Monahan will seek new term

COSTA MESA -- Councilman Gary Monahan said Wednesday that he will seek

election to a third term on the City Council, ending weeks of speculation

over his local political future.

Monahan, who up until last month had been saying he wouldn’t run

again, said launching a campaign for a third council term “was a tough

decision that my wife and I had to come to grips with.” But he said he

believes the city is at a critical point in its history and that he wants

to ensure the city “stays on an even keel without leaving behind what

makes Costa Mesa desirable.”

The 42-year-old incumbent, a longtime advocate of limited government

and the protection of individual property rights, cited a host of reasons

-- both immediate and long-term -- that factored into his decision to run

again. Among those is the spate of regulatory initiatives the City

Council and Planning Commission have tackled in recent months, from the

lifting of the 19th Street transition zone to restrictions on

recreational vehicle parking and the storage of inoperable vehicles.

“I want to make sure we preserve the personality of Costa Mesa,”

Monahan said. “The city has been trending toward a ‘regulatory mind-set’

and overly bureaucratic bent, [which are] some of the things that got me

involved in the first place and are an affront to the people I believe I

represent: the blue-collar, ordinary folks of Costa Mesa.”

The two-term councilman’s announcement dramatically changes the

November election canvas in the city, pitting several council hopefuls

against the governing body’s two highest-ranking incumbents, Monahan --

now serving as vice mayor -- and Mayor Linda Dixon.

Dixon said she was surprised to hear of Monahan’s change of heart

because of his previously stated concerns about the demands of his family

and business.

“The City Council requires sincere dedication and a lot of personal

time,” Dixon said. “He led me to believe that he felt he had served the

city well and he had his fill of politics and it was time to move on and

devote more time to his five children and business.”

Dixon was also surprised that Monahan was seeking a third term, given

he was a big backer of term limits.

First elected to the City Council in 1994, Monahan is eligible for a

third term behind the dais despite the city’s two-term limit law, which

was adopted in 1996 and applies only to council members elected that year

and thereafter.

Although the councilman is well within his rights to run for another

election, Dixon said she was surprised he was not applying the spirit of

that law to himself.

Planning Commissioner Bill Perkins, also a council candidate, said he

was pleased Monahan was running again, although the two are essentially

competing for a seat on the dais. Perkins, who based his council bid on

the belief that residents are frustrated with the lack of unity

demonstrated by the current council, said he thinks the voters will still

be looking to change the council dynamics.

Perkins said he is hoping that Monahan supporters will cast their

second vote for someone who is politically like-minded -- preferably him.

Monahan will no doubt retain his seat on the dais, Perkins said, which

ultimately leaves only one attainable seat -- Dixon’s.

Dixon said she had not thought about Monahan’s role in her reelection

because she did not think he was running again.

Monahan said his ultimate decision did not lie in whether he felt he

was up for the job but the fact that there is a majority of residents

whose views are not being represented.

“I haven’t seen anyone stand up for the little guy,” Monahan said. “If

no one is standing up for that voice, other than those in front of the

council, then the voice that I’m representing needs to be heard from

behind the dais. I see these people getting pushed aside with all the new

rules and regulations that are saying, ‘If you don’t have the perfect

house or the perfect backyard, you don’t belong.”’

Costa Mesa’s evolving study of redevelopment was another key factor in

Monahan’s decision.

“Redevelopment of older neighborhoods is crucial,” said Monahan, who

has twice served as the city’s mayor. “How we go about it is very

important. If we have development standards that are too stringent, it

won’t happen. I want to make sure that there’s some economic reality in

how we approach redevelopment.”

* Lolita Harper covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4275 or by e-mail at o7 lolita.harper@latimes.comf7 . Byron de

Arakal is a columnist for the Pilot.