Local Storm Clouds Brew Over Port

A yacht cruise Thursday was billed as a chance for Mayor James K. Hahn, Councilwoman Janice Hahn, Harbor Commission appointees and activists to share ideas for making the Port of Los Angeles a better neighbor to surrounding communities.

But the chatter on board the sleek, oak-paneled Angelina II as it glided past massive cargo ships and acres of product containers stacked four high was not all that cheery.

The port, it was revealed Thursday, was quietly scaling back the duties of the firm it had hired to build bridges of cooperation with local neighborhoods. These are the very neighborhoods that have been choking on diesel emissions and complaining about port-generated truck traffic for years.

The controversial move underscored the complexity of the problems facing the Hahns, both of whom live in San Pedro, as they try to make good on campaign vows to establish a constructive relationship between the region’s significant economic engine and harbor-area communities.

Port critics suggested that RRM Design Group, which has been involved in various port projects, including the effort to revive the ailing Ports O’ Call Village, was being targeted because it has tended to side with community leaders.

Port officials, however, argued that they have been under pressure to remove RRM by the union representing the city’s architects and engineers. The San Luis Obispo company’s $950,000 contract, the union maintained, should be reevaluated on grounds the work could just as easily be accomplished by city workers. RRM is still under contract but only has $100,000 left to work with.

In an interview on board the yacht, which belongs to the port, Mayor Hahn said he plans to call for a report on the port’s action.

“I think RRM has done a good job,” he said.

His sister, whose 15th Council District includes the port communities of San Pedro and Wilmington, agreed, saying she was “disappointed in the port.”

Standing in a lounge area at the back of the yacht, Noel Park, president of the San Pedro and Peninsula Homeowners Coalition, put it another way.

“There are bureaucrats in the port who feel the community is a nuisance and impediment to their agenda,” he said. “They’ve circled their wagons and rejected the invader.”

“And notice the timing: The old harbor commissioners are gone, and the new ones are yet to be seated,” he added. “Clearly, the port decided now is the time to strike.”

Port Executive Director Larry Keller was unavailable to comment. Bruce E. Seaton, the port’s chief operating officer and a guest on the harbor cruise, conceded that “the timing was unfortunate.”

Amid the controversy on board, Mayor Hahn handed out copies of a letter he dispatched to the Harbor Commission designees Thursday, urging that they establish a community advisory committee to assess the effects of port developments. It also called on them to “make sure that the Port of Los Angeles is not only successful, but a good neighbor as well.”

After the hourlong cruise, Hahn expressed a personal interest in achieving that goal.

“Living here,” he said, “I don’t want my neighbors to be mad at me all the time.”