ELECTIONS / BURBANK : Balloting to Take Place Today in City Council, School Board Races

Burbank residents will vote today for City Council and school board candidates in races that have focused on the stagnant local economy and deteriorating schools.

On the ballot are three City Council seats, two positions on the Burbank Board of Education, and the offices of city clerk and city treasurer. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in all of the city’s 47 precincts, said City Clerk Marge Lauerman.

Roughly 30% of the city’s 49,908 registered voters are expected to vote, about the average for municipal elections, Lauerman said.

Since the last election two years ago, 5,000 voters have been added to the rolls in Burbank.

“Because of the presidential election, a lot of people registered who weren’t registered previously,” Lauerman said.

In the race for City Council, 19 candidates are vying for three open seats on the five-member body, the highest number of council candidates in the history of Burbank elections.

With no incumbents running, a majority of the council will be composed of newcomers to city government.

This year’s campaign for City Council has been focused on the city’s stagnant economy. Over the last two years Burbank has lost 15,000 jobs, and several big firms, such as Lockheed, have left.

During the campaign, candidates for council debated how best to revive the economy, trim $5 million to $7 million from the city’s $285-million budget in the next fiscal year, and maintain the current level of city services.

In a race that has in recent years been dominated by debates over the pace of development, the sole development issue has been a proposal to build a sports arena. Candidates are sharply divided on the issue.

In the race for the Burbank Unified School District board, four candidates are vying for two seats. Dominating the race has been the issue of deteriorating school facilities.

The district’s two high schools, Burbank and Burroughs, are severely in need of repair. A committee appointed by the mayor recommended that Burbank High School be sold and the proceeds, combined with funds raised from a bond issue, be used to finance the construction of one large school.

That recommendation sparked an outcry among many longtime Burbank residents concerned that the quality of education would suffer and that a Burbank tradition would die if the plan were implemented.

All four candidates oppose the one-school plan and have vowed to find ways to finance the rehabilitation of both schools. School board candidates are Joe Hooven, 49, a small-business owner; incumbent Vivian Kaufman, 62, president of the Board of Education; S. Michael Stavropoulos, 54, a neurosurgeon, and Denise Wilcox, 38, a high school administrator and teacher.

Margarita Campos, 38, an executive secretary, is challenging City Clerk Lauerman, 61.

City Treasurer Jim Rogers is running unopposed.

Candidates must receive more than 50% of the votes cast for one seat to assume office, Lauerman said. In races where there is no majority, the top vote-getters will enter an April 13 runoff election.

Monday was the deadline for absentee ballots to be turned in to the city clerk. If residents wishing to vote by absentee ballot missed Monday’s deadline, they may still vote by going to their polling location and surrendering their absentee ballots, Lauerman said.

The candidates for City Council are D. Dianne Adams, 57, a businesswoman; Robert W. Bates, 31, an attorney specializing in medical malpractice; Carolyn Berlin, 46, leader of a homeowners organization; Elena V. Cook, 57, former real estate agent and owner of beauty salons, and Dave Golonski, 34, a financial systems manager.

Also John D. Hardy, 28, owner of a T-shirt design business; Marti Israel, 33, who conducts motivational seminars and lectures; Gregory Jackson, 40, a land-use consultant; Jules Kimmett, 72, a retired custodian; Robert C. Kramer, 45, a painting company owner, and Thomas H. McCauley, 64, an engineering consultant.

Also Richard G. Messer, 54, part owner of the Burbank Airport Hilton; Lou Morelli, a businessman; Melvin Perlitsh, 62, a retired postal worker; Thomas Pratt, 32, an insurance company marketing representative; Ron Shively, 60, a retired Pacific Bell executive; Susan Spanos, 29, a former account executive with a national mortgage bank; Ron Watters, 31, traffic-safety education instructor at Burroughs High School, and Bill Wiggins, 43, owner of a Glendale metal-plating company.