Japanese Garden

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House For Sale at $9 Million

Byuclafaculty

Regent Emerita Velma Montoya alerted me to the putting up for sale of the Carter residence in Bel Air for $9 million by UCLA which is reported in Curbed LA.  Readers of this blog will know that UCLA is proposing to sell the adjacent Japanese Garden as well as the house with much controversy about the latter.  She also gave me a UCOP analysis of the sale which can be read at the link below. The Curbed LA article reporting the sale is at http://la.curbed.com/archives/2012/02/ucla_lists_japanese_gardenadjacent_carter_house_for_9mm_1.php The UCOP analysis is largely narrative although in the second to last paragraph, the anonymous…

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Seeds of a New Solution for the Japanese Garden?

Byuclafaculty

In case you missed it, on Feb. 21, the Daily Bruin ran an offer to UCLA from a coalition of groups to maintain the Japanese Garden that UCLA controversially proposes to sell.  Excerpts: On Feb. 9, UCLA Chancellor Gene Block wrote a piece in the Daily Bruin stating that the sale of the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden is in the university’s best interests.  The organizations and the family of Hannah Carter who have formed the Coalition to Save the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden respectfully submit that other options are possible, and, indeed, preferable. …On Jan. 31, the coalition convened a public informational…

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Regents’ Court Petition to Allow Sale of UCLA Japanese Garden

Byuclafaculty

As readers of this blog know, we have been posting documents related to UCLA’s proposed sale of the Japanese Garden.  The university’s ownership of the garden followed from a donation by Regent Edward Carter in the 1960s.  Carter’s wealth arose from his department stores.  You can see his signature on the stock certificate from Broadway-Hale and later one from Carter-Hawley-Hale. The donation by Carter was modified by an agreement in the early 1980s.  However, because the sequence of agreements required that the university maintain the garden in perpetuity, once UCLA determined to sell the garden, it had to go to…

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The 2009 “Toolbox” Report and the Japanese Garden (& Other Issues)

Byuclafaculty

Given the ongoing budget crisis, UCLA formed a task force to look at various revenue-generating options.  The report of the task force is dated April 24, 2009.  Among the possibilities considered was the sale of various properties including the Japanese Garden.  The report indicates that consultations with the state Attorney General were underway well before the 2010 court decision that permitted the sale, even though it was inconsistent with the existing terms of the donation.The report explores other areas such as faculty pay, fund raising, “branding,” and tuition.  You can read the full report at the link below (scroll towards…

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Official UCLA E-mail Response to Complaints About the Japanese Garden Sale

Byuclafaculty

I have so far been forwarded two responses to communications sent to Chancellor Block about the proposed sale of the Japanese Garden.  Apparently, when such complaints are received, a response is sent under the name of EVC Waugh.  The text was the same in both cases so I assume others have received the official response.  The recipient of one of the official responses gave permission for the text to be reproduced.  If you scroll towards the bottom of this posting, you will find it in italics. The response indicates that consultation was conducted with the local neighboring groups.  At the…

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Japanese Garden Meeting Follow Up

Byuclafaculty

Yesterday’s blog featured the audio from a local meeting concerning the proposed sale of the UCLA Japanese Garden. As a follow up, you can read some documents that were distributed at the meeting below.  Also, reference was made at the meeting to the legal action that was taken by UCLA (technically by the Regents) to allow the sale.  Some legal documents from that action can also be found below.  Note that there is reference in the documents to there being no opposition from the state Attorney General.  Obviously, there has been opposition from other quarters including the Carter family.  Whether…

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Audio of Meeting on Sale of UCLA Japanese Garden: 1-31-12

Byuclafaculty

A hearing or meeting was held today at the Community Magnet School in Bel Air on the proposed sale of the Japanese Garden.  Representatives of the Carter family (the original donor) were there.  Hannah Carter’s son Jim was the spokesperson and strongly condemned the sale.  Also presented were histories and photographs of the garden. UCLA was represented by Bradley Erickson, Executive Director, Campus Service Enterprises. Almost all of the individuals in the audience were from the neighborhood and almost all were opposed to the sale. UPDATE: The Daily Bruin has a summary of the meeting at:http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2012/02/local_residents_faculty_alumni_oppose_sale_of_the_hannah_carter_japanese_ga Audio of the meeting…

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Listen to Radio Program on Japanese Garden

Byuclafaculty

At the link below, you can listen to Which Way LA? on KCRW which featured a program this evening on the UCLA Japanese Garden.  Guests are Martha Groves of the LA Times, R. Michael Rich – research astronomer, and EVC Scott Waugh.  The program does not have anyone from the Carter family or background on the source of the original gift. It runs about 10 minutes at the beginning of the link below. UCLA’s position is that it would like to see the garden preserved but wants to sell it.  No guarantee is made, however, that the sale would be to…