Bernson’s Absence Draws Fire From Critics of Plan

Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson was in Europe on Monday when critics said he should have been at City Hall fighting a plan they argue will hurt his San Fernando Valley constituents.

“He should be here protecting the Valley,” complained Porter Ranch resident Diana Dixon-Davis, a leader of a group of Valley residents opposed to a city school board redistricting plan endorsed Monday by the council’s Ad Hoc Committee on Redistricting.

Instead, Bernson, the only representative of an entirely Valley district on the five-member committee, was in Europe with his wife, Robin.

Exactly where in Europe was not precisely known, said Ali Sar, his press secretary.

Bernson’s foreign travels have been the topic of occasional controversy. Between 1988 and 1990, two newspapers, including The Times, detailed his liberal use of campaign funds to pay for extensive trips abroad.

Although his critics said it was obvious Bernson’s vote would not have changed the outcome of Monday’s 4-0 committee vote, the symbolism of his voting against the plan would have heartened them, they said.

Bernson flew to Rome June 6 for a two-week trip that is part education-and-business and part pleasure, and he is scheduled to return Sunday, Sar said.

The business portion of the trip consists of what Sar described as a land-use seminar organized by George Lefcoe, a USC professor of real estate law. Bernson is chairman of the council’s Planning and Land Use Management Committee.

An itinerary obtained by The Times shows a light schedule of city and museum tours and meetings with architects and urban affairs officials in Rome from June 7 to 9 and in Nice, on the French Riviera, June 11 and 12.

Sar said he believed his boss is using the last week of his stay in Europe to vacation. Bernson paid his air fare and some other costs of the trip, Sar said. But Sar said he did not know if Bernson was tapping his personal or campaign funds to cover his own costs.

Meanwhile, it was learned that Councilman Joel Wachs, another Valley lawmaker, also attended the seminar. Wachs’ chief deputy, Greg Nelson, said his boss attended only the Rome portion of the seminar, later took a personal trip to Germany, and will return to work in Los Angeles today.

Although Wachs is expected to be present Friday when the full council is scheduled to vote on the redistricting plan, Bernson is not.