BACK FROM THE DEAD? LOCAL LEADERS WANT TO JUMP-START BELMONT GROUP WANTS TO FORCE BELMONT CENTER'S OPENING.

Byline: Greg Gittrich Staff Writer

A furious campaign to revive the abandoned Belmont Learning Center has gained momentum in recent weeks as key Latino political leaders threaten to hold hostage Los Angeles Unified's billion-dollar construction program unless the nation's costliest school is completed.

The Latino leaders, supported by a powerful downtown law firm and an influential lobbyist it's hired, have brought mayoral candidates Antonio Villaraigosa, Steve Soboroff and Xavier Becerra aboard their effort to force the school board to reconsider its decision to abandon the environmentally troubled site.

The Los Angeles City Council is set today to consider a motion by Councilman Mike Hernandez to withhold key funding and building permits for all new schools unless the school board reverses its stand on Belmont.

``The board, on its own, decided to abandon the school without giving us any alternatives,'' Hernandez said Thursday. ``Now what I got is a big eyesore and I need to know what they're going to do.

``I'm questioning their decision and the reasons they used to make that decision.''

Members of the school board majority and top LAUSD administrators rejected Hernandez's effort as an attack on the entire educational system.

``The effect of this resolution is to potentially punish all students in the Los Angeles Unified School District, including all students in the city of Los Angeles,'' LAUSD Chief Operating Officer Howard Miller said. ``It is not clear to me why the city would want to do that.''

KORENSTEIN APPALLED

School board member Julie Korenstein said she was utterly appalled by the motion.

``I am just astounded that rather than looking out for the safety of the city's children, that politics get so heavily involved,'' Korenstein said. ``He's threatening us and that's wrong.''

The school board voted Jan. 25 to scrap Belmont following a year of startling disclosures about the dangers created by explosive and toxic gases rising from abandoned oil wells under the school. The health risks had been downplayed and inadequately dealt with before construction began.

Despite $175 million having been spent on Belmont, the board and top officials decided to kill the school because they felt it could not be safely occupied.

Hernandez has support in his save-Belmont endeavor from county Supervisor Gloria Molina, City Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and O'Melveny & Myers, the blue-chip law firm being sued by the LAUSD for its handling of matters related to the planning and development of Belmont.

POLITICAL PRESSURE

O'Melveny, which could face massive damages if Belmont is not finished, has hired the influential lobbying firm Rose & Kindel to pressure politicians on the issue.

``The community and its leadership strongly support finishing Belmont and O'Melveny & Myers and Rose & Kindel have met with public officials with facts showing the school will be safe,'' said Ralph Shapira of O'Melveny & Myers.

Through an aide, Molina expressed support for Hernandez's motion and promised to introduce a similar measure to the Board of Supervisors.

``My motion,'' Hernandez said, ``is no bigger a threat than the threat the school district has imposed on every urban school district in the state of California. By ignoring the state standard for toxic cleanup, saying they don't believe Belmont is safe for kids, they're setting a precedent . . . If it's toxic, let's clean it up.''

His motion calls for the city to refuse to enter into any joint power agreements with Los Angeles Unified or approve any conditional use permits for new schools unless the school board rescinds its decision.

While the city has no direct authority over schools, the motion could severely undermine plans to build more than 100 new schools.

Joint power agreements between the city and district have been seen as a way to join schools, parks and community centers on a single site, especially in inner-city areas where little usable land is available. Conditional use permits would be needed for multiple-use projects.

DISTRICT'S GOAL

Interim Superintendent Ramon C. Cortines wrote an open letter to the Belmont community Wednesday, saying the district's goal is to find 5,000 additional high school seats for students in the Belmont area.

The Daily News has learned the district is close to finalizing plans to reconfigure its downtown administrative headquarters back into a school. Officials also want to build a middle or high school at the Ambassador Hotel site - a moved opposed by Councilman Nate Holden.

Molina's assistant chief deputy, Miguel Santana, said the supervisor agreed to rally support to save Belmont at the behest of parents in the inner city.

``There are environmental issues that must be dealt with, but they can be fixed in a safe, timely and cost-effective manner,'' he said.

Congressman Becerra, D-Los Angeles, has actively trumpeted his desire to resurrect Belmont in his mayoral campaign. He declined comment.

Belmont backers maintain that Belmont can be made safe, and point to new estimates that a safety system could be installed at the campus for $8 million. The district says an adequate fix would cost closer to $60 million and would be the first of its kind.

In recent weeks, Molina has met with other influential leaders to gain support, including Villaraigosa, D-Los Angeles, and Assembly Speaker- elect Bob Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys.

Hertzberg could not be reached for comment, but Villaraigosa now says he is not satisfied with the board's decision to abandon Belmont without detailed alternatives for a new school.

Villaraigosa had been supportive of the board, even vowing to prevent the state from giving the LAUSD ``another dime'' for the project.

After meeting with Molina, he sent a Feb. 23 letter to Cortines, saying the board ``should be prepared to reconsider its previous action to abandon the project or offer a better alternative to the students and parents.''

Soboroff said he believes the school board acted hastily in its decision to abandon Belmont. But he disagreed with Hernandez's motion.

``The board's decision was not based on environmental issues,'' he said. ``The perception of the world is that it was. But it couldn't have been. They made their decision before the state completed its environmental report.

``I appreciate (Hernandez's) frustration, but I don't believe in penalizing the kids because of Belmont. If we can use a good joint use agreement in the San Fernando Valley or San Pedro, why should those children be penalized because of what Mike's frustrations are about Belmont?''

The lobbying efforts have failed to win support from City Attorney James Hahn, a mayoral candidate.

``Unless there is startling new info, Hahn thinks the school board has spoken and we should move forward,'' a spokesman said.

State Sen. Richard Polanco, D-Los Angeles, also refused to back off his opposition to completing Belmont or to help others get Assemblyman Scott Wildman, D-Glendale, and state Sen. Tom Hayden, D-Los Angeles, to back off their strong criticism.

``It's an atrocity that any city councilman would threaten the ability of the school district to build schools for children who desperately need them,'' Wildman said. ``The school district is actively looking for alternative sites. Putting kids on a toxic site is ridiculous.''

Hayden added: ``They are putting up obstacles to all new school construction if they can't have Belmont. That's blackmail. It's disgraceful.''