Bradley Leads Ferraro in Financial Aid From Valley

Los Angeles City Councilman John Ferraro has characterized the San Fernando Valley as the most fertile ground for support of his mayoral campaign.

But it is Mayor Tom Bradley who has received a greater share of financial support from the Valley, according to a Times computer analysis of campaign contributions.

The Valley, which makes up a third of the city’s population, accounted for only 8% of the $703,385 in total contributions reported by both candidates in their most recent disclosure reports covering fund raising between Jan. 1 and Feb. 23.

Of $288,010 in total contributions to Bradley, $33,300, or 12%, came from the Valley.

The Valley accounted for $23,900, or 6%, of the $415,375 contributed to Ferraro.

“That doesn’t surprise me at all,” said Ron Smith, Ferraro’s political consultant. “We haven’t concentrated on raising money. We’ve been campaigning.”

Smith downplayed any significance of the low percentage of Valley contributions to Ferraro.

“There’s no direct relationship between votes and contributions,” he said. “People in the Valley are the ones who are going to be voting for John Ferraro.”

(A Los Angeles Times Poll published Sunday showed Bradley leading Ferraro 62% to 22% citywide and 58% to 23% in the Valley, where Ferraro has tried hard to make inroads.)

The total of Valley contributions to Bradley is expected to increase because the most recent disclosure reports did not entirely cover a $150-a-plate Bradley fund-raiser held Feb. 27 at the Warner Center. Ferraro has not held a major fund-raiser in the Valley, nor is one planned, according to Smith.

Although Bradley campaign officials expressed pleasure with the figures, they questioned whether they accurately reflect the Valley’s financial support of the mayor.

Steve Montiel, Bradley’s press secretary, contended that the mayor’s financial support from the Valley could be higher. He suggested that many Valley residents may give to the mayor through their businesses, which may be situated outside the Valley. In such cases, their contributions would not appear in the survey as being from the Valley.

The largest Valley contribution to Bradley was $3,500 from Group W Cable Inc., which provides cable TV service along the southern edge of the Valley. Helen Greenberg, wife of Sam Greenberg, owner of a Van Nuys equipment rental firm and a Bradley appointee to the city’s Airport Commission, gave Bradley $3,000, as did Tutor-Saliba Corp., a Sylmar-based building company. Tutor-Saliba also gave $1,000 to Ferraro.

Bradley also received a $1,500 contribution from Norm Emerson, who made the contribution on behalf of his employer, Warner Center developer Robert Voit. Emerson is Bradley’s appointee to the Southern California Rapid Transit District board of directors.

Others appointed to city commissions by Bradley who donated to the mayor’s reelection included Arthur Manask, Fred Heim and Marcia Marcus, $300 each, and Lila Aurich, Robert Hannay and Robert Glushon, $150 each. Bradley also received a $300 contribution from Robert Neiman, whose wife, Suzy, is a Bradley appointee to the city Planning Commission.

Top Valley contributors to Ferraro were Friends of Hal Bernson, the campaign committee for West Valley Councilman Hal Bernson, and Thomas Riach of the Curry-Riach land development firm, $2,500 each.

Ferraro, a registered Democrat who has promoted himself in the conservative-voting Valley as being more conservative than Bradley, also received a $500 contribution from former county GOP Chairman Richard Gulbranson, who lives in Toluca Lake.

Among those giving to both candidates was Frank McNellis, manager of Valley Cable TV, who contributed $1,050 to Bradley and $1,000 to Ferraro.