SIMI VALLEY : 2nd Candidate to Enter Mayoral Race

Steve Frank, a 45-year-old public affairs consultant, plans to formally announce his candidacy for Simi Valley mayor today.

Frank said he will hold a rally at 11 a.m. in front of the Civic Center, 2929 Tapo Canyon Road. At that time, he said, he will outline a platform that essentially calls for tighter controls on city spending.

“Good fiscal management doesn’t start in Congress or in the White House; it starts at City Hall,” he said.

Frank, who lost a bid for the state Assembly in 1978, will be the second to declare his candidacy for mayor. Last week, attorney Robert L. Plunkett, 40, announced he will run in the November election. Frank said he is running for mayor because he believes the city needs new leadership. He said Mayor Greg Stratton, who has served on the City Council since 1979, has lost touch with the needs of residents.

“I think he’s a good man, an honest man,” Frank said. “But I don’t think he has the enthusiasm, the energy or the creativity. . . . I see this as a race for new ideas. The times, they are a-changin’, as Bob Dylan would say.”

Stratton, who has served as mayor since 1986, has not announced whether he will run for reelection. However, Stratton said Friday: “I don’t think I’ve overstayed yet. I’ve only been mayor six years.”