Petition Filed for Ballot Measure on Disposition of San Fernando Police Station Site

San Fernando City Councilwoman Carmillis Noltemeyer, in her second move to thwart City Council decisions on the construction of a police station, filed a petition Tuesday to prevent the sale, lease or exchange of the police station property without voter approval.

The City Council wants to demolish the existing police station after completion of the new station in two years, leaving the 31,000-square-foot tract of Civic Center land open for development.

Beverly Di Tomaso, a city park commissioner who led the ballot initiative drive with Noltemeyer, called the petition, which contained 1,109 signatures, an attempt “to protect the land in the future. . . . We feel the voters fear losing control of the Civic Center.”

‘Critical Piece of Property’

“It’s such a valuable, critical piece of property in our Civic Center that we would hate to see it tossed away in a bad decision,” Noltemeyer said.

If the Los Angeles County registrar of voters verifies that 10% of the city’s 5,280 voters signed the petition, the City Council must place the initiative on the next municipal election ballot. If the verified signatures represent 15% or more of the city’s voters, the council must call a special election within 88 to 120 days.

Since August, Noltemeyer has been the lone dissenter on most council actions relating to construction of the $2-million station, contending that the city has not thoroughly explored the possibility of renovating the existing station.

Last month, she and Di Tomaso led a petition drive calling for the council to either revoke or put before voters a measure to make possible a land exchange with Los Angeles County to acquire a new site for the station.

Revoked Decision

Faced with the petition, which contained enough verified signatures to put the matter on the ballot, the five-member council unanimously voted early this month to revoke its decision on the land swap, fulfilling its legal obligation to act on the referendum petition. But the council turned right around and voted unanimously to buy for $275,520 the land it would have received in the swap.

Mayor Doude Wysbeek on Tuesday accused Noltemeyer of using the latest petition drive to further her campaign for reelection in April.

“Personally, I think she needed some base to run on, and I think this very well could be her issue,” Wysbeek said. “She needs the publicity.”

Both Noltemeyer and Di Tomaso filed City Council candidacy papers just before submitting the petitions.

Initiative Unnecessary

Wysbeek said he had “no problem” with the petition. He and two other council members said they believe the initiative is unnecessary because they have no intention of using the land for anything but public use and believe the voters would approve of their plans.

The entire council, including Noltemeyer, wants the old police site for an expansion of the county’s public library next door. County library officials have said that the library’s expansion is their highest-priority building project.

“I have strong feelings that the land should only be used for public uses,” Wysbeek said. “But if someone came up to me and asked if I wanted the issue to be put before the voters, I would say yes. It’s the American way.”