Protesters, politicians oppose swap of VA lands

The continuing controversy surrounding the management of the
Veterans Affairs lands down the street from UCLA, on Wilshire
Boulevard near the 405 Freeway, took another turn Wednesday with a
public showing of opposition to a proposed land swap with the U.S.
Army Reserve.

Also, after reviewing the General Services
Administration’s Draft Environmental Impact Study, the Los
Angeles City Department of Transportation has strongly urged the
government to revise its analysis of the traffic impact of the
proposed expansion of FBI headquarters at the Wilshire Federal
Building, which sits on the veterans’ property.

County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky joined with several other
community representatives, including City Councilman Jack Weiss,
local residents and veterans in front of Holderman Hall on Federal
Avenue to protest the potential land swap.

They contend that the Veterans Affairs lands are for
veterans’ interests only, and the U.S. Army Reserve has no
right to sell or trade it.

The U.S. Army Reserve proposed the land swap of a 10-acre parcel
located in the southeast corner of the intersection of Wilshire
Boulevard and Federal Avenue in a Los Angeles Times advertisement
on April 16.

According to a statement on the U.S. Army West Los Angeles Real
Property Exchange Web site, the land includes three buildings,
Holderman Hall, Munemori Hall and a detached maintenance
building.

Buyers would agree to build replacement facilities at existing
government property in the Southern California cities of Bell and
Miramar, as well as tentatively at March Air Reserve Base in
Riverside.

Wednesday morning was “industry day,” an event in
which potential bidders gathered at Holderman Hall to receive
information about the auction for the site.

Protesters held signs outside the building as politicians spoke
of their collective opposition to the swap.

“We have to stand together. … We cannot allow this to
happen,” said Santa Monica City Councilman Richard Bloom.

Vincent James, a representative for Sen. Barbara Boxer,
D-Calif., said Boxer had written a letter to Lt. Gen. James R.
Helmly asking him to halt the land swap and work with the federal
government to develop a Federal Land Use Master Plan, which would
be used to determine how locations delegated to veterans could be
of best use to those veterans.

Paul Reznik, president of the West Los Angeles Neighborhood
Council, said the main consequence of new development on these
lands for UCLA would be the projected increase in traffic,
especially with the current traffic as a result of lane
construction on the 405 Freeway.

But the main issue at hand for Reznik and many other community
leaders regards the protection of Veterans Affairs lands.

“These 10 acres are part of the veterans’ property,
and we want it to stay that way,” Reznik said.

The department of transportation has also criticized the
proposed expansion of the FBI headquarters at the Wilshire Federal
Building. The department’s letter regarding the proposed FBI
headquarters expansion was issued on April 20 and included several
concerns about the environmental report issued by the General
Services Administration.

“The traffic analysis from the (environmental impact
study) is filled with errors, omissions and inconsistencies. …
All of these technical errors will have substantial and material
impact on the conclusion of the traffic analysis. Therefore it is
imperative that the traffic analysis be properly redone to correct
the current technical deficiencies.”

The letter, signed by department general manager James Okazaki,
also said the department of transportation had not been further
consulted for the FBI project after initial input, which was
“limited to identifying study intersections and assisting in
the preparation of a list of other development projects in the
area.”

But General Services Administration spokeswoman Mary Filippini
said there might be a misunderstanding on the part of the
department of transportation’s letter drafters.

After initial meetings, department of transportation
representatives participated in further discussions with the
General Services Administration, along with various other
interested community groups over the course of several months, she
said.

She said the General Services Administration is in the midst of
the National Environmental Policy Act process and is sorting
through the comments and addressing concerns raised during a
public-comment period that ended April 24.

The General Services Administration will also meet with
concerned parties and take their concerns into consideration for
the final environmental impact study to be released later this
year.

The issues brought up in the letter echo concerns of local
homeowners associations, many of which have joined the Federal
Building Coalition.

Laura Lake, the coalition’s co-chair, said community
groups had not been consulted on recent developments on Veterans
Affairs lands, such as the Federal Building expansion and the land
swap.

She added that coalition members also want the environmental
impact study to be completely revised.