Keep the Pressure On, Mr. Cortines

Interim Supt. Ramon C. Cortines has made it clear that he is ultimately in charge of the Los Angeles Unified School District’s $2.4-billion program to repair and build schools--and that he won’t tolerate shoddy workmanship on projects financed by Proposition BB, the local school bond measure. That intolerance extends to unreasonable delays and excessive costs.

This vigilance by Cortines and Chief Operating Officer Howard Miller, in addition to oversight by the Proposition BB citizens committee, should reassure Sacramento that no public bond money will go the way of the $170 million in district general funds spent on the unfinished Belmont Learning Complex, which has been halted by environmental problems and uncertainty about future costs.

Fixing the way in which the LAUSD builds and repairs schools is rightly a top priority. Cortines and Miller learned Wednesday that the state Department of Toxic Substances Control has rejected 58 potential school sites because of incomplete information on environmental contamination. The hurdles keep coming.

Appalled by examples of poor repair work at schools, Cortines has reorganized the district’s troubled facilities division, where the idea for Belmont originated. Most senior employees associated with that failed project have either been fired or have fled, but problems remain, including the inability of district staffers and private project managers to get along.

Cortines has ordered the dismissal of several members of the private management firm, 3D/I-O’Brien Kreitzberg, that was hired to oversee Proposition BB school repair and construction work. At issue are alleged overcharges and poor oversight, as well as an alleged threat against a school district manager.

Cortines also put outside contractors on notice: No one will be allowed to treat the district like a cash cow. Unlike his predecessors, the interim superintendent does not mince words or stall decisions.

It’s still an open question whether the project managers actually overcharged the district, because each side has its own set of figures--a common nightmare at the LAUSD. That confusion should end next month when the district’s chief investigator, Don Mullinax, completes his probe of the management of Proposition BB funds. The district definitely needs private expertise on school construction and repairs, but not at excessive cost.

Overcoming the stench of Belmont and regaining the trust of Sacramento will require Cortines and Miller to keep the pressure on the district staff and outside contractors. They should not let up, despite the howls of protest from everyone whose ox is being gored.