$6.2 million has been spent on the towers' upkeep since 1991 -- about $3 million each from the city and the state, and $155,000 in grants from private foundations, according to the LA Times.

The story doesn't say what the money is for or note that the Towers were closed from 1994 to 2002 for a $1.9-million seismic retrofit after the Northridge earthquake.

The city wants the Getty and LACMA to donate their time and effort to this worthy cause and world treasure pieced together by Italian immigrant Simon Rodia between 1921 and 1955. It's a magical place that should be preserved.

An earlier LAT story also noted the city just retrofitted and repaired the tower in 2008. "The city received $569,000 in March which will fund the repairs and special scaffolding that will enclose the tower, which is just under 100 feet tall." That was FEMA money.