Beverly Hills Mayor Touts City's Ambassador Program at Mayors Conference in D.C.

BEVERLY HILLS, CA -- Beverly Hills mayor was in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday for the three-day Winter Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

Mayor John Mirisch made a presentation on the city's Ambassador Program, which was announced in June as the small cities winner of the City Livability Award. The program coordinates local government, private and nonprofit organizations to address homelessness and improve the city's quality of life. It provides hospitality, safety and social services to residents, businesses and individuals in need.

"Our ambassadors' consistent presence and knowledge of those in need has allowed for efficient coordination of outreach and services to the homeless, producing a 50 percent decrease in the number of people in our annual homeless count," Mirisch said last year.

"The ambassadors' presence on our city streets has led to a reduction in aggressive panhandling and provides a sense of safety and enhanced quality of life."

A record 312 mayors, including 28 Southland mayors, have registered for the meeting at the Capitol Hilton Hotel to engage with administration officials and congressional and business leaders to ensure the health and economic recovery of America's cities, according to conference officials.

In addition Mirisch, the mayors from Los Angeles and Orange counties registered for the meeting are Eric Garcetti (Los Angeles); Robert Garcia (Long Beach); David Mejia (Alhambra); Dave Harrington (Aliso Viejo); Ali Taj (Artesia); Albert Robles (Carson); George Ray (Cerritos); Jim B. Clarke (Culver City); Mark E. Henderson (Gardena); Hany Fangary (Hermosa Beach); Barbara Delgleize (Huntington Beach); Donald P. Wagner (Irvine); Ron Piazza (Lakewood); Jerry Slusiewicz (Laguna Nigel); Ron Piazza (Lakewood); Mark Waronek (Lomita); Lou La Monte (Malibu); Wendy Bucknum (Mission Viejo); Vivian Romero (Montebello); Mitchell Ing (Monterey Park); Bob J. Archuleta (Pico Rivera); Brian Campbell (Rancho Palos Verdes); Richard Sun (San Marino); Ted Winterer (Santa Monica); Patrick J. Furey (Torrance); Eric Ching (Walnut); and Lauren Meister (West Hollywood).

-- City News Service contributed to this report. Photo courtesy of the city of Beverly Hills.