LA mayor Karen Bass stops plan to light up Hollywood sign for its 100th anniversary

The new mayor for the city of Angels Karen Bass shot down the idea to illuminate the iconic Hollywood sign for its upcoming 100th anniversary - as Hollywood A-listers complain that it will lead to narrow roads clogged with tourists.

Bass overturned the executive directive ten days after it was signed by her predecessor Eric Garcetti on December 11 - his final day in office and the day Bass was sworn in. 

The order included an 18-month pilot program to light the sign a maximum of six times a year for no more than three days per lighting on special occasions, The Hollywood Reporter reported.  

Zach Seidl, a spokesperson with the mayor's office told the Los Angeles Times that the mayor rescinded the order based on some legal concerns of the directive. 

The light show also drew ire from some Hollywood A-listers - who were not named - along with nonprofit groups including the Hollywoodland Homeowners Association and Friends of Griffith Park, and residents who claimed the lights would impede traffic and impact wildlife.

Los Angele Mayor Karen Bass was sworn in on December 11, 2022 by VP Kamala Harris and began her term the following day. Bass is the first woman and second black mayor of Los Angeles. She is seen here during a press conference at The People Concern on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022, in Los Angeles

A photo of the Hollywood sign that will be coming up to its 100th anniversary mark. The iconic sign that was constructed in 1923 and opened to the public in the late 1970s' is an American landmark that overlooks Hollywood, Los Angeles on Mount Lee, in the Beachwood Canyon area of the Santa Monica Mountains.  In October, the sign was repainted ahead of its upcoming 100th anniversary 

According to the city charter, executive directives take affect 15 days after publication, the news outlet reported. 

The order Garcetti signed before he left office states: 'There is perhaps no symbol more significant in the world and in Los Angeles' civic imagination than the Hollywood Sign.

 'As the centennial of the Hollywood Sign approaches in the coming months, it would seem fitting to build on these successful efforts to illuminate our city's most famous landmark,' the order said.

Many sent Mayor Bass emails denouncing the directive that Garcetti proposed. 

The Hollywood United Neighborhood Council held a meeting Tuesday night about Garcetti's directive, and sent an email to members which the Hollywoodland Homeowners Assn. labeled as an 'emergency' meeting.

Doug Carstens, attorney representing one of the homeowners who lives in Hollywood, issued a letter to the mayor that condemned Garcetti's order which he claimed was a 'violation of local and state laws,' as well as affecting other residents and wildlife, the news outlet reported. 

 'The recent tragic death of mountain lion P-22 illuminates the need to find more and better ways and means to protect and preserve the wildlife in the Hollywood Hills rather than subject them to additional stressors and threats,' Carstens wrote.

Jeff Zarrinnam, chair of the Hollywood Sign Trust, appeared stumped upon learning that Bass revoked Garcetti's order, The LA Times reported. 

'Now the city may not have a lit sign for the anniversary,' Zarrinnam said. 'I would like to know why she rescinded it.'

But Bass - the first female mayor of Los Angeles - stamped out the plans on December 21. In a memo to department heads she said: 'I hereby rescind Executive Directive No. 36. There is no replacement.'

DailyMail.com reached out to Mayor Bass' office but they did not immediately respond to our request for comment.

A vintage photo of the 'Hollywoodland' sign taken March 3, 1924

The Hollywood Sign is an American landmark and cultural icon overlooking Hollywood, Los Angeles, California on Mount Less.

The sign was first erected in 1923 and originally named 'HollywoodLand.' The sign was originally intended to last just a year and a half.

It was described as a 'high-profile beacon – lights ablaze – for the fast-growing Los Angeles metropolis,' according to the The Hollywood Sign website. 

The word 'land' was removed from the sign in 1949. Zarrinnam told The Los Angeles Times in a previous interview that the sign was a way to 'celebrate and promote the motion picture industry, as well as Hollywood itself.'  

Over the years, it has been illuminated on occasion, including Y2K celebrations in 2000.  

A sign advertises the opening of the Hollywoodland housing development in the hills on Mulholland Drive overlooking Los Angeles, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, circa 1924. The white building below the sign is the Kanst Art Gallery, which opened on April 1, 1924

This classic 1950s image of an Austin car Driving up the road in the Hollywood Hills with the  Hollywood sign in the distance in Los Angeles, California 

The iconic Hollywood sign sit on a hill above Los Angeles, California