TOP O’ THE HEAP: A Valley-area junior...

TOP O’ THE HEAP: A Valley-area junior college football team has been ranked No. 1 in the state. . . . Valley College (7-0) moved Monday to the top spot while the former No. 1 team, El Camino College, fell to No. 8. . . . Glendale was the last area junior college ranked No. 1 in the state and the nation in 1986.

STAYING ALIVE: For the first time in memory there were no killings and no reports of gang crimes in the Valley over the weekend, said Los Angeles Police Lt. Dan Hoffman. . . . He credits the efforts of several gang task forces, mobilized after a bloody summer of gang violence.

HIZZONER: At his biannual fund-raiser Sunday night, Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City) added fuel to the buzz he’s considering running for mayor of Los Angeles. Speaking to 700 movers and shakers at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Berman, above, focused on local issues, saying he couldn’t sit around while Los Angeles remained the “most under-policed city in the country” and “it’s my duty” to restore Los Angeles to a world-class city. The dinner take: roughly $360,000.

TOGETHER AGAIN: Berman’s fund-raiser, with U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley (D-N.J.) as keynote speaker, could have doubled as a reunion for the mostly disbanded Westside political group led by Berman and Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles). Many, like Berman, started out as Westside lawmakers, but now, because of reapportionment, represent the Valley.

HARD MONEY: The Property Values column returns today with a look at “hard money” . . . the kind you can borrow only if you have home equity. Local lenders say these equity loans are becoming harder to get. . . . Apparently, dealing with deadbeats--even if they have assets--isn’t worth it. See the Valley Business pages (D7A-D7F).