LOS ANGELES—The Los Angeles City Council took a step toward creating a public bank Oct. 5 by unanimously voting to authorize the Chief Legislative Analyst (CLA) to seek contractors or consultants to develop a business plan for the bank. “The opportunity to form a public bank in the City of L.A. is extremely important as the city begins to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. This matter before us now just sets the ball in motion, retaining a consultant to advise us on the pros and cons and the particulars of creating such an institution,” Councilman Curren Price, who chairs the Economic Development and Jobs Committee, said before the vote Tuesday. Public banks are intended to focus local investment by offering business loans and could be used to finance public supportive housing among other projects, according to proponents of the system. The council members proposed the motion soon after Gov. Gavin …