Paul Krikorian said in a letter to city staffers and convention center managers that he wanted to know what steps were being taken to assure further conventions are not cancelled and what legal recourse the city has to recoup its losses if any cancellations do occur.
He said he planned to introduce a City Council motion asking for staff to report to the council on those topics and to recount any discussions that have been held with convention planners about the possibility of cancellations.
The Society of Critical Care Medicine said last week that it would hold its February 2014 gathering in San Francisco instead of Los Angeles because of concerns about Anschutz Entertainment Group's stadium proposal.
AEG's plan involves tearing down and relocating a convention center building to make space for what would be a 72,000-seat football venue.
"I realize that the cancellation of one convention may be anecdotal and doesn't yet portend a trend, but the loss of a convention of 5,000 medical professionals is certainly disappointing and suggests that there is a risk of more cancellations," Krikorian wrote.
He said he was especially troubled by remarks made to The Associated Press by the medical group's CEO David Martin, who said he was told by officials with Los Angeles' convention and visitors bureau that the existing convention center building would have to be demolished before the new one is built.
A framework stadium plan approved by the City Council members - including Krikorian - requires AEG to finish work on the new convention center hall before the existing one is demolished to minimize disruptions to currently scheduled conventions.
Either "the council was provided with imprecise information, or the city is not communicating well with its convention organizers," Krikorian wrote. "Either prospect is disturbing."
Convention and visitors bureau spokeswoman Carol Martinez had no immediate comment.
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