Vote Is Moral Victory for Prison Foes : Corrections: The joint committee did not stop the planned facility, but opponents say the action will help them in court.

Opponents of a proposed $147-million state prison slated for the southeast corner of downtown Los Angeles gained a moral victory Wednesday when a joint committee of state lawmakers voted on construction plans for the 1,450-bed facility.

Although the 3-2 vote by the Joint Committee on Prison Construction and Operations did not stop the planned facility, opponents said they consider the action significant because two panel members voted against it. The vote, they feel, adds weight to a lawsuit filed earlier this month by the city of Los Angeles and Eastside activists against the proposed prison.

“This will make us look good in court,” said urban planner Frank Villalobos, chairman of an opponents’ coalition. “It’s a sign of legislative intent that our arguments have validity.”

Committee Chairman Sen. Robert Presley (D-Riverside) agreed with that assessment, but was quick to point out that the Department of Corrections will be technically free to proceed with the prison in 45 days since the vote was non-binding.

On a related matter, the committee voted 4 to 1 with one abstention to approve plans for a $207-million facility on a parcel of land at Avenue J and 60th Street West in Lancaster.

The votes by the legislative panel--made up of three members each from the Assembly and Senate--were largely symbolic because the committee was charged only with determining the sufficiency of the construction plans. The panel did not have the authority to scrap the projects.

And despite the panel’s votes, construction at both prison sites probably will not move ahead any time soon--plans most likely will be bogged down in lengthy court battles for several years.

Lancaster city officials and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors have threatened to sue to stop the Lancaster prison.

The session Wednesday had been touted by some as the first new unified effort by Eastside activists and Lancaster officials to fight both proposals.

But that togetherness failed to materialize when the Eastside contingent led by Villalobos and Father John Moretta missed the morning vote on the Lancaster prison after their Sacramento-bound plane was diverted to Oakland because of dense fog at the Sacramento airport.

At present, there are no state prisons in Los Angeles County, although 40% of the state’s inmates come from the region.

The two proposed sites were part of a delicate compromise worked out in the Legislature. They were linked after Democratic lawmakers from Los Angeles insisted that Republican constituents in rural parts of the county should accept a share of the prison burden. Under the compromise, neither prison could be occupied until construction is begun on the other.