http://bhcourier.com/arrogant-metro-board-rejects-mediated-settlement-agreement/
November 6, 2014
In an effort to resolve pending litigation regarding the proposal to
route the Westside Subway Extension beneath Beverly Hills High School,
representatives from the City of Beverly Hills, the Beverly Hills
Unified School District, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the
federal Department of Justice (DOJ) and Metro recently participated in a
full-day mediation session led by a senior mediator and retired judge.
After almost 10 hours, the mediation session ended with an agreement
acceptable to all parties present, including Metro representatives.
Efforts to implement the agreement came to an abrupt end, however,
when the Metro Board later voted to reject in principle the agreement
reached by its own representatives at the mediation.
“We feel the agreement brokered by the mediator was both reasonable
and fair to all sides,” said Beverly Hills Mayor Lili Bosse. “We were
very excited at the conclusion of the mediation that we had reached a
framework for settlement and equally disappointed by its later rejection
by the Metro Board.”
BHUSD president Noah Margo, who also participated in the mediation
session, said “Although we have at times been unfairly portrayed in the
press as unreasonable, we were willing to work with the mediator to
broker a solution that represented a true compromise. We continue to be
committed to working out a solution that allows Metro to fulfill its
goals, while protecting our school’s future.”
“We have always preferred a negotiated solution to litigation,” Margo
added. “The mediator, along with the representatives from Metro, FTA
and DOJ did a good job of listening and working things out. It is our
hope that the Metro Board, which now includes new members, will also
come to the realization that a mediated settlement is in the interest of
the entire region.”
Purpose
