AIRPORT OFFICIAL DISPUTES AUDIT'S KEY ALLEGATION.

Byline: Beth Barrett Staff Writer

Top Los Angeles airport officials have challenged a key element of City Controller Laura Chick's audit that seriously questioned contracting practices and helped lead to a criminal investigation, according to documents released Wednesday.

A Feb. 13 letter from the Los Angeles World Airports interim executive director, Kim Day, claims Chick's auditors were wrong in saying that airport commissioners ignored a staff recommendation to give a $930,000 consulting contract to John F. Brown Co. and chose to award it to another firm without documenting their reasons.

``In fact, the item never went to the Board of Airport Commissioners for approval,'' Day wrote in the letter.

Chick had claimed that in performing the audit, she encountered the perception of a ``pay-to-play'' environment in the award of airport contracts, and she cited the $930,000 contract as a possible example in turning over findings to law enforcement authorities.

On Wednesday, she dismissed Day's letter as containing nothing new or useful, saying: ``The back-and-forth from the airport is beyond tedious.''

Airport officials' defense of the handling of the $930,000 contract in late 2002 and early 2003 points the blame at Richard M. Janisse, then LAWA deputy executive director, who has been subpoenaed to testify before the Los Angeles County grand jury investigating possible wrongdoing by city commissioners in awarding contracts to firms that contribute to local political campaigns and denying them to those that refuse.

E-mails with Day's letter indicate it was Janisse's decision to push for the contract to go to John F. Brown Co. without competitive bidding. Day blamed the staff for misunderstanding the commission's directive that six qualified firms be considered.

Jeffrey Brodey, Janisse's Beverly Hills attorney, said his client did nothing wrong and was an ``easy target'' because he left Dec. 1.

``It's totally exaggerated that he was acting by himself,'' Brodey said. ``He was well within the range of city guidelines from Day One.''

Brodey said John F. Brown Co. had done quality work for the airport for several years and that LAWA staff members were comfortable with the firm and with Janisse's proceeding with the contract until it was abruptly halted.

``At some point, someone beyond him decided they didn't want Brown,'' Brodey said. ``Someone decided they didn't want John Brown for their own reasons. We don't know what their reasons were.''

Janisse was subpoenaed to testify Jan. 27 before the county grand jury, but has yet to be called.

``He's not culpable of any wrongdoing,'' his lawyer said.

On Jan. 2, 2003, Assistant City Attorney Tim Hogan questioned the contract award, according to Day's letter.

``Staff proceeded ... but were then stopped by city attorney who opined they needed to seek a competitive proposal from another qualified firm on the list,'' Day wrote in the letter.

Hogan could not be reached for comment.

However, City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo's spokesman Matt Szabo said any assertion that the city attorney blocked the John F. Brown contract was ``completely false.''

``What Tim Hogan did was notify the airport staff they have a responsibility to send a million-dollar contract out to competitive bid,'' he said.

The contract was pulled from the Jan. 21 agenda.

Cincinnati-based John F. Brown Co. submitted its proposal but, according to documents and sources, a new and somewhat different request for a proposal was later issued by LAWA and sent only to Ricondo & Associates, requesting a proposal from that firm, also based in Cincinnati.

Day, in the letter, said while Ricondo was not on the list of qualified firms, its proposal was deemed competitive with the earlier one from Brown.

Ricondo got the award in June.

Airport spokesman Paul Haney said Day's letter was in response to a Feb. 9 meeting of airport and controller's staff members and auditors.

``What we're putting out are the facts,'' Haney said.

John F. Brown Co.'s Rita Beck said the firm does not comment about its clients.

Ricondo & Associates referred calls to the LAWA staff.

The county grand jury has heard testimony from more than a dozen airport staff members, consultants, lobbyists and city officials in an investigation focusing on whether commissioners improperly linked contract awards to political fund-raising.

The U.S. Attorney's Office also has used a federal grand jury to subpoena airport contracting records.

Beth Barrett, [phone]

beth.barrett(at)dailynews.com