NEWS ANALYSIS : Departure of Leaders Leaves L.A. Unsettled

It may be uncanny coincidence or a panicked exodus, but many of the most familiar and omnipresent faces among Los Angeles’ governing elite are vanishing from public office, with school Supt. Bill Anton the most recent leader about to disappear.

Though they have blamed their decisions on differing and often personal reasons, the departures are further unsettling an already anxious city and raising questions about where Los Angeles is headed.

Has the decades-old ruling elite concluded that this is a vastly different and increasingly volatile city, an ungovernable place they no longer want to lead?

“The problems in our society are so great that leaders are wondering whether they can do anything,” said psychologist Sandra Cox, who has counseled riot victims in South Los Angeles. “These are tough times. To be a leader of some sort of organization whether it’s public or private does take a toll.”

Department of Airports Executive Director Clifton Moore, among those leaving long-held and high-paying jobs this year, said his retirement at age 70 was based on personal considerations, not political ones, but he acknowledged a growing apprehension about the direction of the city.

“I’m concerned about our basic social structure,” Moore said. “We are witnessing (developments) that in the long sweep of history will be interpreted as a major change.”

That change ranges from the resignation of former Police Chief Daryl F. Gates to the departure of powerful County Administrative Officer Richard B. Dixon to the rumored retirement of Mayor Tom Bradley.

Some worry that the sudden leadership exodus signals a wholesale abandonment of the city during a time of crisis, both economic and social. Others complain about a plethora of interest groups that have clogged the halls of government, making it too frustrating for anyone to govern. Still others are glad to see a natural generational changing of the guard, a time for new faces and new ideas.

Underlying it all, some longtime observers say, is a mounting antagonism between those governing and those being governed, a newfound sense on both sides that something has to give.

“There is no question there is substantial unrest and disenchantment in the community with leadership in general,” said Ray Remy, president of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and Bradley’s former chief of staff. “At the same time, there is a feeling among those in leadership positions that the issues and the problems and the constant drumming of discontent wears you down.”

Even so, the sudden surrender by so many governing leaders at one time has caught many by surprise. The recession may have hastened some into retirement. The riots have also been blamed. Community groups and an emerging “new leadership”--from Gloria Molina breaking a conservative majority on the county Board of Supervisors to a city Police Commission willing to take on Gates--may also be responsible.

But many neighborhood leaders across the city say local government may simply be collapsing under its own weight.

“I’d love to take credit for it, but I think they did it to themselves,” said Laura Lake, president of Friends of Westwood, a homeowners group that is active at City Hall. “There has been a leadership vacuum for 10 to 15 years. It is just becoming obvious now.”

In downtown Los Angeles, Alice Callaghan, director of Las Familias del Pueblo, a nonprofit community center serving garment district women and their children, also blamed the city’s failed leadership.

“If this were any other city, people would be shocked to lose so many leaders,” she said. “But people here haven’t looked to City Hall for leadership or direction for 20 years.”

Anton’s announcement Tuesday that he will step down as head of the nation’s second-largest school system is the latest in a series of abrupt exits by high-level bureaucrats and elected officials at City Hall and the Hall of Administration.

Gates quit in June after 14 years as chief, a casualty of the beating of motorist Rodney G. King and the spring riots. County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, a 45-year veteran of city and county government, is not seeking reelection, the second supervisor in as many years to step aside.

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner announced last week that he will not run for reelection, a decision many have attributed to his plummeting popularity in the city’s black community over his handling of riot-related prosecutions. County Administrative Officer Dixon, a 34-year veteran of county service, has said he will resign by year’s end. He will leave behind a demoralized bureaucracy mired in a budget crisis.

At least three prominent department heads at City Hall, including Moore, have stepped aside this year, and Mayor Bradley is expected to announce his retirement on Thursday.

“It is the best thing that can happen for them to leave,” said Celes King, state chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality and a longtime Bradley critic. “There should be more that should go out the same window. Nothing is working anymore and when things aren’t working the leaders should take responsibility.”

Although all have different reasons for leaving, the historic dimensions of such a high-level housecleaning have engendered apprehension and excitement. City Administrative Officer Keith Comrie insists there is no common thread among the departing officials, but he predicts that their successors will help move the city out of its current malaise.

Moore also sees an opportunity for change. “These are tough times that call for a lot of imagination to get out of,” he said. “You need new visions and sometimes that means new people.”

Mary Lee, an attorney with the South Los Angeles Legal Services Office, says she has already seen a difference in tone between Police Chief Willie L. Williams and his predecessor.

“Imagine if all the other replacements were as dramatically different,” she said.

Some see hope in the growing list of people across the city who are eager to pick up where the departing generation has left off. A dozen or so candidates are expected in April’s mayoral race, and other groups--such as Latinos in the San Fernando Valley--also hope to elect representatives to city and county offices they have not held before.

“If you hung out a sign saying ‘Help Wanted’ and nobody came, then you might have a clear indication that something is wrong,” said William Christopher, president of PLAN/LA, a coalition of 250 homeowner groups. “Everybody acknowledges there are problems with the system, but at the same time we are still attempting to do something about it.”

Councilman Michael Woo, among those eager to fill the void, compared the current leadership turmoil to the changes that swept the city in the 1960s, leading eventually to the election of Bradley as mayor. In the end, he said, the changes brought years of prosperity.

“It is the passing of the torch from one generation to another generation,” said Woo, a candidate for mayor.

Some of those leaving public office, however, fear that rehabilitating local government may be too difficult, even for a new generation of office holders.

“It’s too hard to be in office now,” said Hahn, who was elected to the board in 1952. “The pressure is so great because there are not enough resources and the demands are so great. I was supervisor in the golden years. We got the Music Center, the courthouse, swimming pools, golf courses, name it and we got it. I couldn’t wait to go to work to see what I could do for my district. It’s not fun anymore.”

Times staff writer Louis Sahagun contributed to this story.

CHANGE AT THE TOP: The leadership exodus in city and county government. B2