Candidates weigh in as forum nears

The Daily Pilot asked the six Costa Mesa City Council candidates three questions about city issues leading in to tonight’s candidate forum.

Here are the questions and their answers.

1. Is there any other plan to address immigration control that you think would be better than the one the City Council approved last year?

2. What issues are residents telling you they care most about this year?

3. Are you worried that the combative climate in the city will turn the election into one full of personal attacks and not one focused on issues?

Chris Bunyan, businessman and author

1. Without a doubt, there is. Any plan would be better than the proposed one that overtaxes our police force; our police are overworked and understaffed.

2. They want more communication. And that is why my plan to encourage Wi Fi [wireless, free internet rolled out across the city] has been so well received. Wi Fi would allow all citizens constant connection with Costa Mesa city officials, employees, promote distant learning and allow residents to compete in the global market place from anywhere in the city. Not to mention we could be one of the first in the area to offer this service.

3. The “combative” personal attack way is not the way to go, but if some candidates choose to go down that road, there’s not much you can do to prevent it but that you can trust the good sense of the voters in Costa Mesa to recognize those candidates who do not offer solutions and just engender a climate that would make cooperation of all Costa Mesans much more difficult.

Mirna Burciaga, business owner

1. Local government should not address or enforce immigration laws. The federal government is responsible for keeping the control of our borders, and local elected officials have no power or jurisdiction in this area.

2. Safety is the priority and at the core of having a good quality of life. Currently our police department is under-staffed; we need to create incentives to attract and keep our experienced police officers. Open spaces, the need for recreational facilities — we have a growing number of players and not enough fields. If we want to keep our youth busy and participating in positive activities like sports we need to provide them with enough facilities.

3. I am concerned about the divisive climate currently plaguing our city, and that is why I am running to represent Costa Mesa residents on the City Council. I am a consensus builder, experienced civic leader that has the best interest of the working families of Costa Mesa. We need reasonable representation on the council, and I have a history that demonstrates that I will focus on issues not personalities.

Bruce Garlich, retired aerospace engineer

1. A better plan is to wait for the sheriff’s proposal to be approved by the federal authorities and to then direct our police chief to recommend how it can effectively make Costa Mesa safer. It’s premature to be committed to participating in an unapproved, year-old, draft proposal with no idea how it will finally emerge.

When elected, I will get the politics out of our law-enforcement decisions. Right now, we have all this political rhetoric about “sending them a message” while crime continues to impact our quality of life.

2. Residents are talking to me about quality-of-life issues. They want to see a bigger investment in public safety and are especially concerned about gang activity. I am also hearing a lot about neglected street repairs, the availability and condition of playing fields for our kids, and, of course, the Triangle Square situation.

Clearly there is concern about raising a family in Costa Mesa. I see a need and a benefit to strengthening the coordination between the school district and City Hall. I also sense a need to have the residents’ voices heard at City Hall. Our local government needs to start listening.

3. I am running a positive campaign on issues and facts. There are clear choices in this election. Costa Mesa needs and deserves mature, thoughtful, civil leadership. I will provide that.

We don’t need “attack” ads and negative campaigning. I will not be a part of that.

Wendy Leece, Costa Mesa parks commissioner and businesswoman

1. I think the plan presented by the current council is a good first step in dealing with illegal alien felons. We need to keep our citizens safe, and the federal immigration officials do not have the time or money to apprehend felons who have returned to Costa Mesa after being released from jail or after being deported. As an example, just as the governor put National Guard troops at the border because the federal government was not doing their job, Costa Mesa is attempting to protect our citizens by deporting illegal aliens who commit major crimes.

2. We want a safe community and part of that safety includes upholding our federal immigration laws locally. People are looking for leaders who will be strong on upholding the law and who will put the public’s safety first. We also need revitalization, not only the Westside, but in some areas in the north part of the city as well. We need to improve traffic flow by synchronizing lights and improving intersections. We need to make sure that future developments take into account traffic impacts and impacts on our quality of life.

We need quality sports fields for our youth in areas that will not have a negative impact on our residents. We need quality senior housing and quality roads. The public expects us to take a strong stand on quality-of-life issues, and they are concerned about the traffic impacts on the city. We need to work to solve the traffic congestion in our city.

3. Public debate is good, and I will focus on the issues that all of us live with on a daily basis. Illegal immigration is an important issue, but many people, including me, expressed concern with the impacts of developments like 1901 Newport, where we subsidized the developer with $1.5 million of your tax dollars. In our free society we should be able to have civil debates about the future of our city without personal attacks and smear campaigns. I want to lift up this community and restore a great sense of pride.

Allan Mansoor, sheriff’s deputy and councilman

1. We need to uphold our laws. The proposal I put forward allows our officers to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport illegal immigrants who commit major crimes. This is not always done when they are released from jail or prison because ICE does not have the resources. If they return after being deported, we do not currently arrest on the felony reentry charge alone. My proposal does not involve sweeps or focus on victims. We must continue community policing in all neighborhoods so that we can thwart and investigate all crimes. This is a reasonable approach considering that three illegal alien sex offenders were recently found in our city.

I fully support legal immigration and respect those who come here legally. This is not about race but about public safety. I am an American without a hyphen. My parents immigrated legally from Egypt and Sweden, and this policy would be applied equally to someone from the Middle East or Europe. We operate under the rule of law, and it’s time we got back to it. Americans are standing up and asking their elected officials to uphold the law. This policy is simply one more tool that the police will have to identify and help deport dangerous people who are involved in major crimes, and it will make our city a safer place to live.

2. I have spoken with many members of the community, and they want our laws upheld and our community kept safe. They want revitalization of areas that need it. They want traffic and impacts to the community considered on future developments. They are concerned about the large parking structure and the 140-plus condos being built at 1901 Newport, which is the second-worst traffic volume intersection in the county. They are concerned about what will go in at Mesa Verde Shopping Center where the bowling alley once was. They want their streets repaired and fields for our youth in places that do not have a negative impact on neighborhoods.

3. Debate is an American tradition. While some have made it personal we need to discuss these issues openly and candidly without personal attacks or agendas. If we work together we can find consensus and improve Costa Mesa.

Mike Scheafer, business owner

1. Yes, there is a better plan. Once the emotion is removed from the Mansoor plan, it is obvious that the plan to train our officers is nothing more than a finger in the levee to stop the flood. Simply, the plan is doomed to fail, yet it will cost $200,000 to implement. Even if the illegal is deported, what guarantee is there that they won’t be back? None. This plan has no support from any police department, including our own. Wasting precious police resources on this plan detracts from what our already overburdened police force needs to deal with: crime. We as citizens and elected officials need to keep the pressure on the federal government to seal the border.

2. Gang crime. Shootings and other crimes that have increased since the proposal of the Mansoor plan. Crime escalation has our community very worried, as they should be. The police are understaffed; we have an interim police chief; officers are leaving for “greener pastures”; we need a new police facility.

Shortage of athletic fields. The only solution Leece and Mansoor had was to destroy the golf course.

Potholes, traffic, messed up signals, traffic, traffic.

Residents are very concerned that this election has become a one-issue election. They don’t want the national attention when we have too many local concerns to address.

The insensitivity that Mayor Mansoor showed after the recent killing on Baker Street. Everyone I have spoken to is appalled at that reaction.

3. Yes. I think that some of the candidates will say or do whatever it takes to get elected. It has already started.