3 Mayors, 10 Council Members Fall : Voters in 23 Cities Respond to Wide Range of Issues

Thirteen incumbents, including three mayors and three Monterey Park council members, were ousted by San Gabriel Valley voters in municipal elections Tuesday, according to unofficial returns.

Issues ranging from the need for a new civic direction to disagreement over specific issues, such as growth and waste-to-energy plants, were cited as reasons that newcomers defeated veterans in several of the elections in 23 cities.

In Monterey Park, Mayor Rudy Peralta and council members David R. Almada and Lily Lee Chen were defeated by three candidates who charged that the incumbents had failed to control the city’s growth.

Incumbents also lost in Azusa, Duarte, San Dimas, Claremont, El Monte, South El Monte, Sierra Madre and South Pasadena.

In Duarte, two 12-year veterans, including the mayor, lost to newcomers who charged that the council had dragged its feet in opposing waste-to-energy plants.

In South El Monte, one of the few cities to elect a mayor separately, incumbent John Gonzales was defeated by Albert Perez.

Voters in two cities also got to voice their opinions on ballot measures.

In Azusa, where the City Council has already rejected a use permit sought by the developer of a proposed waste-to-energy plant, voters overwhelmingly voted against such plants.

La Verne voters gave their approval to continuing to allow the sale of fireworks in the city and making the offices of city treasurer and city clerk appointive rather than elective.

Here are the highlights of the San Gabriel Valley municipal elections:

Duarte

Desire for a change in city government and a perception that the council moved too slowly to oppose proposed waste-to-energy plants in nearby cities were cited in explaining why two incumbents were ousted in Duarte.

Newcomers Terry Michaelis and John Hitt, both 41, led the field of five candidates. Also winning was incumbent John Van Doren. But Mayor J. A. Montgomery, 63, and Councilman Carlyle Falkenborg, 65, were defeated.

“The consensus was that it was time for a change, and they (Hitt and Michaelis) capitalized on that,” said Van Doren, 42, who won his third four-year term.

Both Michaelis and Hitt said they represent a new generation of Duarte residents.

Hitt also attributed the defeat of the two long-time incumbents to the belief of some voters that the council had not reacted fast enough in opposing waste-to-energy plants, including one in nearby Irwindale. About 400 angry residents turned out to criticize the plant at an August council meeting at which the council decided to oppose the plant.

The vote “is a reflection of the community to the trash plants,” Hitt said. “And as challengers it was easier for people to identify with us as being in opposition to the plants.”

Neither Hitt nor Michaelis criticized the incumbents’ overall performance, but said that it is time that some of Duarte’s newer residents be allowed to help decide the city’s direction.

“I think these fellows have done a lot of good,” said Michaelis. “When you serve that long, people start looking for a change.”

Montgomery, who, along with Falkenborg will step down at next week’s council meeting, said he was disappointed but “not too unhappy.”

The city has “reached a maturity and now it’s time for a newer generation to take over.”

South El Monte

Two of the three incumbents went down to defeat as veteran City Councilman Albert Perez edged out Mayor John Gonzales in the mayoral race and Planning Commissioner Jim Kelly sacked his longtime friend Greg Meis to gain a council seat.

Councilman Ignacio (Slim) Gracia, a 66-year-old retired salesman who has served on the council since 1980, won reelection to a second full four-year term.

Meis and Gonzales had been on the losing side of a 3-2 council vote earlier this year amending a strict ordinance requiring the removal of 237 metal buildings in town. The defeated incumbents had favored strict enforcement of the ordinance, while Perez and Gracia supported an amendment that will allow most buildings to remain if they are refurbished.

But the races focused largely on personalities. Perez, a 54-year-old engineer who has served on the council since 1972, contended that Gonzales, 51, a bookbinder, had alienated his colleagues by refusing to sit with them at official functions and had created a bad image for the city. Gonzales said he preferred to circulate among the public.

The council has 30 days to appoint someone to finish the last two years of Perez’s council term or order a special election, according to City Clerk Margaret Garcia.

Kelly, a 58-year-old truck driver, was the city’s first elected mayor and retired from the council in 1984, but had been serving on the Planning Commission. Kelly and Meis, a 55-year-old salesman on the council since 1980, had been friends and allies until a rift developed in recent months. Kelly said he decided to enter the race after he heard Meis refer to Gonzales as the best mayor the city ever had.

Homer Wilson, 69, a retired welding salesman, finished last in the race.

Sierra Madre

Councilman Thomas G. Edwards lost his bid for a fourth four-year term, but Councilwoman Lisa H. Fowler was elected to a second term despite efforts of the Sierra Madre Police Assn. to oust both incumbents because of a salary dispute.

Top vote-getter Clem Bartolai, a former councilman, and newcomer Robert Bruce Crow, won the two other seats.

The salary dispute, which was the main election issue, began in January after the police association asked for a 10% pay increase. The council balked, and instead imposed a 6% raise. The police association said its officers were at the bottom of a salary survey of 47 Southern California law enforcement agencies, and the officers asked to be placed at the median salary.

The police association claimed victory after the election, saying that Fowler had already consulted with the association in an attempt to iron out differences, while Edwards had not.

“Lisa spoke with me and understood where we were coming from,” said Stephen Abernethy, president of the association. “She felt she could work with us and put the bitterness behind us and go on.”

Edwards could not be reached for comment.

Abernethy said the police association will not take any further action on the salary dispute until June, when next year’s budget is prepared.

South Pasadena

After years of controversy over downtown development, voters rejected a slate supported by City Council critics and opted for three council candidates who ran relatively low-key campaigns but had the longest and most visible records of civic activity.

In all, 10 candidates had filed for three seats on the five-member council. The third seat was open because former Councilman Ted Shaw decided not to seek reelection.

Mayor Samuel G. Knowles was elected to a third four-year term. Also elected were Planning Commissioner James S. Woollacott, 68, and James C. Hodge Jr., a 36-year-old dentist who has been active in service clubs and youth activities. All three winners attributed their success to their highly visible participation in community affairs.

“I’ve served on the council a long time and I have a record. They could see what I’ve done and that’s what they wanted,” said Knowles, a 64-year-old engineer.

Voters rejected a reelection bid by Councilman David Margrave, who last year was embroiled in a conflict of interest controversy for voting to approve more than $14,500 in payments to his own plumbing company for maintenance work done for the city after his election in 1982. Margrave acknowledged that the issue hurt his campaign, saying, “I think the reason I lost was the conflict of interest thing.”

Another indication that voters wanted to avoid the downtown development controversy that has plagued the council in recent years was that independent candidates Evelyn Fierro Peterson and Gail Anderson fared better than those backed by the organized opposition. Among those losing by the widest margins were Jon A. Fasana and Christlena Lawton, who were supported by South Pasadena’s Committee for Responsive Government, which has been critical of council approval of two projects rejected by voters in referendums in the past three years: a new civic center and a high-rise building downtown. William A. Mann, a former committee member who split from the group, received the fewest votes of any active candidate. J. Don Laurence dropped out of the race in late March.

San Marino

Well known civic leaders Paul Crowley and Suzanne Crowell were overwhelming winners of two vacated seats on the San Marino City Council, defeating a pair of tax crusaders by a margin of almost 3 to 1.

Crowley, 57, and Crowell, 47, said they see their victory as voters’ support of special taxes to maintain San Marino’s “unique residential qualities.” They also said their strong backing is a hopeful sign for a June ballot measure that will seek a special tax for San Marino schools.

Crowley and Crowell were cochairmen of an unsuccessful effort to pass a similar ballot measure in last November’s election.

They defeated Philip R. Heckendorn, 46, and Edwards Huntington Metcalf, 74.

Heckendorn is a lawyer who has filed a lawsuit against the city to rescind a 1983 special tax for police and fire services. The suit is awaiting California Supreme Court action. Metcalf is a former president of the San Marino Taxpayers Assn., which for many years challenged city and school spending practices.

El Monte

Voters returned one City Council incumbent, but ousted 10-year council veteran Henry Velasco, who also is running for the Republican nomination for the 60th Assembly District seat held by Sally Tanner (D-El Monte).

In the separate mayor’s race, Donald McMillen handily defeated challenger Jim Marin to win a second two-year term. Marin, a 33-year-old high school administrator, had criticized McMillen for approving a $6-million City Hall remodeling job and accused him of taking his wife on city-paid trips. McMillen, 63, a retired businessman, denied the charges. As it turned out, Marin’s allegations may have backfired. The council actually had approved only a $2.7-million expenditure on the City Hall project and Marin was unable to prove that McMillen’s wife had traveled extensively on the city tab.

In the council race, Ernest Gutierrez, 51, won reelection to a second four-year term. But Velasco, 52, was defeated, largely, some observers believe, because his dual campaigns cast some doubt on his motive for seeking another council term.

Jeff Marrone, a 32-year-old commercial real estate dealer and president of the El Monte Chamber of Commerce who had widespread support in the business community, was elected to fill Velasco’s seat. Businesswoman Doris Frank failed in her second bid for the council.

La Verne

Mayor Jon Blickenstaff, who was unopposed for reelection, predicted that the City Council would follow the wishes of La Verne’s voters and continue to allow the sale of fireworks in the city. The advisory measure was approved by 52.7% of the voters.

“Once we put it on the ballot, our personal opinions were put aside,” said Blickenstaff after the election. “I felt that if there were strong feelings, I would most likely go with the vote of the people.”

A ballot measure to make the offices of city treasurer and city clerk appointive rather than elective was approved by 60% of the voters. Blickenstaff, who had earlier voiced concern about the possibility that inexperienced people might be elected to the offices, said he was pleased with the outcome.

“That really cleans up the city process,” he said. “The entire council endorsed (the measure).”

City Council incumbents Patrick Gatti and Robert Rodriguez also were reelected, defeating lone challenger George Caswell.

Industry

Three City Council incumbents representing Industry’s political establishment resoundingly defeated Lydia A. Nash, only the third candidate in the city’s 29-year history to challenge its legacy of entrenched incumbents.

Nash, a 60-year-old schoolteacher who hoped to become the first woman to win a seat on the council, received only 16 votes.

Councilman Manuel A. Garcia, 75, who won his first full term since being appointed in 1981, led with 85 votes. Councilman John Paul Ferrero, 32, who was 19 when appointed, won his fourth term with 82. Councilman Patrick Perez, 46, got 82 and won his first full term after being appointed in 1984.

“You can’t change it (the city) when two-thirds of it are relatives and friends,” said Nash, who expressed ambition to run again.

Garcia had difficulty explaining his victory: “Well, I don’t know. I won and that’s all.” Ferrero and Perez could not be reached for comment.

Nash complained that officials at El Encanto Convalescent Hospital, which is owned by the city’s principal redevelopment agency, refused to allow her to address all of its patients who were registered voters. Nash said she was permitted to talk to only six of the 30 registered voters, 18 of whom voted in the 1984 council election, county voting records show.

Hospital officials said Nash was permitted to speak to all patients who voiced an interest in voting or were in physical condition to go to the polls.

Claremont

The only incumbent to seek reelection in Claremont lost, bringing a majority of newcomers to the City Council.

Terry P. Fitzgerald, an attorney who was seeking her second term on the five-member council, finished fourth in a race for three seats. Two other incumbents--Mayor Enid Douglass and Councilman Gordon Curtis--decided not to run, inspiring five challengers to compete for their seats as well as Fitzgerald’s.

The top vote-getter was Nick Presecan, a structural engineer. Next was Alex Hughes, an assistant school superintendent, followed by Diann Ring, a member of the city Planning Commission.

None of the newcomers predicted major shifts in the city’s direction, although all said they believed that the new council would help dispel the city’s anti-business image.

Presecan said that because each of the new council members was serving on a city commission before the election, three new commissioners--one for the architectural panel and two for the Planning Commission--will have to be selected.

San Dimas

Councilman Nick Martocchio finished last in a three-way fight for two seats in San Dimas. The top vote-getter was challenger Sandy McHenry, followed by Councilwoman Maria Tortorelli.

Martocchio said he spent less money on his campaign than the other candidates, but that any complaints about his loss would be nothing but “sour grapes.”

“I ran a campaign and I didn’t win,” Martocchio said. “So now I suggest that Mrs. Tortorelli and Mr. McHenry plan on spending 20 to 30 hours a week (on their jobs as council members).”

McHenry, elated with his victory, nevertheless expressed sympathy for Martocchio and spoke highly of his accomplishments during his single term as a councilman.

“There’s always a certain amount of sadness when you see someone who has worked that hard not get elected,” McHenry said. “But somebody’s got to win and somebody’s got to lose.”

Mayor Don Haefer was unopposed.

Monrovia

A divisive mayoral race between incumbent Paul Stuart and Councilwoman Mary Wilcox ended in an unexpectedly easy victory for Stuart, who received 60% of the vote.

With a voter turnout of more than 25% in a city where 15% is considered high, council members Robert Bartlett and John Nobrega were also returned to office.

Wilcox, who vowed to run again for mayor in two years, said, “The community feels the council as a whole is doing well so they want to keep us all in there. They are satisfied with our performance.” She will remain on the council because she is in the middle of a four-year term.

Stuart said that he was “very happy at the support of the community and will keep on doing what I have been doing to keep Monrovia the award-winning city it has become.”

Stuart, 70, has been mayor for six years and on the council for 10. Wilcox, 62, is a six-year council member.

Because their race was so divisive, pitting friend against friend in a year in which Monrovia residents are about to begin celebrating the city’s centennial, several politicians, including Wilcox, have called for a return to rotating the largely ceremonial mayor’s post among council members.

An elected mayor “has become too overly important for a city the size of Monrovia,” she said.

But Stuart, who has made being mayor a full-time job, said he has mixed feelings about it. “Generally, if a mayor is elected by the people, he can speak with a stronger voice,” he said. “When it was rotated among council members, personality clashes have kept a person from ever being mayor.”

Rosemead

Councilmen Gary Taylor and Louis Tury Jr. were reelected by a margin of about 4 to 1 over challenger Gilbert Gonzales. Only 13% of the city’s 13,519 registered voters going to the polls, the lowest voter turnout for a municipal election in the city’s history.

“I want to help run the city as smoothly as we can during the coming term,” said Taylor, who was elected to a fourth four-year term. Tury, who was elected to a third term, said, “I’m going to keep doing things pretty much they way I’ve been doing.”

Gonzales was arrested March 27 and later charged with one count of forcible rape, one count of oral copulation, one count of possession of cocaine and one count of receiving stolen property. He is to be arraigned in Pasadena Superior Court on April 28.

Gonzales denied all of the charges and attributed his loss partly to the arrest.

Also contributing to San Gabriel Valley election coverage were Times staff writers Mark Arax, Steve Appleford, Sue Avery, Mary Barber, Pat Brennan, Frank Buckley, Rod Lazo, Alan Maltun, Victor Valle and Mike Ward.