Rosendahl Leaves Inspiring Political Career in City Hall Farewell

By Matthew Sanderson

The famous Bill Rosendahl line of "great, great, great, great, great" echoed one last time throughout the Los Angeles City Hall council chambers Friday in a momentous send-off for the 11th district's councilman who, since being elected in 2005, has been the compassionate voice for the Westside. 

Council chambers were packed with colleagues and residents from all over the city wanting to say good-bye to Rosendahl, who announced he will not be seeking a third term in office. 

Rosendahl ran for office as openly gay, which was something that had never been done before. 

Last July, after collapsing suddenly, he was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer of the ureter, a tube that connects the kidney to the bladder. He was told he did not have long.

For several months, he said, he would suffer from delirium and underwent numerous chemotherapy treatments, which reduced him from a hale 225 pounds to 170.

It was only after his doctor suggested he use marijuana to help him ease the pain and get more sleep that he began to recover. The extra rest helped save his life, said Rosendahl, whoannounced he was in remission in April and celebrated his 68th birthday May 15.

Coming out of the cannabis closet was another historic first for any elected official. While still sick in the fall of 2012, he threwhimself into getting a medical marijuana law passed.

"You inspire people you may never know about," said Councilman Paul Krekorian.

In a day of send-offs in Los Angeles government Friday, Mayor-Elect Eric Garcetti kept the momentum on Rosendahl, saying he "disrupted a city" that needed Rosendahl's social and spiritual compassion to be an agent of change. 

When Garcetti, Rosendahl and other colleagues and friends would have quiet dinners and lionize one another, Rosendahl would keep pressing on what's left to be done.

"You still struggle with that," Garcetti said. "You're always striving to be better and asking how others can do better." 

Rosendahl is uncertain what his future holds, although a return to journalism is a possibility. If he is able to do some traveling, he said he would like to go to India, Australia and New Zealand -- none of them among the 52 countries he has visited.

On Sunday, Rosendahl will hand over the district -- it encompasses beach communities such as Venice and Playa del Rey and upscale enclaves such as Brentwood and West Los Angeles -- to his longtime chief of staff Mike Bonin, who he endorsed in last month's election.

As he leaves office, he said, he is planning his life's next stage.

"I'm evolving into a role," he said, although "I don't know what it is yet."