Growth Is a Key Issue for Council Candidates

Facing the twin goals of building affordable housing and attracting commercial business, none of the Simi Valley City Council candidates is saying put an end to building.

But some are suggesting slowing down a bit.

Development is just one of a number of questions facing candidates in the waning weeks before the Nov. 7 elections.

Among the others: Will Simi Valley reject requests by developers and join other Ventura County cities supporting the Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources slow-growth initiative, which limits expansion? Or will the clamor by some Simi Valley leaders for more stores, housing and industrial parks win over voters?

Should Simi Valley follow Ventura’s lead and just say no to a county attempt to take back much-coveted sales taxes? What about a year-round homeless shelter? Are the cluster of Simi Valley churches that offer cold-weather housing enough?

“Get a job, that’s what I say,” said incumbent Councilwoman Barbra Williamson, vice chairwoman of Simi Valley’s homeless task force and a candidate for reelection.

Other candidates include fellow incumbent Steve Sojka and political newcomers Jim Mackelburg, Brian Wilson and Charles P. Misseijer. Jack Greenberg, a retired Simi Valley police officer, has dropped out of the campaign although his name will remain on the ballot.

Mayor Bill Davis faces a challenge from Mary Mikesell, an in-home therapist and a resident of Simi Valley since 1962.

Some candidates would push hard for a new retail mall and big-name department store, while others see heavy development as a recipe for congestion.

Either way, according to Williamson, voters will have to make a tough choice.

“The residents here want those services but they don’t want the population that goes with it,” Williamson said.

Simi Valley is among six Ventura County cities where voters approved SOAR laws that limit development outside city boundaries.

Even though the county measure was a winner at the Simi Valley ballot box in 1998, Davis, Sojka and Williamson said the measure puts unfair restrictions on property owners and the city’s ability to expand.

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Challengers Mackelburg, Mikesell and Wilson, an environmental compliance inspector for Simi Valley, said they were unfamiliar with the issue.

Davis said with the right mix of stores and residential development, Simi Valley could lure a Macy’s or Robinsons-May.

Mikesell said the onslaught of new homes necessary to court the upscale stores is a high price to pay for whatever new revenue would come.

“I don’t want to stop growth in Simi Valley but we should control growth because otherwise it’s going to be wall-to-wall cement clear up to the hillsides,” Mikesell said.

Mackelburg questioned whether any of the incumbents could be trusted to make an unbiased decision on development, considering they have received campaign donations from developers.

“All of the council members have taken money from developers who built these projects that they voted on,” Mackelburg said. “That’s ridiculous. It’s a deep concern of mine. It’s not right, it’s not honest.”

Most recent records show Williamson has raised $25,068 from contributors, at least $16,000 of which from developers and other building interests. Davis, a 14-year council veteran who is seeking his second mayoral term, has raised more than $14,000 for his campaign.

Since July, Davis has collected $2,250 from development interests. Sojka has raised $33,519 for the race. Since July he has collected $9,400 from development and real estate interests.

Mackelburg has raised $1,715 for the campaign, including a $200 loan to himself plus contributions from acquaintances in the real estate industry. Sojka and Davis scoffed at the suggestion that developer donations would influence their decisions.

If more development means additional affordable housing, that is fine with him, Davis said. The housing market in Simi Valley is such that young adults who have lived there all their lives are being priced out of the city, Davis said.

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Most new projects feature homes selling for as much as $600,000, and one-bedroom apartments in Simi Valley can often rent for up to $1,200 a month, Davis said. One of his priorities would be to prod developers into building affordable housing, Davis said.

Developers pledging to build affordable housing would receive grants from the city, Davis said.

Voters won’t have long to wait before they find out which way the next City Council will tilt concerning development.

The Unocal company wants to build hundreds of homes on 2,430 acres stretching from Erringer Road to the border of Moorpark. About 60% of the land would remain open space while the rest would include homes, retail stores, offices and light industry.

Wilson said Unocal’s pledge to preserve 60% of its project for open space was a promising step toward controlled growth.

Although the three incumbents oppose the county’s control over the city sphere of influence--mandated by SOAR--they aren’t in favor of pushing to retain sales tax revenues now sent to the county, which Ventura has done.

Davis, Williamson and Sojka said it would be a disaster for Simi Valley to join Ventura’s cause. Davis said the city could lose $11 million if it took over county services such as property tax assessments, jails, immunization programs and the police crime lab. Mackelburg, Mikesell and Wilson said they did not know enough about the issue to comment.

The candidates were divided on whether Simi Valley should find a year-round shelter for the homeless. Area churches provide a place for the homeless to sleep during cold weather. Mackelburg and Wilson favor the start-up of a year-round shelter but Davis argued that it would attract the homeless from other cities.

The city gives about $150,000 annually to agencies that help the homeless, Davis said.

Sojka said as president of the Rotary Club, he helped launch efforts to find a permanent headquarters for agencies serving the area’s homeless.

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Williamson doesn’t want a year-round shelter, preferring to just offer job placement, counseling and other services to the city’s homeless.

“I go to the Knights of Columbus and I help feed the homeless,” Williamson said. “We’re trying to help these people, but God helps those who help themselves.”

Mikesell, who works for a nonprofit organization that provides therapy for children and their families, said the city ought to pursue federal grants to finance the acquisition of a year-round shelter.

“We need to do something for these people and I think it’s very naive for people to think that they are on the streets because they want to be,” Mikesell said.

Simi Valley Races

Incumbent Simi Valley Mayor Bill Davis is running for reelection against in-home therapist Mary Mikesell, while five candidates are competing for two seats on the City Council now held by Steve Sojka and Barbra Williamson. Council candidate Charles P. Misseijer did not return calls on his campaign.

Mayor

Bill Davis

Age: 72

Occupation: Davis was service manager for the Lincoln-Mercury auto company for 20 years and owned a two-way radio repair business until 1992, when he retired. He has been a full-time council member since then.

Education: Hamilton High School, Los Angeles

Background: Davis has lived in Simi Valley for 20 years. He was appointed to the Simi Valley City Council in 1986 and won his first term in 1988. He was elected mayor in 1998.

Issues: A priority in this campaign is to push for more affordable housing. He advocates giving developers grants to help build affordable apartment buildings so savings can be passed on to renters.

Personal: Lives with his wife of 53 years, Ginni. He has five adult children, Bill, Michael, Lynne, Wayne and Jack.

City Council

Jim Mackelburg

Age: 39

Occupation: Quality assurance appraiser for Green Point Mortgage Funding, Woodland Hills. Also works as a real estate consultant.

Education: Certificate of real estate from UCLA, an associate’s degree in general education from Pierce College, Woodland Hills. He also studied at Moorpark College.

Background: He moved to Simi Valley when he was 2 years old.

Issues: Mackelburg vows to slow growth and encourage more public input on all issues before the council. Mackelburg promises to only serve one term if elected.

Personal: He has a 7-year-old daughter, Amanda; a 10-year-old daughter, Sara, and a 15-year-old son, Thomas.

Barbra Williamson

Age: 56

Occupation: Vice president and director of marketing and advertising for First Western Bank, Simi Valley

Education: Certificate in marketing and advertising from USC

Background: Williamson has lived in Simi Valley for 30 years. She served on the city Planning Commission from 1990-92 before joining the City Council in 1992.

Issues: Williamson’s main objective is recruiting upscale stores to anchor a new shopping mall just off of Highway 118 at 1st Avenue. Williamson also wants to campaign for more affordable, multifamily housing in Simi Valley. Another pet project is a walking trail along the arroyo with low-lighting and benches.

Personal: Williamson, who is separated from her husband, has two adult children, Matt and Jamie.

Mary Mikesell

Age: Declined to reveal

Occupation: In-home therapist for the Interface Children and Family Services nonprofit organization, Camarillo

Education: PhD in psychology

Background: She has lived in Simi Valley since 1962. This is her first campaign for public office.

Issues: To slow development in Simi Valley, particularly the massive Unocal project which proposes thousands of new homes in the city.

Personal: No information available

Steve Sojka

Age: 35

Education: Attended Moorpark College after high school, then started his own business

Background: Sojka has lived in Simi Valley since he was 5 years old. He is the owner of Money Mailer Direct Mail Advertising. Sojka was appointed to the City Council in 1998 after being active in Simi Valley-based organizations for years. He was president of the Simi Valley Noontime Rotary Club in 1997. He is running for his first full term.

Issues: Improving public safety, zero tolerance on gangs and revitalizing the city’s economy. Sojka wants the city to attract more industry that offers higher-paying, high-tech jobs.

Personal: He is married to Laura and has an 8-year-old daughter, Shantel; a 6-year-old son Bobby, and a 3-year-old daughter, Breanna.

Brian Wilson

Age: 35

Occupation: Source control inspection specialist in Simi Valley’s public works department

Education: Associate’s degree in environmental science from Moorpark College. He is a senior at Cal State Northridge, where he is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in environmental health and occupational safety.

Background: Wilson has lived in Simi Valley since 1983. This is his first campaign for public office.

Issues: He wants to slow growth and make developers pay higher impact fees. Wilson also wants to study why the city has been plagued with power outages. He wants to safeguard the city’s hillside protection ordinance.

Personal: No information available