SURVEY FOCUSES ON DAY LABORERS BUSINESSES ASKED TO GAUGE IMAGE, SAFETY TO COMMUNITY.Byline: Eugene Tong tong 1 tr.v. tonged, tong·ing, tongs To seize, hold, or manipulate with tongs. [Back-formation from tongs. Staff Writer SANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, - The Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday began surveying local businesses about day laborers day labor n. Labor hired and paid by the day. day laborer n. Noun 1. , just as city officials consider how to best manage the dozens of people who gather daily on local street corners seeking temporary work. For several months, local officials have solicited information from such nearby cities as Glendale, which has a city-sanctioned hiring center for day laborers. Currently, dozens of primarily Latino workers congregate con·gre·gate tr. & intr.v. con·gre·gat·ed, con·gre·gat·ing, con·gre·gates To bring or come together in a group, crowd, or assembly. See Synonyms at gather. adj. 1. Gathered; assembled. 2. near the building-supply and gardening stores along San Fernando Road San Fernando Road is a major street in the city and county of Los Angeles. It starts off in Castaic as The Old Road, passing through Santa Clarita and the Newhall Pass, where upon its intersection with Sierra Highway near the junction of the Golden State (I-5) and the . ``It's not about the concept of day laborers,'' chamber President Larry Mankin said. ``A lot of our members will use the laborers, whether in their business or personally. ``It's about the string of a couple hundred guys lined up from 6 a.m. to noon, and all the negative things that could happen along that three- to four-mile corridor. It's about safety. It's about image.'' The five-question survey sent to about 1,700 chamber members asked whether laborers create ``a negative image for the Newhall area,'' and an ``unsafe environment'' for themselves and potential employers who pull over to pick them up. Some business owners have cited day-laborer impacts on traffic safety and neighborhood image as concerns, Mankin said. It also asks whether the city of Santa Clarita ``has the right to create a city ordinance'' to relocate re·lo·cate v. re·lo·cat·ed, re·lo·cat·ing, re·lo·cates v.tr. To move to or establish in a new place: relocated the business. v.intr. the workers to a labor center. The chamber had received more than 50 responses an hour after sending the survey, Mankin said. ``It appears a majority of people feel there is a problem,'' he said. ``They would encourage the city to at least investigate.'' Some critics found the survey lacking. Berta Gonzalez-Harper, a Latino community activist, disputed the poll's claim that 100 to 200 laborers can be found along San Fernando Road. Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department This article is about the Los Angeles County Sherriff's Department, not to be confused with the smaller Los Angeles County Police The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) is a local law enforcement agency that serves Los Angeles County, California. officials have said up to two dozen usually congregate there daily. ``It's misleading,'' she said. ``That inflated number will be inflammatory. ... They'll think these people are taking over. ``And the way it's worded, it doesn't get an accurate reflection of what their impact is. I think the wording should be more precise.'' Mankin said survey results will be presented to chamber members at a November meeting, and forwarded to City Hall. ``We want to make sure that the day laborers have a home,'' he said. ``It's about process, location, that kind of thing.'' Eugene Tong, (661) 257-5253 eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com |
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