Candidates Meet Public at Open Forum : Election: Congressional, Fullerton council hopefuls get hard questions about issues such as the city budget, education and gangs, and offer very different solutions.

Richard and Kitty Quackenbush came to a candidate’s forum Thursday to confront state Sen. Ed Royce (R-Anaheim), a candidate for Congress who Kitty Quackenbush said had stood her up at a scheduled meeting at his Sacramento office.

“If he cannot see us in Sacramento with an appointment . . . what can we do?” she asked. Her husband scouted different rooms during the forum to look for Royce, who never showed up, although he had told forum organizers he would.

The Quackenbushes joined a group of residents who grilled City Council and congressional candidates who did show up Thursday at a lively forum at Sunny Hills High School. About 25 voters sat in eight different rooms, while candidates moved from one room to another answering questions.

Dave Zenger, a 33-year-old construction management consultant and self-styled “local troublemaker,” sat at a child’s desk and made issues the focus in his room.

When council candidate Joanne El Kareh presented herself, Zenger asked her about the renovation of the Allen Hotel on Harbor Boulevard for low-income housing. “Should the city be using redevelopment funds for that?”

“Do you want a straight answer?” El Kareh asked.

“Yeah, that would be refreshing,” Zenger replied.

El Kareh told him she thought the city’s redevelopment agency wasted money on that project, and should spend more money supporting business.

Zenger was skeptical as he looked over the platform statement El Kareh distributed, part of which calls on municipal leaders to “stop driving business out of Fullerton.”

“The city’s not ‘driving business out of Fullerton,’ ” Zenger said. “That’s ridiculous.”

Ten of the 13 candidates for City Council appeared at the forum, as did two of three candidates for the 39th Congressional District seat.

Candidates talked about issues such as the city budget, past projects, education and gangs. They often had very different solutions to problems.

Council candidate Rand (Kye) Robson said: “I would personally go meet with the gang leaders in Fullerton. I don’t think more cops is the answer.” The candidate, who has described himself as homeless, said he would bring good fiscal management to the city, “because I’ve been living on a cash budget all my life.”

Council candidate William B. Gabriel, who called himself a Libertarian, had an unusual gang-prevention program. When Zenger asked Gabriel if he thought the city should pay for a proposed $10-million stadium at Cal State Fullerton, Gabriel said yes, because that would physically block gangs from coming into the city.

“Why don’t you save (money) . . . and build a fence?” Zenger asked.

“I just like to know if a candidate is knowledgeable of the issues,” Zenger said later.

Council members Mayor Don Bankhead and Chris Norby and council candidates Bernhard N. Arnold, John Bedell, Jim Blake, Edith O’Donnell and Eddie J. Gage Jr. also attended. Council candidates Jan M. Flory, Stan E. McCrosky, and Julie Sa did not attend. Congressional candidates Molly McClanahan and Jack Dean attended.