Wendy Greuel
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Wendy Greuel is President Pro Tempore of the Los Angeles City Council representing the 2nd District. Greuel was elected in 2002 to fill the remainder of the term of Councilman Joel Wachs. She was elected in her own right in 2003 and is up for reelection in 2007. The 2nd District includes portions of the San Fernando Valley.
As a City Councilmember, she has focused much of her time on public safety, the environment, economic issues, transportation, and neighborhood services. Wendy Greuel developed the Stolen Vehicle Recovery Program, which allows Department of Transportation officers to tow stolen vehicles instead of Los Angeles Policemen, allowing LAPD officers more time to focus on serious crime. In addition, she created the Office of Public Safety within the Department of General Services which consolidated the city's many security forces into one unit, to improve response times, better distribution of officers, and to save money for the city. She has also created the Police Fund, a program in which any councilmember who roots out inefficiencies can solve those problems and then contribute the money saved to hiring police officers. She was successful in adding hundreds of thousands of dollars by simply streamlining the city's (800) numbers. "She secured passage of the Scenic Preservation Corridor Plan, the purchases of 145 acres south of La Tuna Canyon and a passive park adjacent to Big Tujunga wash, and she fought to permanently preserve 750 acres of open space and prevent any further development in the Verdugo Mountains." (Official Biography) Along with Councilman Eric Garcetti, she led the fight to reform the city's business tax and to make it more competitive among local jurisdictions. As the chair of the Transportation committee, she has banned road construction during rush hours, has ensured that hundreds of new left-hand turn signals will be installed, city lights will be synchronized, and has promoted other short and long term transportation initiatives. Wendy successfully created the 50/50 Sidewalk Program which finds a solution to the constant problem of cracked sidewalks. Currently, there is an 80 year waiting list to have a sidewalk fixed. Through Ms. Greuel's program, constituents are able to pay 50% of the costs and consequently, their sidewalk repaving will be guaranteed within two weeks. She is also currently working with Councilmembers Garcetti and Rosendahl to implement clean money, public financing campaigns in Los Angeles.
From 1997 through her election in 2002, she worked in the Corporate Affairs Department of DreamWorks SKG, where she worked on government and community relations at the local, state, and national level. From 1993 through 1997, she worked as the Field Operations Officer for Southern California under Cabinet Secretary Henry Cisneros in the Department of Housing and Urban Development during President Clinton's administration. In that position, she was instrumental in coordinating the federal government's response to the 1994 Northridge earthquake. From 1983-1993, she was a member of Mayor Tom Bradley's administration, serving as his liaison to city departments, the city council, and the public, working on a number of important policy issues, including the creation of Los Angeles' nationally respected after school program, LA's Best.
She was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, served as the Student Body President at Kennedy High School, and held internships in Councilman Joel Wachs and Mayor Bradley's offices, before and while attending the University of California Los Angeles.
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