Council Unable to Decide on Martinez Replacement

Unable to reach a consensus after 20 ballots, the San Diego City Council on Monday night postponed the appointment of a council member to serve the final year of Uvaldo Martinez’s term.

The council had hoped to appoint one of six finalists to the job, but none of the candidates was able to get the five votes needed to win the appointment.

After meeting for more than 3 1/2 hours, Mayor Maureen O’Connor declared that the deadlock would not be broken Monday night and suggested that the council go home and try again Dec. 8.

“If it’s not going to happen tonight, it’s not fair to keep everyone up late and then break,” O’Connor said before the meeting was halted around 9:40 p.m. “It’s not fair to the candidates, either. We’re dangling them.”

Among the candidates hoping to replace Martinez, who resigned Nov. 12 after pleading guilty to misusing a city credit card, are Martinez’s former top aide, Paul Grasso, and Martinez’s 1983 election opponent, attorney Celia Ballesteros.

The other applicants for the position are public relations consultant Louis J. Cella, architect Kathryn Willetts, attorney Henry Empeno and county supervisor’s aide John Rivera.

Ballesteros and Grasso were the only candidates to receive as many as three votes on any ballot, with Grasso getting four votes once.

On the first ballot, Ballesteros received three votes, Cella two, and Grasso and Empeno each got one.

O’Connor and Councilmen Mike Gotch and William Jones voted for Ballesteros. Ed Struiksma and Judy McCarty voted for Cella. Bill Cleator voted for Empeno. Gloria McColl voted for Grasso. Abbe Wolfsheimer, protesting the use of an appointment rather than an election to fill the seat, did not vote.

On the second ballot, Ballesteros got three votes again, while Grasso, Rivera, Empeno and Cella each received one.

On the third ballot, Ballesteros picked up the same three votes while Willetts got two and Grasso and Empeno each received one.

And so it went.

On each of the 20 ballots, O’Connor, Jones and Gotch, the council’s three Democrats, cast their votes for fellow party member Ballesteros. Cleator, McColl, McCarty and Struiksma, meanwhile, alternated their votes among the other applicants.

On the eighth ballot, Grasso got four votes to Ballesteros’ three, but on the succeeding tallies, the conservatives again split their votes among several of the candidates.

After 15 ballots, the council recessed as each bloc gathered in discussion. It was then that O’Connor suggested that the appointment be put off if no consensus could be reached.

Five ballots later, the council called it a night.

Before the voting, all six finalists were subjected to more than 50 questions from the council members. Most of the council members took the opportunity to poll the applicants on various issues that have come before the council or are expected to arise soon.

Among other issues, the candidates were queried about rent control--all said they opposed it--district-only elections--none favored them--and limiting campaign contributions from employees of corporations--none opposed the idea.

Each of the candidates pledged to retain the council staff hired by Martinez, and all but one of the applicants--John Rivera--said they would remain neutral in the 1987 campaign to fill the seat. Grasso, Willetts and Cella said they would not run for the seat if they were not appointed, while the others said they were undecided about their future plans.

Some of the questions called for simple yes or no answers, while others, such as the candidates’ vision for the district, required more explanation.

In answer to that question, each of the candidates expressed concern for the revitalization of downtown, the renovation of Balboa Park and growth management. Others mentioned the development of Otay Mesa and the redevelopment of San Ysidro as priorities.