3 Council Members Among 6 Candidates

Term limits, the city utility tax and quality of life are the issues on which six candidates for three open City Council seats are focusing their campaigns.

Three incumbents--Mayor Duane Schuster, Councilman Wally Linn and Councilwoman Eva Miner Bradford--are seeking reelection.

The challengers are Ronald E. Burford, Alta E. Duke and Paul F. Walker.

A proposition passed by the council to appear on the Nov. 5 ballot would limit council members to two consecutive terms.

La Palma voters in 1982 passed a two-term limit. But an Orange County Superior Court judge struck down the law 10 years later, saying the city did not have term-setting power.

A new state law this year gives cities that power with voter approval.

Linn and Schuster, who are running for their second terms, favor a term limit. “I wrote the ballot argument for it,” Linn said. Added Schuster: “Two terms are plenty.” Duke, Walker and Burford also support the proposition, Measure O.

But Bradford, who is running for a third term, said she does not think city term limits are good or necessary, and they infringe on the rights of the voters.

The city’s 5% utility tax has been raised for debate by Walker and Burford.

In his candidate’s statement, Walker wrote, “There exist alternative means to raise funds,” such as encouraging business growth.

Burford, however, said he thinks the tax is necessary for many city services, including the Police Department. “I don’t like crime, and I want to reduce crime,” he said.

The three incumbents--Bradford, Schuster and Linn--have supported the tax in their City Council votes over the years. City Manager Daniel E. Keen has said the tax is indispensable to the city’s budget and thus to city services.

Duke has emphasized quality of life, including community services and youth services, as a major campaign issue.

Specifically, she opposes Anaheim Union High School District’s proposal to sell or lease part of the Kennedy High School campus for residential development.

Though the City Council has no power over the school board, she said members should insist that any development be limited to single-family homes.