City Of West Hollywood: City Of West Hollywood Swears-In Lauren Meister As Mayor And Sepi Shyne As Mayor Pro Tempore

Press release from the City of West Hollywood:

September 21, 2021 6:50 PM

The City of West Hollywood swore-in Lauren Meister as Mayor and Sepi Shyne as Mayor Pro Tempore during the City of West Hollywood’s annual City Council Reorganization and Installation meeting, which took place on Monday, September 20, 2021. In order to safeguard health and safety, the meeting took place by Virtual Teleconference.

Mayor Meister’s Oath of Office was administered by former City of West Hollywood Councilmember John Heilman and Mayor Pro Tempore Shyne’s Oath of Office was administered by Melahat Rafiei. The Oath of Office ceremony is available for viewing as part of the City Council meeting by visiting the City of West Hollywood’s website at www.weho.org/wehotv or by visiting the City’s WeHoTV YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/wehotv.

Mayor Lauren Meister was, after nearly two decades as a neighborhood advocate, elected to the West Hollywood City Council on March 3, 2015 and re-elected for her second term on March 5, 2019.

Since being elected, Mayor Meister has worked on initiatives to: strengthen the Rent Stabilization Ordinance, develop more neighborhood-friendly planning and land use policies, provide social services for people who are homeless, create a Small Business Task Force, establish West Hollywood as a safe haven for LGBTQ asylum seekers, increase community engagement and transparency, implement a Public Access Defibrillation (PAD) Program, educate the public on safety issues related to children and pets, embrace and promote historic resources and, raise the bar on design standards, environmental programs, and sustainability.

In her first term as Mayor from April 2016 to May 2017, she joined with mayors from across the nation to show support for preserving the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and protecting immigrant and refugee communities. She also initiated an item to take steps to prohibit West Hollywood City Hall from doing business with entities that provide financial or other benefits to the President of the United States and develop socially conscious banking policies.

Among Mayor Meister’s priorities are:

• Initiating and supporting policies to save affordable housing stock and local neighborhood serving businesses;

• Prioritizing public safety, social services, and housing production to reflect the needs of the community;

• Preserving the City’s rich history and unique character;

• Protecting and enhancing parks and green space; and

• Advocating for safe mobility options and fair parking policies.

Prior to her election in 2015, Mayor Meister became involved with the City of West Hollywood as a neighborhood watch captain, took the LASD Community Emergency Response Team “CERT” training, and attended the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Community Academy. She went on to lead the largest neighborhood association in the City, representing residents on issues such as public safety, traffic circulation, parking, and development.

She served on numerous commissions and committees for the City of West Hollywood, including the Planning Commission and Public Safety Commission. She worked to mitigate traffic and parking impacts of new and proposed projects in the City, supported creative parking solutions to help neighborhood businesses, initiated the City’s “Live, Work, Play, Be Safe” educational campaign, and supported new ideas to increase pedestrian and bicycle safety. She also worked on campaign finance reform and has been a strong advocate for a stricter code of ethics.

At the request of former Congressmember Henry Waxman, Mayor Meister testified before Congress in support of health insurance regulation and universal health care, and she worked with City of Los Angeles Councilmember Paul Koretz to reduce helicopter noise in residential neighborhoods.

In 2013, she served as Chair of the successful “Yes on Measure C” Term Limits for West Hollywood committee, limiting all Councilmembers elected on or after March 2013 to no more than three full or partial terms on the West Hollywood City Council.

Professionally, Mayor Meister is the sole proprietor of her own marketing research firm based in West Hollywood. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a Graduate Certificate in Public Administration.

A resident of West Hollywood for more than 30 years, Mayor Meister has been both a renter and a homeowner in the City. Mayor Meister’s parents, sister, and rescue dogs, Suki and Sammy, also call West Hollywood home.

Mayor Pro Tempore Sepi Shyne made history in November 2020 when she was elected to the West Hollywood City Council. She became the first out LGBTQ Iranian elected anywhere globally and locally became the first woman of color elected to the West Hollywood City Council. Her election also ushered in West Hollywood’s first female-majority City Council. Mayor Pro Tempore Shyne’s priorities include advocating for affordable housing, protecting renters and social service programs, social justice, small business revival, and bringing the people’s voices to West Hollywood City Hall.

Mayor Pro Tempore Shyne received her Bachelor of Science from San Jose State University with a double concentration in Accounting and Management Information Systems and a Minor in Drama with an emphasis in Directing. She received her Juris Doctorate with a specialization certificate in litigation from Golden Gate University School of Law in San Francisco.

As an LGBTQ+ and civil rights leader for more than 20 years, her leadership has helped secure equal rights for all. Before her election to the West Hollywood City Council, Mayor Pro Tempore Shyne served on the City of West Hollywood’s Lesbian and Gay Advisory Board, on the City of West Hollywood’s Business License Commission, and on the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Advisory Council, on which she continues to serve. Additionally, she has led many boards and organizations, including the LGBT Bar Association of Los Angeles and as a Board of Governor and Steering Committee leader with the Human Rights Campaign Los Angeles. Mayor Pro Tempore Shyne is a Co-Organizer of WeHo Neighbors Helping Neighbors, a community group created during the pandemic to help get resources to seniors, people with disabilities, and people in immunosuppressed households via social media and volunteer check-in calls. In every board and organization she has led, she has recruited and elevated women and people of color to leadership positions to create more diversity, inclusion, and equity.

Mayor Pro Tempore Shyne lives in the Mid-City area of the City of West Hollywood with her wife and their fur-babies.

The City of West Hollywood is like no other city in the world. Located in the heart of metropolitan Los Angeles, the city was incorporated in 1984 by a unique collaboration of people including LGBTQ activists, seniors, and advocates for affordable housing. At only 1.9 square miles, West Hollywood is a robust economic and cultural center instilled with idealism, creativity, and innovation. A spirit of community activism and civic pride thrives in West Hollywood for many of its approximately 35,000 residents and the city has a strong progressive political voice.

West Hollywood works diligently to defend the fundamental rights of its community members including LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, seniors, people of color, immigrants, women, and others. The city is one of the most outspoken advocates anywhere for the legal rights of LGBTQ people; more than 40 percent of residents in West Hollywood identify as LGBTQ. The City also prides itself on being a safe space. Regardless of nationality or immigration status, the City of West Hollywood has a commitment to promoting social justice and equal rights.

For more information, please call the City of West Hollywood’s City Council Offices at (323) 848-6460. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496.

The City of West Hollywood remains in a declared local emergency in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. West Hollywood City Hall is open for in-person transactions by appointment; to make an appointment, visit www.weho.org/appointments. City Hall services remain accessible by phone at (323) 848-6400 and via the City’s website at www.weho.org. City of West Hollywood coronavirus information is available at www.weho.org/coronavirus.

For up-to-date news and events, follow the City of West Hollywood on social media @WeHoCity, sign up for news updates at www.weho.org/email, and visit the City’s calendar of meetings and events at www.weho.org/calendar.

slunn@weho.org

This press release was produced by the City of West Hollywood. The views expressed here are the author’s own.