3 in First Treasurer’s Race in 16 Years

Voters in Beverly Hills should be forgiven if they are not quite sure what the city treasurer does: It has been 16 years since there was a serious race for the job that pays $1 a year.

Ramon I. Gerson, the four-term incumbent, decided not to seek a fifth term, prompting three candidates to file for the April 12 election.

The city treasurer invests city funds and advises the City Council on public financing.

The city treasurer’s race has picked up a little of the flavor of the council race. Two candidates, Benjamin F. Sanford and Joan Seidel, have raised over $10,000 and spent more than $6,000 as of March 26.

And some of Seidel’s lawn signs were removed along with those of some council candidates one recent weekend.

The city treasurer hopefuls have attended many of the public forums for council candidates, but most of the questions have been directed at the latter.

Candidates for treasurer are:

JOAN SEIDEL, 54, is a stock broker, investment adviser and a member of the city Rent Adjustment Board.

Seidel, a past president of Beverly Vista School PTA, is the first woman candidate for city treasurer in Beverly Hills. “There is still an inherent prejudice against women in finance,” she said.

Seidel has focused her campaign on her participation in the financial market.

“I think it is extremely important that you have someone who is actively involved in the business,” she said. “Someone who has her finger on the pulse of the market.”

CHAUNCY C. FERRIS Sr., 47, is a certified public accountant and investment adviser.

Ferris had raised and spent less than $1,000 as of March 26, but he said he plans to run ads this week in local weekly newspapers.

A former Navy carrier attack pilot in Vietnam, Ferris said that even though the job pays only $1 a year, the city “deserves a city treasurer whose opinions are expressed and heard by his staff.”

“My experience as a military officer, CPA and financial adviser eminently qualifies me for this position of trust that the residents of Beverly Hills deserve,” he said.

BENJAMIN F. SANFORD, 67, is an arbitrator with the New York Stock Exchange and National Assn. of Securities Dealers. He retired last year as a corporate vice president for Paine Webber.

Sanford, who is endorsed by the incumbent, is a past president of Beverly Hills YMCA, the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club.

“I pledge to help ensure fiscal stability and prudent revenue management for our city,” he said. “I have top-flight skills. I don’t want those skills to get rusty. I have lived here for 26 years, and I would hate to see the city get burned” with bad investments.