Sanitary board races overshadowed

With the spotlight on the contentious City Council election in November, voters may not know much about another election in their city.

The Costa Mesa Sanitary District board has three seats up for grabs in the Nov. 7 election.

Board members Arlene Schafer and Dan Worthington are up for reelection, and board member Greg Woodside’s seat will be open because he is not running for reelection.

“Woodside is not running because of family matters,” said Joan Revak, the board’s secretary.

Besides Schafer and Worthington, challengers for the three seats are termed-out Costa Mesa City Councilman Gary Monahan; Robert J. Ooten, a civil sanitary engineer; and teacher Chuck Perry.

The sanitary district is responsible for decisions about trash collection, transporting recyclables to a recycling facility; and collecting sewer waste for treatment and disposal.

Part of the board’s job is to consider rates for trash collection and sewer services.

Schafer’s list of experience includes serving as the mayor of Costa Mesa. She is on the county’s Local Agency Formation Commission, which oversees boundaries and other issues, and on the Orange County Transportation Authority advisory committee.

Worthington has served on the board for 12 years. Concepts he introduced include automated trash collection, which reduced collection time and provided safety for trash collection drivers.

Monahan serves on the transportation authority and on the Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce.

Ooten is on the Orange County Waste Management Commission.

Perry, who did not file a candidate statement, is a teacher at Estancia High School.

In the Mesa Consolidated Water District, two board members are up for reelection, but James F. Atkinson and Shawn Dewane do not have challengers.