‘Mr. Yuppie’ Is Named Mayor of Burbank

The Burbank City Council’s “Mr. Yuppie,” Michael R. Hastings, was named the city’s new mayor Friday by his council colleagues.

Given the nickname around City Hall because of his youth, fashionable three-piece suits and affection for workouts and jogging, Hastings, at 34, is believed to be the youngest person to serve as mayor of Burbank.

He succeeds Councilwoman Mary E. Kelsey, a soft-spoken grandmother whose one-year term expired in the routine rotation of the mayoralty among council members.

Although the post is largely ceremonial--it does not carry a veto or additional power greater than that of others on the five-member council--the mayor can set the tone for city government by presiding at council meetings and serving as the government’s figurehead at community events such as ground breakings.

As befits his Yuppie image, Hastings said one of the events he looks forward to in his year as mayor is next month’s “Run For the Hungry,” which he organized to benefit Burbank’s hungry and homeless.

Hastings’ appointment Friday was marred by fellow Councilman Robert R. Bowne’s boycott of the ceremonies. Bowne believed it was his turn to be appointed mayor or vice mayor. Al F. Dossin, the self-proclaimed maverick of the council, was appointed vice mayor.

Since his election to the council two years ago, Hastings has become known for his self-confident demeanor and feuds with some of his colleagues. He exchanged harsh words with Councilwoman Mary Lou Howard last year when she opposed his motion to give a merit raise of more than 5% to City Manager Bud Ovrom.

After supporting an unsuccessful moratorium on high-rise development in the city, Hastings was perceived by some developers as a no-growth advocate. But he described himself as a supporter of planned growth, which he said meant “seeing where everything is going before we arrive there.”

‘I Jump In’

“I’ve been on the side of a lot of defeats since I’ve been on the council, but I think the people of Burbank have gotten their money’s worth out of me,” Hastings said last week. “Very few things get by me with my energy. I jump in, accomplish something and move on.”

Hastings, who runs his own public relations firm, lives with his wife, Kathy, and two daughters near the Burbank movie studios.

He assumes office after one of the worst years in memory for Burbank. Several projects, including the much-anticipated Towncenter shopping mall, fell through while Kelsey was mayor, although she had no control over the circumstances.

“Mary just had a lot of bad luck,” said Howard, who preceded Kelsey as mayor. “I had a very good year, but things just started going wrong as soon as Mary got in. I would not have liked to have been sitting up there in the mayor’s chair last year. I’m very proud of the way she held up.”

In addition to the collapse of Towncenter, several officials, including Community Development Director Larry J. Kosmont and Assistant City Manager George Nony, resigned to pursue other interests.

But Kelsey pointed out that she also presided over the opening of a 10-screen movie theater, the ground breaking for a senior citizen complex and the beginning of the Golden Mall pedestrian shopping center’s revitalization.

“The Towncenter was a big blow, but I had always supported it,” Kelsey said. “It was something everyone wanted and needed. But overall, things went pretty well.”

Hastings said he hopes to oversee a proposal by Walt Disney Co. to develop a retail-entertainment center on the Towncenter site.