They might be night and day, but Beverly Hills is becoming a friend to the beleaguered city of Bell. The city, facing financial collapse, is battling back with a little help of its friends.

Santa Monica sent police officials to help the city negotiate with its own officers’ association. San Luis Obispo and San Mateo sent financial advisors. Now, Beverly Hills has approved up to $10,000 of staff assistance to help the city restructure.

The decision, approved by a split board, offers a helping hand to a city looking for a future, and not a hand out.

From the LA Weekly:

Cities don’t come more opposite than Bell and Beverly Hills.
The former is 90 percent Latino, with an average household income of $30,000 per year. Its city government is drowning in an impossible pile of debt, and residents are still feeling the hurt of corrupt policing and fines after barely surviving one of California’s biggest public-salary scandal ever.

Beverly Hills, on the other hand, is world-famous for its stability:

Residents are so comfy and loaded that most could care less what their city politicians are making. So what if City Manager Jeff Kolin rakes in $274,000 per year? My dog’s vitamins cost more than that!



Read the full article here.