CITY'S DEFENSE COSTS $70,000 LAWSUIT FOES CITE POLITICS.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - The lawsuit filed by a City Council candidate over the cleanup and development of the former Bermite munitions factory has cost Santa Clarita almost $70,000, according to city officials.

The cost of defending the lawsuit filed by John Grannis' clients, People for Environmentally Responsible Cleanup Inc., is a great deal more than the cost associated with the five other Bermite-related lawsuits involving the city put together, said City Attorney Carl Newton.

``This has been an expensive experience for the city,'' Newton said.

The aim of the lawsuit is to get the polluted water and soil on the property cleaned up as soon as possible, Grannis said Wednesday. It has nothing to do with his race for one of three seats on the Santa Clarita City Council.

``There is nothing political about this lawsuit,'' Grannis said. ``It is just a coincidence that I am running for the City Council.''

Last month, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Yaffe dismissed a portion of the lawsuit, PERC's request to compel Santa Clarita to complete a supplemental environmental impact report before any development of the 996-acre site. The property is contaminated with 275 toxic chemicals and littered with unexploded ordnance waste. The water beneath the property is contaminated with perchlorate, a byproduct of rocket fuel linked to thyroid disorders.

Lawyers for PERC vowed to appeal that ruling and to seek a court order allowing them to depose City Manager George Caravalho on several issues, including his knowledge of the extent of the contamination at the munitions factory in 1995, when the City Council approved the 3,000-home Porta Bella development on the land.

``This is all pre-election politics,'' Caravalho said. ``We try to stay out of it as much as possible.''

Several members of PERC who also belong to the citizen advisory group charged by the state with monitoring the cleanup have suggested that Caravalho or his staff told the owner of the polluted property it would be allowed to develop the land in phases, as each section is certified clean by state officials.

City officials deny those statements.

``Our sole intent is to establish that no such deal was made and the whole Porta Bella problem is properly laid at the feet of the property owners who refuse to clean up the property as they have agreed to,'' Grannis said.

The landowners, Remediation Financial Inc., say the company is out of cash and cannot afford to clean the property without a phased development agreement. RFI would sell off cleaned land for development, and money from the sale would help fund the continuing cleanup.

The lawsuit also asks that a receiver be appointed to take control of the property, which would allow former owners of the property to be held liable for the pollution caused by decades of contract work for the Department of Defense, Grannis said.

The half-dozen lawsuits surrounding the cleanup and development of the former munitions factory have hindered work on the site by hampering communication between the different groups and agencies involved while wasting money, city and state officials said.

Acting on Newton's advice, Caravalho did not respond to Grannis' demand to give a deposition on Jan. 23, one day before leaving on a business trip to Indonesia. Newton said the timing of the testimony in relation to the rest of the case was inappropriate and suggested the suit was politically motivated.

Grannis' opponents in the April 9 election said they were frustrated that the suit, which Grannis said was ``friendly'' to the city, was draining Santa Clarita's treasury. Grannis said the expense was not overwhelming.

``What concerns me is that the city has spent $1.5 million to fight a sand and gravel mine outside the city limits and considers $70,000 too much to spend to clean up the soil and water in the center of the city,'' Grannis said.

Mayor Frank Ferry said the city should have used the money spent defending PERC's lawsuit for roads, parks and schools.

``I'd love to use that money to expand Central Park or renovate the Community Center in Newhall,'' said Ferry, who is up for re-election.

Ferry said it was clear that Grannis' actions were politically motivated.

``That's just common sense,'' Ferry said. ``This isn't helping the city.''

Duane Harte, a parks and recreation commissioner running for the council, said Grannis had a conflict of interest.

``That lawsuit should never have been filed against the city, and it certainly isn't friendly, especially if it costs that much to defend,'' Harte said.

``There is no concern about Grannis being a candidate,'' said Jennifer Kilpatrick, Grannis' co-counsel. ``There is not even an appearance of impropriety here.''

Candidate Marsha McLean, a business owner and environmental analyst, said there are better ways of solving the problems on the former Bermite site than suits and countersuits.

``This issue is too important get bogged down in politics,'' McLean said.

Former Mayor Jan Heidt said she did not know enough about the lawsuit to comment. Councilwoman Laurene Weste did not return phone messages.