ELECTIONS ’88 : ORANGE COUNTY : Few Issues Turn Up in Yorba Linda Race

It can be tough campaigning for a city council seat when 95% of the residents polled in a recent survey say they are happy.

What is there to argue about?

That’s the dilemma faced by challengers in the Yorba Linda City Council election this November with three seats at stake. Two incumbents, with a combined 20 years of service between them, are asking to be returned. Incumbent Todd Murphy is bowing out after two terms. Three newcomers hope voters are ready for a change.

No one is running for the money. The job pays $150 a month, although a raise to $400 a month is coming in January.

Residents polled last spring in the city survey, conducted by an independent firm, said their major gripes are traffic and congestion. Almost everyone said they hate the idea of a new county jail in nearby Gypsum Canyon.

But none of the candidates are running campaigns this fall in favor of traffic, congestion or jails.

So most of the tough talk by challengers has centered around charges that poor city planning created the traffic and congestion.

Yorba Linda was incorporated in 1967 by residents fearing annexation by neighboring cities. They wanted to retain the foothill community’s semirural charm. For the most part, they succeeded. A 1972 citywide vote overwhelmingly approved a general plan specifying low-density development.

In the late ‘70s, however, 4,000 acres on the city’s east side opened up for development when the old Kraemer ranch was sold. Since 1979, about a thousand homes have been built each year, mostly on the east side. And the city’s population has almost doubled, to 50,000. Hence traffic and congestion.

But the boom, expected to end within three to five years, also brought dollars to the city--up to a third of the budget in the early ‘80s. Now that figure accounts for just more than 10% of the $20-million budget, and the city is seeking other revenue sources.

This hunt created about the only other controversy in town: where to put a 35-acre auto mall that its proponents claim will bring $2 million to $3 million a year in sales tax revenue. The City Council recently voted 4-1 to place it near the Riverside Freeway.

Following is a list of candidates and some of their views:

Irwin M. Fried, 56, a private attorney, has served on the council since 1976, after four years on the Planning Commission. He was reelected in 1984 by only 336 votes and some city observers say he faces a tough fight again this year. Fried, however, points to the city survey as evidence that residents are pleased with the council’s performance. He wants to continue along the council’s present path of “low-density, semirural, apple pie and motherhood.” Plans are in place to reduce traffic congestion within a year, he says.

John M. Gullixson, 40, is a private attorney making his first bid for city office. In the Republican 39th Congressional District primary last June, he lost a challenge to Rep. William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton). Gullixson charges that city officials “react instead of anticipate” problems. As examples, he cites the built-up on the east side where there is no gas station along an 8-mile stretch of road, and he claims the Gypsum Canyon jail proposal “was almost a done deal before our city reacted.”

Mark Schwing, 48, a retired nuclear submarine naval officer, is a systems engineering manager for an electronics firm. Schwing gained prominence in the city as leader of the anti-auto mall forces. The group successfully fought the mall’s original location on La Palma Boulevard. Schwing has the backing of retiring Councilman Murphy. Schwing charges that the council needs to be more responsive to citizens. He also says that poor planning created the city’s traffic and congestion problems.

Richard C. Violett, 40, is a real estate broker long active with various city civic groups. Most important, he led the city’s fight against the Gypsum Canyon jail site and is founder and chairman of Taxpayers for a Centralized Jail, a countywide group opposing the canyon jail location. Violett, who also is backed by Murphy, is running on a slate with incumbent Gene Wisner. Violett, a member of the city’s traffic commission, points to his community activities with the city, business groups, youth sports and scouting as his strongest asset.

William E. (Gene) Wisner, 54, has served on the council for six years. Wisner, who has operated the family’s shoe business downtown for 20 years, is running on his record. “We have the lowest crime rate in the county and one of the lowest densities,” he said. “Our parks are second to none and our trail system (for horses and joggers) is one of the nicest in the country.” He supports the auto mall to raise city revenue and points to city lobbying in Sacramento three years ago for legislation that resulted in the county returning a percentage of property taxes to the city ($2 million last year).

Two incumbents and three newcomers are running in the Nov. 8 election for three seats on the Yorba Linda City Council