Commissioner announces run for council seat

Deirdre Newman

Planning Commission Chairman Bruce Garlich declared his candidacy for

the City Council on Friday, calling his commitment to give back to

the city the driving force behind his effort.

Garlich, 67, has been on the commission for four years and has

been chairman for two years. In addition to poring over planning

documents, Garlich has been busy getting involved in myriad aspects

of the city, like the Board of Directors of the Costa Mesa Senior

Center, the Chamber of Commerce and the Costa Mesa Community Athletic

Foundation.

He touted his reputation on the commission as someone who attempts

to gain consensus.

“I think I have a public record as a consensus-builder and as

someone who makes thoughtful and clear decisions and tries to explain

why,” Garlich said.

Garlich said he thinks of Costa Mesa as his adopted hometown,

having lived here for 32 years. His childhood was nomadic -- he

attended five elementary schools and four high schools in eight

cities in five states.

“Having moved around so much, having a home town has special

meaning for me and that’s why I want to give back and make it

better,” he said.

He worked for 35 years in the aerospace field for McDonnell

Douglas as an engineer and senior manager, which he says honed his

social, analytical and financial skills.

He also has experience managing diverse budgets from a

$700-million annual budget at McDonnell Douglas to a $200,000 annual

budget for the Wimbledon Village Homeowner’s Assn., which he was the

president of for 15 years.

The McDonnell Douglas budget equaled spending $2 million a day,

“and when you’re burning money at that rate, you develop a sense of

urgency about spending money,” Garlich said.

Budget concerns, revitalizing the Westside and the city’s growth

are all issues Garlich considers of paramount importance.

“I think it’s important to keep things balanced -- do things that

help create community as well a high priority on public safety,”

Garlich said.

He also wants to keep working to improve the schools through means

such as after-school programs. He has become attuned to school issues

through his work as the Planning Commission representative on the

city’s liaison committee with the Newport-Mesa Unified School

District and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Newport

Mesa Schools’ Foundation, he said.

Garlich has never run for council, but he joined the competitive

effort to replace former Mayor Karen Robinson when she left the dais

last year to become a Superior Court judge.

If elected, he said he will strive to represent all

constituencies: homeowners, business owners and property owners.

Planning Commissioner Bill Perkins, a past candidate who said he

will not run for council this year, said he’s glad his colleague has

joined the race.

“I think it’s wonderful,” Perkins said. “Bruce is a good man. He’s

got a good heart.”

Garlich will be competing against two other Planning Commission

colleagues -- Katrina Foley and Eric Bever -- former Mayor Linda

Dixon, and resident Samuel Clark in a race for three seats.

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.