Board’s Fiscal Expert, Saltarelli Found Term His Most Exciting Year

A few grueling weeks after Don Saltarelli joined the Board of Supervisors, he described his decision the accept the 15-month appointment as “the biggest mistake of my life.”

At the time, few people could argue. It was October 1995. The county was marking its 10th month in bankruptcy and had yet to finalize a recovery plan. Public outrage over the crisis remained high and was even directed at newcomers like Saltarelli.

But the 55-year-old real estate agent and former Tustin councilman persevered, becoming the board’s expert on the complicated world of investment policy and municipal finance. Many county officials and activists are lamenting that he will depart from the board this month, saying the county is losing an effective and thoughtful leader.

“I wish you were staying,” community activist Bob Bennyhoff told Saltarelli at his final board meeting last week. “The county is going to miss your intelligence . . . and common-sense approach.”

A former stockbroker, Saltarelli was tapped to fill out the term of Gaddi H. Vasquez, who resigned in the wake of the $1.64-billion bankruptcy. Saltarelli acknowledged his first few weeks were tough.

“I knew people were mad at the county, but I was very surprised at some of the vicious personal attacks I got,” said Saltarelli, who was threatened with recall by several activists at his first meeting. “The only way to be a good elected official is to not worry about what the press says, do the best job you can and take the heat.”

Over the next few months, Saltarelli began winning praise from onetime critics for his sharp understanding of county financial issues and his efforts to eliminate unneeded county regulations and red tape.

Some of Saltarelli’s proposals were a bit quixotic, like his suggestion that the county fly jumbo jets in and out of the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station to determine the noise levels if it became a commercial airport. He also led an unsuccessful crusade to have the lame-duck board redistrict supervisorial boundaries, which he said would de-politicize the process.

Still, most observers admired his persistence. “He’s the Energizer bunny,” Board Chairman Roger R. Stanton once quipped. “He keeps going and going and going.”

Though his expertise is in finance, Saltarelli also had to deal with many critical land-use issues in his district, including the El Toro airport conversion and a proposal to expand the James A. Musick Branch Jail.

Some South County residents criticized Saltarelli for voting to move forward with planning of a commercial airport at El Toro. Others complained about his support for the controversial 318-home Saddleback Meadows project, one of the most divisive development issues in county history.

But Saltarelli said he has few regrets.

“I think we’ve opened up debate and have the county headed in the right direction,” he said. “This was the most exciting year of my life.”