Dicterow opts out of City Council race

Mayor Steven Dicterow withdrew his bid for reelection last week, just two days after he filed his nominating papers to get onto the ballot in November.

Dicterow said the decision was prompted by the demands of his career in international motorcycle racing that make it impossible for him to conduct an effective campaign. It was not an easy decision, he said.

“I am really depressed,” Dicterow said Tuesday. “It will take me a long time to get over this.

“The first time I ran, I took off two months from my job and I got fired and had to take a job as maitre d’ at Romeo Cucina. I couldn’t put my family through that again.”

What was the worst-case scenario that came to his mind?

“I could see running really hard and losing and also losing my career,” Dicterow said.

Dicterow filed nominating papers on Aug. 9 and gave every indication that he was prepared to run for an unprecedented fourth term.

Even political insiders were jolted when they learned Aug. 11 that he had withdrawn from the election.

“I was shocked, but what people don’t understand is that this is a volunteer job,” Councilwoman Elizabeth Pearson-Schneider said. “Steve has given thousands of hours to the city and he should be recognized for his contributions.”

Dicterow’s last-minute withdrawal extended the nominating period, giving non-incumbents until 5 p.m. Wednesday to file nominating papers.

Christopher Kling — who had pulled papers indicating he planned to run — also filed a declaration of withdrawal on Aug. 11.

Potential candidates have one more shot. Starting Sept. 11, write-in candidates can file nominating papers. Write-in candidates’ names and statements are not printed on the ballot. The deadline to file as a write-in candidate is Oct. 24.

Former Councilman Kelly Boyd, incumbents Toni Iseman and Elizabeth Pearson-Schneider and former City Clerk Verna Rollinger — who had filed nominating papers by the original Friday deadline — will be the only candidates named on the ballot.

Dicterow’s decision disappointed his supporters.

“We had a very comfortable council that reflected the town,” Dicterow supporter Frank Ricchiazzi said.

“Now, God forbid, we could go back to the period before 1994, when Village Laguna had a chokehold on City Hall for more than a decade and a half that excluded anyone who didn’t agree with them.

“I am hoping that Village Laguna, which I am sure has always supported affirmative action, will support Kelly Boyd to provide diversity on the council,” he added.

With Dicterow’s withdrawal, Boyd is now the only man in the ballot lineup.

Dicterow said he wished he had known six months ago what he knows now.

“I believed then that I could run my career and still run a winning campaign, but the formidability of the others running required me to run a full-time campaign — which would have meant taking time off from work,” Dicterow said.

“Right now, I am in the middle of several things in my business that will affect my family’s financial security for the rest of my life. My rider [client] is in first place in the world championships. I couldn’t have predicted that six months ago.”

Dicterow had been criticized for missing council meetings when out of the country on business. He has also missed special meetings, including two budget workshops and the marathon session in October with the Design Review Task Force and the Planning Commission regarding an overhaul of design review guidelines.

He also did not come back from Spain when a portion of Bluebird Canyon fell down, leaving the four women on the council to handle the crisis.

Dicterow, 51, will have served 12 years on the council when his term ends this year.

He first ran for office in 1994, without having served on any of the city’s volunteer committees. He attributed his election to walking the streets, making himself known to the voters.

Dicterow was re-elected in 1998 with 5,721 votes, the most of any of the five candidates. His enthusiasm was undiminished in the 2002 election, and he appeared to supporters to be eager to meet the challenge again this year.

“He did a ribbon cutting for me on Monday (Aug. 7), and he seemed to be really upbeat,” said Sande St. John, who frequently calls on council members to appear at special events.

“I was very, very sorry to hear a few days later that he had decided not to run. I had planned to support him. He loved being mayor. I have never been around anyone who loved it more.”

Rollinger — who was City Clerk for 10 of the years Dicterow served on the council — said she was surprised that he wanted to run for a fourth term, but was shocked when he withdrew.

“I appreciate the time he has given to the city,” Rollinger said. “I recall many occasions when he waxed eloquent on subjects that really needed an advocate. I wish him and his family well. They can be proud of his service to the city.”

Dicterow said his decision to withdraw from the 2006 council race does not signal the end of his contributions to the city.

“I am honored and proud that my community elected me for 12 years,” Dicterow said. “I am sorry it couldn’t continue.

“But, to quote Winston Churchill: ‘This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is [perhaps] the end of the beginning.’ ”