Revenue Plan for Pierce Site Jeopardized

A controversial plan to commercially develop a chunk of land at the northwest corner of Pierce College has been tabled in response to opposition from Councilwoman Laura Chick, jeopardizing a possible revenue source for the cash-strapped campus.

Chick, whose district includes the community college, weighed in with her disapproval in a letter to the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees, which was set to put the project out for bid last week.

“You should be aware that . . . I am presently unenthusiastic about retail or other commercial development for this site,” Chick stated in her Jan. 28 letter.

In an interview Wednesday, Chick said she objected to dealing with the parcel separately from a master plan for the entire Pierce property. That master plan is under formulation by a committee of campus officials and neighborhood residents.

Also, Chick said the proposal for a fast-food restaurant “just wasn’t going to fly” with neighbors, who regard the campus as an oasis in an increasingly developed area.

McDonald’s had expressed interest in the site, college officials said.

Because the project would require a city zoning change from open space to commercial, the council member’s support is crucial to its success.

As trustee Gloria Romero pointed out recently to a disappointed Pierce College President E. Bing Inocencio, the council member is “king or queen of their district,” so proceeding without the member’s go-ahead is futile.

In response to Chick’s concerns, the board of trustees postponed plans to lease out the parcel. It tabled the issue for further study, though it was not clear when the matter would come up for discussion again.

The land, separated from the main campus by Victory Boulevard, is not technically a part of the Pierce Farm, whose agrarian use by the college has dwindled. Still, the threatened sale, lease or subdividing of the farm’s rolling hills has been a heated controversy between preservationists and college officials.

With the long-standing fiscal crisis in the district, officials have talked about ways to turn at least some of the 200-plus-acre parcel into a moneymaking venture.

The preservationists, including environmentalists, homeowner groups and farm boosters, also oppose developing the adjacent property across Victory Boulevard which houses a child-development center. The center would have to be relocated as part of any development agreement.

The minimum rental sought by the district was $13,500 a month, several thousand dollars less than an earlier request for bids that drew no takers.

Now, with Chick’s opposition, it may be too late, which dismays trustee members and Inocencio alike.

“At no time do we need [the money] more,” said Inocencio, referring to the district’s dire financial straits this year. “There’s not many ways we can make money.’

Chick, in her letter, suggested the land be purchased by the city for playing fields for youth sports. The city has money available through Proposition K to acquire parkland, she said.

In an interview, Chick said the district’s plan to lease out a small parcel without consulting the community is shortsighted. “It’s really faulty reasoning,” she said. “It’s going to bring in small change and bring in enormous ill will.”

Inocencio, however, vowed to continue fighting for the commercial development.

“I didn’t come here to preside over a public park,” he said.