UCLA History: Garden Visit

Hannah Carter visits her namesake Japanese Garden in an undated photo. As readers of this blog will know, UCLA has made a controversial proposal to sell the garden.

Letters Arriving on Proposed UCLA Japanese Garden Sale

Click on the letter to enlarge it.

Regents' Court Petition to Allow Sale of UCLA Japanese Garden

As readers of this blog know, we have been posting documents related to UCLA's proposed sale of the Japanese Garden.  The university's ownership of the garden followed from a donation by Regent Edward Carter in the 1960s.  Carter's wealth arose from his department stores.  You can see his signature on the stock certificate from Broadway-Hale and later one from Carter-Hawley-Hale.

The donation by Carter was modified by an agreement in the early 1980s.  However, because the sequence of agreements required that the university maintain the garden in perpetuity, once UCLA determined to sell the garden, it had to go to court to show that the sale should be allowed due to changed circumstances.  The prior post on this blog included a 2009 task force report seeking sources of revenue during the budget crisis.  The court filing followed that report.

You can read the petition made on behalf of the UC Regents to allow the sale below.

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla

The 2009 "Toolbox" Report and the Japanese Garden (& Other Issues)

Given the ongoing budget crisis, UCLA formed a task force to look at various revenue-generating options.  The report of the task force is dated April 24, 2009.  Among the possibilities considered was the sale of various properties including the Japanese Garden.  The report indicates that consultations with the state Attorney General were underway well before the 2010 court decision that permitted the sale, even though it was inconsistent with the existing terms of the donation.


The report explores other areas such as faculty pay, fund raising, "branding," and tuition.  You can read the full report at the link below (scroll towards the bottom of this post.


Below is the Table of Contents.  Below that is the section on the Japanese Garden:

I. Task Force Chargeand Process p. 1

II. Principles forReview of Revenue Creation Proposals p. 2

III. Summary ofRecommendations p. 4

IV. Major Issues andRecommendations

                   Student Fees p. 6

                   Enrollment of Nonresident Undergraduates p. 14

                   Development of New Academic Programs & Services p. 15

                   Research Funding p. 19

                   Faculty Compensation Plan p. 21

                   Brand Extension Licensing p. 23

                   Fundraising Opportunities p. 25

                   Sale of Underutilized Property p. 27

Appendix A: UCLAApproval Process for Revenue-Generating

Courses and Programs p.30

Appendix B: RevenueGenerating Course and Programs

Administrative Guide p.34

Appendix C: Guidelines for endowedchairs p. 36

=============

Task Force Membership:

• Kathryn Atchison, Vice Provost for Intellectual Property and Industry Relations
• Hilu Bloch, Associate Dean & CAO, Anderson Graduate School of Management
• Robin Garrell, Professor and Vice Chair, Academic Senate
• Janina Montero, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
• Sam Morabito, Administrative Vice Chancellor
• Steven A. Olsen, Vice Chancellor, Finance, Budget & Capital Programs (chair)
• No-Hee Park, Dean, School of Dentistry
• Cathy Sandeen, Dean, University Extension
• Michael Schill, Dean, School of Law
• Rhea Turteltaub, Vice Chancellor, External Affairs
• David Unruh, Assistant Provost, Academic Program Development
• Kang Wang, Professor, School of Engineering and Applied Science

===========

Section on Japanese Garden

From pp. 27-28:

The Carter Estate:

The Carter Estate, located at 626 Siena Way, Bel Air, about one milefrom campus, is situated on 0.85 acres and includes a two story residence andan adjacent guest house in approximately 7300 gross square feet. The house wasvacated by Mrs. Carter in early 2006. The house, which has remained vacantsince Mrs. Carter’s departure, is currently being managed by UCLA AssetManagement.

In June, 2007, the value of this property was appraised at $9,000,000.The University is free to sell this property (via a competitive public bidprocess) but the proceeds must fund seven endowments specified by Mr. Carterincluding endowed chairs in the College, Anderson and the School of Medicine, amaintenance endowment for the Japanese Gardens, the establishment of an arthistory research center in the College, a student awards fund for Anderson anda discretionary fund for the director of the Jules Stein Eye Institute. In2006, the estimate of the amount needed to fund the corpus for these endowmentswas $4.7 million. As such, the net proceeds from the sale of the home would benet of the $4.7 million.

The Japanese Gardens:

The UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden and the UCLA Carter House(described above) were, prior to December 1964 part of a single parcel ofapproximately 1.94 acres. In 1964 the Gardens portion of the site was separatedfrom the Carter House portion. The 1964 grant deed transferring the property tothe Regents was amended in 1982 with the requirement that the University namesthe garden for Mrs. Carter and retain it in perpetuity. 

Significant research has beencompleted on the process (via the California Attorney General) required toremove the restriction on the Garden so that the University could then sell theproperty. We are advised that it would be possible to remove the restriction butthe outcome is not certain. And, there would likely be some politicalramifications from various groups about the sale of the Gardens as a potentialbuilding site.

In 2007, the MAI appraisal indicates a value of $5.7 million if theproperty can be sold without the deed restriction to maintain it as the Gardensand $3.4 million with the restriction intact.

The combined value of selling both the Carter House and the Gardens(with the restriction on the Gardens in place) was $12.5 million. The value ofthe combined properties without restrictions was estimated in 2007 at $14.7million. Of course property values since 2007 have declined, thus an updatedappraisal would be required to ascertain the current value of these properties.

==============

Link to report:

Open publication - Free publishing - More branding

It is not known how much time was spent by the Task Force specifically on the Japanese Garden issue.  During the period in which the task force operated, UCLA had a website for the garden which has since been taken down.  However, you can see the website as it was - and as it was available to the task force at:
http://web.archive.org/web/20100815093728/http://www.japanesegarden.ucla.edu/

Official UCLA E-mail Response to Complaints About the Japanese Garden Sale

I have so far been forwarded two responses to communications sent to Chancellor Block about the proposed sale of the Japanese Garden.  Apparently, when such complaints are received, a response is sent under the name of EVC Waugh.  The text was the same in both cases so I assume others have received the official response.  The recipient of one of the official responses gave permission for the text to be reproduced.  If you scroll towards the bottom of this posting, you will find it in italics.

The response indicates that consultation was conducted with the local neighboring groups.  At the community forum - whose audio you can find on an earlier blog post - residents seemed not to have been aware of the proposal until the very recent news items appeared.  There is reference to consultation with the Carter family which also seems to be contradicted by the spokesperson from the family at that forum.  Finally, there is reference to consultation with academic leaders.  However, it appears from a recent Academic Senate action that the matter has only very recently been referred to an appropriate Senate committee.

The court decision to which the official response refers occurred in the late summer of 2010. The fact that only now are protests coming from the Carter family, neighbors, and others and only now is there a referral to a Senate committee suggests that the whatever consultation there may have been was extremely limited.

Some people yours truly has talked with have tended to view the process - particularly the 2010 court filing in Alameda - as a conspiracy to keep this matter secret until it was too late to object.  But since there has already been one letter of protest from a current member of the LA City Council (Paul Koretz - see an earlier blog post), I am reminded of an old quote from a former City Council member - Ruth Galanter (photo above left) - suggesting an alternative explanation: 

"I used to believe in conspiracies until I discovered incompetence."

As noted in earlier blog posts, the UCLA Faculty Association has not taken a position on this matter.  But it does seem to have been badly handled.  Brad Erickson, the director of campus administrative services, has been left to be the spokesperson on the garden sale. (He appeared at the community forum, for example, representing UCLA.)  But he really isn't responsible for the decisions that have been made and at this point it really is unfair to leave him to be the defender.  It's time for the chancellor to take a hand in finding a resolution.

Below is the official response from EVC Waugh:

From: Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost <provost@ucla.edu>
Date: February 3, 2012 12:53:03 PM EST
To: {name of recipient}
Subject: Hannah Carter Japanese Garden

Dear {name of recipient}:

Chancellor Gene Blockhas asked me to respond on his behalf to your message about the pending sale ofthe Hannah Carter Japanese Garden.

While we are sensitiveto your concerns and those of others who value the garden as a special place,it is not used for our primary mission of teaching and research. Each year,UCLA spends approximately $120,000 to maintain the garden. It is located in aresidential neighborhood and has no dedicated on-site parking; the onlyavailable parking (three spaces) is on adjacent property leased to theUniversity on a short-term basis. These facts, which were unknown in 1964 whenthen-UC Regent Edward W. Carter made his gift to the University, now make ourcontinued operation of the garden extremely problematic.  A sale at thistime will help us realize Regent Carter’s expressed philanthropic intent tobenefit UCLA’s academic programs.

The process wefollowed in reaching a decision to sell the residence and garden wasdeliberate, exhaustive and open. The Restructuring Steering Committee, a body Ichair to evaluate ways to adjust to sharp reductions in state support, in 2009publicly identified the garden and residence for potential sale, as well asother properties owned by the Regents and managed by UCLA.  Since thattime, we have consulted with a broad array of interested groups andindividuals, including representatives of the Carter family, academicleadership on campus and the Bel-Air Homeowner’s Association, to discuss thereasons we need to sell. We also have been in contact with groups andindividuals interested in maintaining the garden, allowed them to view theproperty and encouraged bids. At this time, the bidding process is expected tobegin in early February and conclude in May, allowing all prospective biddersto review the property and gather resources toward a purchase.

Throughout theprocess, we were mindful of our obligation to Regent Carter, who died in 1996and whose gift to the University included both a commitment to provide theresidence and funding to acquire an adjacent Japanese garden. The originalagreement with Carter expressly envisioned the University’s sale of the home ifthe University did not desire to use it as a Chancellor’s residence. Asubsequent agreement noted that the UC Board of Regents did not wish to use thehome as a residence and stipulated that proceeds from its sale would be used toestablish specific professorships in support of UCLA’s academic mission and anendowment to maintain the garden. Regent Carter could not have envisioned thatthe garden’s maintenance costs would exceed the estimated payout from theendowment by approximately $100,000 per year. Nor could he have envisioned thecomplete lack of available parking, the result of a mistaken propertydescription, and the constraints it placed on operating a public garden.

For all these reasons,we determined that continued maintenance of the garden was impractical and animpediment to our ability to meet Regent Carter’s intent that his gift benefitour academic mission. In September 2010, a judge agreed with our reasoning andcleared the way for the sale.

I want to assure youthat we are wholeheartedly committed to honoring the philanthropic intent ofRegent Carter to benefit UCLA’s academic programs. Together, the garden and theresidence are valued at approximately $15 million. Consistent with theagreement, $4.2 million from the proceeds of the sale will be used to establishprofessorships and endowments for programs across campus, from the arts tomedicine to management. Any additional revenues from the sale of the residenceand garden will be available for other campus priorities at the discretion ofthe Chancellor.

To further honorRegent Carter’s gift and Mrs. Carter’s passion for the garden, we have removedfour representative artifacts and are caring for them at the Fowler Museum atUCLA while we determine an appropriate method and location for their publicdisplay.

While we value thebeauty, serenity and cultural heritage of the garden, we have concluded that itis best to use our limited resources for our core priorities of teaching andresearch rather than to maintain a public garden that serves no academicpurpose. We have taken reasonable and responsible steps to address concerns andshare information and have followed all necessary and appropriate legal andinternal channels to evaluate the feasibility of the sale. I trust you willappreciate our position and understand that we have treated this issue with thecareful consideration and respect it deserves.

Sincerely,

Scott L. Waugh, Executive Vice Chancellor andProvost

Japanese Garden Meeting Follow Up

Yesterday's blog featured the audio from a local meeting concerning the proposed sale of the UCLA Japanese Garden.

As a follow up, you can read some documents that were distributed at the meeting below.  Also, reference was made at the meeting to the legal action that was taken by UCLA (technically by the Regents) to allow the sale.  Some legal documents from that action can also be found below.  Note that there is reference in the documents to there being no opposition from the state Attorney General.  Obviously, there has been opposition from other quarters including the Carter family.  Whether the Attorney General might have responded differently had the opponents known of UCLA's action at the time it occurred is another matter.  It is likely they would have made their concerns known to the Attorney General and the court.


Three documents distributed at the meeting can be read below:

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla

Legal documents can be read below.  These items were obtained from the web.  UCLA has not made public whatever arguments it submitted to the court.

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla
Update: Coverage in the Japanese-American community of this matter can be found at:
http://www.nichibei.org/2012/01/ucla-to-sell-treasured-japanese-garden-amid-financial-difficulty/

Audio of Meeting on Sale of UCLA Japanese Garden: 1-31-12

A hearing or meeting was held today at the Community MagnetSchool in Bel Air on the proposed sale of the Japanese Garden.  Representatives of the Carter family (theoriginal donor) were there.  HannahCarter’s son Jim was the spokesperson and strongly condemned the sale.  Also presented were histories and photographsof the garden.

UCLA was represented byBradley Erickson, Executive Director, Campus Service Enterprises. Almost all ofthe individuals in the audience were from the neighborhood and almost all wereopposed to the sale.

UPDATE: The Daily Bruin has a summary of the meeting at:
http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2012/02/local_residents_faculty_alumni_oppose_sale_of_the_hannah_carter_japanese_ga

Audio of the meeting can be heard at the link below.  Some cellphone photos are below the link.

Listen to Radio Program on Japanese Garden

At the link below, you can listen to Which Way LA? on KCRW which featured a program this evening on the UCLA JapaneseGarden.  Guests are Martha Groves of theLA Times, R. Michael Rich – research astronomer, and EVC Scott Waugh.  The program does not have anyone from theCarter family or background on the source of the original gift. It runs about 10 minutes at the beginning of the link below.

UCLA's position is that it would like to see the garden preserved but wants to sell it.  No guarantee is made, however, that the sale would be to some preservation group.

The lack of ready public access is given as the prime reason for the sale.

UCLA History: Fundraising

The issues of the sale of the Japanese Garden and the construction of the hotel/conference center both point to fundraising and gifts to UCLA.  The recent history of UCLA - UCLA: The First Century - has a section on the early days of fundraising.  (See an earlier blog post on the book.)

In the book is the undated photo on the left of Dean Neil Jacoby of the business school promoting his idea of a building for the school.  The book, incidentally, incorrectly gives his dates as dean as 1948-73.  In fact, when yours truly arrived on campus in the summer of 1968, Jacoby was no longer dean although he remained a faculty member.  The deanship had been recently assumed by George Robbins and then later by Harold Williams, all before 1973.  (Jacoby managed, however, to be both dean and a member of President Eisenhower's Council of Economic Advisors simultaneously during his actual term as dean.)

In any event, Jacoby first went to the local business community in a fundraising effort for the new building. The private universities screamed about UCLA - which got state support - competing with them for private funds.  Various accords were reached over time - described in the book - limiting the ability of UC and UCLA to solicit private funds. In the end - not reported in the book - Jacoby went around the university bureaucracy that controlled priorities for capital projects and took his case for the building to the Regents. By the time I arrived in 1968, the structure had been built.  (It is now the Luskin School of Public Affairs.)

Of course, nowadays UC campuses fund raise at will.  However, one suspects that in the era when fundraising was restricted by the deals with the privates - gifts in kind - such as the Japanese Garden got around whatever constraints there were.

LA Councilman Koretz Opposes Sale of Japanese Garden

LA City Councilman Paul Koretz, whose district includes UCLA and the surrounding area, has written a letter to Chancellor Block opposing the sale of the Japanese Garden.

The letter is reproduced below.

By way of further historical background, the photo at the right appears in the new history book on UCLA, "UCLA: The First Century," in a section entitled "Artful Transformation" dealing with Chancellor Franklin Murphy's interest in campus beautification during his regime.  The caption to the photo reads in part:

Murphy had long wanted to acquire a Japanese garden in neighboring Bel-Air, and in 1965, it was donated to UCLA by Regent Edward Carter and his wife, Hannah.

Open publication - Free publishing - More koretz

UPDATE: The Los Angeles Times article on the proposed sale (see an earlier blog post) has been picked up by a newspaper in Bellingham, Washington.  See
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2012/01/25/2365595/uclas-plan-to-sell-japanese-garden.html

See also http://blogs.artinfo.com/lacmonfire/2012/01/25/can-hannah-carters-garden-be-saved/

and
http://rafu.com/news/2012/01/uclas-sale-of-carter-japanese-garden-protested/

Regent Carter Background & the Japanese Garden Issue

Because of the Japanese Garden issue, blog readers might be interested in Regent Carter (at left in the 1966 photo above with UC President Clark Kerr at right giving presentation to Prince Philip).  Ultimately, the Japanese Garden was a gift of the Carter family.

Here are some excerpts and links:

From the HarvardBusiness School:

Carter developed thefirst suburban shopping center in 1947 in Los Angeles and popularized regionalchain stores. Carter started with three regional stores in Los Angeles in 1946,and by 1980, had grown that number to 47. Carter expanded the companynationally through acquisitions, such as the Weinstock stores, Neiman-Marcus,and Waldenbooks. When Carter took over the Broadway Company, annual sales were$30 million. By 1980, the chain under a new name, Carter Hawley Hale, was thenation’s fourth largest department store chain with sales of $2.4 billion.

http://www.hbs.edu/leadership/database/leaders/edward_w_carter.html

From LACMA:

In Los Angeles, thepresence in the community of a museum devoted entirely to art was little morethan a hope before 1945. Only in 1965 did a proper building, LACMA, open itsdoors to the public. The late Edward W. Carter was a successful businessman andphilanthropist, and an indefatigable promoter of cultural institutions in LosAngeles. It was Carter who negotiated with the County of Los Angeles for thenew museum’s site in Hancock Park, for the funds to maintain the new museum,and for the transfer of art from the museum’s parent institution, the LosAngeles Museum of History, Science, and Art. Carter was LACMA’s foundingpresident (1961–66) and trustee (1962–96). In these capacities, and as chairmanof LACMA’s board of trustees, Carter exercised profound influence on themuseum’s creation and evolution. In 1989, the year he was replaced as an activetrustee by his wife, Hannah Locke Carter, Edward Carter was named Honorary LifeTrustee.

http://collectionsonline.lacma.org/mwebcgi/mweb.exe?request=record;id=501403;type=802

From the New YorkTimes:

He was appointed tothe University of California's Board of Regents in 1952 by Gov. Earl Warren. Heserved for 36 years, helping guide the university through the student unrest inthe 1960's and advising it on financial matters and investments.

http://www.nytimes.com/1996/04/27/us/edward-w-carter-84-retailer-and-a-pioneer-of-shopping-malls.html

From the LA Times:

A Hollywood HighSchool graduate, Carter attended UCLA while working 40 hours a week atSilverwoods on Wilshire Boulevard, becoming in his own words "a damnedgood salesman." By 1932, he rang up about 25% of the store's sales.  Carter went on to Harvard Business School,where he received his master's degree cum laude in 1937.

Even before joiningthe Broadway Department Store as executive vice president in 1946, Carter waswell known in retailing circles. Besides his six years with Silverwoods, healso spent eight years at May Co., rising to the post of divisional merchandisemanager. In addition, he was an account manager with the Scudder, Stevens &Clark investment firm in Boston.  Carterbecame president of the three-store Broadway chain in 1947, taking charge of aconcern that he later said ranked "last among Los Angeles departmentstores in both size and in stature."

Within months, Carterbuilt one of the nation's first suburban shopping centers, the Crenshaw Center,on a former golf course. (The Baldwin Hills-Crenshaw Plaza sits there now.)During the boom years after World War II, Carter studied the freeway map andbuilt his stores accordingly.  To financehis ambitious expansion plans, Carter sold stock to Hale Bros. Stores of SanFrancisco in 1949, and the two chains merged in 1950 to become Broadway-HaleInc. As with all of Broadway's later acquisitions, the Hale operation retainedits name and management and was run as a separate division.  Other acquisitions followed with suchrespected names as Emporium Capwell, Neiman Marcus, Waldenbooks and BergdorfGoodman. Carter was considered well versed in consumer trends and an innovativemerchant who chose a decentralized approach to retailing that allowedBroadway-Hale's various chains to operate independently with substantialautonomy.

http://articles.latimes.com/1996-04-26/news/mn-63073_1_los-angeles-department-stores

Meeting on UCLA Japanese Garden Announced

The photo on the left shows UCLA students in the Japanese Garden in 1965.

It has been reported to yours truly that there will be a meeting about the proposed sale of the garden next week, possibly including UCLA officials.  Below in italics is the announcement I received:

Tuesday, January 31

5-7 p.m.

Auditorium

Community Magnet School 

11301 Bellagio Road

Los Angeles, CA 90049

Garden lovers, neighbors, and the interested public are invited to a meeting in Bel-Air on Tuesday evening, January 31, to discuss the future of the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden. UCLA has announced plans to sell the garden, and challenged the community to help identify a buyer who will maintain it and keep it open to the public. The Garden Conservancy, a national garden preservation group, has joined the Los Angeles Conservancy, California Preservation Foundation, the California Garden and Landscape History Society, and concerned individuals to gather public interest and support to save the garden.

Kendall Brown, noted authority on Japanese gardens in America, will discuss the history and significance of the garden at this gathering. We have invited UCLA officials to join us and share their perspective. We welcome your ideas and help in saving this garden treasure.

Please RSVP to Paulette DuBey at the Bel-Air Association Telephone 310.474.3527

As noted in prior blogs on this matter, the UCLA Faculty Association has no position on this issue.  However, it seems to have bubbled up from below in the administration without full consideration.  Exactly who would buy the garden, particularly in view of the controversy, is unclear.  And a longstanding issue is the very limited public access that has characterized the garden. Neighborhood and conservancy groups will need to consider the access issue as well as the proposed sale and removal of objects from the garden.

On the Japanese Garden: Let's Hear It from the Top

OK. It appears – after the embarrassing LA Timesarticle yesterday on the Japanese Garden proposed sale by UCLA – that the shiphas run aground.*  We have angry heirs ofa donor, a major Regent of his time.  Wemay discourage future donors because of this episode.  We have a statement that it was not theintent to destroy the garden, but – in contrast to that statement - the removalof objects from it in an amateur way.  Andit is unclear that folks at the Fowler Museum want those objects.  There are angry neighborhood groups andconcerned preservation groups.  Therecould be litigation which would discourage any sale.  We also had a resource in the Japanese Gardenwhich – unlike, say, the Fowler Museum – was difficult for the public toaccess.  Any solution will need toaddress that issue as well as the sale/removal.

UCLA has long had a management problem with independentunderlings operating with a “call-me-if-you-have-a-problem” relationship to thetop.  Since no underling wants to makethat call, the result is that problems don’t surface until the situation becomesworse than it has to be.  Would you wantto call your boss and say you just created a problem? 

Some folks will remember the body parts scandal of yorewhich resulted from that management style.** And - more recently - there was(is) the hotel/conference center – still yet to be resolved.  Reforming the management structure is alarger challenge that UCLA needs to address. But in the interim, on this particular issue involving the JapaneseGarden, we need to hear from the chancellor.  He may not be able to right the ship at thispoint.  But at least he can help with therescue.

- - - - - - - - - - -

*See yesterday’s poston this blog concerning the garden (which has links to the still-earlier postsand the LA Times article).

**One LA Timesheadline on that situation read, “Businessman found guilty in UCLA's willedbody-parts program scandal: The body broker collected $1.5 million by sellingcadaver parts to private medical research companies. A juror also faults theuniversity for 'allowing something like this.'”

http://articles.latimes.com/2009/may/15/local/me-willedbody15

LA Times Picks Up Japanese Garden Story: Not the Best PR for UCLA

Excerpts from the LA Times articlebelow and link to the full article:

For nearly half a century, theUCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden in Bel-Air has served as a serene stopoverfor visitors from locations as varied as Newhall, Nashville and the Netherlands.  But the decision by UCLA to sell the steephillside property and an adjoining house to raise money for endowments andprofessorships has the garden world in an un-Zen-like uproar.  The Garden Conservancy, an organization basedin New York and San Francisco, has lambasted the university's transfer to theFowler Museum of a five-tiered stone pagoda and other garden objects and hasurged the public to contact UCLA Chancellor Gene Block…


The garden wasdonated by Edward W. Carter, a retailing magnate and former chairman of the UCBoard of Regents, and his second wife, Hannah Locke Carter, under a 1964agreement that the university would maintain it in perpetuity. In 1982, theparties agreed that proceeds from the sale of the house would be used to fundcertain endowments and professorships…


…The UC Regentsasked the Superior Court of Alameda County, where the university system isbased, to allow the properties' sale and to lift the "in perpetuity"requirement. The regents argued that "changed circumstances" madecontinued ownership and maintenance "impracticable." The court agreed.  That is a sore point for Jim Caldwell ofWoodside, Calif., one of five children of Hannah Carter.


"There was nocommunication with any of Hannah Carter's children," he said.

…(B)id packages (will) beavailable in early February and that bidding would begin in May. …ColdwellBanker Previews International in Beverly Hills has the listing…

Full story at http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ucla-japanese-garden-20120122,0,6654788.story

Editorial note: Apartfrom the merits of the garden itself, the fact that the heirs of a past major figure on theBoard of Regents feel that a past donation is not being treated properly couldgive pause to other prospective donors to UCLA. In addition, unless it is clear that UCLA can find buyers who willpreserve the garden in a manner the heirs will accept, it is unclear who wouldbuy it.  Given the controversy, any buyerplanning to use the facility for some other purpose would likely facelitigation costs and delays.  So maybesomeone in authority needs to take a deep breath and announce a time out.  Like the hotel/conference center project, we seem to have a case here where underlings just roll along with a plan that seemed like a good idea to someone - until the idea surfaces and trouble erupts.


It might be noted that on a recent broadcast, Chancellor Block pointed to an emphasis on philanthropy for the UCLA funding model:
http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/chancellor-block-on-kpcc-airtalk.html


For those who haven’t followed this issue, here are links toprior blog posts:

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/removals-of-objects-began-today-from.html

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/info-on-plans-for-japanese-garden.html

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/ucla-japanese-garden-web-address-has.html

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/impending-sale-of-uclas-japanese-garden.html

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/afterlife-of-website-for-ucla-japanese.html

http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/eye-witness-report-concerning-removals.html

Meanwhile, the LA Times editorial board thinks the sale should go ahead given the university budget situation but that some preservationists should buy the garden:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-0122-garden-20120122,0,116027.story

Eye Witness Report Concerning Removals of Objects from the Japanese Garden

Ina previous blog entry, we published photos by astronomer R. Michael Richshowing the removal of art objects from the UCLA Japanese garden which isproposed for sale.  I invited Dr. Rich towrite up his version of what occurred when he visited the Garden area where theremovals are taking place.  It might benoted that the UCLA Faculty Association has taken no position on this action byUCLA.  But blog readers will have aninterest in recent events.  Below is Dr.Rich’s report:

=================

R. Michael Rich

I am writingconcerning my encounter with Brad Erickson and reporters from the Los AngelesTimes at the Japanese garden, at noon on 18 January 2012.   Ericksonwas initially upset at me for having photographed the improper removal of astone fountain on 17 January.  However, we were able to have aconstructive conversation following the initial exchange, and that conversationwas illuminating.  It raises some questions about the recollections ofevents, and therefore I share it with you.  Erickson permitted me to tourthe gardens without cameras or cell phone (I had wanted to record the wonderfulsound of the water), but forbade LA Times photographers from photographing me(but they may have photographed me without my being aware).  I wasimpressed that Erickson was polite and sensitive; I was given time to bidfarewell to the gardens - these are my recollections.  

Erickson insistedthat both the Academic Senate and the Bel Air Association Board were informedof UCLA's intent to sell the gardens in April of 2011, by then EVCMorabito.  I have heard that many Senate members were unaware of an suchcommunication.  He insisted that the sale would go through and that itwould not be stopped.  Erickson then indicated that the Lohan stone(Buddha in 16 positions) would not be removed.  Evidently, my photographsof the removal of the stone fountain may have had an impact. 

It is interesting that on17 January 2011, the workers who were removing the fountain told me that theydid concrete work for UCLA (they had just removed the pagoda) and thataccording to them, the Fowler museum did not want to remove the objects. The Fowler's position on this matter should be explored as it appears to meimproper interference with the museum, by administrators.  The sameworkers informed me that on Wednesday 18 January, the Lohan Buddha stone, acenterpiece of the garden, would be craned out.   Erickson told methat the removed objects were not important to the garden, but it had just beenrealized that the Lohan stone might be damaged in removal, and was important.He compared the removal of objects to "saving a lock of hair" andstated that UCLA had to sell the gardens out of extreme financial need.  Isuggested that photographs might be a better memorial.  What if I had notbeen there on Tuesday to take photographs and protest?  The Lohan stonemight be damaged and the garden's remaining integrity compromised evenmore.  

I pointed out toErickson that the State gives UCLA a block grant to maintain grounds, but heindicated that they needed a highly paid gardener to maintain the site,especially since there were many rare and endangered plants that requirespecial treatment for disease, from time to time, and that one had to carefullydo this, as treating one plant potentially harms another.   One ofthe objects removed was a Chinese hand carved Buddha from the 18th C, taken fromthe hokora near the crest of the hill.  Erickson showed me that a gardenerhad carved a wonderful wooden Buddha that was gold leafed and left where theother had been removed.  In front of the Buddha were candles.  It wasstriking how much power the gardens have on those who work there, as well asthe highly educated scholars.  This also raises potential religiousaspects to this site that I had not previously considered.

I began to becomesympathetic to Erickson's comparison with retaining a lock of hair, and hisassurance that facsimiles of lesser value would replace the objectsremoved.  But then I remembered the brochure/catalog written by the laterenowned Prof. Koichi Kawana.  I realize that as an astronomer not acurator, I cannot evaluate the importance of objects.  But Prof. Kawanahad the qualifications to do so.

Indeed, the removedobjects are obviously important enough to warrant specific entries in hisbrochure:

"7. Thestupa, a five-tiered pagoda, stands above white stones representing Buddha'sbones.  There are five elements-sky, wind, fire, water, and earth, andfive cardinal virtues-humanity, justice, politeness, wisdom, andfidelity.  Above the stupa stands a deciduous spring-flowering Chinesemagnolia."   Need I state that these cardinal virtues would be agreat model for all of us in the campus community.  Witness, for example,the insensitive youtube posting by a UCLA undergraduate shortly after thetragic 2011 earthquake and tsunami. 

The stone basinremoved by truck on 17 January is called out as part of site 16: "Thestone water basins, or tsukubai, are for ritual washing before entering. A dry streambed of white stones runs beneath the house.  At its sourcebehind the house is a symbolic arrangement of 16 carefully chosen large stonesin an area especially conducive to intense meditation" (the fountainwas at the center of this composition).

We next turn to thewooden Buddha:

"10. Like the main gate, the hokura or family shrine is made of Cryptomeria wood andthe roof is Cryptomeria bark (my note: the roof is perfectly restored by UCLAgroundskeepers).  The materials are deliberately left unpainted to mellowwith age.  The antique hand-carved Buddha inside the shrine is decoratedwith gold leaf. The two stone lions are carved in China during the 18th C."

Prof. Kawanaidentified these objects as special and integral to the garden, and thereforebased on scholarship and curatorial objects, these objects should be conservedand replaced.  

In closing, pleasenote that our family has strong connections to the art world.  We aredonors and lenders to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and my sister inlaw is an Associate Curator of contemporary art at the Metropolitan Museum ofArt in New York.   Having been involved in installations of art andsculpture, I was truly horrified at the improper handling of objects that Iwitnessed on 17 January 2012, as I have told our children that art objects arefor all humankind; we are brief curators of every object in our hands, but theybelong to the generations.

In my opinion, theJapanese garden should be handled along the lines of deaccessioning animportant object from the Fowler or Hammer collections.  An appropriatescholarly committee should consider how to do this - not an administrator withno education in art history or conservation.  Erickson stated that"when Hannah Carter donated the garden to UCLA, she could never foreseehow valuable the property would become.”   This can be fairly statedabout many of UCLA's priceless collections, from its artwork in museums, to itslibraries, and to departmental collections.  Do we auction all of theseobjects off? The argument for grave financial need does not ring true. The proceeds are to be used to endow professorships in the business and medicalschools, which are very well off and are not in danger of closing their doorsdue to lack of funding.

The administrationinsists that the gardens will be sold, likely into private hands.  Thiswould be regrettable.  First, I am deeply concerned that only anorganization can commit to curating this very complicated assemblage of livingplants and ancient objects.  Witness Erickson's statement that a highlypaid, experienced senior gardener is required to maintain the site. Second, it is clear that an afternoon spent here teaches one more about theculture of Japan than the reading of numerous volumes.  As I said in anearlier missive, the decision to write off Japan is a grave error, and I amhappy to write a lengthy essay on why this is so.  This garden speaks to amillennium of high culture and refinement that is at the core of Japanesesensibilities and its loss to UCLA collections is potentially devastating.

In the aftermath ofdevastating floods of 1969, the garden was restored thanks to many significantgifts beyond Carter's bequest.  How do we deal with those individuals, whobelieved they were saving a garden in perpetuity?  

If UCLA wished tokeep the gardens, the institution could raise an endowment that could meet theroughly $150,000/yr in operations cost.  If the $500,000 endowment weresupplemented with an additional $2,000,000, the gardens would be selfsustaining.  Admission fees and gift shop sales (very lucrative) couldoffset some costs.  If UCLA cannot keep the gardens, perhaps aninstitution like the Getty or the Huntington can be found, but this willrequire approaches by the proper individuals and a faculty committee tooversee. 

I deeply hope thatUCLA will rise to the challenging retaining and curating its art treasures, butif it cannot do so, I hope that the gardens will be carefully conveyed to anorganization capable of curating them.  I fear that a private individualmay have commitment today but that their heirs may not.  These gardensdeserve to be curated for the generations, just as all great Japanese gardensare.

Update:  Latetoday I spoke with Emily Young of the LA Times who indicated she had been in touch with one ofthe Carter heirs who was upset with UCLA's decision; he was evidently told itwas a "fait accompli."  (See below for a link to her piece on the Garden and the removals.)

Soundfamiliar?  Perhaps this train can be stopped as well.

=================

Thephotos originally taken by Dr. Rich are at: http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/removals-of-objects-began-today-from.html

The LA Times piece is at: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/home_blog/2012/01/ucla-japanese-garden-sale.html  Excerpt:


...“We’re extremely disappointed that UCLA didn’t come and tell us there was a problem and ask how we can deal with it,” said Jim Caldwell, one of Hannah Carter’s five children, who lives in Woodside in the Bay Area. “My mother really loved that garden, and my stepfather was extremely generous with UCLA. I’m hoping the university will step up to its original commitment and keep the garden open in perpetuity.”

UCLA has signed a listing agreement with real estate broker Coldwell Banker Previews International in Beverly Hills, Erickson said. The garden and adjoining home are expected to be listed for sale during the first week of February, with sealed bids to be accepted through May 1.

The Garden Conservancy and the California Garden and Landscape History Society have written a letter to Block expressing concerns about the sale. The Bel-Air Assn., a homeowners group, and the Los Angeles Conservancy also have called for alternatives.

“We want to have a conversation to determine whether there’s a potential win-win situation here,” said Adrian Scott Fine, director of advocacy at the Los Angeles Conservancy. “There are a lot of creative things that might be possible to bring in the revenue necessary to run the garden.” ...

Removals of Objects from Japanese Garden Began Today

UCLA Research Astronomer R. Michael Rich took these two photos of an object being removed from the Japanese Garden today.  He reports that non-expert personnel are involved in the removals.  He identifies the object as follows:

Japanese Square Stone Water Basin, a Buddhist carving dating from the 15th or 16th Century, Object #19 in the catalog you can find an earlier post on the Garden issue.  See the catalog at http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2012/01/info-on-plans-for-japanese-garden.html

UPDATE: The Daily Bruin picked up the story http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2012/01/ucla_moving_toward_sale_of_hannah_carter_japanese_garden_in_bel_air

Info on Plans for Japanese Garden Objects

UCLA provided a listing with pictures of various objects –with valuations – located at the Japanese Garden to the California Garden &Landscape History Society.  The firstpage of the listing is shown above.   Apparently, the original plan was to removeand perhaps sell all the objects.  Now itappears that three objects will be removed and put in the Fowler Museumcollection on campus.  Numbers 11, 21,and 22 on the listing (see link below) are definitely to go to Fowler.  Numbers 2 and 19 will, for the moment, remainin the garden and might later be removed (maybe to Fowler? – unclear).  Certain bonsai plants are apparently going tobe given to heirs of former Regent Carter who donated the garden.  Other objects listed will remain in thegarden when it is sold.

There is some reference to photographic or other “documentation”of the garden that would be (may already have been?) undertaken, possiblyarranged by the California Garden & Landscape History Society, before thegarden is sold.

The vagueness in this blog entry is due to incompleteinformation.  It is also unclear who thebuyer of the garden might be, what preservation conditions – if any - mightattach to the sale, what the Carter family’s input has been, legalitiessurrounding the original donation of the garden, how much revenue the salemight bring, how the particular uses of the sale proceeds were determined, etc.

Below is the listing with pictures from UCLA.  It will appear sideways on your screen.  But you can download the file from the linksource.

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla

Afterlife of the Website for the UCLA Japanese Garden

Update from our prior post: Things on the Internet don't completely die.  Above is an image of the first page of the now-removed UCLA website for the Japanese Garden.  Below is a link where you can see other parts of the website:

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla

UCLA Japanese Garden Web Address Has Disappeared

==============================

As our prior blog post noted, plans are afoot to sell UCLA's Japanese Garden.  When you Google "Japanese Garden UCLA," one of the first page entries is www.japanesegarden.ucla.edu.  However, when you try to go to that address, the error message above appears.  Since someone at UCLA has shut down the site, the sense that the sale of the garden is imminent is reinforced.

If you go to the UCLA faculty handbook at http://www.apo.ucla.edu/facultyhandbook/5.htm the garden website is still listed:


UCLA HANNAH CARTER JAPANESE GARDEN

The two-acre UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden, located one mile from campus in Bel Air, is an authentic Kyoto-style garden and considered to be one of the most notable Japanese gardens in the United States. Major features in the garden include the main gate, garden house, family shrine, and a pond with colorful koi. The garden averages over 4,500 visitors annually and is featured in numerous garden books, magazines and garden shows. Reservations are required for parking. Call (310) 825-4574 or visit us at http://www.japanesegarden.ucla.edu.

The phone number listed just rings.  No voicemail message responds with any information.  Most UCLA numbers, if no actual person is available to answer, have voicemail responses.

Various Academic Senate officials and committee chairs have been requested to look into this sale.  I am told that the Committee on Planning and Budget will be taking up the garden issue.

UPDATE: An alternative phone number (310) 794-0320 is given on some UCLA websites. You get a voicemail message with that one but no information and directions indicating you should not leave a message.

UPDATE: Letter to Chancellor from California Garden and Landscape History Society:

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla

Response from UCLA to Letter from California Garden and Landscape History Society:

Open publication - Free publishing - More ucla