Anaheim Public Utility Board Fired : Politics: Mayor Hunter leads purge of 7-member panel, saying new blood is needed. Then he says he will be leaving the city’s government in 1994.

Calling for “fresh blood” on the City Council and appointed boards and commissions, Mayor Fred Hunter led a purge of the Public Utility Board on Tuesday night and then announced that he will not seek a third term on the City Council.

Hunter said he will leave city government when his council term expires in 1994. In the meantime, though, he will seek another two-year term as mayor when his present term ends in 1992, he said.

The mayor’s surprise announcement came after the council voted to remove all seven members of the city’s utility panel, effective Oct 22.

In the 3-2 vote, the mayor and Councilman William D. Ehrle said more involvement from residents is needed in setting the city’s water and electric rates.

“This is our opportunity to get fresh ideas,” Ehrle said after the vote. “I think the current board sits back and allows the utility staff a rubber stamp. We’re going to get board members on there that ask tough questions.”

The mayor said he hopes that a new board will consider a plan to divert a greater percentage of utility revenues to the city’s general services.

A larger contribution from utility income could have saved several services and jobs recently cut by the council when it balanced Anaheim’s budget.

The city now receives 4% of utility revenues; Hunter wants to double that to 8%.

Hunter’s political announcement came during a break in the council meeting as he discussed utility issues. Noting that many utility board members have served for eight or more years, Hunter said that is too long for both board and council members.

“One or two terms, that’s enough,” Hunter said. “That goes for the council too--one or two terms. I’m not running for a third term.”

Hunter briefly considered running for Congress earlier this year but pulled out, saying he wanted to tend to several unfinished city projects.

Hunter, who heads a local law firm specializing in personal-injury cases, said he has not decided whether to seek other political office after leaving the council.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” he said.

Meanwhile, utility board members expressed surprise at the council’s decision.

Board Chairman Carl Kiefer, whom the council voted to remove immediately, said council members never expressed displeasure with the board’s work to him.

“There has never been a feeling of public resentment,” Kiefer said. “I’ve never felt any public discontent.”

He said few citizens attended board meetings or expressed concerns when the board recently approved a 5.4% increase in the water rate.

But board member Joe White said he understands the council’s move: “They get chewed out enough for their own actions; they’re getting tired of getting chewed out for ours.”

Nearly lost in the mayor’s political announcement and utility board shake-up Tuesday night was the council’s decision to reorganize the city’s powerful Planning Commission.

The city voted to appoint Bob Zemel and Steve Bristol, local real estate executives, to fill two expired terms on the seven-member panel.