Slow-go on Wilshire Grand redux

Has it been a full year since Korean Air first announced plans to tear down the aging hotel (starting out in 1952 as the Statler Hilton), and replace it with a pair of high-rise towers? So? Well, the chairman of Korean Air, which is bankrolling the project, was sounding less than enthused about the progress (though he said it in a nice way). From blogdowntown:

"We would like to see the development process go a little quicker," said Y. H. Cho, the airline's Chairman. "We understand that balancing the city budget is a priority at this time. But your city leaders must not let today's challenges slow down tomorrow's gains."

This isn't exactly the best time to be getting all the necessary approvals and permits for a $1-billion project (the Planning Department is said to be extremely understaffed). But given the employment prospects of the development - 8,000 construction jobs and 4,000 after it opens - you would think that the city might want to make a special effort. Korean Air says it has the financing (the airline is loaded with cash). From Cho's speech:

We understand that balancing the city budget is a priority at this time. But your city leaders must not let today's challenges slow down tomorrow's gains. Projects like the Wilshire Grand can help balance a city's budget, and speeding up the ntitlement process for committed projects like this should be City Hall's priority as well. Let me be clear. This project will bring an average of almost 10 million new tax dollars to the city each year. This is an amount worth paying attention to!