COUNCIL OKS TAX, BOND MEASURES.

Byline: Patrick McGreevy Daily News Staff Writer

The Los Angeles City Council gave final approval Wednesday to put more than $1 billion in special tax and bond measures on the November ballot for libraries, sidewalks, the zoo and Exposition Park.

The council vote was 10-3 on asking voters to approve a $769.4 million special tax for sidewalk repairs, a $47.6 million bond measure to upgrade the Los Angeles Zoo and a $46.5 million bond measure to improve Exposition Park, including construction of a combined science learning center and aquarium.

The four measures would add about $31 annually for 20 years to the property tax bill for a 1,200-square-foot home worth $162,000. Larger bond issues for police and fire are expected to be sought next year.

Council members Laura Chick, Joel Wachs and Rudy Svorinich Jr. voted against the sidewalk tax, while Chick, Svorinich and Councilman Mike Feuer opposed the zoo and Exposition Park bond measures.

Svorinich, the only member to oppose the library bonds, called on his colleagues to show restraint.

He accused the council of not being honest with voters by holding back $1.3 billion in police and fire bonds until April instead of allowing voters to decide in November whether they are higher priorities than the zoo, sidewalks and other tax measures.

Dividing the $2 billion in tax proposals in half between two ballots deprives voters of being able to chose their priorities and see all of what is being asked at one time, including the cumulative impact on their taxes, Svorinich said.

``One of the Machiavellian reasons we are doing this today is hoping the voters forget in April or June that this was before them in November,'' Svorinich charged.

There was no response from other council members and Svorinich was the only one who spoke before the vote Wednesday.

Chick said the library proposal - a $178.3 million bond measure to replace or renovate 28 libraries, including 12 in the Valley, and to build four new branches - had been examined closely by city officials and that an oversight committee was created to make sure the projects are completed on time and on budget.

She said the zoo, sidewalk and Exposition Park measures were not put through the same process, but instead were proposed just a few weeks before the deadline for the council to act.

``I feel we need to prioritize the most essential city needs,'' Chick said.

Critics said more thought needs to be given to proposals before they are placed on the ballot if the city is to overcome voter skepticism bred by the city's failure to deliver all of the projects promised in a 1989 police bond measure, including construction of a sixth police station in the San Fernando Valley.

``I know that (library) money is going to be well spent. I did not feel the same way about the others,'' Chick said.

Councilman Richard Alarcon said he has similar concerns and believes voters will not approve the measure by the two-thirds margin needed, but he was willing to put the question on the ballot.

``I voted to let the voters decide,'' Alarcon said.

Councilman Richard Alatorre said he and others will put together a campaign to win passage of the bond measures, which he said are important to improve the quality of life in Los Angeles.

``We have to educate the public,'' Alatorre said.

The sidewalk measure faces the greatest obstacles, including opposition from Mayor Richard Riordan and Wachs.

City Controller Rick Tuttle announced Wednesday that he is withdrawing his opposition to the four tax measures on grounds that the council voted Tuesday to adopt a debt-management policy that he wanted to see in place before voters were asked to borrow more money.

However, Tuttle still is reviewing the measures on their merits and still might oppose some of the new taxes.

The sidewalk tax would provide $170 million to install curb cuts on sidewalks to comply with federal disabled-access laws, with the rest of the money going to repair sidewalks at about 200,000 locations where they have cracked or crumbled.

The zoo bond measure will pay for replacement of the Reptile House, construction of a new, upgraded exhibit area for pachyderms, and renovation of a sea lion exhibit to provide salt water instead of fresh water.

The Exposition Park project includes $30 million of the $60 million needed to build a new Environmental Learning Center called ``World of the Pacific,'' which will include exhibits of live animals, about half of which will be sea animals, according to Jeffrey Rudolph, executive director of the California Science Center.