Evicting Wall Street Protest Cost Los Angeles $2.3 Million
December 27, 2011, 4:45 PM ESTBy Christopher Palmeri
(Updates with city deficit in third, fourth paragraphs.)
Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Evicting protesters from their encampment around City Hall last month cost Los Angeles taxpayers $2.35 million, officials said today.
The estimate was released by City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana. The two-month demonstration, an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street protest that began in New York on Sept. 17, was intended to highlight income inequality in America.
Hundreds of tents were pitched in City Hall Park until police forced protesters out on Nov. 30. About 300 people were arrested. At least $1.7 million of the costs for police overtime, fencing and other expenses related to the protest will increase the current budget deficit of $72 million, according to the report.
The nation’s second-largest city by population closed a $457 million spending gap earlier this year in part by asking employees to contribute to their retirement health-care costs and by cutting back on police overtime pay.
The cost estimate doesn’t include restoration of the park, previously projected to be about $400,000, according to the report.
--Editors: Pete Young, Stephen West
To contact the reporter on this story: Christopher Palmeri in Los Angeles at cpalmeri1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Tannenbaum at mtannen@bloomberg.net
