Key Bradley Link With Downtown Business to Leave Lobbying Group

Christopher L. Stewart, a key adviser to Mayor Tom Bradley and for nine years the president of the influential Central City Assn., the major lobbying group for the downtown business community, announced Friday that he will resign next month to head a Pomona-based association of credit unions.

Stewart, 38, will take over the California Credit Union League on Aug. 1, according to a spokeswoman for the Central City Assn. who called the move a “great opportunity.”

The association’s chairman, attorney Gilbert T. Ray, will head a search committee to find a replacement.

In a brief interview shortly after he announced his plans, Stewart listed housing as the top priority remaining for downtown.

He also stressed a need to improve the ambience of downtown Los Angeles, calling it “a dreary, unappealing place to walk around.”

Last week, in a separate interview, Stewart said downtown interests are concerned about the current controversies over Bradley’s financial dealings.

“There’s no question the current controversy around the mayor is hurting his ability to lead the city, and that concerns the business community,” said Stewart, who also proclaimed his confidence in Bradley’s eventual exoneration.

Stewart long served as a link between Bradley and business interests who benefited from the mayor’s push for downtown redevelopment. From 1983 to 1987, Stewart also sat on the board of the Community Redevelopment Agency, and later served on the LA 2000 Committee, which the mayor appointed to chart upcoming city priorities.