L.A. CITY COUNCIL ELECTIONS / 2ND DISTRICT : 2 Challenge Wachs in His New Territory

It was a situation that makes politicians shudder. Almost overnight, Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs found himself in danger of losing his job, the victim of an unfavorable redrawing of council district boundaries.

Five years ago, during the city’s reapportionment, Wachs’ City Council colleagues cut him out of the district he had represented for 15 years--an area that included the chic precincts of Laurel Canyon and the Sunset Strip.

The urbane, art-collecting Wachs instead was shunted into an all-San Fernando Valley district that stretched from tough, crime-marred neighborhoods in North Hollywood to the bridles-and-blue jeans country of Sunland-Tujunga.

“My old district had all the Mercedes dealers. The new district has all the Mercedes dismantlers,” Wachs said, smiling, in a recent interview.

Pundits had predicted that Wachs--a liberal Republican who has espoused such causes as renters’ and gay rights--might not be reelected in the more conservative, blue-collar district, which emerged after the city agreed to redraw district lines to settle a lawsuit alleging discrimination against minorities.

But after a solitary weekend at his Studio City home pondering his political future, he launched a frantic, six-month campaign to introduce himself to his new constituents.

He attended chili cookoffs. He bought cowboy boots. He organized a two-day country and Western music festival, starring Charlie Pride and Reba McEntire. And on Election Day of 1987, it paid off. Wachs held his seat, running up 65% of the vote as he outdistanced four challengers.

Now Wachs is running for his second term in the new district. He faces two challengers in the April 9 election--City Hall lobbyist Peter A. Lynch and longtime homeowner activist Tom Paterson. If no candidate wins a majority of the votes, a runoff will be held on June 4.

Wachs, 52, holds a substantial advantage over both opponents in money and name recognition. By late February, Wachs reported that he had raised more than $17,000 for his campaign. Paterson reported raising $5,500--all of it a loan from his own pocket. Lynch said he took in no money.

Since he was placed in the new district, Wachs has worked to give himself a higher profile on Valley issues. Among other things, he held a series of well-publicized hearings aimed at halting aerial spraying of malathion.

He also has helped erect barriers designed to keep drug-dealers out of neighborhoods in Sepulveda and worked to get abandoned cars off the streets in other parts of the district.

Meanwhile, Wachs has continued in his best-known role--as an advocate of urban arts.

He recently was credited with steering through the City Council a public arts program that will require developers to pay millions of dollars annually to install artwork in commercial projects ranging from mini-malls to high-rise office buildings.

Wachs also is known as a major buyer of art. In fact, ARTnews magazine recently listed him among the 200 top art collectors in the world along with billionaire publishing magnate Walter Annenberg and oil heir J. Paul Getty II. Wachs says his collection includes “several hundred pieces” of contemporary art.

Lynch, 59, of Sun Valley, accused Wachs of being unresponsive to constituent problems and not doing more to help citizens groups organize against crime.

He also criticized the councilman for spending his privately raised campaign funds on “AIDS and welfare groups and museum groups” rather than community organizations in his district.

Lynch said that, if elected, he would do more to help the city prepare for future droughts by building more facilities to catch runoff.

He also said that he would use a portion of his City Council office budget to assist citizens groups in setting up local anti-crime programs.

Paterson, 56, of North Hollywood, said Wachs “has become detached” from dealing with nuts-and-bolts matters like fixing potholes and faulty street lights on behalf of constituents.

He added that Wachs and other city officials have failed to create a citywide growth-management plan spelling out what new city services are required to meet growing population demands.

Paterson also said that he believes the City Charter needs a major overhaul. He said that, if elected, he would push to enlarge the council from 15 members to 30. Creating smaller districts, he said, would provide better representation and more effective constituent services for city residents.

The council’s 40% pay increase--which voters adopted as part of the city’s ethics reform measure last year--is excessive and should be eliminated, Paterson said.

Wachs alleged that Lynch was acting as a front for developers who are angered at Wachs’ opposition to building on ridge lines and hilly areas of the district. He said he expects Lynch to raise large amounts of money from developers.

Lynch said that most of his lobbying clients are small builders and property owners, including churches and day-care operators. He said he has raised about $25,000 to date, including a $20,000 loan from his own pocket.