City Council Aims to Claim Jurisdiction Over Autry Expansion

After receiving numerous phone calls and e-mails from constituents, councilmen Ed Reyes (CD1) and Jose Huizar (CD14) have added a motion to Tuesday’s City Council agenda which seeks to give them jurisdiction over the Autry National Center's proposed expansion of their Griffith Park museum space. 

The Los Angeles Parks and Recreation Commission last week approved the Autry’s $6.9 million expansion proposal, a ruling  some Mount Washington residents fear imperils the future of, which the Autry oversees.

In response to that ruling, the Friends of the Southwest Museum Coalition launched an aggressive campaign urging the city council to claim jurisdiction over the matter.

Section 245 of the Los Angeles City Charter grants the city council permission to claim jurisdiction over any city board decision within five regular council meetings.

Since the parks and recreation commission approved Autry’s expansion plan on May 20, the board had until Wednesday, June 1 to claim the issue before their jurisdiction ran out.

Should the motion pass, the Autry’s expansion plan would then be referred to the Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee for review.

The Autry merged with the struggling Southwest Museum in 2003, in what the community saw as a mutually beneficial partnership, considering the Autry's strong financial standing and the Southwest Museum's billion-dollar collection.

However, instead of leading to a rebirth, the Southwest Museum's merger with the Autry has resulted in the closure of the museum to the public. 

In 2005, the Autry shut down public exhibitions at the Southwest Museum and then completely closed its doors to the public in 2009.

Coalition members argue that any expansion of the Autry’s Griffith Park location would further marginalize the Southwest Museum and decrease the likelihood that it would even reopen as showing space for its massive collection.

Among the major concerns expressed by the coalition about the Autry’s planned expansion is the proposed inclusion of the “First Californians” exhibit, which has long been a fixture at the Southwest Museum.

According to the proposal submitted to the commission, the Autry’s plan calls for “the renovation and reconstruction of two exhibit galleries, the installation of long-term exhibits, the conversion of an existing outdoor area into an outdoor teaching garden, and associated improvements including the renovation of existing restrooms.”

The project will be paid for through $6.9 million that the Autry received from California’s Prop. 84 Nature Education Facilities (NEF) Program, which was established to support projects geared toward providing environmental and natural history education.

Yadhira De Leon, a spokesperson for the Autry National Center, said despite rumors to the contrary, reopening the Southwest Museum has remained a priority for the Autry.

However, she said given the collection's massive size, as well as  the condition of the Southwest Museum itself, which was damaged during the Northridge Earthquake of 1994, there is a massive restoration effort that first needs to be completed before the museum can be reopened.

The council meets on Tuesday, May 31 at 10:00 in the John Ferraro Council Chamber, room 340.