Low-Key Campaigning Marks Council Race : Politics: The race has been far from volatile, with control of Glendale’s growth emerging as the major issue. Eight candidates are vying for seats in the April 2 balloting.

With less than two weeks of campaigning to go, the race for the Glendale City Council is winding up as a low-key contest characterized by fairly amicable public debate and behind-the-scenes battles for endorsements and contributions.

Control of the city’s growth has emerged as the predominant issue in the April 2 election, with hillside preservation, mass transit, water conservation and crime not far behind. The campaign has been far from volatile, with most of the eight candidates promising continuity of the current council’s agenda.

Two seats are open on the five-member council, which oversees a $266-million budget for a city of more than 180,000 residents. Mayor Larry Zarian is running for a third term. Councilman Jerold Milner is not seeking reelection.

In the final month of campaigning, four candidates emerged with the most money and endorsements. Zarian, Eileen Givens, Dick Matthews and Mary Ann Plumley have garnered support from Glendale’s traditional political groups--the police and fire associations and GlenPAC, a political action committee of mostly business people and real estate interests. Each has raised at least $15,000 for campaign parties, mailings, buttons and literature.

The same four, in that order, led a straw poll last week of members of the Kiwanis Club. That poll, although informal, is the lone tally so far of voter sentiment, candidates agree. The city’s homeowners groups do not endorse candidates.

All the candidates say they have been walking precincts, handing out brochures, telephoning voters and attending neighborhood coffee sessions. But money and manpower have differentiated the campaigns of some from others.

Mary Ann Prelock’s six-person central committee meets every Monday morning to discuss strategies for the week, but a lack of money has limited widespread campaigning for the former homeowners group president. Bob Torres, a real estate analyst with only a handful of volunteers, has sought publicity through sessions with Spanish-speaking audiences.

Meanwhile, Zarian, with at least $20,000 and more than 100 volunteers, is planning a second free pancake breakfast for all comers. Givens, a community activist who has raised at least $15,000, has done two mailings, including one designed to bring in absentee ballots. Plumley, a Realtor and Republican Party activist with at least $16,000, is planning a third mass mailing.

More than a dozen forums held since the campaign officially began in January have provided little volatile debate to distinguish the candidates. Unlike candidates in the 1989 election, who loudly criticized the City Council and each other, most of this year’s contenders have praised city leaders and generally promised to work harder on an already existing agenda.

“I don’t think this is a contest about who has the most new and wild ideas,” said Givens, who seems to be most closely aligned with the council’s current policies. It’s “a campaign about what makes good government, and part of good government is recognizing good ideas that already are in existence.”

All the candidates say they support slow-growth measures adopted by the council last fall for residential areas. Most say they approve of the city’s plan to continue a moratorium on hillside development until more stringent rules can be developed later this year.

The candidates also generally approve of a mass transit plan now being developed, and of the proposed establishment of a second redevelopment zone along San Fernando Road.

Only two candidates--Torres and Shirley Griffin, a marketing consultant and president of a citywide homeowners group--have attacked the city’s current leadership.

“They’re just not willing to stir the pot or rock the boat with controversial issues,” Torres said. “But people are beginning to realize that perhaps the old boys’ network that controls the city can be broken.”

The political newcomer from Montrose has earned no endorsements or large contributions. But he has sparked the greatest disagreement by calling for a series of election reforms, including electing council members by districts, electing the mayor and limiting members to two four-year terms.

Most of the proposals have been rejected by the field, although at a recent forum, five other candidates said they would serve only two terms if elected. Zarian has been especially critical of Torres’ reform proposals. He also has chastised Torres, Plumley, Matthews and John Beach, a semi-retired data processing supervisor, calling “rash” their pledges to hire more police and firefighters.

“You cannot tell people something that is undeliverable, because the people in Glendale will know,” he said at a recent forum, citing budget restrictions on the city’s ability to increase police and fire forces.

Following, in alphabetical order, are assessments of the eight candidates and their activities in the campaign so far:

* Beach, a City Council gadfly and computer buff, has attended weekly council meetings for the past three years, often presenting proposals that he claims will make the city run more efficiently.

“Instead of just offering suggestions to the council about the issues, I’d like to vote on those issues,” Beach has told audiences.

During the campaign, he surprised forum audiences with some of his suggestions, such as jailing the parents of youths who deface property with graffiti. He also wants to hire more police officers, toughen the city’s density formula for hillside development and encourage “safe streets.”

* Givens is running on the slogan “Keep Glendale Special.” Her literature features such slogans as “I like Ike,” a reference to a Cabinet post held by her grandfather under the former Republican President. In public statements, Givens has consistently promoted the continuation of current council policies, which she regards as successful.

Givens’ lack of specific new proposals has drawn criticism from other candidates for failing to live up to her campaign promise to offer a “fresh new voice.” When asked to give an example of a specific idea, Givens said she wanted to hasten negotiations over an expansion of the auto dealerships on Brand Boulevard.

“My campaign has had some central themes from Day One,” she said. “I believe those themes make sense to voters. . . . The campaign brochure doesn’t say ‘revolutionary new ideas.’ It says ‘fresh new voice.’ ”

* Griffin, viewing her fifth-place finish in the 1989 race as a sign of name recognition, has attended only a few of the candidates’ forums this time around because “everyone knows my views.” She said she prefers to speak at small neighborhood coffees or spend her time walking precincts.

No matter what the event, the president of Glendale Residents to Improve Our Neighborhoods has not minced words in her criticism of city leaders and her calls for reform.

The council “recognizes developers and special interests and the business people, but the little people here have no voice,” Griffin said. “I feel I am the voice of the people who are not very happy, of people who are unrecognized and people who can’t stand it anymore.”

Griffin has called for the resignation of John McKenna, Glendale’s planning director, and a freeze on hillside development. She also has criticized other candidates for accepting PAC contributions.

Although she has proposed tightening financial disclosure laws for council members, Griffin came under fire early in the campaign when she admitted that she failed to list her and her husband’s stock investments when she filed her first campaign disclosure form.

* Matthews, who placed fourth in the 1989 council race, said he resigned as vice president of communications for the Carnation Co. and director of the Carnation Foundation to devote more time to this campaign.

Matthews has touted himself as a tough-minded businessman who is dedicated to charities and organizations for senior citizens, youth and others. He has sought to portray himself as a sympathetic ally to a wide spectrum of groups around the city.

When asked if he believed he had support in south Glendale, Matthews, a north Glendale resident, answered: “Many of those people think that ‘regardless of where Dick lives, he’s one of us.’

“I have not been giving canned speeches, I do not use notes,” he said. “I have got to relate to my audience.”

Matthews has listed several priorities: hillside preservation, recycling, the concerns of senior citizens and youth, police and fire support, and traffic-signal synchronicity. For most, he plans to maintain or expand current city programs.

* Plumley, the chairwoman of the GOP Central Committee for the 41st Assembly District, has campaigned for many Republican candidates, but has acknowledged that she had some difficulty selling herself as a politician.

“I’m more personable and less polished than some of the others,” she said. “I’m a strong leader and will dig in my heels for what I believe in. But I do it quietly.”

Plumley said she favors managed growth and supports the city’s plan to toughen hillside development guidelines. But she opposes a proposal that would require the city to issue bonds to buy undeveloped hillside property.

Plumley has presented herself as a “preservationist” candidate, proposing to protect Glendale’s small-town charm through the implementation of the recent residential downzoning while encouraging policies that will attract new business growth.

* Prelock, in a low-key campaign, has tried to rally support from homeowners by emphasizing her knowledge of city issues and her involvement in community groups.

She does not have a significant campaign war chest, however, and has had limited success in recruiting volunteers.

“This is just a real grass-roots campaign I have organized,” Prelock said. “I don’t have the support of the traditional power structure in Glendale, which I believe is an asset to me. . . . There are more homeowner voters in Glendale than the power groups, so if we can get the homeowners out, we’ll have an excellent chance.”

Prelock has called for an immediate freeze on new commercial development projects until the city determines its long-term water supply.

* Torres, 36, kicked off his campaign indicating that he would represent the interests of the Montrose community and Glendale’s Latino residents, who he said had largely been ignored by the City Council.

Months later, Torres has become the field’s outspoken rebel. In addition to proposing election reforms, he has called for a two-year freeze on commercial development in the downtown corridor and the separation of the Glendale Redevelopment Agency from the City Council. Council members now serve as the agency.

“Our City Council is out of step with public opinion and the status quo is no longer sufficient,” Torres has told audiences.

Torres said his platform is aiming his campaign at disaffected voters, but admitted that with few dollars or volunteers to support his campaign, he has had trouble reaching audiences.

* Zarian has pushed the continuity theme of the campaign by touting his achievements on the council: championing the popular slow-growth measures, promoting expansion of the city’s Beeline public shuttle service and pushing for more stringent hillside development rules.

In his public speeches, the mayor talks quickly and confidently, without notes, often pointing out his longtime residency in the city and involvement in Glendale city government. “The council is not a training ground,” Zarian is fond of saying.

Zarian said he wants to continue the city’s plan to manage residential and hillside growth, oversee development of a mass transit system and improve services for senior citizens. He calls himself the budget watchdog of the city, which is fiscally conservative and has no bonded indebtedness.

Glendale police officers viewed Zarian’s budgetary restraint as a lack of commitment. The police officers association PAC in 1987 contributed to Zarian’s campaign. This year it endorsed two other candidates. Members said Zarian offered verbal support but no commitment to giving the force more money to hire more officers.

“I cannot be a candidate who promises and cannot deliver,” Zarian said in response.

CONTENDERS

John Beach, 45, has lived in Glendale for 35 years. He attended Glendale Community College and is a semi-retired data processing supervisor. He has attended City Council meetings regularly for three years and claims that his efforts led the city to base utility fees on usage, rather than a flat fee. He has no community affiliations or endorsements.

Eileen Givens, 47, a community activist, has lived in Glendale for 22 years. She has been a member of the city’s Civil Service Commission and Chamber of Commerce, and state president of the American Assn. of University Women. She has been endorsed by the local branch of AAUW and the Business and Professional Women’s Assn. GlenPAC, a political action committee made up of business and real estate interests, gave $5,000 to her campaign.

Shirley Griffin, 52, has been a Glendale resident for nearly 20 years. She is a marketing consultant and president of a citywide homeowners group that opposes hillside development. Her community involvement includes the Women’s Civic League of Glendale and Kiwanis Club. She ran for the council in 1989, placing fifth in a field of 13 candidates. She has no endorsements.

Dick Matthews, 52, has lived in Glendale for 22 years. He is former vice president of communications for Carnation Co. and former director of the Carnation Foundation. He is a board member of the Los Angeles Volunteer Center and the Glendale Assn. for the Retarded. He ran for the council in 1989, placing fourth. He has received $5,000 from the Glendale Firefighters Assn.’s PAC and $2,500 each from GlenPAC and the Glendale Police Assn. PAC.

Mary Ann Plumley, 60, has lived in Glendale for more than 30 years. She is a Republican Party activist and real estate agent. Her husband is executive officer of the Glendale Board of Realtors. She has been endorsed by the Glendale Verdugo Republican Assembly and the California Lincoln Club, a Republican group. She has received $5,000 from GlenPAC, $2,500 from the Glendale Police Assn. PAC and $100 from Freedom PAC, a predominantly conservative and Republican group.

Mary Ann Prelock, 58, is a 20-year resident of Glendale and a retired office manager. She spearheaded a successful drive to renovate the Civic Auditorium and is former president of the Royal Canyon Property Owners Assn. She has attended City Council meetings regularly for three years. GlenPAC has contributed $1,000 to her campaign.

Bob Torres, 36, has lived in Glendale for 23 years. He is a real estate analyst and helps manage his wife’s law firm in Montrose. He is president of the Montrose-Verdugo City Chamber of Commerce and has been director of the Crescenta Valley chamber. He has also served on the Verdugo Hills Hospital Community Relations Committee. He has no endorsements.

Larry Zarian, 53, is vying for a third four-year council term. The retired retail businessman and property investor has lived in Glendale for more than 30 years. He has served on the city’s planning and public service commissions. He has been endorsed by the Glendale Verdugo Republican Assembly and the Glendale Business and Professional Women’s Assn. He has received $5,000 each from the Glendale Firefighters Assn.’s PAC and GlenPAC.