Bernson Defends Porter Ranch Before 5 Rivals : Campaign: The forum marks the councilman’s first encounter with his challengers, who oppose the project.

Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson, in his first face-to-face encounter with five rival candidates, Tuesday defended the massive Porter Ranch development that has become the central issue of their campaign, while the challengers attacked the $2-billion project.

Bernson said the candidates’ forum, which drew about 160 people to a Chatsworth High School auditorium, would be his only appearance at such an event during his campaign for reelection to his 12th District seat, which represents the northwestern San Fernando Valley.

Bernson’s challengers have made the veteran councilman’s support for Porter Ranch the key issue in the campaign for the April 9 election. His opponents have said the proposed development will create severe traffic and pollution problems in the area and overload its sewage and water delivery systems.

Bernson said Porter Ranch is still “a plan, not a project” and that current plans provide for development controls over the ranch that were not included in a 1974 city growth plan for the area.

Plans for the project, which is not expected to be completed for 20 years or more, call for construction of nearly 3,400 dwelling units and 6 million square feet of commercial space in the hills north of Chatsworth.

Los Angeles school board member Julie Korenstein, generally considered Bernson’s strongest challenger, described the project as an “environmental catastrophe about to happen.” She said that among other adverse impacts, the project would generate 700 million gallons of sewage annually and add 800 tons of carbon monoxide to the atmosphere.

In prior campaign appearances, Korenstein has repeatedly criticized Bernson for accepting more than $55,000 in campaign contributions from the ranch’s developer, Nathan Shappell, while “serving as the project’s main backer.”

Asked during a question-and-answer period if he would accept campaign donations from developers “who might directly profit from your vote,” Bernson said: “Unfortunately, money and politics are related and you have to have money to run for office.”

“The key is whether you have the integrity to be impartial when you accept contributions,” he said.

His statement brought laughter from some of those in the audience, to which Bernson tartly responded, “Thank you for your courtesy.” When he completed his answer, his supporters loudly applauded him.

Bernson drew fire from his challengers prior to the forum by sending a letter to about 400 of his supporters urging them to attend because “the other candidates will pack the house with their supporters.”

“We are now in the home stretch of the race--less than four weeks to go--and I need, and appreciate, all the support you can give,” Bernson wrote.

Northridge printer Allen Hecht, one of the councilman’s opponents, said the letter indicates Bernson knows he is politically vulnerable and “needs all the help he can get.”

“I think he feels unless he has equal representation, it’s going to look like the whole community is against him. . . . If it was just the other candidates who were there, he wouldn’t even show up. But he’s concerned with the image projected outside that room” by the news media, Hecht said.

Bernson campaign manager Hal Dash said Bernson was rounding up backers only because his opponents were doing the same.

“It’s the major debate and unfortunately, there’s been no publicity and so we’re doing our own publicity,” Dash said. “Call it democracy in action.”