SAN GABRIEL VALLEY / COVER STORY : Pasadena’s New Era : City Council observers predict that three newcomers will help usher in a period of calm, reason and effectiveness, a refreshing change from the rancor of the recent past.

The Pasadena City Council is scheduled for a radical face lift Monday when three new members take their seats and carry the city’s collective hopes for a new era of calm, reason and effectiveness in municipal government.

Even-tempered Joyce Streator, a former aide to Councilman Chris Holden, takes the seat of hot-headed Councilman Isaac Richard, who did not seek reelection after a single term that included three censures by his colleagues.

Councilman Rick Cole, who often traded barbs with Richard, also is retiring and will be replaced by soft-spoken neighborhood activist Paul Little.

And the seat of stately Mayor Kathryn Nack, who decided to retire at age 70 to spend more time with her grandson, will be replaced by 28-year-old Ann-Marie Villicana, a determined realtor and lawyer whose seemingly endless energy and enthusiasm enabled her to score a huge electoral upset.

Knowledgeable sources inside and outside the halls of government said they expect a new era at City Hall, given what they know about the three newcomers.

“I don’t want to jinx it, but . . . the slate’s wiped clean and the city is looking toward a fresh start,” said Vice Mayor William M. Paparian, who becomes mayor once the new council members take their seats.

The three incoming council members pledged to work together--nicely.

“I don’t think we’re going to be on national television for our shenanigans,” Villicana said, referring to the fireworks that have tainted council meetings. “It tainted our city. It made us a laughingstock.”

Added Little: “I think the council is going to be much more focused on doing business . . . as opposed to taking every opportunity to be sniping back and forth across the table.”

A fresh start in tradition-steeped Pasadena; that was the promise of the recent election, no matter who won.

“This council will be able to address the issues and discuss them without getting into personal rancor,” Streator said.

For many community leaders, a new era of civility cannot come too soon. Some had been warning, for instance, that headlines on council bickering and Richard’s problems were not the best advertising to lure new enterprise to Pasadena.

“The Rick/Isaac thing got in everybody’s way a lot,” said Michael Hawkins, president of the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce. “Now that they’re gone, maybe we can get on with business.”

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One of the first matters of business--balancing next year’s budget--will quickly test the mettle of the get-along council. The debate on the issue and the final result should give an instant snapshot of how the new council will differ from its predecessor.

Looking at a fifth consecutive year of budget reductions, which have their roots in the recession, City Manager Philip Hawkey has proposed $4.7 million in cuts, including paring arts programs, the city’s Affirmative Action Office and after-school programs for youths, and closing the city’s Northwest Programs Office, which handles issues in the city’s poorest area.

At a recent council meeting, Nack, a longtime advocate of children’s and family programs, was clearly displeased with the proposed cuts in children’s programs. Nack will be replaced in the affluent 6th District by Villicana, who

enters office as a more conservative darling of the business community.

During the campaign, Villicana made it clear that increasing public safety and cutting bureaucratic red tape

to make the city more business-friendly were her priorities. She acknowledged the importance of youth programs in quelling crime. But the question is whether she will take the issue to heart as Nack would, perhaps trying to block the cuts.

“There’s a lot of room for negotiation,” said Villicana, who, like the other two newcomers, is still studying the budget. “Whatever it is we’re putting money into has to be efficient. If it’s not solving a problem or being beneficial, let’s reallocate the money.”

The proposed cuts to the city’s Affirmative Action Office and Northwest Office, which serves residents in the 1st District, would have brought a resounding “no,” and probably a string of expletives, from Richard.

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Streator said she is committed to affirmative action and the work of the Northwest Office, but she also is worried about public safety, citywide recreational programs and code enforcement to fight neighborhood blight.

“I don’t believe in cutting things with a meat cleaver,” Streator said. “I think we need to take a surgeon’s scalpel and go through this budget.”

Little, the new 2nd District representative, is expected to see many of the budget issues the same way as his predecessor, Cole, would have. Little, who was supported

by Cole, campaigned to improve recreation and after-school programs to engage youths and reduce crime.

And like Cole, he takes a favorable view of programs

to help poor residents, even if many of them

live outside his district.

“It’s possible by cutting down bureaucracy we can save money and get the job done as

well, but that would have to be proved,” Little said.

If the new council members should be successful in avoiding pitched battles during the budget process, there are key issues waiting in the wings.

One of the potential land mines is Villicana’s campaign pledge to make the city more business-friendly.

Villicana, who is trying to develop a small housing complex in Pasadena, wants to shorten the approval process for new business enterprise. That will improve the economy, and the city overall, reasoned Villicana, who was endorsed by the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce’s political action committee.

Little, a hard-core neighborhood preservationist, sees development from a different perspective. He helped establish and lives in Bungalow Heaven, the city’s only landmark district, a neighborhood of California bungalows in which future development is tightly regulated. The protections require city approval for architectural changes within the district. The Chamber PAC strongly backed Little’s opponent.

But Little insists there is common ground and, perhaps, coined a new council mantra. “I don’t see myself butting heads with anybody.”

The head-butting that went on during the council chambers during the past four years would keep even the most sadistic Pasadena resident satisfied for years.

Richard, an explosive advocate of minority rights, liberally tongue-lashed his colleagues when he perceived that he, or his cause, had been wronged. With the temper of a raging bull and a mind as quick as any on the council, Richard ran roughshod over any protocol ever established in the history of Pasadena City Hall.

He was censured three times after cursing at city officials, including City Clerk Maria Stewart. Richard, angry that he had been deprived Rose Bowl tickets via censure, nearly came to blows with Councilman Chris Holden at the stadium.

In order to embarrass a fellow councilman, Richard told the world earlier this year that Paparian had a permit to carry a concealed weapon. He constantly threatened the city manager’s job and accused his colleagues, city employees and citizens of being racist.

Some observers credit Richard with helping to advance the interests of African Americans at City Hall and in Northwest Pasadena, which has a large minority and low-income population. Others cringe and say he was a squeaky, and disruptive, wheel on the council cart.

But most people agree that, overall, the foul-mouthed Richard went off the deep end and took the council with him.

The discontent with Richard was so great that even Saundra L. Knox, who was backed by the councilman in her losing bid for his seat earlier this month, attributed her defeat to votes against the “phantom candidate.”

Cole, who spent his three terms on the council fighting for public participation in government, affirmative action and other progressive causes, may be best remembered for feuding with Richard during the last few years.

Once allies, the two became bitter enemies shortly after Richard won office in 1991. Ironically, Richard’s campaign was aided by Cole’s endorsement.

Some ideological differences quickly surfaced, such as Cole’s early support of strict controls on new development versus Richard’s pro-development stance.

“He considers me to be not just a bad guy, but a traitor,” Cole said.

After a recent council meeting, during which Cole needled Richard on various matters, the two stood nose-to-nose. Observers thought they would come to blows before the nearby sergeant-at-arms separated them.

Cole acknowledged his role in the acrimony but placed the blame squarely on Richard, who declined to comment.

“The most damaging thing was you had seven people who were distracted by all that,” Cole said. “We’ve been dealing with stuff week to week and day to day because Isaac’s kept us from looking further out.”

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A New Look for the Pasadena City Council

1st District: DEPARTING: Isaac Richard Councilman Richard, 37, business consultant, four years on council. Richard is best known for the rancor he caused on the City Council. He also is known for championing racial equality and opportunity in Pasadena.

ARRIVING: Joyce Streator Streator, 57, retired county probation director and former aide to Councilman Chris Holden. Wants to increase business opportunities and youth programs and reduce crime.

2nd District: DEPARTING: Rick Cole Councilman Cole, 41, teacher/campaign worker. Known most recently for trading barbs with Richard, Cole long championed increased citizen participation in government and racial equality.

ARRIVING: Paul Little Little, 39, communications coordinator for Pasadena’s Pacific Asia Museum. Wants to increase citizen participation in government, improve public safety and revitalize his district’s business corridor.

6th District DEPARTING: Kathryn Nack Mayor Nack, 70, retired finance director of family-owned engineering consulting firm. Nack has championed family/children’s issues and played a moderating role on the volatile council.

ARRIVING: Ann-Marie Villicana Villicana, 28, lawyer/realtor. Villicana wants to improve public safety and bolster the local economy by making it easier for business to expand or move to Pasadena.