Colleagues Honor Bernardi for 30 Years on City Council

Ernani Bernardi, whose outspoken manner and fierce independence earned him the unofficial title “Conscience of the Council,” was honored by his colleagues Tuesday with a plaque and a party for his 30 years on the Los Angeles City Council.

“I feel just fine, just great,” said Bernardi, 79, with a laugh, before slicing a chocolate cake set out for him in council chambers. “I’m ready for another 50 years.”

Although he ruled out running for a ninth time when his term expires in July, 1993, Bernardi later said, “I might run for mayor.”

“It’s all gone by so quickly,” said Bernardi, who was a building contractor and professional musician when he was elected to represent the 7th District on June 1, 1961. “We have such a short time on this Earth.”

In passing the 30-year mark, the senior member of the City Council equaled the record set by Councilman John Gibson, who served from 1951 through 1981.

Regarded as a tenacious fighter for his principles, Bernardi initially campaigned on a controlled-growth platform that alienated even some friends in the building industry.

“The need for better planning . . . more police protection, improved traffic flow and public transportation,” Bernardi said in a pre-election statement in May, 1961, “are but a few of the urgencies for which we in the 7th District all share a common concern.”

Three decades later, his message remains unchanged.

“Sure it’s the same message--rapid growth and all the problems it brings have come to pass,” Bernardi said. “Growth should be tailored to the city’s physical and financial ability to handle it. Right now, it’s out of hand.”

His colleagues heaped praise on him in a brief ceremony.

“Ernani came to the council with strong opinions and prepared with facts--and he’s still that way,” said City Council President John Ferraro, who is third in seniority with 25 years of service behind Bernardi and Marvin Braude’s 26 years. “He can be cantankerous and even obnoxious, but he’s also got a great sense of humor.”

When Bernardi was elected to the seat vacated by Rep. James C. Corman, the 7th District was a mostly semi-rural region of horse ranches, two-lane roads and several hundred thousand people on the northern outskirts of Los Angeles.

Today, the region, like many others, is crowded and plagued by gangs and graffiti, crisscrossed by major freeways and covered with sprawling housing developments, industrial parks and shopping malls.

“The biggest change I’ve seen is that when we moved to the San Fernando Valley . . . there were only 200,000 people there--now, there’s 1 1/2 million,” Bernardi recalled. “I’ve also seen 25 new council members since I’ve been here.”

On Tuesday, as voters prepared to elect as many as five new council members, Bernardi expressed deep disappointment in “the mayor, the City Council and the Police Commission” for their handling of the Rodney G. King affair.

“We all had an opportunity to sit down and take a hard look at the way we provide law enforcement in Los Angeles,” Bernardi said. “Instead, everybody went off in their own direction jumping on headlines.”