What is the biggest issue facing the...

What is the biggest issue facing the city?

There are complex issues that I feel are important to the

residents of our city; public safety, environment, infrastructure,

West Nile Virus, pension costs and senior and youth programs. But the

most important issue we need to focus on at this time is budget

financing and fiscal responsibility.

Working closely with the City Council, city administrator and

staff, I will insist on the monitoring of finances and contracts. I

feel that honest leadership is necessary, now more than ever, to put

trust back into City Hall. My pledge is to work with the citizens of

Huntington Beach and Council members to prioritize spending, balance

the budget and challenge Sacramento to get back our fare share of

taxes.

Considering such issues as the sports complex lawsuit and

improperly converted condominiums, do you agree with criticism that

the city has been mismanaged? How would you run the city better?

I have 35 years of government and municipal experience with

graduate education and training in public administration. I have

large organizational budget and policy experience and I plan to

provide leadership and good government practices.

I will also apply my abilities to improve business practices that

may have caused problems mentioned in the headlines over the past

several months. I would work closely with the rest of the council and

staff to make certain we keep on a sure footing in the city.

Given that the future of the Bolsa Chica still is unclear, what is

your position on development on the upper portion of the mesa and

other environmental issues facing the city?

It is a shame that the corporate owners of the Bolsa Chica

property are holding the purchase hostage. Proposition 50 provided

the funds necessary to purchase the site.The whole deal could

collapse if the Proposition 50 money is not used in a timely manner.

Maybe this is the reason for Hearthside’s stonewalling. There is a

game afoot.

I am also concerned about the West Nile virus and the impact this

disease will have on our seniors and youth in our region. I am also

greatly concerned about the problems facing our beaches with the many

closures due to sewage spills. A serious study has to be made to

compare other beach city related sanitation plants and practices to

get to the bottom of this public health matter.

What direction do you think development -- such as the Strand,

Pacific City, Bella Terra and a third hotel proposed between the

Hilton Waterfront and Hyatt -- should be headed in the city?

I strongly believe that development closer to the beach needs to

be reasonable and not done in a large scale. I would support larger

projects inland, like Bella Terra where there is space to stretch out

and bring in larger commercial and entertainment venues.

Let’s bring back the Golden Bear!

Along with dealing with commercial improvements I feel that strong

neighborhoods are also important for our city. My concern about

bringing in more hotel rooms is the following: Where will people go

for evening outings and what type of night life can we provide for

tourists in Downtown Huntington Beach? The beach closes and what will

tens of hundreds of folks do for the evening? I think that

family-oriented tourist attractions will go hand in hand with the

concepts for beach-oriented activities. Shuttles provided by the

hotels to Disneyland and other local attractions should be

considered.

Bella Terra should have more of the “Block of Orange” type

orientation to attract local youth and families with various

entertainment venues, restaurants and merchants.

The mall of Huntington Beach, when I was in college, was the place

to shop. It can be that again, and more.