4 Face Runoffs in Seal Beach Vote

The election to fill two open seats on the City Council ended in a draw Tuesday, with two candidates who oppose a massive housing development and two who favor it headed for a runoff.

Because none of the eight candidates received at least 50% of the vote in either of the two council district races, the top two vote-getters in each district will appear in a May 8 runoff.

In District 1, which covers the downtown and Surfside neighborhoods, the race will pit engineering contractor Joe Rullo against property manager Marilyn Bruce Hastings.

In District 3, which covers the Hill neighborhood and part of the Leisure World retirement community, Planning Commissioner Gwen Forsythe and environmental activist Galen F. Ambrose will face off.

The council seats are being vacated by Joyce Risner and Victor Grgas, two members of a council majority that support the Hellman Ranch project proposed by the Mola Development Corp. A victory for anti-growth forces in the runoff could set up a council majority hostile to the project.

Rullo and Forsythe back the project; Ambrose and Hastings oppose it.

The proposed 329-home Hellman Ranch project was the main issue in the campaign, with the eight candidates evenly divided over the issue.

The 149-acre development, which would set aside 41 acres for wetlands restoration, was approved by the City Council last October after months of often heated debate.

Proponents of the development had hailed the project as being far better than the original plan for 773 houses, saying it represented a fair balance between commercial and environmental concerns. They insisted that the project would not harm Seal Beach, and expressed doubts that the city could keep the owners of the land from developing it.

Hellman Ranch foes criticized the plan for not adequately addressing environmental concerns. They said they feared that the project would increase traffic, pollution and crime, adding that they preferred a plan with fewer homes and more wetlands.

The Hellman development took on added importance in the campaign earlier this month when an Orange County Superior Court commissioner ruled that the city’s General Plan was outdated and that the Hellman Ranch development must be approved for a second time by the City Council.

Because the General Plan revisions are not final, it is still not known whether the council will vote on the measure before May 15, when the two new council members will take office.

The election was marked by its lack of rancor and mudslinging in a city known for heated politics.

Even with the divisive issue of growth at the forefront, some candidates went out of their way not to attack the others directly.

Growth in the city of 26,000 people will be a major issue for the incoming council. Two major developments--one at Bixby Ranch in northern Seal Beach and another at a property owned by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power--will likely be debated by the council in the next year.

Times correspondent Michelle Nicolosi contributed to this story.

ELECTION RETURNS

Seal Beach City Council

100% Precincts Reporting

District 1 Votes % Joe Rullo * 282 28.2 Marilyn Bruce Hastings * 252 25.2 Charles Antos 231 23.1 James C. Cook 177 17.7 Douglas Hoxeng 57 5.7 District 3 Votes % Gwen Forsythe * 744 48.8 Galen F. Ambrose * 569 37.3 Dennis Pollman 211 13.8 Turnout 40.0 %

* Indicates qualifier for May 8 runoff.