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Community Corner

Calabasas Eyed as Site of New Juvenile Probation Camp

The new center could replace Camp Gonzales, although state funding for the project, and its location, are far from certain.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to accept $28 million in state funds to build a state-of-the-art probation camp for juvenile offenders, possibly in Calabasas.

The camp is tentatively slated to be built in Calabasas, on Las Virgenes Road, where , another juvenile probation camp, is currently located. Supervisors may vote to change the location before construction begins.

However, at a time of deep budget cuts and Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to not incur additional debt, the state might not come through with the project funds, despite the vote.

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Kerri Webb, public information officer for L.A. County’s Probation Department, said the proposal was under discussion.

Webb said that Chief Probation Officer Donald H. Blevins, Chief Deputy Officer Calvin C. Remington and other county officials "are currently assessing what is real and viable and are interpreting what the proposal really means and how it’s going to apply to the County Probation Department."

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Carol Biondi, of the L.A. County Commission for Children and Families, said current probation facilities fall short of minimum standards, according to City News Service.

Biondi said the proposed center would better equip young offenders to return to society as productive members. She said replacing dorm-style housing with small cottage units would provide a more therapeutic environment, allowing for more interaction between minors and their families, staff and therapists.

Webb agreed. “The improved probation facilities could allow for better supervision of the minors, help provide services to them on a more secure level, and allow for other collaborative agencies to better assist in the rehabilitation process,” she said.

The proposal for the new probation camp passed 4-1, with Supervisor Michael Antonovich voting against the measure. According to City News Service, Antonovich said he was not comfortable committing significant county general fund dollars to the project at a time of fiscal crisis.

City News Service reported that under the agreement with the state, L.A. County is required to come up with matching funds and transfer title for the land underlying the facility to the state.

Officials and county counsel struggled to understand the ramifications of approving the project on Tuesday if the state later pulled its commitment.

Four of the five supervisors voted in favor of the proposal when they determined that they would not be obligated to pay out county funds or transfer title until they were assured of state funding.

In addition, the supervisors' CEO office will "report back in 30 days on the advantages and disadvantages of alternate sites," according to City News Service.

City News Service was used in compiling this report.

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