Mayo Joins Council After Perez Resigns : Politics: Ex-councilman had been a target of conflict-of-interest allegations. His replacement is a longtime member of urban development panel.

Patrick Perez has resigned from the City Council, citing outside interests as his reason for leaving the post after eight years in which he has been a frequent target of conflict-of-interest allegations.

Perez, 52, announced his resignation quietly in a Dec. 23 letter to Mayor John Ferrero. In the letter, Perez said he was proud of his service but planned “to pursue other challenging interests.”

Lawrence Mayo, a longtime member of the Industry Urban-Development Agency, has been appointed to the council to replace Perez.

Mayo, 77, an employee of the CC Stafford Milling & Warehouse Co. in Industry for more than 50 years, said he was surprised by the appointment, and he referred other questions to City Manager Chris Rope. Rope did not return calls from The Times.

Mayo has been a member of the Industry Urban-Development Agency, the city’s redevelopment agency, since 1979. He has also been a board member of the La Puente Valley County Water District since 1968 and is a former member of the Industry planning commission.

Mayo will serve the remainder of Perez’s council term, which expires in 1994, and fill all his committee and representative posts.

Since his appointment to the council in 1983, Perez has been the center of controversy involving his partial ownership of two companies, City of Industry Disposal Co. and Zerep Management Co., that have contracts with the city.

A 1990 lawsuit filed by three prominent Industry businessmen accused Perez of violating conflict-of-interest laws regarding his continued ownership in the two companies.

According to the suit, which was settled in August, Perez “negotiated new and more beneficial contracts in his official capacity as a councilman.”

Perez denied wrongdoing, and city officials maintained that the contracts with COI Disposal and Zerep are legal.

Perez did not return telephone calls this week.

In addition to Perez, other city officials and the Industry Urban-Development Agency were named as defendants, also for alleged conflicts of interest.

The lawsuit, filed by Edward Roski Sr., Edward Roski Jr. and John Curci, was settled last August along with an earlier lawsuit over management and ownership of the Sheraton Hotel in the Industry Hills & Sheraton Resort.

The conflict-of-interest case was dropped in connection with the settlement of the first lawsuit, in which the city agreed to buy the Industry Hills Sheraton from the three developers for $29 million.

Replacing Mayo on the IUDA is Rolene Harrison, 53, a lifelong resident of Industry and a bookkeeper for TR Masterson Construction Co. in El Monte.

Before becoming an IUDA board member, Harrison was on the city planning commission for six months.