Secrecy Lifted From Panel Picked for Planner Search : Homeowners: Disclosures allay concern of activists. They had feared committee membership would be stacked with pro-growth enthusiasts.

The leader of Los Angeles’ oldest homeowners federation, a South-Central community activist and the dean of the USC school of architecture are on the six-member panel that has begun secretly interviewing semifinalists for Los Angeles planning director, it was disclosed Friday.

The disclosure of the names by the city’s Personnel Department helped calm some homeowner activists who feared that the committee’s membership might be stacked against their viewpoints.

“In general, I think the panel looks fairly well-rounded,” said Bill Christopher, a veteran homeowner activist and a former Los Angeles planning commissioner.

Christopher had expressed concerns Thursday about the panel’s tilt after learning that Marina del Rey attorney Debra L. Bowen, viewed as a homeowner ally, had been dismissed from the body because her name had been leaked to the media.

Helping to ease such concerns was the knowledge that Jerry Daniel of Tarzana was on the panel. Daniel led a legal battle by homeowners in the 1980s that forced the city to synchronize its growth-stimulating zoning with its more restrictive community plans.

Daniel is chairman emeritus of the Federation of Hillside and Canyon Assns., a coalition of middle-class and affluent homeowner groups based in the Santa Monica Mountains and Hollywood Hills. He is also a member of the governing board of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, a parks acquisition agency.

Perceived as a counterpoint to Daniel on the panel is Juanita Tate, executive director of Concerned Citizens of Los Angeles.

Also on the panel are: George A. Caravalho, city manager of Santa Clarita; Robert S. Harris, dean of the school of architecture at USC; Robert Paternoster, director of planning and building, Long Beach; and Francine F. Rabinovitz, a consultant on planning and education issues.

The panel, which Friday began interviewing 12 semifinalists for planning director, is charged with referring the highest-scoring candidates to Mayor Tom Bradley for his consideration.

Bradley must appoint a new director from among these referrals. His appointee must also be confirmed by the City Council.

Jack Driscoll, head of the city’s Personnel Department, had refused to release the names, saying the panelists might be lobbied by the candidates or their supporters. But on Friday he said secrecy was no longer a realistic goal because he expected their names “to get out” after the interviews.

Barbara Fine, who, like Daniel, sits on the federation Board of Directors, said divulging the names increased her confidence that “an attempt has been made to come up with a balanced group.”

But Gordon Murley, president of the hillside federation and a longtime Woodland Hills activist, said his concerns remained. “Jerry Daniel is very knowledgeable . . . but he’s a great compromiser,” Murley said.

There was agreement among homeowner activists that Tate is the most pro-growth voice on the panel. Tate’s main planning goal, Fine said, has been to increase the amount of low-cost housing in South-Central. “She’s not a homeowner representative,” Fine said.