Board Elects
Officers for 2008-2009
 The
Board of Directors of the Hollywood Chamber of
Commerce met this week and elected officers for
the 2008 to 2009 fiscal year, beginning in
April. Elected as Chair of the Board was Mark
Panatier of the A.F. Gilmore Co. Senior Vice
Chair will be Bill Farrar of Andrews
International Security. Serving as Vice Chairs
will be Heather Cochran of the Academy of Motion
Picture Arts and Sciences, Maureen Schultz of
Capitol Records, and Sam Smith of
Genesis/Smith-Benton Insurance & Financial
Services. The new Treasurer for the
organization will be Marty Shelton of NAI
Capital Commercial Real Estate, and Laurie
Goldman of GO! Goldman Organization will serve
as Secretary. Jeff Briggs, who is completing his
second term as Chair of the Board, will serve as
Immediate Past Chair. They will be installed,
along with new directors at the Chamber’s annual
meeting on Wednesday, April 9th, at
the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, at noon.
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KBKG reduces
taxes with Enterprise Zone Tax Credits
Neighborhood
Prosecutor Addresses Chamber Board
 Will
Rivera, the Hollywood Neighborhood Prosecutor
for the City Attorney’s Office, addressed the
Board of Directors this week, and offered his
assistance on issues that the Chamber is
addressing. He cited examples of issues where
his office has been able to assist, including
removing one of the characters in front of the
Chinese Theatre who was causing problems, with a
stay-away order. He is currently researching
the permit process used on Venice Beach to see
if it might be useful in regulating the
characters on the Boulevard. He was also able
to stop a store from selling drug paraphernalia
adjacent to Hollywood High School, and was
instrumental in moving a homeless feeding
program from Ivar Street that had been
disrupting businesses and residents.
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Reserve Online
Members Take 15-20% Off with
I&A Dry Cleaners:
Call 323-953-9988
Chamber Briefed on
Highland Center and Selma Hotel
 Two
significant projects were presented to the
Economic Development Committee this week.
Developers Richard Heyman and Grant King
presented their proposal to convert an existing
two-story parking garage at 6417 Selma Ave. into
a 100-room boutique hotel by adding a five-story
structure on top of the garage. The $40-million
project would include a rooftop bar/lounge/pool
area with a tropical theme and a 4,000-sq.ft.
ballroom. Plans also call for the conversion of
an adjacent, unattractive alley into an active
pedestrian thoroughfare.
NCA Hollywood
presented preliminary plans for Highland Center,
a multi-use center bounded by Highland,
Hawthorn, Las Palmas, and Selma Avenues. Two
alternative scenarios are being reviewed for the
project, depending on land acquisition in that
area. NCA currently controls 3-acres, but is
working to acquire an additional acre. If
successful at all land assemblage, they would
propose a 1-million sq.ft. project. Otherwise,
the total would be 770,000-sq.ft. on land that
they already control. The company envisions a
325-room hotel, office space and a residential
tower as parts of the project. They would
include setbacks along Highland and Selma to
create a better pedestrian environment and to
protect view corridors. NCA promised to come
back to the committee later in the spring with
more specifics about the project.
In other action,
the Retail Attraction Subcommittee met with
Richard Heyman to discuss the possibility of a
public-private partnership to develop a parking
structure at a city-owned lot on Schrader
Street. The committee agreed that the biggest
barrier to bringing retailers to Hollywood Blvd.
is a lack of parking.
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Tourism Committee
Brainstorms
The Tourism
Committee, led by co-chairs Michael Carsch of
the Roosevelt Hotel and Richard Peterson of
L.A., Inc. brainstormed this week on priorities
for the committee. Among the ideas that gained
favor of the committee were to work on improving
the electronic marketing of Hollywood by
improving the content of the Chamber website,
developing public service announcements and
videos and creating or promoting events and
activities that would attract both locals as
well as tourists to Hollywood.
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Memorial Service
Planned to Celebrate the Life of Johnny Grant
 A
Celebration of Life event will be held in honor
of the late, great Johnny Grant on Thursday,
March 6, at 10 a.m. at the historic Pantages
Theatre, one of Johnny’s favorite venues. Johnny
once did the arrivals at the Pantages for the
Oscar ceremonies and many other events. Many
celebrities, politicians, military officers and
close friends and family will be on hand to pay
tribute to Hollywood’s greatest cheerleader.
Please note that due to limited space, the event is
private with invitation only.
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19th Annual
Hollywood Business & Tourism Expo!
On Tuesday,
March 4th, from 5pm – 7:30 pm, the Universal
Hilton Hotel will play host to the chamber’s
19th Annual Business and Tourism Expo!
Presented by Konica Minolta, this year’s Expo
will be filled with exhibits from Hollywood’s
best companies, ranging from Kaiser Permanente,
to The Hollywood Museum, to Author Services!
Exhibitors will meet new clients while
showcasing their good and services to meeting
planners, tour operators, and concierges.
Continental Airlines is awarding one of our
exhibitors with two round trip tickets for Most
Creative Booth, as this year’s theme is “Walk of
Fame Turns 50!” Our attendees this year will
also include studio executives, talent agents,
and celebrity assistants who will be there
enjoying food, drinks, and entertainment while
checking out the latest venues that Hollywood
has to offer. Prizes include gift baskets,
hotel stays, theater tickets, and round trip
tickets from Mexicana Airlines! Chamber members
are encouraged to help promote Hollywood by
reserving an exhibit and can do so by emailing:
Kaylee@hollywoodchamber.net. If you would
like to attend the event and learn about
everything that is hot in Hollywood, please
click here
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Foundation Plans 15th Annual WOD Fundraiser
The Hollywood Chamber Community Foundation is
already planning the 15th Annual Women of
Distinction fundraiser which will be held at The
Globe at Universal on May 8, 2008. Laurie
Goldman of GO! Goldman Organization and Maureen
Schultz of Capitol Records are back for their
second year as co-chairs of this event. This is
the largest fundraiser of the year for the
Hollywood Chamber Community Foundation, which
raised more than $100,000 last year. Funds from
WOD are distributed through the Community
Foundation to Hollywood based nonprofit
organizations. The WOD planning committee is
seeking sponsors and silent auction items.
Volunteers who are interested in serving on the
event committee, or soliciting sponsorships and
auction items can contact Kaylee Kiecker,
kaylee@hollywoodchamber.net
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Free
business counseling at the Hollywood Chamber
Offered by the Service Corps of Retired
Executives (SCORE)
Richard Krelstein, a retired business
turn-around specialist
Consulting services will be available most
Fridays 9:30 - 11:30am
To schedule an
appointment, call Vivian at (323)469-8311.
For those who missed the Hollywood Chamber trip
to China, the San Fernando Valley Chamber is
planning a
China Trip this spring.
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