L.A.’s Housing Board Chair to Step Down

The head of the Los Angeles Housing Authority’s Board of Commissioners said Tuesday that she will resign to pursue other interests.

Board Chairwoman Ozie Gonzaque’s decision to step down Oct. 2 comes as Mayor James K. Hahn, who is gearing up for reelection, has moved to replace or reshuffle a dozen other city commissioners midway through his four-year term.

Gonzaque’s move comes a month after authority officials alleged that $281,000 in government funds had been embezzled by former employees and tenant leaders, although Gonzaque said her resignation was not related to those problems.

Hahn has transferred or replaced nearly a quarter of the appointees whose terms have expired in the past month, including those serving on city commissions dealing with environmental affairs, planning, animal regulation, the homeless, libraries and the disabled, according to documents released Tuesday.

It appears that Hahn’s changes are a “routine reshuffling” that L.A. mayors have traditionally conducted at mid-term to improve the effectiveness of their administrations, according to political consultant Larry Levine.

Mayoral spokeswoman Julie Wong said the changes in city commissions are to let new people get experience at City Hall and to switch some commissioners to new posts to broaden their experience and do not signal broad dissatisfaction with how Hahn’s administration is performing.

“The mayor has a philosophy that he likes to give more people a chance to serve,” the spokeswoman said.

She said Hahn has been concerned about problems at the Housing Authority that did not play a role in Gonzaque’s departure.

Hahn praised Gonzaque in a statement for her “strong commitment” to helping the city’s poor.

Gonzaque has not been implicated in any wrongdoing. She denied that the agency’s legal problems played a role in her decision to quit, and said she did not feel any pressure from Hahn or his staff to step aside.

“The mayor knows that when you have an organization this large you are going to have some people who do not respect the law and will break the law,” Gonzaque said. “We have dealt with it.”