Korean-American delegates dominate Wilshire Center Koreatown Neighborhood Council

The Wilshire Center Koreatown Neighborhood Council (WCKNC) delegate election that was held on May 4 resulted in a resounding victory for Korean Americans.

The WCKNC is an autonomous organization that deliberates and reviews major issues regarding new and expanded buildings, CUPs, traffic safety, and environmental beautification within their jurisdiction and voices these concerns up to L.A. City Council.

The election results signify the revival of the neighborhood council, which has been relatively inactive due to a lack of quorum. In addition, Korean-American delegates account for the majority of the seats, which is expected to strengthen the voice of Korean Americans.

According to the unofficial results of the WCKNC delegate election released on May 10 by Empower L.A., which manages the council, 18 of the 24 delegates (75%) effectively elected are Korean American.

This means that more than seven out of 10 delegates are Korean American. In the last term, only three of the 26 delegates were Korean American.

Authorities will review all provisional ballots, additional documentation, and any appeals before announcing the official results on May 19.

The WCKNC serves a two-year term. The elected Korean American delegates include Community Organization Representatives: Nathan Kim, Sandra Choi, Samuel M. Suh, Jennifer Chung, and Mark Lee; Business Representatives: Un Ji Lee, Erica Jung, Hoyle Kang, Kyungho Hwang, Ryan Min, and Jason Choi; At Large Representatives: Hu Ki Ryu, Becky Bae, and Bill Robinson; Youth delegates: Audrey Han; Sub-District 3 representative: Ko Eun Hwang Sara, Sub-District 4 representative: Lillian Han, Timothy Kwak, etc.

Most of these elected delegates are first- and second-generation Korean Americans who are bilingual in English and Korean. It is especially noteworthy that the elected delegates come from a variety of professions, including real estate professionals, lobbyists, lawyers, and Oriental doctors.

“The neighborhood council has a lot of work to do because it hasn’t been running properly,” said Mark Lee, director of communications at Mission City Clinic Network (MCCN), who was elected as a delegate. “I will use my eight years of experience serving on the Pico-Union Neighborhood Council to revitalize the Wilshire Neighborhood Council.”

“My first priority is the homelessness issue, and I will be working with the L.A. County Homeless Taskforce. We will also be working closely with the Olympic Police Station to strengthen policing in the Korean-American community.”

During the pandemic, the neighborhood council meetings were moved online, and many first-generation Koreans who struggled with the language barrier dropped out.

Additionally, the WCKNC was faced with issues with an imbalance of power among the delegates and internal conflicts, which led to a decline in the overall participation rate to a point where meetings could not be held due to a lack of quorum.

However, with a large number of first- and second-generation Korean-American delegates in the professional field this time, innovative ideas are expected to be actively shared among the delegates and put into action for the improvement of the neighborhood environment, and officials believe that this new term will be a breath of fresh air for the neighborhood council.

It’s also encouraging to see that more than 500 people participated in the WCKNC delegate election this time, tripling the number of participants from the previous election in 2021 (164).

Meanwhile, the Pico-Union Neighborhood Council (PUNC), which held its election on the same day, elected two Korean Americans, Young Kyun Kim and Young Iy Yi. The term of the PUNC is four years.
The council has a total of 15 members, three of whom are Korean American, including the current chair, Jay Park.

There are a total of 99 neighborhood councils in Los Angeles, and 94 of them will hold delegate elections by June.

BY SOOAH JANG   [support@koreadaily.com]