Interim Chief Gets 1-Year Pact

Amid intense maneuvering, the Los Angeles City Council moved Wednesday to limit the term of the interim chief of city redevelopment and to pursue a search for a permanent executive.

Jerry Scharlin was given a one-year, $175,000 contract with a six-month option, instead of two years as the Community Redevelopment Agency board had proposed.

The politically charged debate ended in compromise after council members met for nearly an hour behind closed doors for a briefing on a proposed $584,000 settlement of a lawsuit by two former CRA executives whom Scharlin fired.

Scharlin was hired last year to revamp the financially troubled agency.

Council members, including Laura Chick and Mark Ridley-Thomas, said they could not support the two-year pact, arguing that a year is plenty of time for Scharlin to complete a reorganization of the agency and for the board to find a more permanent, experienced administrator after a competitive open search.

“In particular the current administrator is not someone with redevelopment experience,” Chick said. “For an incredibly important department of the city we don’t have a clear vision on the table about how this agency is going to deliver bang for the buck in economic revitalization, and I can’t feel comfortable locking in for any more than a year because of that.”

Underlying the council debate was the fear of some council members that Scharlin may scale back the agency’s work in their districts. Some council members are interested in taking control of the agency to preserve its operations, and did not want to commit to keep Scharlin at the helm for more than a year.

Board Chairwoman Peggy Moore called the council action a “good compromise” and said she hopes it will give Scharlin time to turn the agency around.

“We are extremely pleased with the action the council took,” Moore said. “Jerry has indicated he will make every effort to complete what he has presented.”

The vote to approve the one-year contract was unanimous.

The council decided to begin the search within six months.