Staples Neighbors Decry Security Planning

Community activists and residents in the working-class neighborhoods ringing Staples Center complained Thursday that the city is ignoring and possibly endangering them by failing to keep the community informed about plans for the Democratic National Convention.

Civil rights attorneys separately questioned the legality of a proposed traffic plan that would require the area’s mostly Spanish-speaking residents to carry entry passes in their cars and be questioned while driving in the vicinity during the convention.

At issue are plans to control vehicles and expected protests in a zone around the downtown convention site.

City officials acknowledged Thursday that more could be done to inform residents. But they insisted that they have made continuing efforts to keep the community abreast of what to expect during the event, which begins Aug. 14.

Nonetheless, at a news conference across from Staples, community activists asserted that city officials have forgotten about residents--many of them poor nonvoters--whose daily lives will be most immediately affected by the event.

“If we were in Westwood, Brentwood or Bel-Air, we would not need to hold this press conference. We know they would have gone through painstaking efforts to make sure the residents were aware of what was going on,” said Roland Palencia of the Clinica Msgr. Oscar Romero, a social service and health center in the Pico-Union district.

Mayor Richard Riordan, apparently caught off guard by the accusation, angrily responded in a later meeting with reporters.

“For them to suggest that we are caring more for people in Brentwood or Bel-Air is a damned, damned lie!” the mayor shouted, pointing his finger at a reporter.

Riordan suggested that professional activists who don’t represent the community are “trying to make things more difficult” for the city.

But at the news conference and in separate interviews, residents said no one has told them whether tear gas might be fired and what to do if it fills their crowded apartments. In the stifling summer heat, windows must be left open in the area’s old brick and concrete buildings.

The residents also said they are worried about being swept up in police crackdowns while traveling to school, work or medical appointments. And they are uncertain about plans for parking and driving through the area.

One mother expressed concerns about her asthmatic son. Another, Maria Beiza, said she feared for her 8-year-old daughter, Alejandra. The girl is epileptic and frequently needs medical attention.

“What happens if they use gas bombs?” Beiza asked. “There are many pregnant women and children who live here.”

The mayor’s office and LAPD officials say that they have held a series of meetings that have been hosted by community groups and religious leaders. And by next week, public service announcements in English and Spanish addressing some of the concerns will begin airing, said Deputy Mayor Manuel Valencia.

“Over the last several weeks and months, [LAPD officials] have been involved in very aggressive efforts to make the community aware of what’s going on,” said LAPD Lt. Horace Frank.

Frank stressed that only commanders can order the use of tear gas, and they must follow strict guidelines, which include assessing the impact on residents and bystanders.

“Our No. 1 priority,” he said, “is to ensure the safety and security of the people in this community.”

Another issue is the proposed restriction on vehicles entering a “travel restricted boundary,” a roughly 40-block area stretching from Hope Street on the east across the Harbor Freeway and into the densely populated Pico-Union district. Under the tentative plan, outlined by the city’s Department of Transportation, all cars would be required to display a “local access pass.”

Drivers who didn’t display the pass would be asked if they are residents or are conducting business in the zone.

On Thursday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California said that the proposals appear to be illegal and that they are considering challenging them should the city push forward.