City Analyst Reviews Borough Plan

The city’s legislative analyst on Tuesday laid out a possible structure for a borough system to govern Los Angeles, but the idea of boroughs as an alternative to secession remained short of support at City Hall.

Ronald F. Deaton described a system that would divide the city into seven boroughs of about 528,000 residents each. The boroughs would be run by local councils that would either be elected by voters or appointed by the Los Angeles City Council.

Deaton offered his analysis as part of a review of a borough proposal by Councilwoman Wendy Greuel. In his report to the council, he said boroughs would “promote citizen participation in government and make government more responsive to local needs.”

Greuel and other borough supporters say putting such a proposal on the Nov. 5 ballot may be the only way to save Los Angeles from a civic breakup. Secession measures for the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood are already on that ballot.

The Deaton analysis could provide the beginnings of a compromise between Greuel’s proposal and a more detailed plan by Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks).

The Greuel proposal calls for creation of a commission that would draft a borough system within one year, then put it before voters for approval. It would give some local decision-making power to borough leaders, but leave the City Council intact to deal with broader issues.

Hertzberg wants voters to decide this year whether to launch a nine-borough system that would replace the City Council.

“I’m very encouraged to see that Mr. Deaton, who has tremendous understanding of the city and how it operates, sees that a borough plan can work,” Hertzberg said. “I think it’s an important step forward in the process.”

But it was not clear on Tuesday whether discussions on a compromise have moved forward.

The council’s Committee on Education and Neighborhoods, which heard a presentation on the Deaton analysis, did not take action on Greuel’s proposal. Instead, committee members asked detailed questions about the process of setting up boroughs.

So far, only five council members support Greuel’s plan, leaving it three votes short of the majority needed to place it on the ballot.

Moreover, Mayor James K. Hahn has avoided commenting on either borough plan.

“A lot of this is still in the formative stage,” Deputy Mayor Matt Middlebrook said. “When some of this stuff is more thought out, we will have an opinion.”

Deaton pointed out that the mayor and City Council must decide which powers they would willing to relinquish to boroughs and borough leaders.

Other issues to be addressed, Deaton said, include whether borough representatives would be elected at-large or from separate districts within the boroughs, whether the City Council could override borough decisions and whether boroughs would comply with federal laws requiring equal representation for ethnic minorities in electoral districts.