Dawdling on the Prison

Gov. George Deukmejian and his likely challenger, Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, both say that they are law-and-order men. They’ll never have a better chance to prove it. Both say that they want a state prison in Los Angeles County. They can prove that by getting it built.

Politics alone is holding up the construction of a prison that the Legislature said four years ago was needed in Los Angeles County. The need has not diminished in that time. There are more than 50,000 inmates crammed into facilities throughout California that were designed to hold 29,000.

There is no argument about the fairness of putting a new prison in Los Angeles. After all, 38% of the state’s male inmates come from Los Angeles County. The argument is over where it belongs.

The governor prefers the Crown Coach site, near 12th Street and Santa Fe Avenue, in an industrial area two miles southeast of the Los Angeles Civic Center. The convenience of the central location--which is near the county jail, courts, freeways and bus stops--would reduce transportation costs for taxpayers and visitors. The 30-acre parcel is expected to cost $32 million--well within the $120 million that is budgeted for a reception center for 1,700 inmates and a medium-security prison for 700 men.

The governor’s people are planning community meetings next month to counter opposition on the Eastside. Assemblywoman Gloria Molina (D-Los Angeles) represents that district, in which county institutions already hold 12,000 prisoners. Her bill, AB 2547, says that no prison can be built in an area that already houses more than 7,000 prisoners. Lots of Democrats are on her side in Sacramento.

The mayor prefers the site of an old drunk farm near Six Flags Magic Mountain in suburban Canyon Country, 35 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Although the city-owned property is priced at a bargain $8 million, and at 520 acres is large enough for expansion, the location is not central. The state has ruled it out because of an earthquake hazard, the lack of adequate sewers and roads, and the proximity to homes.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich represents Canyon Country. His site recommendation, the Crown Coach parcel, is intended to keep the prison out of his area.

The sides are lining up in Sacramento and Los Angeles. That can only lead to further delays. The best place to put the new state prison is a central and urban location in Los Angeles. The time to build is now. True law-and-order candidates put public safety ahead of politics.