Council Puts Consolidation Plan on Hold

A plan to consolidate several city departments into two new super-agencies--part of Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan’s budget proposal--was put on hold Wednesday by a City Council committee that said Riordan pushed the proposals too quickly.

The council’s Budget and Finance Committee asked for more study of the two plans, and committee Chairman Zev Yaroslavsky said the consolidations should be considered apart from Riordan’s $4.3-billion budget. Several city lawmakers said the consolidations may still go ahead but that too many details must be ironed out to approve them by the June 1 budget deadline.

Under one proposal, Riordan would consolidate into a new Citywide Development Agency the current Community Redevelopment Agency, Housing Department and parts of the Community Development Department. The second plan would place half a dozen small city agencies in a new Community Services Department.

Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas said the plan for a centralized economic agency had been making its way through the council, when Riordan preempted the proposal with his own plan.

Council members said the Riordan plan did not resolve the complicated question of mingling civil service employees with other workers.