Key Officials Back New Valley Civic Center

Despite a 50% increase in costs, the city’s top two administrators are prepared to recommend that Los Angeles go ahead with construction of a civic center building in Van Nuys to provide centralized services for the San Fernando Valley, officials said Monday.

A report by Chief Legislative Analyst Ron Deaton and acting City Administrative Officer Paul Cauley was being finalized Monday for release as early as today so it can be acted on next month by the City Council, officials said.

Deputy City Administrator Bill Mercer, who wrote the report, said the building, to be located on the southeast corner of Van Nuys Boulevard and Sylvan Street, is badly needed and that “the price hasn’t gone up enough to make it an infeasible project.”

Some of the costs would be offset by savings in canceling the current private leases and from revenue from retail operations proposed for the building.

Under the proposal, the Voit Cos. would build the 142,000-square-foot Marvin Braude San Fernando Valley Constituent Service Center with $34 million in private financing and lease it back to the city for 30 years.