[{"_1":2,"_86":-5,"_87":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,74],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":56,"_73":56},"mediaId",6579383,"mediaKeyId","3087043-c009ad23121572960e5e3b0dbdd01dbf","parentId",3087043,"title","LAX director warns passenger, concession and cargo declines threaten jobs; council approves $31M curbside improvement increase","audioSeconds",2849,"startMs",2454000,"endMs",5303000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3087043-c009ad23121572960e5e3b0dbdd01dbf&start=2454&end=5303","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3087043-c009ad23121572960e5e3b0dbdd01dbf/thumbnail_2454000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6579383/Los-Angeles-City/Los-Angeles-County/California/LAX-director-warns-passenger-concession-and-cargo-declines-threaten-jobs-council-approves-31M-curbside-improvement-increase","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6579383-3166b4e7e04b84c74f97a4ab1561f940/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204489&Signature=amN-f65bFSuntsw9e8~ZVWTx1~HVoHqb4pOx1FTQ~VJKbKlKxpUBwfU2AbgIiO7-PkH5k17X-PGrZFWWsGrCFOxtDWfksH-OwF4A~SSRmj30w24IsTEKURbM22RinCyImnhxNwdx-E~vpkaDmEeNI3tRRNe9QdXfq1T-ntbCdO6AqylTgUptqAEdlXzUJBPCCy3UrI9HC6mzvQVRdqDhYpNGQrwijb0gj1Zkw-4vymFO85CS5K0G7ZQilPFveQhxfm4~Rr~iLLbgs7NHB-4XvRARdrHCQTy4f5tsuXPcHuUMrPJK6HBa-2JncNTy5SBWLLVifru6GLjcuGen7ztoDg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-04-23T00:19:14.413Z","article","John Ackerman, executive director of Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), told a Los Angeles City committee that LAX remains financially solvent but is more exposed than many peers to a weak international recovery, falling passenger traffic and declining concession revenues — trends that threaten jobs and local small businesses. The committee approved a second amendment to contract DA5620 with Hensel Phelps Construction Company for central terminal area (CTA) curbside improvements, increasing contract authority by about $31 million.

Ackerman said LAWA is \"very financially strong\" but warned that airline and concession partners are suffering and that some vendors have contractual exit options if conditions do not improve. \"We are okay, but our partners are hurting,\" Ackerman said. He highlighted multiple performance indicators: LAX is down in passenger rankings (having fallen off the top 10 busiest airports list), the airport is \"one of the worst recovered airports in the country post pandemic,\" and LAWA's first-quarter cargo volumes were down year-over-year. He also reported concession revenue declines — Terminal 1 concession revenues down nearly 30% and duty-free revenues down about 20% versus 2019 — and said some rental car operators saw drops exceeding 25% compared with 2024.

Why it matters: LAWA is a major regional economic engine. Ackerman said LAX supports more than a half-million jobs and contributes tens of billions of dollars annually to the regional economy; disruptions in airline service and concessions ripple through local businesses and workers. He urged the council to pursue regulatory and process reforms to speed hiring, procurement and capital projects ahead of major events such as the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics.

Contract action: the committee considered Board of Airport Commissioners Resolution No. 28110 and approved the second amendment to contract DA5620 with Hensel Phelps for the CTA curbside improvement program. Mike Christensen (identified in the hearing as the airport CDO) described the work as roadway and pavement improvements, new sidewalks and crosswalks, upgraded lighting and facade work on parking structures and other elements of the arrivals and departures curbsides. Chair Park moved to approve item 5; the roll call recorded Park \"yes,\" McCosker \"yes,\" Rodriguez absent, and the item was approved (2 ayes).

Ackerman and council members discussed workforce and process issues. Ackerman said LAWA is more than 20% below pre-pandemic staffing levels and that city personnel and procurement systems slow hiring and project delivery. He told the committee LAWA has new contracting vehicles (multiple-award task order contracts) and recently completed large capital-market transactions, but warned that longer-term recovery depends on faster approvals and reduced regulatory burdens: \"We cannot have it take 10 years to go from the idea of building something to building something,\" he said.

Council members pressed for specific reforms and a short timeline for LAWA proposals. Ackerman said the airport will deliver a set of proposed reforms in the coming weeks and that some longer structural reforms (such as charter changes) may take longer but should be pursued in parallel. The CTA curbside contract amendment was approved in the same meeting; the item included a categorical CEQA exemption reference for specified class exemptions per the Los Angeles City CEQA guidelines.

The committee continued item 4 to a future meeting, and no further council actions were taken for the verbal LAX quarterly update (item 3) beyond discussion and the informal commitments to bring forward reform proposals.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Trade, Travel and Tourism Committee - 04/22/2025","oneSentenceSummary","John Ackerman, chief executive of Los Angeles World Airports, told a council committee that passenger traffic, concessions and cargo are lagging peer airports and that partners are hurting; the committee approved a $31 million second amendment to Hensel Phelps' contract for central terminal area curbside improvements.","taxTitle","Los Angeles City, Los Angeles County, California","taxId",4025,"location","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":75,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":76,"_41":77,"_43":78,"_45":79,"_47":80,"_49":81,"_51":82,"_53":83,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":84,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":85,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":56,"_73":56},6579387,"Port of Los Angeles warns tariffs could trim cargo by a third; council adopts request for focused impact analysis",1886,559000,2445000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3087043-c009ad23121572960e5e3b0dbdd01dbf&start=559&end=2445","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3087043-c009ad23121572960e5e3b0dbdd01dbf/thumbnail_559000.jpg","/articles/6579387/Los-Angeles-City/Los-Angeles-County/California/Port-of-Los-Angeles-warns-tariffs-could-trim-cargo-by-a-third-council-adopts-request-for-focused-impact-analysis","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6579387-041c79821a02422592d6e6ab25b2782e/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204489&Signature=av9Z0VtmBJGGTnGEY6S84cpcnzUZcm-tOKvfGW1aX3mCwx2ZctZpXg-~yLpX8PbFZkhEoj1Y1W4F9empj~-OPQQdacCfjdzNTsmprNX0eaJCDHtALU7o8g4J8WnOjfHqzRGQkEMIJc3LmrMPfo~pBghBmyyR7xObiqIM201X2U1256ZNvt86qupFp5vJCQsCgzM9DgfGvznMag9fO18ejJIHFFGF2nPbT7y7xQFQ8WdidTWNrXG9vyA2ZPFcsTRHmGCVrQU1QUhLK5f5MPfpIprUzdj-4nM3KhkfJ3ozaBEiMrkmsTVLoQfXIoF00CSS95PtniEmS83rErutkNwKvA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, told a Los Angeles City committee that sweeping tariff actions and ongoing federal trade uncertainty are already reducing cargo volumes and could sharply affect port-related jobs and local supply chains. The committee adopted a motion asking the executive director to provide focused analysis of tariff impacts and mitigation strategies.

Seroka said the port has seen behavior changes by importers for about nine months, with larger retailers front-loading inventories ahead of expected tariff changes and smaller importers unable to do the same. \"China represents 45% of our business portfolio at the Port of Los Angeles,\" Seroka said. He added that China's tariffs had, at one point in the discussion, been raised to 145% and that, as a result, \"if you import a product from China today it's 2 and a half times more expensive than it was last month.\" He warned that those increases, plus retaliatory tariffs from other countries, already are depressing trade volumes.

Why it matters: the port is a major local and regional employer and logistics hub. Seroka said the port complex supports a sizeable fraction of Southern California employment: \"1 in 9 people in Southern California go to work every day with what we do at the Port Complex,\" and he repeated the port's rule-of-thumb that \"for every 4 containers we move it creates a job.\" Council members pressed for concrete impacts to workers and households; Seroka said he could provide calculations showing the local economic effects of reduced hours and lost casual work.

Seroka projected near-term declines in ship calls and cargo. He said many large importers have halted new imports from China and that the port expects to see the near-term effect in arrivals within about two weeks: \"my projection is the cargo volume will be down about 35% compared to the current run rate.\" He also told the committee that for May the port was already tracking roughly 20 canceled sailings out of an average of about 80 monthly calls.

Committee members emphasized the ripple effects on manufacturing, agriculture and local construction supply chains. Seroka highlighted the vulnerability of California agriculture and manufacturers to retaliatory tariffs, and said the Port of Los Angeles and its neighbors account for a significant share of U.S. containerized trade: \"Between our neighbors at the Port Of Long Beach and the Port Of Los Angeles, 40 percent of containerized imports come through this gateway.\" He urged convening stakeholders — shipping lines, terminal operators, labor and community leaders — to discuss mitigation and to press for federal clarity.

Formal action: the committee adopted the council motion directing the Port of Los Angeles to focus on current and anticipated tariff impacts, effects on employment and local supply chains, and mitigation strategies. The roll call showed Councilmember Park and Councilmember McCosker voting \"yes\"; Councilmember Rodriguez was absent. The clerk recorded the item as approved on consent (2 ayes).

Seroka stressed that the port is preparing to invest through cycles and highlighted investments in zero-emissions projects and infrastructure but said that uncertainty will affect private-sector investment and the port workforce: \"we have no straight line effect as to where this end game will be. And a lot of folks are just sitting in a capacity of wait and see.\" He offered to provide follow-up data requested by council members on jobs, payroll and local spending implications.

The committee heard no separate action on the Port of Los Angeles quarterly verbal report (item 1) beyond discussion; the motion tied to item 2 was approved on consent.

Looking ahead, Seroka and council members discussed convening a roundtable of industry, labor and community representatives to surface near-term responses and possible relief measures for affected workers and businesses. The committee did not set a formal deadline in the hearing beyond standard budget-season follow-up and staff reports.","Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, told a Los Angeles City committee that recent tariff actions and trade uncertainty could cut cargo volumes sharply and harm port-related jobs; the committee adopted a council motion asking the port to analyze impacts and mitigation strategies.","actionData","errors"]

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LAX director warns passenger, concession and cargo declines threaten jobs; council approves $31M curbside improvement increase

Port of Los Angeles warns tariffs could trim cargo by a third; council adopts request for focused impact analysis