ELECTIONS / VENTURA COUNCIL : Candidates Offer Their Ideas for Revitalizing the Downtown Area : Business: Council hopefuls agree on many of the goals but differ on the methods for improving the economic climate in the Main Street area.

VENTURA —  Art galleries and bustling restaurants. Streets chock full of visitors. Cash registers echoing down Main Street.

These are the visions Ventura City Council candidates share for the future of downtown Ventura.

But how the city should achieve those goals was an issue of debate at a candidates forum sponsored by the Downtown Ventura Assn. on Tuesday morning.

Twelve candidates are vying for three open seats on the Nov. 7 ballot. Of the 10 that attended Tuesday’s forum, many echoed goals espoused by the current council.

“We need to continue with the progress we have made so far,” property manager Craig Huntington said.

Huntington’s views are shared by financial consultant James Friedman, business consultant Brian Lee Rencher, software technician John S. Jones, college administrator Ray Di Guilio and attorney Donna De Paola-Peterson.

All six said they support goals outlined in the city’s chief planning document for downtown, the Downtown Specific Plan, which calls for building a movie theater, a parking structure and 900 new residences.

But at least one candidate challenges goals spelled out in the Downtown Specific Plan, while others suggested alternative ways to boost business downtown.

Recycling supervisor Christopher T. Staubach cautioned the predominantly business-minded audience not to allow redevelopment to strip Ventura of its historic character.

“Downtown has a simple, unique charm,” Staubach said. “If we lose that, we will never get it back.”

Restaurateur Charles E. (Buster) Davis said the economic vitality of downtown lies with individual business owners, not the promises of city officials.

“It is going to take an individual effort for you to take a look at your business and it is going to take you to decide what it is going to take to make your business grow,” he told the audience, composed mostly of downtown business owners.

The city has already spent more than $4 million to renovate downtown Ventura, widening streets and planting new trees. But most candidates said more needs to be done.

“I think we need to continue to find the proper businesses that will influence downtown Ventura and complement what is already here,” De Paola-Peterson said.

Other candidates said the council should expand redevelopment beyond downtown to other areas of the city.

Jones said a “super revitalization” was needed for Ventura Avenue.

Incumbent Jack Tingstrom suggested opening a cultural arts center on Ash Street to extend the downtown redevelopment area eastward.

And writer Keith Burns suggested flying banners up Ventura Avenue and mid-town Main Street to bring a festive spirit to other areas of the city, not just a few blocks by City Hall.

“You’d be surprised how a simple face lift like banners can really increase the ambience and emotion of an area,” Burns said.