EARTHQUAKE: THE LONG ROAD BACK : City Council Balks at Out-of-Town Contractors : Jobs: Board of Public Works is asked to submit new list of local businesses to handle earthquake cleanup and demolition projects.

The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday delayed voting on rubble cleanup and demolition contracts worth up to $100 million because several private contractors recommended for the jobs where based outside the area.

“I am sick and tired of contracting to businesses outside of our profit area,” said City Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, who led the charge to eliminate the out-of-town contractors for consideration and replace them with firms based in Los Angeles County.

After nearly an hour of debate, the council instructed the Board of Public Works to return to the council by Friday with a new recommended list of contractors.

The contracts to pick up residential debris and demolish condemned buildings will be awarded to three partnerships that will serve three areas for the next two years.

Although each contract is valued at $5 million, city officials said the value is likely to increase to as much as $30 million each because contracts will probably be extended.

City officials said they plan to apply for federal emergency funds to reimburse the city for the cost of the contracts.

Some firms protested the move to limit work to local firms.

“I don’t think it’s fair,” said Paul Womack, project manager for Construction Control Services Corp., a North Carolina-based construction management firm.

He said the move treats his and other firms like “illegal aliens.” Womack added that federal funds will pay for most of the city’s cleanup and therefore companies from throughout the nation should be considered for the jobs.

Hoping to hasten the city’s quake recovery, the City Council also voted to streamline the approval process for permits needed to rebuild seriously damaged buildings.

Under the proposal, planning officials still will have the authority to call for a public hearing for those projects that are historically significant or are likely to create public controversy if they are rebuilt.

In other quake-related action, the council voted to waive permit fees for demolition jobs and for the inspection of rebuilt chimneys and block walls. City officials said they could not estimate how much money the city will lose by waiving the fees because the amount depends on how many permit fees are waived. An ad hoc committee on earthquake recovery is considering waiving additional construction fees.