L.A. Council Delays Decision on Filling Yaroslavsky’s Seat

A citizens coalition Tuesday won an additional week to rally support for its plan to temporarily fill the Los Angeles City Council seat left vacant by Zev Yaroslavsky’s move to the County Board of Supervisors.

The delay was requested by council President John Ferraro, who asked his colleagues to postpone a decision on whether to hold an election for the post during the regularly scheduled elections in April.

By delaying the decision, the council left open the option of appointing a temporary replacement--a course backed by a coalition of homeowners and business leaders in the district, which stretches from the San Fernando Valley to the Westside.

The latest name to surface as a candidate for the temporary position is Michael A. Jimenez, a public relations consultant and former Yaroslavsky legislative aide who resigned in 1992.

In an interview Tuesday, Jimenez said he is interested in the post and that he moved last weekend from his home in Santa Monica to Bel-Air, which is in the district, so he would be eligible.

While city officials weigh how to handle the vacancy created by Yaroslavsky’s departure, chief legislative analyst Ron Deaton is watching over the day-to-day operations of the district.

There were other developments Tuesday as the city sought to deal with Yaroslavsky’s move. Ferraro appointed himself the third member of the Budget and Finance Committee--which Yaroslavsky had headed since the early 1980s--and named Councilman Richard Alatorre as the panel’s chairman. The other member is Councilwoman Ruth Galanter.

Ferraro also announced formation of a special five-member committee whose job is to keep this year’s budget in balance and to craft a new spending plan for the 1995-96 fiscal year. Its members consist of the regular budget committee plus Councilwomen Jackie Goldberg and Rita Walters.