Two more faces in council race

Two more candidates — one an experienced local politician, one a newcomer — have entered the Huntington Beach City Council race for 2010.

Blair Farley, who ran unsuccessfully for the council in 2004 and was appointed to the Planning Commission in 2006, filed his statement of intention last week, as did Heather Grow, an after-school instructor for special-needs children at YMCA of Orange County.

The filings increased the total pool to 11 candidates. Also in the running are former Planning and Public Works Commissioner Joe Shaw, Ocean View School District trustee Norm Westwell, former Municipal Employees Assn. President John Von Holle, small business owner Dan Kalmick, Planning Commissioners Barbara Delgleize and Fred Speaker, Realtor Bruce Brandt and first-time challengers Erik Peterson and Bill Rorick.

Candidates have until Aug. 6 to file statements of intention and may pull papers to run for council between July 12 and Aug. 6, with the city’s general election scheduled for Nov. 2, 2010.

Farley, 37, a pastor at Mariners Church in Irvine, won only 3% of the vote in 2004, but said the experience encouraged him to get more involved in city politics. In addition to the Planning Commission, he served briefly on the city’s Fourth of July Executive Board.

As a council member, Farley said, he would push for improved infrastructure and prudent spending.

“In this challenging economic time, everybody’s having to figure out how to do more with less, and that’s a critical issue for me,” Farley said.

Grow, 36, a Huntington Beach native and graduate of Marina High School, said she became interested in public service at a young age when she served as a Girl Scout. An alumnus of Golden West College and UC Davis, she later earned a law degree from the McGeorge School of Law at University of the Pacific.

“I’ve always been interested in government,” Grow said. “Living here for a long time, I can see the changes going on, and I feel I can make a positive impact in our community.”