Sixth in a series
Re “Why Hasn’t Community vs. West L.A. College Caught Fire?”
One day from almost certain official approval of West Los Angeles College’s most ambitious rounds expansion program, community activist Mark Salkin was eager to answer an alluring question:
When he came here five years ago as the new President of West, why do you think Dr. Mark Rocha made a very public commitment to work with the surrounding community but, by the perception of the residents, failed to come close to meeting his pledge?
Known for not wasting energy on lengthy explanations, Mr. Salkin replied:
“His own ego and his desire for a better position in the community college structure, which he ultimately got in June, but he got it in Pasadena.
“I met with Mark Rocha on many occasions.
“He is a slick, mannered, sophisticated, well-educated politician who says one thing and does another.
“We caught him time and again doing that.
“Maybe the most egregious issue was when he unilaterally punished us by canceling community meetings because I was outraged by his behavior.
“So they said, ‘Okay, if that is the way you feel, we won’t have these meetings any more.’”
Mr. Salkin was frank about his role in the abrupt ending of planned community sessions.
“I am outspoken,” he said. “People don’t like to be told the truth. The fact is, that is what needs to be heard.
“The days of our Founding Fathers are not dead. People’s lives are too comfortable. Anything that disturbs their comfort is something they don’t want to see.”
Tomorrow afternoon, the trustees of the Los Angeles Community College District are scheduled to vote on an environmental impact report that will allow West to immediately proceed with construction plans, most of which surrounding residents oppose. Almost unanimously, they say they support West’s expansion, in theory, but strenuously object to what they call an abrogation of an agreement signed with Dr. Rocha.
After living on Culver Crest since the early 1980s, practically in West’s backyard, Mr. Salkin said the continual fighting is having an adverse effect on him.
“To be honest, it is wearing on me,” he said. “I don’t like this role. I believe I am supported by a minority of powerful people in this community who want the same thing I do.
“But they want to tread cautiously because of the nature of politics.”
Who is the minority?
“They are my friends. One of them is even on the City Council. I am not just talking about Council members. But one of them on the Council really has surprised me by how much he has committed himself to the city. I would say they are what the law calls ‘excruciatingly fine.’
“That means if you have a problem and get caught in the legal system, they are going to proceed one small step at a time to get where they want to go. Each step will be examined at the outset to be sure the next step is safe to take.
“There are too many issues for them to make a misstep. They represent a lot of people. Again, I am not just talking about the people on the Council. I am talking about the people in the neighborhood associations and others.
“But there are a few of us who can see past that. We already have been down that road. We don’t need to take small steps. We know the small steps will slow us down and we’ll lose everything. We need to take giant steps. It is not a question of rocking the boat. It’s time to sink the boat. We have to show the college we mean business.”
Does the college take Culver City seriously?
“I don’t think so. To me, the college just rumbled over us. They got their hands on the 10-100 (Jefferson Blvd.) parcel that they are going to make a fortune out of, on the grounds it was necessary for the expansion of the road. They are not even using that parcel to the benefit of the community. It should be a parking lot. They are 10 years, at least, from using that property.
“I don’t know why the buses can’t run over to that parking lot (near a commercial area, far away from his home and other residential properties). Pave it over, and they run electric carts there. They do not have to bring those people through the neighborhood.
“I don’t understand. They take, they promise, and then when you complain ‘I only want what you promised,’ they don’t give back.”
Concluding
As a take-charge lead watchdog-type, Mr. Salkin’s passion for communal improvement, as you have seen through these six installments, operates at searing speed at all times. Hardly anything of consequence escapes his notice. The next test is tomorrow’s vote by the Community College District trustees.
