Local News in Brief : 5 Vie for Hospital Panel Seats

Three incumbents and two challengers are running for three board seats on the South Bay Hospital District, which provides money for public health programs in Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach. The election is Nov. 8.

Incumbents seeking reelection are: Virginia Fischer, a board member since 1971 and president of a family-owned electronics company; Mary Davis, former owner of the Portofino Inn in Redondo Beach, who has served on the hospital board since 1983, and Eva Snow, a retired nurse who has been on the board since 1984.

Challengers are Steve Schlesinger, a Manhattan Beach certified public accountant, and Jack Shakely, a Manhattan Beach resident and president of the California Community Foundation, a Los Angeles organization that manages small funds and foundations.

Since 1984, Schlesinger has been a member of the hospital district’s finance advisory committee, which makes recommendations on district investment policy. The California Community Foundation, in a nine-month contract in 1985 with the district, was paid $2,500 to help the district establish grant guidelines and to review grant proposals.

After operating South Bay Hospital in Redondo Beach for many years, the board in 1984 leased the hospital for 30 years to American Medical International Inc. and became a foundation making community health grants in the three beach cities.