City divided over districts

Bryce Alderton

Former assemblyman and mayor of Huntington Beach Scott Baugh’s

proposal to divide Surf City into five districts is meeting with

opposition from City Council members and skepticism from residents.

Council members Shirley Dettloff and Ralph Bauer vehemently oppose the

initiative, which Baugh submitted to the City Clerk’s office last

Thursday. It will appear on the November ballot if he is able to collect

16,000 signatures.

The practice of filling council seats with residents from different

districts, or areas within the city, is a divisive one, Dettloff said.

“Each council member begins fighting for projects in their area and

that has always disturbed me,” she said.

Baugh claims dividing the city into five districts would allow for

diverse representation on the City Council, which he said would allow

each neighborhood to find and recruit its own candidates.

“Right now it’s difficult for voters to know all 20 candidates,” Baugh

said. “There’s better competition for ideas, more accountability and more

access from neighborhoods from someone that represents. It’s not about

this council, it’s about the structure of the councils over 20 to 30

years.”

Under Baugh’s proposal, the council also would shrink from seven to

five members, a move that angers some now seated on the dais.

Reducing the number of council members would mean less representation,

Bauer said.

“If you have two fewer members, there’s less discussion at council

meetings when good government is discussion,” Dettloff agreed.

But Baugh claims the city’s current government needs repair.

“Councils have neglected the sewer system infrastructure for 20

years,” Baugh said. “It’s why we have leaky sewers and potholes in

Huntington Beach and sidewalks uprooted by trees. It’s time to change the

structure.”

Baugh claims that neighboring Fountain Valley does not have the same

problems as Huntington.

“There’s visible and appreciable differences in the streets of

Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley,” he said. “In Fountain Valley,

roads are smooth and you cross the border and there are potholes and

uneven pavement. It’s an issue of priorities. This new structure will

provide a better means for council to focus on infrastructure needs.”

Dettloff argues that the city has taken the lead in addressing its

infrastructure needs with the ballot initiative approved by voters last

month that sets aside 15% of the city’s general fund revenue to be put

into an infrastructure fund, and the sewer fee, which the city has been

collecting from residents and businesses since October.

“We’re one of the only cities that has addressed the issue and are

looking at what our infrastructure needs are,” Dettloff said.

Residents appear to be divided on the issue.

“Those with the most affluence would dominate politics in their

particular district,” said J.M. Lopez, a 48-year-old Huntington Beach

resident.

Others see a potential benefit.

“Maybe the districts will increase participation in the election

process,” said Curt Jones, a 45-year Huntington Beach resident and former

Huntington Beach Union High School District trustee.

“Is it going to change a thing? I don’t think so,” Jones said. “People

with money are going to give money to people who like to run.”

Fears of greater development prompted Bauer to oppose the initiative.

“I don’t want the city to go back to the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s where

developers controlled the council,” he said. “The issue is building on

Bolsa Chica, more traffic, taking away ball fields from youth sports. I’m

outraged by the whole business.”

Neighboring Newport Beach currently is separated into seven council

districts, with the entire city electing one representative from each

district.

A benefit of districts, said Newport Beach City Manager Homer Bludau,

is that council members each know their own area intimately.

“In your neighborhood, where you go to church and where you shop, you

know the issues better than across town,” Bludau said. “District

representation would allow for thorough knowledge from the community in

theory. But different cities do it different ways. There isn’t any one

perfect way to do local government. It works quite well here. The whole

community elects council members.”

* BRYCE ALDERTON is the news assistant. He can be reached at (714)

965-7173 or by e-mail at bryce.alderton@latimes.com