Dispute May Affect Vote on Police Bond

Having twice failed in recent years to win approval of police bond measures, Los Angeles city leaders face the added challenge this year of overcoming the public discord over Mayor James K. Hahn’s decision not to back Police Chief Bernard Parks for another term.

Some political strategists see the Hahn-Parks dispute as a major obstacle to winning passage of the $600-million police bond measure March 5.

“The timing is not good,” said Harvey Englander, a veteran political consultant not affiliated with campaigns for or against the measure. “There is so much uncertainty about the leadership of the department, and uncertainty is the first step toward voting no.”

Political strategist Arnie Steinberg agreed. “On any bond measure, people are looking for a way out, and this gives them a chance to hesitate.”

Proposition Q campaign manager Steve Afriat discounts that theory, noting that despite their differences over the chief’s tenure, Parks and Hahn both signed the ballot argument in favor of the bonds and have agreed to campaign for the measure.

Both men are scheduled to attend the campaign kickoff event Thursday at the West Valley police station, one of the old and cramped facilities that would be replaced under the bonds.

If approved by a two-thirds vote, the measure would authorize the city to issue $600 million in bonds to pay for a new combined emergency operations/fire dispatch center downtown, as well as replacement of the West Valley, Hollenbeck, Rampart and Harbor police stations.

The measure also would finance new stations in the San Fernando Valley and Mid-Wilshire areas, replace the metropolitan jail, and build two new bomb squad facilities.

The average tax for the owner of a $185,900 home would be $34.49 per year for 24 years.

City Council President Alex Padilla, a co-chairman of the $400,000 campaign in favor of the bond measure, said the public understands the need to upgrade aging facilities that hamper police work.

“It’s very bad in stations in all the areas of the city,” Padilla said.

LAPD Officer Gretchen Zavala can vouch for the condition of the West Valley station.

The veteran officer, assigned to a property disposition detail, shares a former janitor’s closet with two co-workers--their desks and chairs filling the 5-by-10-foot room.

“It’s stuffy, and every time someone wants to get by, I have to move my chair in,” Zavala said.

Other officers and detectives at the station work in a former locker room and in trailers.

The station was built in 1960 to accommodate 92 workers, but it currently houses 315 officers and civilians, according to Capt. James H. Cansler, commanding officer of the station.

“It’s difficult to keep morale up. Look at the terrible conditions you have,” Cansler said, pointing to exposed wires snaking all over rooms packed with desks. The main detective office has 19 people in a room built for five.

“It can be hard to hear a victim on the phone when you have everyone talking at the same time,” said Det. Bruno Pabon, whose desk is pushed up against another.

The poor condition isn’t the main reason the station was picked as the site to kick off the campaign. City leaders know that if they are going to win approval of the bond measure, they have to win over voters in the Valley, which was instrumental in the defeat of two previous police bond measures.

“Clearly, the voters in the Valley are critical in determining whether this bond measure passes,” said Padilla, a Pacoima resident.

The organized campaign to defeat Proposition Q is being chaired by Richard Close, who is also chairman of the secession group Valley VOTE, and secessionist leaders make up most of the board of the No on Prop. Q Committee. The campaign committee also includes Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn.

Close said it is inappropriate for the city to take on new debt during an economic downturn and before a proposed ballot measure in November that could decide whether Los Angeles is split into four smaller cities.

Padilla disagreed. “Given the [terrorist] incident of last year, the public recognizes that we can’t wait.”

Close also cited broken promises of past bond measures, including a 1989 bond measure that called for new Valley and Mid-Wilshire stations. The site of the new Valley station has been purchased and prepared for construction.

“The main argument is we need more police officers and firefighters and paramedics, not more buildings,” Close said.

Padilla responded, “We need both, and we can’t pay for police officers with bonds.”

City leaders hope newfound admiration for public safety workers following the Sept. 11 attacks will help them carry the day.

But Englander predicted that the bonds will fail.

The active opposition of Valley secessionists will hurt, he said. He also noted that the Republican gubernatorial primary will be contentious, drawing voters who are more conservative and less supportive of bonds.

The city might be able to overcome all of those issues if it could raise $1 million for a campaign, Englander said, but it would still be a hard sell given the strain between Parks and Hahn.

“The Police Department is in the headlines for the wrong reasons,” he said. “My gut feeling is it’s going to be another loss.”

Padilla predicted victory.

“The public in general understands and prioritizes public safety as No. 1. With this bond measure, we are giving the men and women who we count on to keep us safe the tools and facilities they need to do the best job they can.”