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More than 400 business and civic leaders participated in the annual, no-cost Access Los Angeles City Hall event. Business people from throughout the region converged on City Hall for a half-day of meetings and breakout sessions on issues vital to the city. Topics included doing business in Los Angeles, the city budget, job creation and more. The morning kicked off with a special plenary session in City Council Chambers with speeches by top city officials, including the mayor.

View a Webcast, provided by V-cube Visual Communications, of the event:
Plenary Session
Breakout Sessions 1
Breakout Sessions 2

Read more about highlights from the day
View photos from the event

SPEAKERS
L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
L.A. City Controller Wendy Greuel
Marķa Elena Durazo, Executive Secretary-Treasurer - Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO
L.A. City Councilmember Ed Reyes, Chair - Planning & Land Use Management Committee
L.A. City Councilmember Richard Alarcon, Chair - Jobs & Business Development Committee
L.A. Deputy Mayor Bud Ovrom - Economic Development
L.A. Deputy Major Larry Frank - Neighborhood & Community Services

View full list of speakers
View advocacy agenda

7:30-8:15 a.m. Breakfast & Registration

8:30-9:30 a.m. Plenary Session

Hear from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and City Controller Wendy Greuel

10-11 a.m. Breakout Sessions - Round One

  • Building a New Alliance: Business & Labor Collaborating for L.A.'s Future
  • Vision L.A.: Building a Better City for the 21st Century
  • Growing the Grassroots: How Neighborhood & Business Leaders Can Work Together

11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Breakout Sessions - Round Two

  • Doing Business in Los Angeles: Next Steps to Improve the Business Climate
  • The City Budget: How Can L.A. Prevent a Fiscal Meltdown?
  • Measuring Up: Are the Stimulus Dollars Contributing to Job Creation? 

PAST ACCESS L.A. CITY HALL ACCOMPLISHMENTS

The 2007 Access L.A. City Hall trip included the following success:

  • Members suggested to city officials a one-stop Web portal to assist local businesses. In May, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa launched the new portal: www.business.lacity.org, which centralizes content currently placed on more than 20 separate city Web sites, creating easy access to information in areas such as permitting, incentives, greening your business, job training centers and tax information. The Web site is the latest step in Mayor Villaraigosa's effort to make Los Angeles a more business-friendly city.