Some disturbing news is coming out from Los Angeles where Ritz-Carlton and JW hotels oppose participating in the city's Project Roomkey-program.

These two properties don't want to be associated with sheltering homeless during Covid-19 pandemic and being branded as a "homeless hotel." It doesn't help that there are very expensive ($1M - $40M) residences sold for Ritz-Carlton.

You can access Ritz-Carlton LA's website here, and you can access Project Roomkey here.

Here's an excerpt from the NBC Los Angeles (read more here):

A Los Angeles councilman says luxury hotels should not be exempt from a program to temporarily move people experiencing homelessness into empty hotel rooms after owners at the city's Ritz-Carlton said they opposed the plan.

An email from the Homeowner's Association for the Ritz-Carlton Residences says it's resisting Project Roomkey at the Ritz and the adjoining J.W. Marriott hotels. The email lists concerns about safety, security, property values and overall lifestyle.

Here's an excerpt from ABC7 (access their piece here):

"I don't think fancy hotels should be exempt from Project Roomkey," says Bonin. "As we look to hotels to step up, those that have benefited from public investment and public largess - those are the first that we should be looking towards."

According to a 2018 report by the Los Angeles city controller, the city of L.A. agreed to pay the owners of the L.A. LIVE complex, which includes the Ritz-Carlton and J.W. Marriott, $270 million in financial incentives over a 25 year period.

"The hotels are losing money and hotel workers aren't getting paid," says Bonin.

"This, literally, can be a win, win, win - a triple bottom line of improving public health, helping the hotels stay solvent, which helps he city treasury and putting people back to work," Bonin added.

Conclusion

Perhaps it wouldn't hurt these millionaires and billionaires that have purchased units at the Ritz-Carlton to get a glimpse of reality on the ground in Los Angeles and other cities in the US?

The LA Live complex that owns these two hotels is receiving $270M in incentives from the city of Los Angeles over an extended period. Would it hurt to give something back to the community?

Many hotels around the world are being used for quarantine possible and positive Covid-19 cases. It wouldn't hurt Ritz-Carlton and JW to be associated with a good cause and preventing possible deaths.

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