Lawndale Council Delays Decision on Filling Its Vacancy

The newly seated Lawndale City Council on Thursday put off a decision on how it would fill an open council seat that is expected to represent the tie-breaking vote on several divisive issues.

In dispute is whether the council should appoint someone to fill out the term of former Councilman Harold Hofmann, who was elevated to mayor in the April 10 election, or hold a special election to let the voters decide.

The council, which historically has been divided over development issues, has until May 16 to agree on an appointment. Otherwise, it is required by law to wait until November to hold a special election, an option that would cost the city about $20,000, City Clerk Neil Roth said.

Among the more notable issues hanging in the balance are the city’s lack of a general plan and the fate of a controversial ordinance that encourages developers to replace the city’s stock of older apartments with condominiums.

Mayor Hofmann and Councilman Larry Rudolph, who was reelected April 10, both said they believe Gary McDonald, who ran on their slate and was the closest runner-up for a council seat, should be appointed to fill out Hofmann’s unexpired term.

Councilwoman Carol Norman, a longtime foe of McDonald, said in an interview that she would not agree to appoint him. But newly elected Councilman William Johnson, who beat McDonald by seven votes, refused to say whether he would cast a vote for his former rival.

“Everybody else can speculate and do what they want,” Johnson said Friday. “But right now I’m taking all the information in, and I just don’t have a comment to make at this time.”

In the past, Hofmann, Rudolph and former Councilman Dan McKenzie formed a three-vote majority on the council, while Norman and former Mayor Sarann Kruse frequently voted together. Many expect Johnson, who ran with Kruse’s support, to side with Norman on the current council.

“Right now Johnson is more romanced than last year’s homecoming queen,” said Nancy Marthens, a former parks and recreation commissioner who made an unsuccessful bid for a council seat. “Everyone is standing back to see what he’s made of. He’s got everyone after him right now.”

Although Johnson refuses to disclose his plans, his associates say he is likely to give his support to mayoral candidate Melissa Bergstrom, who received 595 votes compared to Hofmann’s 771. Among the council candidates, only Rudolph, with 703 votes, had a higher tally than Bergstrom.

Johnson, Bergstrom and council candidate Norman Lagerquist ran together on a slate that was critical of the former council majority.

“I don’t think there’s any chance he’s going to (vote to) appoint McDonald,” Bergstrom said Friday. “And I don’t think they’re going to be able to agree on an appointment. It may mean that some things are going to be at a total standstill. What may go on is we just won’t get a lot of business done, but at least we won’t be doing anything destructive.”

Both Hofmann and Rudolph said they think appointing McDonald would be the fairest and most cost-efficient option, but they said a special election probably will be needed.

Several people at Thursday’s council meeting spoke in support of appointing McDonald to the open seat.

“It seems to me we had a very close election. When you get to that kind of closeness, it seems the issue is clear who the choice should be,” said developer John Stein, a longtime supporter of McDonald, Hofmann and Rudolph.

His comments were met with hisses by some members of the audience who later said they believe Stein already has too much influence on city politics.

“If McDonald gets in there, you might as well give the keys of this city to John Stein,” Steve Mino, 62, said. “When you’ve got a developer controlling this city, you might as well pack it in.”

McDonald, however, adamantly denies that Stein has any power over him. “In certain things I despise John Stein,” McDonald said. “On other things I admire him and think he’s right on target. What I think is important is that you look at the issue raised, not the person raising the issue.”

McDonald appeared buoyed by the support of those who spoke on his behalf and later said he has “complete confidence that in November I will be elected.”

He said the council has “an obligation of taking the individual that’s seven votes away. It would be a betrayal of the public trust” if someone else was appointed to the seat, he said.

The former planning commissioner and longtime city activist has initiated several investigations that have earned him a reputation as a watchdog over city wrongdoing. But he also has generated controversy in committing plagiarism on a 1988 campaign statement he wrote for Hofmann and operating his development consulting business for six months without a business license.