Third in a series
Re “Litvak Describes How Reasonable City Hall Was in Blocking Ice Arena”
After the purportedly lethal amount of ammonia in the operating system of the Culver City Ice Arena was removed last Thursday morning, Bill Litvak, City Hall’s hired attorney, stood steadfastly by his employers’ month-long mantra:
“This was a serious situation,” he said. “The ammonia was a dangerous substance.”
Question: Were the residents of the adjacent apartment building imperiled?
“Yes. But the fact of the matter is, we would have had time to deal with it.”
Question: Are you saying there would have been sufficient time for evacuation if there had been a release of ammonia in the piping system?
“I don’t know. I would have to talk to the Fire Dept. to see how fast it would be mustered. Again, it is a measured response (by City Hall to the purported crisis of potentially leaking ammonia at the Ice Arena). Perfection would have been… One can justify a lot of things. But then the argument would be that, somehow, this is part of an assault on the facility that was created. It was a measured response. It was appropriate for all things considered.”
Question: My belief is that, because of the heavyhanded way it was handled, the city had a vendetta against the Ice Arena. Had it been a liquor store or a flower shop, City Hall would have been in and out. The newspapers never would have known about it.
“There is absolutely no proof, no indication, and I have seen nothing to suggest there is any merit in that speculation. What you have said is not journalism. That is editorializing. Writing what you believe is not news. Writing what you believe is an opinion that belongs on the editorial page.
“I will tell you that I have been privy to every issue regarding this situation. I see absolutely no basis for that supposition.
“Not only that, if you want to talk about something bizarre? Why was everybody so comfortable going into a facility, and letting their children into a facility, and arguing in the press that they should be able to go back inside?
“I mean, we are not talking about the neighbors,” said Mr. Litvak. “We are talking about skaters and their families.”
(To be continued)
