LOCAL ELECTIONS / Q&A; WITH TOM LaBONGE : Candidate Sees Need to Make 13th District Safe and Clean

* Tom LaBonge, 39, is a candidate in the 13th Los Angeles City Council District, which stretches from Hollywood to parts of Northeast Los Angeles. He faces Jackie Goldberg in the June 8 runoff election for the seat being vacated by mayoral hopeful Michael Woo.

* Claim to Fame: Since joining the staff of Councilman John Ferraro 15 years ago, LaBonge rose to become his chief field deputy and administrative assistant. He has been on leave from that post since January. Before joining Ferraro, he worked for two years as deputy to former Councilwoman Peggy Stevenson.

* Background: A native of Los Angeles, LaBonge has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Cal State Los Angeles. An amateur photographer, his exhibition “A Slice of Los Angeles” has been shown on numerous occasions. LaBonge was captain of his football team at John Marshall High School and played briefly at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He later was a volunteer assistant coach at Marshall for seven years. He has worked on occasion as an assistant cameraman for NFL Films. He and his wife, Brigid, live in Atwater Village.

Q What do you see as the single most important issue people are interested in right now?

A Public safety. I’ve been walking the district since January and people are concerned about their safety. The fear of crime is real to people and it’s keeping them from living good lives and I’m about changing that.

Q How would you change it?

A Basically (through) community-based policing. That means that you bring it down to the local level where you involve the community and the Police Department and you attack problems that create a lack of quality in a neighborhood. You work to abate the dirtiness of the neighborhood, the blight of the neighborhood, the abandoned cars, the trash on the street. You have patrol officers walk the business districts, do some hand-shaking. You vigorously enforce the law.

Q The police would say they are vigorously enforcing the law within the limits of their resources. What do you think?

A I don’t think so. You know, I drove down a street yesterday with someone from my campaign and we came across a drug-dealing spot. The drug dealers ran like cockroaches when we drove up in my rented car, which is black with four doors. There’s a very different thinking out there on the part of criminals and they have to be attacked and properly dealt with. The cancer in the community caused by crime should be eradicated, and it takes tough steps to do that.

Q How can that be done with existing resources?

A We need some change in state law. Wherever people are selling drugs, they should be removed. And if they must be placed off of Interstate 40, in some facility in the desert, in a tent, with mines surrounding them, so be it. What we don’t realize is that no one’s going to be left to read the newspaper you work for unless we really attack those cancers that are causing people to fear even walking to their curb.

Q Yes, but building prisons is outside the purview of the City Council. In terms of what a member of the City Council can do, how do you get tough on crime?

A We can get in a big whole deal about the criminal justice system and (how) it’s not working. But we have to get to those who are bringing the drugs to Southern California and vigorously prosecute and hold those people out of the community.

Basically what a councilperson could do is aggressively make sure streets are cleaned and attended to; that police officers are working to patrol the neighborhoods and interface with the community; to organize neighborhood watches and to push back the bad and support the good of the neighborhood.

Q I don’t hear you calling for hiring more police.

A The city is in a fiscal crisis right now and I certainly would like to see a greater commitment from the City Council to hire additional police officers and try to flatten the bureaucracy that has grown over a 20-year period, and cut out the duplication among certain departments and streamline the process of serving the public.

If we took the 32,000 (city) employees, we should take the first 8,000 and make sure they’re Los Angeles police officers, and the next 2,000 employees and make sure they are (civilian) support personnel to those officers. Then (see that) the next 3,000 are firefighters and paramedics. That brings us to 13,000. Then we have to take the other (employees) and spread them around to other needs. But you have to make the community safe so that people believe in the community.

Q Might what you’re describing result in Draconian cuts in numerous city services?

A Maybe, maybe not. I know there are too many analysts writing reports that people never read on the third floor of City Hall. We have to have a work force that serves the people and flatten that bureaucracy down.

Q You talk about possibly transferring 180 parking enforcement officers from the Department of Transportation to the beat as sort of quasi-police officers. How would that work?

A I’m talking about a voluntary transfer, involving 10 (parking enforcement officers for) each police division. So in the 13th District the commanders of the Rampart, Hollywood and Northeast (divisions) would get 10 additional officers. Their vehicles would be identified, not just as traffic enforcement, but traffic enforcement and community patrol answering to the LAPD commanders.

Q What would they do?

A They could still write tickets, but they would also be on the same (radio) frequency as the police officers. They would be eyes and ears (for regular LAPD officers). It would enhance the ability of the police officers to do their job.

For example, they would have a beat to walk. They would make sure everybody’s meters are (current). But they’d also patrol these parks and communicate back to the command.

Q To the extent these parking enforcement officers are given additional duties, won’t there be a decline in parking enforcement revenue? In other words, isn’t this a costly idea?

A Aren’t we losing our city? Aren’t we losing faith in our city? We only have so many employees, so we’d better put them where we could help people. That’s the big push here.

Q The City Council faces some tough choices in dealing with the city’s budget problems. There’s talk of taxing entertainment venues such as Dodger baseball and cable TV, and imposing a garbage collection fee. Are you willing to consider any of those things?

A No one likes taxes. I made a suggestion to the Board of Public Works to improve the collection of trash in this district (by using a) four-day work schedule and then back that up with a four-day work schedule for street cleaning. Not all of this district gets its streets cleaned. There’s an inequity there. I would certainly look to that issue.

Q I’m asking about revenue sources.

A Right. I’m just trying to lay out what I would have to do in order to be successful. I strongly believe in neighborhood associations and their role, and I would attempt to sell a service fee for sanitation and street cleaning that’s nominal and fair to everyone. If citizens see what they’re paying for, that they’re getting something and it’s working, they tend to be very supportive.

Q How about leasing Los Angeles International Airport, as mayoral candidate Richard Riordan proposes?

A I certainly will look at any proposal that we make that may enhance the city’s ability to operate. But I want to remind you that (years) ago we had all this right of way that the Red Car (trolley lines) had. These last two years we’ve spent a lot of money buying it back.

I’m concerned if we sell or lease the airport, which will take a number of years to do, that our future generations of Angelenos will be (left) sitting on the runway.

I will propose to the Airport Commission that if they really want to go for (selling or leasing LAX), let’s put out a request for proposal to develop (the airport at) Palmdale and operate (it). Let’s have large corporations that have been building airfields (have the chance to) operate Los Angeles International Palmdale and come up with some fee structure.

Why should we take all the public money that is controlled by the Airport Department and turn it over, when, if you really want to do something, go to Palmdale and develop it. By the time (Palmdale) is developed in 10 years, there should be transit out there.

Q Do you favor privatizing garbage collection?

A I strongly support the Los Angeles trash collectors and believe they are the hardest-working workers of the city. It’s a backbreaking job to collect trash and they deserve the support from the city. I do not believe privatization will help in this area.

Q What ideas do you have to create jobs?

A If one takes care of a street, if one makes sure there is an attentive public safety program for a street, that the street’s cleaned and has trees on it and is maintained in a proper way, and then if the city has a process that is environmentally fair and directed at making sure that development is enhancing to a neighborhood, that is the key ingredient to make things go.

I will have someone on my staff who will be a liaison to the business community. Our district is an older district. It has Hollywood Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, Glendale Boulevard, Eagle Rock Boulevard--these are old business districts that need support.

And I want people to understand what the environmental requirements are and the development requirements. I want to make sure they’re fair; if people do have a concern or a problem, to try to remedy it, balance it out. That’s what brings jobs.

Q Beyond keeping neighborhoods clean and communicating with existing business owners, what else would you do to improve the business climate?

A I would go out and recruit business to be in Los Angeles. You know I’ve always lived in this city because I love city living and I love streets and neighborhoods. You’re not going to see a big mall in Hollywood. You’re going to see streets that are like out of the movies in the ‘50s, and what I am about doing is trying to enhance that so that people want to be around here. Now they get tired when their cars get broken into. They get tired of being aggressively panhandled. They get tired of stepping over (gutters) that have a foot of trash in them. So I’m going to make sure that we clean those streets up. If it’s using the people who have to work off court time, I’m going to make sure the streets are clean. I’ll make sure junk’s off the street.

When I spoke earlier about those parking enforcement people, instead of just working in their cars and getting out to write a ticket, I’m going to have them park on the end of the block and they’re going to walk down the block and they’re going to have a city seal on their uniform and they’re going to say, ‘Hey Millie, anybody underneath those hair dryers? Somebody’s meter’s (expired) out here.’ I’m going to have them communicate.

Q In seeking to represent one of the city’s most politically progressive districts, you talk a lot about change. How do you respond to those who suggest that, as a 17-year veteran of City Hall, you’re part of the problem?

A I understand people’s concerns about that and, granted, there needs to be change. You know, we could get into a description of whether someone is a liberal or conservative; I believe that people in this district want someone who knows how to get the job done and will work on the basic needs of improving neighborhoods so that they feel good about their neighborhoods again.

I’ve been dedicated to serving people. I haven’t walked away after five years and become a lobbyist (or) become a public relations person for a government agency. I’ve been on the line helping people.

Q The rap from your opponent is that while you may be a good public servant, you lack vision, and that at this critical juncture in the city’s history, members of the City Council need to do more than fix potholes. How do you respond?

A I think I have great vision. I’d like to see a tower in Hollywood that people could climb up to and look from Mt. Lee and the Hollywood Sign to Santa Monica Bay and downtown. I’d like to see, like the old days, an open-air Red Car-type double-decker bus running down Hollywood Boulevard. I’d like to see improvements to the bikeway around Silver Lake so that people could enjoy that more, and make sure it stays open.

But remember we are representatives of the people. When you go to City Hall you must know how to change (it) and make it work for the people. I know how it works and how to get things done. And I don’t think that’s a bad rap. I have no big agendas. I want to serve. I’m someone Tommy Lasorda probably would like. I mean I’d probably bat about .885 if I was standing at the plate. Now, instead of being a player, I’m going to be a manager. My team is going to be made up of the people of this district. And we’re going to hit some home runs.

Jackie (Goldberg) can talk about all these things she wants to develop, you know, but by the time she starts to develop any of them it’s going to be a long time. I’m going to just work my butt off for the people. If they have a problem, it’s my problem. And I’m going to make this the best district in the city.

Q Your opponent refuses campaign contributions from real estate developers and registered lobbyists and has attacked you for not doing so. Your response?

A I accept money from people who can give you money to get your message out. My commitment is to the people of this city. If you can’t take a donation from somebody and say no to them, what kind of ability do you have to stand up to anybody?

Q Should the LAPD be more aggressive in hiring gays and lesbians?

A I think the Los Angeles Police Department should be aggressive in hiring people who want to help this city and especially those that reflect the diversity of the city. And you know, whenever there’s an (event where LAPD) could recruit in large-scale numbers they should be out there. There are many (police) officers who are gay. Let’s get beyond that. Let’s just look at (whether a prospective officer is a) dedicated public servant.

Q Could you give me your report card on the Community Redevelopment Agency?

A Well, basically I don’t like when government pushes people around.

Q Has CRA done that?

A I think it has. I think their vision of Hollywood has been way off.

Q What do you dislike about CRA’s role in Hollywood?

A Well, from what I’m told, they haven’t been successful in including all the factions in working out some common community goal. They also have not been focused enough to look at two (nearby) examples--Old Pasadena and the Promenade in Santa Monica--and say, hey, somebody’s doing something right around here.

In Hollywood the CRA’s scale may have been too grand. They may have spent too much energy worrying about the Simon project and the Bass project and all these other big projects instead of just taking care of business. I’d like to see development that balances and complements the neighborhood and doesn’t overrun a neighborhood.

Q Do you favor dismantling the CRA?

A We need that (CRA) money in Hollywood. We don’t need a lot of it downtown anymore. If something the CRA is doing is not working, I want to get it out of the way. I want to do things in a time (frame) not of 30 years, but in a three- to five-year project; not telling people what to do but listening to them and responding to their needs.