First of two parts
The brief tenure of Interim President Betsy Regalado of West Los Angeles College concluded on a dismal note last Friday, from the perspective of City Hall and several Culver City homeowners associations.
Typical, was the cynical reactive shrug from across Culver City.
In correspondence directed to negotiator Charles Herbertson, the Director of Public Works for Culver City, Ms. Regalado said, succinctly, the college would not agree to a deadline extension for filing a lawsuit against the school.
With two new leaders about to be seated — a City Manager in Culver City and a new President at the college — Asst. City Manager Martin Cole had sought to lengthen the 30-day deadline imposed by law following certification of an environmental impact report, key to the imminent, record-large expansion program.
“An extension would have given us more time to negotiate,” Mr. Herbertson said this morning while preparing an answer to the college and to the Los Angeles Community College District trustees, the dominant power in this ongoing scenario.
“We were hoping they would agree,” he said before giving his interpretation of Ms. Regalado’s letter.
“The college told us ‘No, we don’t think you have a case to sue us. So go ahead and sue us.’ Those words were not used, but in between the lines, that was what was said.”
Mr. Herbertson characterized the sometimes acrimonious negotiations, among the district and the college on one side, City Hall and homeowners on the other, as a poker game.
Apart from the numerous profound philosophical differences that divide the two camps are two other thorns: The sheer density of players and a sometimes-confusion of roles regarding how much influence or weight certain individuals and groups (namely, the homeowners) carry.
“We are trying to get the college to re-engage in direct negotiations where we actually sit down at a table,” Mr. Herbertson said.
“I have been doing this back-and-forth email stuff. It really is difficult because I am getting different responses from different homeowners’ groups.
“We need to sit down with the college with the HOAs (homeowner associations). The college long has not wanted to meet with them. But we are sending the message we would like to allow each HOA to at least send a representative.
“The problem, I think, is a lot of enmity between the two sides after five years of doing battle over issues. I think the college feels that ‘we have done that. We have been there. It wasn’t productive, and we are not interested in doing it again.
“The HOAs feel the only place for them to be is in these meetings, hearing news directly from the horse’s mouth.”
Not that they have missed anything lately. No face-to-face meetings have been held since the City Council rejected the so-called Settlement Agreement, fashioned largely by the college, on July 12.
A Newcomer
Into this minefield of hot coals today stepped West L.A. College Acting President Dr. Rose Marie Joyce, 68 years old. She is expected to hold office for perhaps 10 months, until a permanent President is selected.
(To be continued)
