SANTA FE SPRINGS : Mosquito Agency to Get New Headquarters

The county agency responsible for controlling the area’s mosquito population is planning to build a $5-million headquarters in the city.

The Greater Los Angeles Vector Control District, formerly called the Southeast Mosquito Abatement District, has been seeking to move for several years from a South Gate building that officials described as cramped and outdated.

Construction is expected to begin in July on a four-acre site at Florence and Bloomfield avenues, and should be completed by late 1996, officials said.

The agency plans to erect two 20,000-square-foot buildings. An administrative building will include offices, a meeting room and laboratories. The other building will be used for vehicle maintenance and storage, officials said.

The plans include a pond to raise guppy-like fish that eat mosquito larvae. The fish are placed in stagnant water throughout the county and are given to homeowners.

The new headquarters will allow the district to meet increased demands, such as tracking the spread of ailments carried by insects. Spokeswoman Luann Munns said the district plans to expand its role because of cutbacks in state agencies that handle disease surveillance.

District manager Jack Hazelrigg said the agency changed its name in October to better reflect the wider range of responsibilities.

A few agency board members have criticized the building plans, which include a $5,000 lighting system for the board of trustees’ meeting room.

“We do need bigger quarters,” said La Mirada Mayor Bob Chotiner, a trustee who voted against the plan in September. “But things could have been cut back a bit in some of the decor and materials.”