Redevelopment Key Issue in Campaign

For many longtime residents of this North County town of 37,000, wounds caused by the city’s aggressive redevelopment campaign of the past decade have yet to heal.

While many praise the city’s efforts to create a strong tax base of modern shopping centers and cinemas, others lament the loss of homes, churches, taverns and mom-and-pop storefronts razed in the process.

In municipal elections, then, the most heated issues usually involve growth and how to preserve a small-town ambience in the age of megaplexes and power centers.

This year, with seven candidates vying for two open seats on the City Council, is no exception. A hot issue is a recent City Council decision to allow Edwards Theaters to build 22 screens in the revitalized downtown area.

“People feel betrayed,” said candidate Nancy Wright, chair of the city’s Planning Commission. “There’s a sense of loss that this area isn’t going to be the slower-paced, old-fashioned type of area that was envisioned.”

Candidate Bev Perry, the only incumbent on the Nov. 5 ballot, said that the situation demonstrates a modern reality: large “anchor” businesses are necessary to attract the smaller stores that residents want.

“People have a fear that Brea is going to grow very large,” she said. “We’re not. We’re almost approaching the end of growth. But we could do more to alleviate those fears.”

Addressing that issue, candidate Steven C. Vargas said one of his first projects in office would be to have a scale model of Brea on display in City Hall, with current and future projects highlighted.

“It’s something you need so people can plan their futures and businesses can make financial decisions,” Vargas said.

Vargas said he opposes the 22-screen theater downtown, as does candidate Pat Davis, a Planning Commission member who voted against it along with Wright.

“The biggest thing I want to see is that the city honors its commitments, especially when it asks citizens to take time and help shape the city’s future,” Davis said, referring to a downtown development plan drafted by citizens and later approved by the City Council.

Marty Simonoff, a retired police captain, said he favors development that is “responsive to the community” but that his main objective is making sure that police and fire services keep pace with the city’s growth.

Lawrence Wells, a retired teacher, said he supports the downtown project for the strong tax base it provides and said a priority for him would be to make sure that outlying areas of Brea are not forgotten.

Candidate William Little supports the theater downtown, he said, because Brea’s rustic center city was destroyed years ago. Preserving the hillsides, he said, is of greater importance.