Tables Turn on Serles in 3rd District

Since 1982, it’s been Jim Serles who ran the grass-roots campaign for the 3rd District City Council seat, Serles who was outspent by his opponent and Serles who came close, but not close enough, to defeating political nemesis Jan Hall.

This year, incumbent Hall decided not to run again, and the tables have turned. Now it’s Serles doing the outspending, winning the support of the Long Beach Establishment and abandoning the home-grown effort for a campaign guided by a paid consultant.

Now he has a new nemesis--retired Police Cmdr. Doug Drummond--who came to the race armed with conflict-of-interest charges that have put Serles’ campaign on the defensive.

The controversy surrounding claims that Serles--chairman of the city Planning Commission--took campaign contributions from realtors and developers and then voted in favor of their projects will likely be put to rest before the polls open April 10.

The city attorney’s office is pressing to wrap up a two-pronged investigation before the vote and Serles has produced evidence showing some of the alleged conflicts apparently stemmed from clerical errors. The two times he did vote in violation of state ethics laws, he says, were the result of oversight rather than corruption.

Serles, a 49-year-old dentist, and Drummond, a 52-year-old part-time college instructor, are battling to represent a wealthy district that straddles Pacific Coast Highway from Atherton Street on the north to the ocean on the south, taking in posh communities such as Naples, Belmont Shore and the Peninsula.

Running a more sedate campaign in his third bid for public office is Lou Mirabile, a retired auto dealer who refused to disclose his age. According to Department of Motor Vehicles records, Mirabile is 75.

While Mirabile has spent scarcely a penny on his effort, Serles has emerged among the top local political spenders. According to campaign expense reports, he raised $151,800 and spent $90,840 through the last week in March. In the same time, Drummond raised $35,600 and spent $21,500.

The fallout from the ethics flap remains to be seen, but if endorsements are an indicator, the damage seems limited. Serles is backed by the Long Beach Area Citizens Involved, a local political watchdog group; Long Beach Firefighters Local 372, and the Teachers Assn. of Long Beach. He also has been endorsed by the Press-Telegram.

And, despite Drummond’s 29 years on the police force, the California Organization of Police and Sheriffs and the Long Beach Police Officers Assn. backed Serles. Drummond said his supporters include Dentists for Drummond, a 25-member group he contends is still growing.

Not only did the police union fail to endorse Drummond, its president, Mike Tracy, virtually accused him of stealing office furniture, namely a brown leather chair on wheels. Drummond says the chair was a gift and he is considering suing Tracy for making such a statement during a local public affairs show on the community-access cable television channel in Long Beach.

“I used that chair for a year when I sat as a commander in the Long Beach Police Department,” he said.

Serles and Drummond both were born and raised in Long Beach, define themselves as “moderately conservative,” agree crime is the city’s No. 1 problem and say the police force is too small. But most similarities end there.

Drummond says the homeless are not the city’s responsibility; Serles says the city shouldn’t turn its back on them. Drummond says developers should not be required to pay for low-income housing; Serles says he believes they should. Drummond opposes a Citizen Police Complaint Commission in favor of a stronger police commission; Serles supports it.

Serles has endorsed the June ballot measure calling for a special tax levy to pay for 75 more police officers, but says future money should come from airport user fees rather than higher taxes. He wants to expand the authority of 41 marine security officers and 28 port officers who are armed and uniformed but powerless to arrest and transport suspects.

“This is an under-utilization of manpower,” Serles said. “Crime is up 16% in the 3rd District. Assaults are up 34.7%. The city has 100,000 more people than it did in 1970 and there are 100 fewer officers.”

Drummond wants a ratio of two officers for every 1,000 residents and said the city must add 75 officers a year through 1995 for adequate protection.

He also said he supports the special tax levy, but only this time. He proposes boosting the ailing retail sales tax base by renovating sluggish shopping malls for future funds. That failing, Drummond believes the city should contract with the county sheriff for law enforcement services as “an absolute bottom line.”

On the homeless problem, Drummond says the responsibility lies with the county, state and federal governments rather than the city.

“I see the state as the provider of mental health care . . . and housing has been a federal service for some time,” Drummond said.

Countered Serles: “We have to accept responsibility as a city. . . . We have people who are down and out, people who come looking for employment, these people need assistance. We cannot turn our backs.”

Serles favors building a homeless drop-in shelter, an idea Drummond says he would only consider.

Drummond is against requiring developers to build some low-income units in apartment complexes--seen by some as a way to prevent homelessness.

Serles endorses such a plan in limited areas of the city--such as downtown, along major arteries and near the university-- but believes the character of neighborhoods should be preserved.

Third candidate Mirabile declined to discuss specific issues. “I don’t know anything about issues. I don’t believe in all these issues. We talk about them but nothing ever happens,” he said.

He did say that crime is a major problem.