L.A. Delays Decision on Light-Rail Vote : Sharply Divided City Council Holds Up Action on Proposed Valley Referendum

A sharply divided Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday put off for one day a decision on a proposal to ask San Fernando Valley voters if they support construction of a Valley light-rail line.

The delay came after 2 1/2 hours of heated debate, during which the Valley’s eight council representatives could not agree on the best way to proceed.

The county Transportation Commission in December gave Valley elected officials a year to decide what light-rail route, if any, they favor or risk losing millions of dollars in transit funds to other communities. The commission acted after its five proposed Valley routes ran into opposition from residents.

Mayor Asks for Vote

Last week, Mayor Tom Bradley, in an effort to end the stalemate, called for a public vote in June on the issue. Bradley had also proposed that Valley voters be asked which of the five proposed routes, if any, they favor.

Councilman Mike Woo last week dropped his support of the provision for a vote on the specific routes. Woo proposed Tuesday that Valley voters be asked if they favor construction of a light-rail line and, if so, whether they support creation of a citizens’ commission to propose a trolley route and to recommend other transportation improvements.

Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, however, said such a vote would be “meaningless.”

Yaroslavsky, expected to challenge Bradley in the 1989 mayoral race, predicted there would be an overwhelmingly favorable vote if the referendum merely asks for sentiment about light rail.

“You will be no better off the day after the primary election in June than you are now,” he argued. “Until you get to the nitty-gritty decisions of where the line is going to go, what you’re going to have on the ballot in June won’t prove much.”

Yaroslavsky and Councilman Hal Bernson advocated that the council create the citizens’ commission first, then put the commission’s recommendations on the ballot in November.

Several council members from outside the Valley accused Valley colleagues of pushing for the referendum to avoid the political heat of making the decision themselves.

“Throwing it out to the voters may sound very, very democratic,” said Councilwoman Gloria Molina. “Bottom line: It’s wimpy.”

At an earlier public hearing, the proposed referendum drew a mixed reaction from Valley business and homeowner groups.

Among those speaking against the referendum were representatives of Homeowners of Encino, the Reseda Community Assn. and the Tarzana Property Owners Assn.

Former Rep. Bobbi Fiedler also spoke against the referendum, attacking an element of Woo’s proposal that calls for any light-rail line built in the Valley to be “integrated into a larger transportation system.”

Uncertainties Abound

Fiedler contended that the light-rail line should be a “stand-alone project” because “we don’t know if Metro Rail or any other rail project will even reach the Valley.”

Supporting the referendum were representatives of the Encino Property Owners Assn., the Valley Industry and Commerce Assn., the United Chambers of Commerce of the San Fernando Valley and the Mexican National Brotherhood of the San Fernando Valley.

“Let the people vote,” said Bert Corona of the Mexican National Brotherhood. “That’s the American way.”

The council must make a decision today to beat the deadline for placing measures on the June ballot.

The outcome of a referendum would be merely advisory. The final decision about construction of a light-rail line in the Valley rests with the Transportation Commission.

The five routes proposed by the commission are: along the Ventura Freeway; along the Los Angeles River; following Chandler Boulevard and Oxnard Street east of the San Diego Freeway and then largely following Victory Boulevard to Warner Center; largely following Victory Boulevard the length of the Valley; and along the Southern Pacific main line, which runs diagonally across the Valley connecting North Hollywood and Chatsworth.