Sanitary and water district incumbents win reelection as voters endorse pursuing a merger
The power of incumbency reigned in two Costa Mesa-based special districts this week, with returns from Tuesday’s elections indicating no new members would be joining the boards of the Costa Mesa Sanitary and Mesa Water districts this year.
James Ferryman and Art Perry, members of the sanitary district board since 1988 and 1992, respectively, posted victories over challengers Gary Monahan, Jim Fitzpatrick and Christopher Luntsford for the trash and sewer district’s two available seats.
Ferryman captured 31.5% of the vote, while Perry garnered 26.6%, according to figures from the Orange County registrar of voters office.
“I’m happy with the result,” Ferryman said. “I think it says that the voters were happy with our district’s performance. They’re listening to reason and the truth.
“Art and I have been around a long time. We still have a passion to make the sanitary district the best special district in the state.”
Monahan, a termed-out Costa Mesa City Council member, was trying to return to the sanitary district board, on which he served from 2006 to 2010. He finished third in the voting Tuesday, with 18.6%.
Monahan declined to comment when reached Wednesday, but earlier in the day, he posted on Facebook: “Thank you to everyone that worked so hard. Too bad we lost. Costa Mesa has spoken. Let’s see what the next two to four years hold. Stay informed and stay involved.”
Mesa Water District
In the Mesa Water District, board member James Fisler easily retained his Division 2 seat, which he has held since 2009. He captured 62% of the vote, defeating challenger Alex Reich.
Division 2 includes the Mesa Verde and State Streets neighborhoods.
“I’m thankful for the confidence that the people have in me,” Fisler said. “They hold the district in high regard.”
Reich congratulated his opponent Wednesday on Facebook while comparing his own campaign to the biblical tale of David and Goliath.
“Early on, I chose to not to form a committee or hire a campaign manager,” Reich wrote. “This meant that not only could I not take in more than $2,000 from supporters but that much of the initial actual campaigning would be done by yours truly, and I knew that the only chance of success lay in community support — a campaign team of one.”
Merger advisory measure
Hovering over both races was Measure TT, an advisory measure intended to gauge voter sentiment on the possibility of merging the sanitary and water districts.
A majority of voters said they were OK with officials pursuing the consolidation, with 54.4% in favor.
Mesa Water, which sponsored the measure, said combining the agencies would result in $15.6 million in one-time savings and $2.7 million in annual savings, as well as lower sewer rates.
The sanitary district has contested the idea, calling it a hostile takeover attempt.
The two agencies have always been separate from each other and the city government.
Fisler, one of Measure TT’s authors, said he was pleased with the election result.
“I think we owe it to the people to do due diligence for optimal government structure and efficient delivery,” he said.
Ferryman disagreed.
“Garbage in, garbage out,” he said. “All the facts that Mesa Water was distributing are just plain wrong.”
Ferryman pointed to the $650 customer rebate that Mesa Water contends would result from a merger.
“It’s totally erroneous,” he said.
In a statement, Mesa Water officials said the vote on Measure TT provides “a clear signal that voters support reducing the size and cost of local government through the pursuit of consolidation.”
They added that the district will continue collaborating with the sanitary district on a possible merger and take the proposal to the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission — which would have the final say on the matter — for “additional studies and public input.”
Twitter: @BradleyZint
