Krekorian: Ridley-Thomas seat open, wants council to appoint Hutt

By City News Service

The intersection near El Cholo was dedicated Thursday as Alejandro and Rosa Borquez Square in honor of the founders of the Mexican restaurant which is celebrating its 100th anniversary.

Ron Salisbury, the 90-year-old grandson of the founders; Brendon Salisbury, the chief financial officer of El Cholo Restaurants and a great- grandson of the founders; City Councilwoman Heather Hutt; and singer Michelle Phillips, a self-described El Cholo “superfan,” were on hand for the ceremony at the intersection of Western Avenue and 11th Street.

Phillips, best known as a vocalist for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame folk rock group, The Mamas & the Papas, said she was first introduced to El Cholo by Jack Nicholson in 1969.

“He told me stories about how struggling actors would come to El Cholo and buy a bowl of frijoles a la hoja for 35 cents, and how the waitresses would bring a side of warm tortillas and salsa at no extra charge. This was how Jack survived for many years,” Phillips said.

“As for me, well I’ve never left the place. We have celebrated every birthday of mine, as well as the birthdays of my various boyfriends and all of my children at

El Cholo for half a century, including my famous 40th birthday party. I will never find a more fun and delicious hangout, ever.”

During the event, El Cholo announced a $1 million fundraising campaign to fight children’s cancer.

Money raised through the effort will be donated to Los Angeles Children’s Hospital and the Children’s Hospital of Orange County Foundation. El Cholo customers who donate $100 to the campaign while visiting any of El Cholo’s six locations will receive a VIP Nachos Card, providing them with free nachos for the rest of the year. Such donors will also be entered into a raffle for prizes including a helicopter ride, a Duffy boat cruise and gift certificates at various Southland eateries such as Lawry’s, Pinks, Langers and Musso & Frank.

El Cholo customers are also being urged to add $1 to their checks, with proceeds benefiting the campaign.

The Borquez family opened the Sonora Café, named for their home state, Sonora, Mexico, in 1923 on Broadway and Santa Barbara Avenue (now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard) in South Los Angeles. The original menu included very early California plates, including sweet green corn tamales.

In 1925, a customer at the restaurant drew on a paper menu a figure of a Mexican field hand, an “El Cholo.” Alejandro Borquez enjoyed the sketch so much he and his wife were inspired to rename the restaurant El Cholo.

Aurelia Borquez, the daughter of Alejandro and Rosa Borquez, met her future husband, George Salisbury, at El Cholo in 1926. The couple opened their own El Cholo restaurant in 1927, choosing a site on the east side of Western Avenue, with George Salisbury’s mother, Lydia, mortgaging her home for $600 so he could open the restaurant.

El Cholo moved into a two-bedroom bungalow across the street in 1931 and remains at that site.

“El Cholo isn’t just a place to eat. It’s part of the culture of Los Angeles and has been for a century now,” Ron Salisbury said. “To me, El Cholo represents a crosssection of what LA is really all about.

“We have people coming in Rolls-Royces and people taking the bus. We have students, wealthy people, people barely getting along and even some struggling actors. You name it, they come here. To me, that’s always been a big part of our everlasting charm.”

Hours after suspended Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas was found guilty in a federal corruption trial, Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian on Thursday declared the seat vacant and announced his intention to have Heather Hutt — who has been filling the seat on a temporary basis — appointed by the council to serve out the remainder of the unexpired term.

“While the federal legal process is continuing, and Mr. Ridley-Thomas may choose to pursue his right to appeal, his office nonetheless has now become vacant as a matter of law as provided by Section 207(a) of the Charter of the City of Los Angeles,” Krekorian said in a statement Thursday night.

“While charges against Mr. Ridley-Thomas were pending, the Council appointed Heather Hutt to hold the office of Council member for District 10 ‘for so long as the temporary vacancy continues to exist.’ Because the vacancy of this office is no longer temporary but is now permanent, Ms. Hutt’s temporary appointment is no longer in force and the Council must decide what action, if any, to take to address this vacancy.”

In the short term, Krekorian said, he has appointed Hutt to serve as caretaker for the seat, effective immediately.

Beyond that, he said, his plan is to call on the council, at its next meeting, to appoint Hutt to fill out the remainder of Ridley-Thomas’ term, which runs until December 2024.

The council is on recess, and is next scheduled to meet on April 11.

“Mark Ridley-Thomas has been convicted of multiple felonies following a trial on charges described in the federal indictment of Oct. 13, 2021,” Krekorian said.

“I am deeply saddened that a career of extraordinary public service and achievement has been brought to a close in this way. Mr. RidleyThomas leaves behind an irrefutable legacy of leadership, activism and effective policymaking that have shaped our city, county and state.”

Thursday morning, a federal jury convicted RidleyThomas of bribery and conspiracy charges, along with mail and wire fraud, stemming from his time serving on the LA County Board of Supervisors and accommodations provided to his son by a then-USC dean. He faces years in prison when he is sentenced Aug. 14.

“Upon a conviction of a felony of a council member, the seat becomes vacant under the charter,” said Hydee Feldstein Soto, LA city attorney. “It’s different than the temporary vacancy that occurred upon suspension and appointment.”

Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson on Twitter recognized Ridley-Thomas’ verdict, but also acknowledged the veteran politician’s longstanding career and the contributions toward his community.

“When those in power choose to forget our community, Mark Ridley-Thomas centered and uplifted us,” Harris-Dawson wrote on Twitter. “We are called to acknowledge this history in the coming days as we navigate the next steps.”

Councilman Bob Blumenfield said in a statement, “I am disappointed and saddened by the reality that he is the third City Council colleague to either plead or be found guilty of corruption” — a reference to former councilmen Jose Huizar and Mitchell Englander.

“It further tears the fabric of trust in local public officials,” Blumenfield added. “I am also saddened as this verdict ignominiously ends the career and stains the legacy of a man who had been a trailblazer, an icon and effective legislator for many years.”

Ridley-Thomas had been suspended from the City Council in 2021.

Hutt was temporarily appointed by the council to the seat in September 2022.

Prior to that, she was serving as caretaker while former Coucilman Herb Wesson — who was originally appointed to fill in during RidleyThomas’ suspension — was legally barred from performing his duties on the council and eventually had to resign because of term-limit issues.

Hutt has announced her intention to run for a full term in the 2024 election.

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By Andrew Jose, Data Work By Emilia Ruzicka, Stacker

The public school system remains the most common means of schooling for children in the United States.

Yet, despite the vital role public schools play in the education of future generations of Americans, the national public school system faces a myriad of problems in “equity, adequacy, effort, and sufficiency,” according to the Economic Policy Institute. Despite these issues, however, public school enrollment has, on average, increased from figures 10 years ago.

As of fall 2019, around 50.8 million children in the country attended public elementary and secondary schools, an increase of 1.4 million students since fall 2009, according to data from the Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics. This rise in public school enrollment positively correlates with public school system revenue, although increased expenditures have accompanied revenue growth over this period.

Unfortunately, as with many other social and educational systems, the COVID-19 pandemic took its toll on public school enrollment. During the first two years of the pandemic, public school enrollment in the U.S. decreased by over 1 million students—practically canceling out the gains of the previous 10 years—with losses largely concentrated in early elementary years and kindergarten due to remote learning options and home-schooling, according to the Urban Institute.

Since funding status has a direct, correlative bearing on the health of the greater public school system, HeyTutor studied the changes in public school funding over the past decade, using data from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of School System Finances. Monetary figures in the data have been adjusted for inflation into 2020 dollars.

Education revenue has increased overall since 2012

Public school systems in states across the country receive most of their revenue from local and state authorities, with some funds from the federal government. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, much of the rise in total education revenue between 2012 and 2020 has been driven by a rise in local and state government spending on public school systems.

Federal spending, on the other hand, gradually decreased and flattened out between 2012 and 2020, with minimal increases and decreases that remain below 2009 levels ($92 billion). The fall in federal spending on public schools began a year after the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

In West Virginia, a combination of social issues, emigration, and poverty has contributed to smaller state and local budgets. This coupled with a teacher shortage has led to lower spending on education, which explains why when states across the nation saw an increase in public school education revenues, West Virginia lagged.

For the last decade, education expenditures have been greater than education revenue

Most public education expenditures come from staff and educator salaries. However, between 2009 and 2019, the proportion of expen- ditures for salaries fell from 60% to 55%, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Purchased services—such as food, transportation, janitorial services, and teachers’ professional development programs—rose, albeit slightly (1% of total expenditures), between 2009 and 2019, while spending on supplies such as books and heating oil fell by the same measure during the same period. Tuition fees, however, stood at 2% of total expenditures in 2009 and 2019. For 27 states, total expenditures across all categories exceeded the funding received.

The percentage of education revenue coming from federal sources has decreased in most states

The decline in federal government aid to local and state authorities for public education coincides with the decrease in federal aid in other areas due to spending cuts, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Since 2009, as previously discussed, federal spending particularly in public education has fallen.

Discretionary spending by the federal government helps subsidize education for low-income students and students with special needs. With federal discretionary spending at its lowest levels since 1989, cuts in federal aid pressure state and local governments to fill in the gap. Local authorities in less-affluent areas where many low-income families live are, in particular, feeling the brunt of this, and the lack of federal funding pushes public school systems in these areas into deficits.

This story originally appeared on HeyTutor and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.