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Anaheim found not in violation of Brown Act in stadium negotiations, court rules

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The plea agreement signed by former Anaheim mayor Harry Sidhu was damning: At a time the city of Anaheim was negotiating a stadium deal with the Angels, Sidhu slipped relevant and confidential information to the team, in the hope the team would thank him with a million-dollar campaign contribution. When the FBI asked him about it, he lied and denied.

The deal ultimately collapsed, but the question lingered: Was the corruption within City Hall limited to the mayor, or did the city itself break the rules?

On Wednesday, for the second time in three years, a court cleared the city of allegations it violated the state’s open government laws in negotiating the Angel Stadium deal.

A three-judge panel of the state appellate court largely upheld an Orange County Superior Court decision that the city had complied with the Brown Act in negotiating the proposed $150-million sale of Angel Stadium and the surrounding property to an entity controlled by Angels owner Arte Moreno.

Under the deal, Moreno’s company would have renovated or replaced the 58-year-old stadium and built a village — homes, shops, restaurants, hotels and offices — upon more than 100 acres of parking lots.

For the second time in a decade, Moreno thought he had reached a deal with Anaheim, only to see the city back out. The Angels’ lease extends through 2029, with team options through 2038.

Moreno, 77, told the Orange County Register last month that he had no plans for a third round of negotiations.

“Right now I’d say no,” Moreno said. “I don’t like the word never. Right now I don’t believe [Anaheim officials] have an appetite for it.”

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In response, Anaheim mayor Ashleigh Aitken issued a statement in which she said the city would be willing to talk.

“We welcome a fair proposal,” she said. “As a city, we’re committed to building on decades of baseball in Anaheim for generations to come.”

In Wednesday’s ruling, the appellate court panel rejected four of five arguments made by the People’s Homeless Task Force, confirming the Superior Court finding that the city did not improperly negotiate the stadium deal behind closed doors.

The appellate court validated one argument, ruling that the city should have allowed public comment by telephone and not just email during the pandemic, so that citizens could “directly address the City Council.”

“As most everyone has experienced at this point,” Wednesday’s opinion read, “email is easily and often ignored.”

In 2022, the Orange County grand jury blasted not just Sidhu but the council majority that backed him.

“The City Council majority’s inappropriate handling of the stadium property transactions betrayed its constituents,” the grand jury report read.

The grand jury, which said it started its probe before it became aware of the FBI investigation, said the city had demonstrated “persistent lack of transparency and rushed decision-making in its handling of the stadium property transactions, exacerbating distrust by the public, state and local government officials, and even some members of its own City Council.”

The FBI agent who investigated Sidhu said the former mayor’s actions “may have violated the Brown Act.” Kelly Aviles, the attorney for the People’s Homeless Task Force, said the agent’s report was disclosed after the Superior Court ruling and would not have been considered by an appellate court charged with reviewing whether the Superior Court acted properly with the information it had.

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Aviles said she disagreed with Wednesday’s ruling but anticipated her clients would consider the case closed and would not ask the state supreme court to consider taking up the matter.

Mike Lyster, the spokesman for the city of Anaheim, said the city “welcomed” Wednesday’s decision.

“For a second time now, a court has determined that Anaheim followed the Brown Act,” he said. “For whatever other issues may have come to light with the stadium proposal, we stand by the city’s open, public process.”

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Is now the right time to invest in gold as prices have cooled?

Now may be the time to buy gold following a recent lull in its price.

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The price of gold has climbed to record highs recently and has remained strong through much of April. And, that growth continued until the precious metal traded at around $2,390 per ounce on April 19, 2024. But since, growth in the price of the precious metal has cooled, with gold’s price now hovering around $2,300 per ounce.

This lull in gold’s price may represent an investment opportunity.

In general, investing is centered around buying assets when prices are low and selling them when prices are high – generating a profit on the difference between the two. So, considering the declines in gold’s price over the past few days, now may be the time to make your investment. But is buying gold during this lull in prices really a good idea?

Compare your gold investment options among leading brokers now.

Gold prices have cooled. Should you buy in now?

With gold’s price down from recent highs, you may be wondering if now is the right time to buy in. There are several reasons the dip in gold’s price may represent an opportunity to buy. Here are some of the biggest:

Prices may rise again

If looking at a gold price chart shows anything for certain, it shows that changes in the overall growth of the medal come in fits and spurts. Periods of price growth are typically followed by periods of declines and vice versa.

But with inflation rising in recent months – and with gold’s reputation as a safe-haven asset that can hedge against inflation – it only makes sense that the price of the precious metal will eventually start to head up again in the future. While attempting to time that directional change may be tricky, buying the precious metal while the price is down gives you the opportunity to take advantage of any upward movement that may be ahead.

Add gold to your portfolio now before prices have a chance to rise.

You may be able to make a quick profit

Gold isn’t known as an asset in which you can earn a quick return, but in today’s market, that may be the case. Don’t forget that in January, gold was trading at just $2,000 per ounce. And, by mid-April, the commodity’s price had climbed to around $2,400 per ounce. That’s about 20% growth in a matter of months, much of which happened since March 1 – an impressive climb for any investment asset.

Perhaps more importantly, gold’s price growth through the beginning of 2024 shows that the commodity doesn’t have to be a buy and hold style investment that you keep in a safety deposit box or precious metal depository for years to come. There’s also the possibility that the commodity’s price could climb further ahead, making it a compelling way to potentially generate a quick profit.

There are other benefits of investing in gold

There are other benefits of investing in gold that have little to do with the price growth seen thus far in 2024 – or the lull in prices seen over the past couple of days. Those benefits include:

Inflation protection: Gold has long been considered an inflation hedge, and for good reason. When inflation drives the prices of consumer goods and services up – and the value of the dollar down – gold’s price tends to rise. So, it could be used to maintain the value of your portfolio during inflationary economic conditions. That’s important in today’s economic environment as stubborn inflation continues to weigh on the value of the dollar.
Portfolio diversification: Gold’s price doesn’t always move in the same pattern that bonds or stocks do. So, mixing a reasonable amount of gold into your portfolio (up to 10% of your portfolio assets) as a diversifier could protect you from losses should one or more of your traditional portfolio assets fall in value. “If you have less than 5% – 10% of your net worth in commodities & FX (forex), you should absolutely consider adding exposure to gold and other precious metals,” says Vijay Marolia, money manager and managing partner at the wealth management firm, Regal Point Capital.

The bottom line

Gold’s price has fallen from recent highs – which may represent an opportunity to tap into growth ahead. However, gold isn’t simply a “buy while it’s low and sell while it’s a high” kind of investment opportunity. The commodity can also protect your portfolio from the stubborn inflation we’ve seen thus far in 2024 while acting as a diversification tool that could increase your risk-adjusted portfolio returns. So, consider adding gold to your portfolio today while it has the potential to grow in value.

Joshua Rodriguez

Joshua Rodriguez is a personal finance and investing writer with a passion for his craft. When he’s not working, he enjoys time with his wife, two kids, two dogs and two ducks.