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news
L.B.
lawsuit unrelated to Technology Park
By Adrienne Figueroa
On-line Forty-Niner
Earth Tech, a company
Long Beach employed to handle equipment from the Long Beach
Naval Station and Naval Shipyard, recently filed a $4.7 million
lawsuit, alleging a breach of contract.
The naval station
and naval shipyard, once located west of the 710 freeway at
the Port of Los Angeles, were closed in 1994 and 1997, respectively.
The move to close both facilities was prompted by a congressional
decision to eliminate some of the nation's military bases
after the Cold War, said Art Wong, media relations manager
for the Port of Los Angeles.
When the Navy vacated
the premises, its equipment was left behind. The federal government
gave control of the items to the city to sell, said principal
deputy city attorney Dominic Holzhaus.
Revenue generated
through the sale of the equipment would serve several purposes.
First priority went to funding homeless providers in Long
Beach, and then payment of Earth Tech, the company hired by
the city to secure, take inventory of, appraise and distribute
the equipment, Holzhaus said. Any additional money would remain
with Long Beach for city expenses.
Earth Tech filed
the action March 22, citing a breach of contract. Some of
the company's allegations include Long Beach's shortening
of the original 18-month contract and failure to construct
a ship repair facility, according to the lawsuit.
Because the trial
is in progress, further details on the suit are not available
at this time, said Earth Tech attorney Steven Kramer.
The outcome of
the case will not in any way affect last year's transfer of
land from the Navy to Cal State Long Beach for the development
of a technology park, said CSULB Director of Property Development
Mo Tidemanis.
The land belonging
to the college is located at Pacific Coast Highway and the
Terminal Island Freeway at a former Navy housing site, not
at the naval station or shipyard, Tidemanis said.
The area given
to CSULB will be used for research and development facilities,
small businesses and some light manufacturing.
The site will be
home to new companies, which may bring possible internships
and job opportunities to university students, Tidemanis said.
CSULB has reserved
five acres of the land for future use, however funds are not
available at this time for the development of classrooms on
the site, Tidemanis said.
Project completion
is expected to be in 2003.
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