OXNARD : Takasugi, Lopez Join Field of Candidates

Oxnard Mayor Nao Takasugi and Councilman Manuel Lopez joined a crowded field of candidates vying for two council seats and the mayoral post in the November election.

Lopez and Takasugi took out nomination papers Monday, Assistant City Clerk Kim Smith said. Lopez, a three-term incumbent, announced his candidacy during a press conference Monday at the South Oxnard Center.

Lopez defended the city’s growth policies during the past decade, saying that reports of recent runaway growth in Oxnard have been greatly exaggerated. He added, however, that the city needs a more balanced growth plan--less residential and more commercial and industrial--to balance the city’s finances.

Takasugi, a four-term incumbent, has called a press conference today.

Ann Johs, the other incumbent whose term expires in November, has already filed for reelection. The deadline for filing is Aug. 10, Smith said.

Retired Fire Chief Roy Lockwood, former city refuse coordinator Robert Randolph, city Parks and Recreation Department employee Bedford Pinkard, retired aerospace engineer Fred Schwartz and community leader Eleanor Branthoover have also filed nomination papers for the four-year council posts.

A handful of other candidates for both mayor and City Council have taken out papers but have yet to file, Smith said.