Bradley Picks Political Ally for Harbor Commission

Mayor Tom Bradley on Friday appointed real estate developer and political fund-raiser Ronald S. Lushing to the city’s powerful Board of Harbor Commissioners, filling a vacancy created last week by the resignation of Ira Distenfield.

Lushing, 57, is currently president of the Board of Library Commissioners. He is also a partner in Parkhill Partners, which is developing a mixed-use project in downtown Los Angeles called Metropolis, and is owner of the real estate investment and consulting firm of Ronald S. Lushing & Associates.

Lushing has been a close associate of the mayor for many years and served as the finance chairman for Bradley’s 1986 gubernatorial campaign.

“Ron is a problem solver and forward thinker, as we have seen during his tenure with the Library Commission,” Bradley said in a written statement making the announcement. “His experience in the areas of finance and development, combined with his community involvement . . . make him an asset to the Harbor Commission.”

‘Revitalized System’

Bradley credited Lushing with “transforming” the city’s library program into a “thriving, revitalized system.”

The Harbor Commission oversees the city’s port facilities, a $160-million-a-year business.

If he gets confirmation by the City Council, Lushing will serve out the remainder of Distenfield’s term, which ends June 30, 1992.

Distenfield resigned on May 23 after media inquiries concerning his financial affairs, he said, “imposed a burden upon my family that I have no right to ask them to bear.” The inquiries centered on his sworn testimony to a New York Stock Exchange arbitration hearing at which he said he used his influence with Bradley to obtain a prized city contract for a brokerage firm that employed Distenfield.