Hearing Fails to Resolve Impasse on Retrofitting

Six months after seismic retrofitting work was suspended at Los Angeles City Hall because of soaring cost estimates, there was no sign at a City Council hearing Monday when it might resume or on what scale.

City Engineer Robert Horii, responding to an advisory panel that has recommended a scaled-down $165-million retrofitting project, suggested on behalf of the city’s bureaucracy that $216.5 million be spent instead.

This would allow for some modernization of the 68-year-old building--including replacement of mechanical and electrical equipment, building more stairwells and reallocating space--as well as earthquake repair and reinforcing.

With representatives of the Board of Public Works, the Fire Department and the Administrative Services Department joining Horii in warning against putting off such improvements, two of the three council members present at the hearing were supportive.

But after Rita Walters and Richard Alarcon said modernizing now would save money later, Council President John Ferraro observed, “We could have a problem--not having enough money now.”

This assessment was seconded by Mike Keeley, Mayor Richard Riordan’s chief operating officer, who told the hearing that recent municipal overtures to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for $140 million in federal earthquake assistance for City Hall had not received encouragement.

Keeley said FEMA’s Los Angeles coordinator, Leland Wilson, told local officials three weeks ago that if they pressed for a commitment now for City Hall, they would be dissatisfied with the amount.

Keeley added that Riordan called FEMA Director James Lee Witt to make a personal appeal, but Witt has not responded yet.

FEMA’s Wilson said later in an interview that there are some disagreements over how much FEMA may be prepared to contribute, and the agency needs more time to decide, but it has not ruled out a substantial contribution.

Meanwhile, J.P. Ellman, the president of the Board of Public Works, said that the board on Monday canceled a $3.5-million contract with Japanese manufacturers to produce seismic base isolation devices for the City Hall retrofit.

Ellman said that when the board knows what precisely will be needed, it will put out new bids.

There appeared to be general agreement among council members and city staff present Monday that the advisory panel, appointed by Riordan and City Controller Rick Tuttle, was wrong when it said the work, when it does go forward, would not necessitate temporarily moving the mayor and City Council out of City Hall.

Alarcon said, “If there’s going to be jackhammers going on any time between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., I don’t want to be here.”