59 School Districts, 17 Cities to Vote

Hermosa Beach residents will decide whether their seaside city continues its metamorphosis into a trendy, happening place. Hawthorne voters will determine whether to approve $5.5 million in taxes to help keep the city solvent. And Montebello will decide whether its Fire Department should be taken over by the county.

Seventeen cities and 59 school districts in Los Angeles County are holding elections Tuesday to select city council and school board members and to consider local taxes that require voter approval because of Proposition 218.

Board members are also being elected for eight community college districts, seven water districts, two irrigation districts and one library district. And eight school and community college districts will try to muster the two-thirds majority needed for issuing bonds to make campus repairs and build classrooms.

Nearly 1,000 polling places countywide will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., except in Lomita, where polls will close at 7 p.m.

In Hermosa Beach, which spent $3 million to shape its downtown into an entertainment hub that hums at night with bars, dance clubs and restaurants, a key issue in the City Council race is how much further the transformation should go. Incumbents John Bowler, 51, a tavern owner, Julie Oakes, 41, an architect, and J.R. Reviczky, 48, an electrical supervisor, emphasize that business is booming. Sales tax revenue has grown 26% in the past four years. A new 97-unit resort is being constructed along the beach, and a three-story parking structure will be built to accommodate visitors.

But challengers such as Donley Falkenstien, who blocked a professional volleyball tournament from closing off the beach and charging admission during the summer, believe enough is enough. No more bars and loud restaurants, he says.

“They are turning this city into a hyper-inflated regional depot and crime has soared because of it,” said the 38-year-old technical writer and community activist.

The other candidates are two additional slow-growth advocates--Parker Herriott, 59, a part-time actor known for wearing an Uncle Sam hat to council meetings, and David Bates, 60, an attorney--and Carolyn Barbre, 55, a tile ceramist who advocates saving a landmark downtown movie theater.

In Lomita, redevelopment is the top issue among the six candidates for three City Council seats.

The community of 19,500 has seen business dollars flow to Torrance and other nearby cities able to build malls with large franchise stores.

Now city leaders are trying to lure business back by either re-creating a downtown that offers a unique mix of retail stores or developing a downtown with a theme, like Solvang, the Danish-styled town north of Santa Barbara.

The two incumbents, Ben Traina, 44, a contracts manager for TRW, and Lawson Pedigo, 62, a retired contractor, are competing with Heidi Ansell, 42, a general manager at A-1 Coast Rentals; Ken Blackwood, 46, a U.S. Postal Service employee; Timothy King, 47, a retired Los Angeles police officer; and Vincent Moretti, 61, an engineer and teacher.

Hawthorne, which faced a $10.5-million shortfall in 1995, has been on the road to recovery. To save $1 million a year, the city this year contracted with Los Angeles County for fire services.

To continue its fiscal well-being, voters are being asked to approve a 5% utility tax and a business license tax.

If voters reject the taxes, which would generate $5.5 million a year (about one-fifth of the city’s general fund budget), 35 police officers will have to be laid off and city departments will have to slash their budgets.

Mayor Larry Guidi, 39, an executive with an import/export company, is running for reelection against two challengers, Dwan Fulwood, a letter carrier who wants to build an NFL stadium within walking distance of his house, and Richard Longoria. Five candidates are vying for two City Council seats.

The city of Diamond Bar is only eight years old, but it has a history of election squabbles, recalls and lawsuits over growth and redevelopment. This year, there have been accusations of stolen campaign signs and the ticketing of a campaign manager for hauling around a billboard supporting his candidate, Clair Harmony.

Thirteen candidates are vying for three seats on the Diamond Bar City Council. Incumbents Harmony, 56, Eileen Ansari, 54, and Gary Werner, 46, are not expected to give up their seats without a fight. Most of the challengers support the new redevelopment plan adopted by the council for more than 1,300 acres.

The challengers are accountant Terry Birrell, businessman Wen Chang, businessman Mike Goldenberg, dentist Jong M. Lee, retired firefighter Jim Paul, attorney Albert Perez Jr., activist Debby O’Connor, retired Police Officer Tom Ortiz, mediator Joseph T. Ruzicka and environmental activist Don Schad.

In Duarte, three incumbents--Margaret Finlay, James Kirchner and Philip Reyes--are seeking to return to office.

The municipality that only a few years ago was struggling to maintain city services and attract business has since eliminated its utility tax and is home to a Wal-Mart. The incumbents face a challenge from Tzeitel Paras, 25, a health care company employee.

A number of school board elections will be decided Tuesday. Seventeen candidates are seeking four seats on the board of school trustees for the beleaguered Compton Unified School District. The board members serve mostly as advisors and have little control over the day-to-day financial operations because the district has been under state supervision since 1993.

Times correspondents Richard Winton and Kevin O’Leary contributed to this story.