Our City Council Picks

Term limits guarantee that at least four newcomers will join the Los Angeles City Council this year, replacing outgoing veterans Hal Bernson, Nate Holden, Ruth Galanter and Mark Ridley-Thomas. In the March 4 primary, The Times endorses the following candidates for offering the best mix of experience and new ideas to Los Angeles’ rapidly changing city government.

District 2: Wendy Greuel

Elected a year ago to fill the uncompleted term of 30-year veteran Joel Wachs, Councilwoman Wendy Greuel is emerging as a strong voice on the council, leading efforts to reform a scandal-plagued city-county film agency. She is an energetic advocate for the East San Fernando Valley district. Greuel has no opponents.

District 4: Tom LaBonge

Councilman Tom LaBonge, elected in late 2001 to fill the remaining term of the late John Ferraro, merits election to a full four years. LaBonge is known for hands-on constituent services in a district that runs from North Hollywood to Hancock Park and includes portions of Hollywood. An unabashed promoter of his hometown and its history, LaBonge looks for ways to make Los Angeles better, embracing neighborhood councils and working to decentralize services citywide. Opponent Derek Milosavljevic, a film executive, is pushing for antiwar and anti-death-penalty resolutions that have nothing to do with City Hall.

District 6: Tony Cardenas

Two candidates are vying for this open seat, now held by Galanter and newly moved from the Westside to the Valley to reflect changes in population and to increase Valley representation. Former Assemblyman Tony Cardenas wins our endorsement because of his accomplishments during three terms in Sacramento, including a landmark crime prevention bill that significantly increased spending for mentoring and after-school programs. Businessman Jose Roy Garcia, a Salvadoran immigrant who founded the Valley’s United Nations Youth Soccer League, is a worthy opponent who needs more seasoning.

District 8: Bernard Parks

Former L.A. Police Chief Bernard Parks could probably win this race on name recognition alone, so it is heartening to see him greeting and praying his way through this South L.A. district, gaining insights on everything from whose alley needs paving to how Leimert Park merchants can improve their chances for economic success. Parks wins our endorsement to fill Ridley-Thomas’ shoes -- but also our counsel that to live up to his promise he will have to curb the imperial tendencies that characterized his tenure as police chief. A legislator’s job is different from an executive’s: Nothing happens without seven other votes. In other words, nothing happens without cooperation.

Voters looking for an alternative to Parks among the four other candidates who had the guts to stay in this race might choose Forescee Hogan-Rowles, whose years as head of a nonprofit economic development group give her experience in the thing the district needs most -- jobs.

District 10: Madison Shockley

A former pastor of the Congregational Church of Christian Fellowship, community activist Madison Shockley came close to ousting Holden in 1999. He has deep roots in the district, where he was raised and raises his family and where he most recently helped found a charter school. This is one of the most crowded races, and among the six other candidates, Shockley has capable opponents in former Assemblyman Rod Wright and Martin Ludlow, a former deputy to Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa. Longtime Holden deputy Deron Williams shares Shockley’s roots in the district, but Williams’ strong ties to Holden suggest that Shockley would be more independent.

District 12: Greig Smith

Land use is the top issue in this northwest Valley district, and most of the candidates agree that the area’s rocky hills and rural character need to be protected from helter-skelter development. The crowded race has attracted familiar faces such as retired Assemblywoman Paula Boland and Los Angeles Unified School District board member Julie Korenstein, as well as newcomer Robert Vinson, who shows promise. Greig Smith, a 23-year deputy to the departing Bernson, stands out as the candidate who knows how to get things done at City Hall, in the tradition of deputies-turned-council-members LaBonge, Ed Reyes and Jan Perry.

District 14: Antonio Villaraigosa

We have found much to criticize in incumbent Nick Pacheco’s four years in office, from his reluctance to support the L.A. Police Department consent decree to his waffling on an Eastside light-rail line because it bypassed a contributor’s shopping center. We have deplored the scurrilous campaign tactics he’s been associated with in this campaign and in the 2001 mayoral election. Nonetheless, this is a tougher call than we thought it would be because Pacheco has grown into the job and stands up for his Eastside constituents, be it by supporting community policing or taking an innovative approach to getting abandoned couches and other bulky items off the streets. If local boxing hero Paul Gonzalez, a good-hearted but inexperienced candidate, were his only opponent, we would endorse Pacheco.

But former Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa has the skills to deliver even better services. A broader thinker than Pacheco, his Assembly record shows that he is an alliance-builder who could sway council votes and attract good staff. He brings a citywide vision and a talent for building coalitions -- whether in a discordant council or a divided city.