INS Defends Conversion of Motel in Residential Area to Detention Site

Stung by the uproar over the agency’s newest detention center, Immigration and Naturalization Service officials on Thursday defended the decision to locate the facility in a Hollywood residential neighborhood and lashed back at critics who claim it could violate city regulations.

Harold Ezell, the western regional commissioner for the INS, denounced attacks on the facility as politically motivated as he joined the agency’s district director and an owner of the private firm that is operating the converted motel at 6705 DeLongpre Ave.

“I think that this facility is being operated under the guidance of the contractor, and the city codes are not being violated,” Ezell said.

Ted Nissen, president of Behavioral Systems Southwest Inc., which is operating the detention center, added that he was confident that the facility meets city codes and zoning ordinances and called the complaints “nothing more than political harassment.”

Some local residents had expressed outrage at the sudden appearance of the detention facility--fortified with barred windows and barbed wire--in their residential neighborhood, and Los Angeles City Councilman Michael Woo told The Times that the facility might violate zoning, fire and safety regulations.

‘In Compliance’

At Thursday’s news conference at INS headquarters, however, Ezell said that the detention center--which will house as many as 125 illegal aliens awaiting deportation proceedings--is “in compliance with existing city codes.”

He then accused Woo of harboring a “hidden agenda” and referred to the councilman’s support of a City Council resolution, passed last November, that symbolically declared Los Angeles “a city of refuge” for international refugees.

“The criticism of Mr. Woo of this facility is totally politically motivated,” Ezell said.

When later asked about Ezell’s statement, Woo replied: “I’m not trying to harass them. I’m trying to make sure they do a good job by making sure they comply with zoning ordinances and fire codes.”

Nissen said city planners have assured him that the facility meets city standards and local zoning laws. City inspectors could not be reached for confirmation.

Fire Department Battalion Chief Ray Olsen said Nissen’s company had been notified of possible city violations at the facility, including the use of concertina wire on the roof, barred windows and locked gates--all potential hazards.

Olsen noted that the building remains subject to regulations governing motels, even though the building no longer functions as one, because the city has not yet recognized the change in the facility’s use. He said discussions with the company and the INS are continuing.

Nissen said his company already has agreed to a Fire Department request to make changes to conform with city codes. And he blamed Woo for exerting bureaucratic pressure on the INS and his company.

Woo, meanwhile, said he was not opposed to an INS facility. “The question is whether a detention facility should be located in a residential neighborhood, and my answer is no.”

‘Thank the INS’

Ernest Gustafson, district director of the INS, said the councilman and local residents should “thank the INS” for replacing the motel with a facility that Gustafson said the agency hopes to maintain for a long period of time.

Behavioral Systems, which runs similar centers in other states for the INS, chose the Hollywood site after losing a legal battle over zoning restrictions in Pasadena, where it was housing detainees in a converted convalescent home.

Nissen said his company had found possible sites in Pomona and Altadena but those fell through, leaving only the Hollywood location. He said Los Angeles city planners have assured him that the facility meets city standards.