LOCAL ELECTIONS / VILLA PARK : Fire Protection Dominates Council Race : The city’s refusal to join a countywide coalition for firefighting services has drawn criticism. Proposal to instead contract with Orange stirs an uproar.

Debate over fire protection in the city is heating up the race for the Nov. 8 City Council elections.

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Steve Loritz, the lone opposition candidate who hopes to oust one of the three incumbents, says the controversy over fire protection is definitely a concern of residents of this wealthy little city with a population of 6,400. Loritz accuses the council of having an “upside-down” fire-protection plan.

The dispute involves the City Council’s refusal, so far, to join a new countywide coalition of cities served by the Orange County Fire Department. That coalition, called the Joint Powers Authority, would be the new governing authority for the county Fire Department, along with county government.

Villa Park is the only city now served by the county Fire Department that has refused to join the authority. A majority on the council, including two of the three incumbents seeking reelection, has accused the authority of being poorly conceived and possibly leading to fire-protection tax increases.

Councilman Joseph S. Barsa and Mayor Barry L. Denes repeatedly have criticized the authority. The third councilman seeking reelection, Bob Bell, has spoken in favor of it.

At a special council meeting in August, Barsa proposed that Villa Park try to get its share of county fire-protection money from the county Board of Supervisors. If that happened, Barsa said, the city could explore contracting with the city of Orange for fire protection.

That proposal produced political turmoil. Villa Park organized as a separate city 32 years ago, mainly to escape from Orange. The two cities over the years have had many political spats. Joining with Orange, in anything, is unthinkable to some long-time residents.

On Sept. 27, a letter signed by 12 former Villa Park mayors and council members warned the City Council not to contract and urged it to join the Joint Powers Authority.

Former Mayor Wayne Silzel, who read the letter to the council, also warned of possible political retribution from residents.

“I came here to say you’re not listening to the community,” Silzel told the council. He added, “If you want to fight, I’ll see you at the ballot box.”

Loritz, 26, a businessman and volunteer fire captain, is hoping that the uproar will lead to his election on Nov. 8. Loritz supports the authority and says the Orange idea is neither feasible nor economical.

While Loritz sees that as the main campaign issue, incumbents Denes, Barsa and Bell all said they view the city’s budget and financial planning as the dominant concern.

Denes, 49, a business executive and former Marine officer in Vietnam, said he supports much of the Joint Powers Authority proposal but that it puts no cap on possible taxes three years hence. Denes said he is thus opposing Villa Park’s joining until the authority adopts a limit on taxes.

Barsa, 61, a small-business owner and former chairman of the St. Joseph Hospital Foundation, said he thinks the authority will not be a campaign issue and predicted that the fire matter will be settled, one way or another, by election time.

Bell, 60, a real estate broker and youth soccer and baseball coach, said he supports the authority because he believes regional public safety agencies are more efficient and less expensive than smaller departments.