City Council member Paul Krekorian may soon be out of a job if a few of his constituents get their way; and it's all because he allowed Marilyn Monroe's old house to be torn down. Well, actually it's because he has "demonstrated a marked bias favoring outside business interests over community sensibilities and community requests," but organizers of a new recall effort against Krekorian say that the destruction of the Monroe house in Valley Village was simply the last straw.
In June, developer Joe Salem razed the property where Monroe--then Norma Jeane Dougherty--lived with her in-laws for a year during World War II, when she was working as a parachute tester. Then, in October, a group called Save Valley Village filed a lawsuit against the city alleging that the council allowed the demolition to occur without the proper notification to nearby residents and ahead of a hearing that might have given the house landmark status (though this outcome appears to have been unlikely).
On Friday, the City Clerk's Office gave the go-ahed to five residents of the second council district to begin collecting signatures on a petition to recall Krekorian. One leader of the effort told My News LA that what happened to the Monroe house was the "catalyst" that propelled the group into action. Krekorian has represented the district--which includes North Hollywood, Studio City, and much of the southeastern portion of the San Fernando Valley--since 2010.
At this point, the recall effort doesn't seem likely to succeed. Krekorian was reelected to the council by a wide margin just last year, and recent recall efforts against other local officials have all failed to gain traction. Still, Krekorian will probably think twice before approving the demolition of any more of Monroe's multitudinous former residences.
Krekorian recall drive begins; spark was Marilyn Monroe house razing [My News LA]
Los Angeles Sued Over Demolition of Early Marilyn Monroe House in Valley Village [Curbed LA]
The Valley Village House Where Marilyn Monroe Got Her Start Was Just Demolished [Curbed LA]
For Her Birthday, Mapping Marilyn Monroe's 43 Homes [Curbed]
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