we were not to receive that ($73 million) transfer, we would have to move quickly to figure out what services we would need to focus on, sit down with the controller and determine when would the city literally run out of cash,'' Santana said.

"That does not equal bankruptcy,'' he said. "Bankruptcy is an action that you do when you have no other options. The city will continue to have options -- very difficult options -- before us.''

At present, the DWP tacks on an Energy Cost Adjustment Factor surcharge of 5.09 cents per kilowatt-hour to customers' bills every month.

The utility has proposed increasing that surcharge by 2.7 cents per kWh over a year, starting April 1, to generate $648 million in annual revenue.

About 75 percent of that money would be used to address DWP's failure in previous years to collect a large enough ECAF to offset fluctuations in the price of oil and natural gas and pay for existing renewable energy sources.

The other 25 percent -- called the carbon reduction surcharge -- would be used to pay for programs aimed at encouraging energy efficiency and developing new renewable energy sources.

Former Vice President Al Gore called it "one of the most forward- thinking clean energy plans I have ever seen.''

In a statement released Tuesday, Gore urged the council to support the proposed rate hike, saying it would "provide a dedicated revenue stream for investing in renewable energy production'' while "enabling the city of Los Angeles to invest locally on its own green economy and stimulating job growth.''

Under the plan, the 2.7 cents per kWh increase in the ECAF would be implemented incrementally, DWP spokesman Joe Ramallo said.

DWP customers' bills would go up 0.8 cents per kWH in April, July and October, and by .3 cents per kWh in January -- until the ECAF reaches 7.79 cents per kWh.

Once all the increases have kicked in, Tier 1 customers -- who make up 55-60 percent of all the DWP's customers -- would be charged an extra $2.40- $3.40 a month, according to the briefing paper. That represents an increase of 8 percent.

Tier 2 customers would see their monthly bills go up $11-$16. Tier 3 customers -- who make up less than 7 percent of the highest-end ratepayers -- could expect an increase of up to 28 percent in their bills, equivalent to $52- $65, according to the briefing paper.

The mayor's press deputy, Sarah Hamilton, said businesses would face a significant hike of 21-26 percent in their monthly bills unless they take steps to become more energy-efficient.

The plan drew protests from Carol Schatz, president and chief executive officerof the Central City Association and the Downtown Center Business Improvement District.

"The increase is huge,'' she said. "On a large high-rise in downtown, we're talking about $1 million more a year in power rates, and that can't be borne entirely by the landlord. It's going to be passed onto the tenants. The tenants can't necessarily pass it along to their customers.

"It is huge and they have no way to budget for it,'' Schatz said. "It was sprung on them with less than 30 days notice.''

Kent Smith, executive director of the L.A. Fashion District business improvement district, urged the DWP to consider tightening its belt before moving swiftly to hike rates.

"The challenge is (that) with this economy -- which is an enormously difficult economy -- the only place you can cut is your workforce,'' Smith said. "We're responsible for 64,000 jobs, and we do not want to see any one of those jobs disappear.''

Villaraigosa has set a goal of having renewable energy make up 20 percent of the DWP portfolio by the end of this year, and 40 percent by 2020. He also wants the city to be coal-free by 2020.

Source:wavenewspapers.com/

Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa Sees Bankrupcty Possibility

Is the city of Los Angeles going bankrupt?

Yesterday, the Los Angeles City Council voted to review a proposed utility rate hike that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa says is crucial for the city to avoid falling into bankruptcy.
The council can either affirm the city Department of Water and Power plan or reject it with recommendations.

In a briefing paper sent to council members, Villaraigosa said that without the rate hike, the DWP would not be able to deposit $73 million in the city's general fund and the city would not have enough money to complete the fiscal year on June 30.

"Failure to meet basic obligations would send the city into a financial tailspin, leading to further downgrades and an inability to borrow to meet future financial obligations," the mayor wrote.

The DWP was scheduled to provide at least $220 million to the general fund for the 2009-10 fiscal year. So far, however, the utility has sent only a portion of that money.

This follows a week that saw Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa gain some national attention. On Thursday, the mayor gained an important ally in his push for federal aid to speed expansion of the region’s transit network: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

Feinstein called the mayor’s "30/10 Plan" to complete 12 transit projects in 10 years instead of 30 "an innovative idea" that could help ease Los Angeles’ legendary traffic gridlock while creating jobs.

In light of the recent budgetary crisis and lack of funds, the question now is: where is the money?

Source:thestatecolumn.com/

Los Angeles Mayor Says Transit Plan Is Model for Other Cities

March 23 (Bloomberg) -- Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who leads the second-largest U.S. city, said his plan to accelerate public-transit construction with a mix of local funding and federal aid can be used elsewhere as well.

“Senator Dianne Feinstein is supporting this project, saying it could become a national model,” Villaraigosa said today in a Bloomberg Television interview.

Villaraigosa has drawn support for his plan from both of California’s U.S. senators, Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. All are Democrats. He’s seeking federal guarantees or loan subsidies to allow borrowing for subway and light-rail construction in the next year, so work can be completed in 10 years instead of 30. Los Angeles County voters passed a half-cent sales-tax surcharge in 2008 to fund transit projects.

“This is a way for cities and counties and states to come with money in hand to invest in jobs and infrastructure, while at the same time partnering with the federal government,” Villaraigosa said.

The initiative will create jobs, the mayor said. He said a separate effort to raise energy rates at the city-owned Department of Water and Power will create 18,000 jobs.

Source:businessweek.com/

Los Angeles tops EPA's Energy Star buildings list

Los Angeles is once again king of the hill when it comes to the number of energy-efficient buildings, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s second ranking of cities nationwide.

The scorecard calculates how many commercial structures in 2009 earned the agency’s Energy Star rating, which is given to buildings that perform in the top 25% of similar buildings nationwide. Eligibility extends to 13 types of structures such as schools, hospitals, office buildings, retail stores and supermarkets.

Los Angeles had 293 buildings with the label in 2009, covering 76 million square feet and saving an estimated $93.9 million in costs.

Washington, D.C., came in second in the rankings, which also included major cities such as San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, Atlanta and New York.

Nearly 3,900 buildings earned the rating last year, more than a 40% boost over the year before. The energy-efficient qualities of the buildings represent more than $900 million in utility bill savings and more than 4.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions averted, according to the agency.

As of the end of 2009, the nearly 9,000 buildings across the country with the Energy Star designation are responsible for overall annual utility savings of around $1.6 billion and avoided greenhouse gas emissions from the equivalent of a million homes a year.

“The good news is we currently have the technology, the know-how and a workforce that is ready to retrofit our homes and commercial buildings to make them more efficient, while dramatically reducing pollution," said Alex Wall, clean energy associate for advocacy group Environment America in a statement. “However, home and business owners need incentives and financing mechanisms that will make it feasible to invest in making their buildings more energy efficient and to reap the tremendous benefits for our economy and our environment."

The Energy Star program reached its 10-year anniversary in December.

-- Tiffany Hsu

Photo: Toyota's Torrance corporate office has the Energy Star label. Credit: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times

Source:latimesblogs.latimes.com/

Health reform: What it means to you right now

If you have a preexisting health condition
Starting this year, insurance companies can no longer exclude coverage for preexisting health conditions. They also cannot suddenly cancel your policy.

If you have kids at home in their early 20s
Beginning this year, they can be covered under your health plan up to age 26 -- no matter their status, in school, out, working or idle.

If you have a business with 25 or fewer workers
You may be able to claim a tax credit of up to 35% of the cost of providing health insurance for your employees.

If you are a senior citizen on Medicare
Those in Medicare's prescription coverage gap will get a $250 rebate this year.

And what happens next?
2011: More money to community health centers treating lower-income and uninsured people.

2012: Nonprofit insurance co-ops established.

2013: New 2.3% sales tax on medical devices -- but many items are exempt.

2014: Requires citizens and legal residents to have health insurance, except in cases of financial hardship, or pay a fine to the IRS.

Source:freep.com/

Health-care reform is now law

The president has signed the bill. I know this has confused some, but health-care reform is now law. The Senate's vote on the reconciliation fixes will modify that law, but President Obama just signed a universal health-care structure into law in the United States of America.

Source:washingtonpost.com/