Antonovich Leads Opposition to Lancaster-Area Prison

Supervisor Mike Antonovich, battling to retain his seat after being forced into a November runoff, on Tuesday racked up a real constituent-pleaser by placing Los Angeles County in strong opposition to construction of a new state prison in the Lancaster area of his district.

The long and bitter debate over the placement of state prisons in Los Angeles County seemed finally settled last year when the governor and Legislature agreed to authorize the construction of one in a heavily Democratic area near East Los Angeles and another in a Republican area west of Lancaster.

For now, the board’s adoption of Antonovich’s resolution opposing the Lancaster-area prison has more political than practical significance. A spokesman for the state Department of Corrections said the agency will proceed with plans for both Los Angeles County prisons until directed otherwise by state legislation.

Concerned Residents

But Latino activists who fought the proposed prison near Boyle Heights strongly criticized the board’s action Tuesday, saying it is unfair and does not show equal concern for East Los Angeles residents.

Frank Villalobos, a spokesman for a coalition of East Los Angeles community groups, urged the board to oppose both prisons. “Do for one what you do for the other,” he said.

After the 3-1 vote--Supervisor Ed Edelman objected--Villalobos charged that Antonovich was “stomping on the people of East Los Angeles” in an effort to get reelected.

Antonovich denied that his action was a campaign tactic. He said he was motivated by the concerns of his constituents as well as the needs of the county, which owns the Lancaster property. The county already operates a jail as well as an animal pound and vehicle maintenance facilities on part of the property. And, Antonovich said, the county needs the remaining land for future expansion.

Studies Cited

Robert Gore, a Corrections Department spokesman, said studies have shown that both the prison and the county facilities can be accommodated on the property, which totals several hundred acres.

Antonovich argued that the East Los Angeles prison should be built because it would meet the state’s requirements for being near Los Angeles County’s central criminal courts and would be more accessible than Lancaster to inmates’ relatives who wish to visit.

Sheriff Sherman Block appeared before the board to join in opposing use of the Lancaster site, saying that community support for expansion of the existing County Jail facility could be jeopardized if the state prison is located there.

The Board of Supervisors’ action drew criticism from some state lawmakers who were involved in crafting the so-called “equal pain” compromise that required prisons to be built in both Democratic and Republican areas. “I’m surprised at the lateness of the supervisors’ taking a stand,” said state Sen. Robert Presley (D-Riverside), who helped work out the compromise last year with Republican Gov. George Deukmejian.

Edelman, who tried unsuccessfully to soften Antonovich’s motion by urging that alternative sites in the Lancaster area be explored, warned his colleagues that they were “treading on some very dangerous water. You’re trying to undo what took months, literally years to resolve.”

Supervisors Pete Schabarum and Deane Dana joined Antonovich in voting for the resolution. Supervisor Kenneth Hahn is hospitalized.