Attorney Howard Coleman Elected To Be President of City’s Board of Transportation Commissioners
Attorney Howard Coleman has been elected president of the Los Angeles Board of Transportation Commissioners, which consists of three other attorneys appointed last month by Mayor James Hahn.
A partner at Nossaman, Guthner, Knox & Elliott’s Los Angeles office, Coleman will head the seven-member board after winning a majority vote by board members. Coleman said that safety and congestion are the biggest concerns facing the board, which acts in an advisory capacity to the Department of Transportation.
"Today’s safety concerns coupled with Los Angeles’ rapidly growing population is driving a critical need for new transit programs and more effective management systems," Coleman said. "I look forward to working with my fellow board members to achieve these goals over the next five years."Coleman brings 15 plus years of experience in transportation infrastructure, serving as lead counsel to the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority and playing a key role in the development of Orange County’s toll roads.
The board reviews the planning and operation of the city’s streets and traffic control devices, oversees transit programs and transportation services and regulates ambulance rates.
It also advises the department on the city’s offsite parking facilities, speed limit changes, and holds quasi-judicial hearings that review denials of ambulance driver permits, Coleman said. Coleman was appointed a member of the board by Hahn in August and confirmed by the City Council in September.
Last month, Hahn appointed six new members to the board, including three attorneys: Phillip Recht of Mayer, Brown & Platt, Alan Skobin, general counsel of Galpin Motors, Inc, and Angela Reddock of Pryce Parker Hill.
Coleman said that having attorneys on the board is a good idea.
"There are a lot of legal issues associated with non-advisory issues, with pipeline agreement issues, contracts and documents," Coleman said. "It is good the board has both a legal and business background." Coleman is the third attorney from the firm appointed to a commission by Hahn. Silvia Saucedo was appointed to the Police Commission Board last August and Javier Lopez was appointed to the city’s Planning Commission last September.