City Council and Mayoral Candidates Forum

 Here are some comments that stood out to me in tonight's City Council and Mayoral Candidate Forum, and here is the full video of the forum.


City Council Candidates Forum

Three candidates for the two open City Council seats were present, Edward Belden, Sergio Jimenez (incumbent), and Jesus Rojas. A fourth candidate, Antoinet Mushet, did not attend.

Rojas said that as a police officer (for El Monte) his top concern is public safety. He said he wants to make sure the police and fire departments have the resources they need. He said the Monrovia Police Department is short on officers, that he would work to get the department its own armored vehicle (currently, he said, it shares with other jurisdictions), and would work to get more license plate reading cameras around town. El Monte, he said, has far more such cameras, and they have dramatically cut down the amount of time it takes to solve crimes. He said he'd like to work with the school district to increase police presence on school campuses and have officers patrol the Metro trains. Also, he said, he wants to make sure the fire department has the tools it needs to fight fires on the top floors on the new, higher buildings in town.

Jimenez said he wants to keep working to prevent the "New-York-ization" of Monrovia. He said it is hard to fight Sacramento's decrees, but at least it should be possible to prevent high levels of development in selected areas. Also, he would like to see more electric vehicle charging stations around town to help the environment.

Belden said he is familiar with finance, being a project manager for multi-million dollar projects and the treasurer of various non-profits. He would like to reduce carbon emissions in city buildings and vehicles. He said his top priority would be safety, but "you can't be safe without a home," so he would put affordable housing as his number one priority.

All three candidates said they support ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units, aka "granny flats") as a way to provide lower-cost housing, and they would also require developers of multi-unit housing projects to provide a percentage of low-income housing. They also all expressed concern about the short-term rental of single family homes (as through Airbnb) if they are used as party houses. Rojas suggested passing an ordinance regarding parties at rental houses, and perhaps fine the property owners for problems.


Mayoral Candidates Forum

Both incumbent Mayor Becky Shevlin and challenger, Council Member Larry Spicer, were present.

Spicer said he is running for mayor because the office needs "new thinking" and that he would push to get business into Station Square, while Shevlin said she believes she is the best qualified, with years of leadership experience.

Shevlin said her top priorities would be to preserve Canyon Park and the city's historic homes, helping to create more historic districts, which have some legal protection against Sacramento's overruling of local zoning ordinances. Spicer said his top priority would be affordable housing.

Both agreed on the importance of public safety, affordable housing, and addressing homelessness. When asked how they differed from each other, Shevlin said she only recalls their voting differently once, on a vote of No Confidence on District Attorney George Gascón. She didn't say which way they each voted.

Regarding Station Square, Shevlin said when there are more people circulating in the area that should make a restaurant viable. Spicer said that twice a year he would host young entrepreneurs at Station Square to see what they might propose. He would like to bring the Old Town feel to Station Square.

Regarding diveresity, Spicer said he would like more African Americans on city staff so it is a replica of the community. Shevlin said the city tries to be as diverse as possible, and always invites everyone.

Spicer suggested that a commercial building could be used to house the homeless. He added that one building owner he talked to was open to the possibility but was concerned about drugs and the cost of making repairs. Shevlin said her homelessness focus is on prevention - using education, preparing people for jobs, addressing mental health and substance abuse problems.

To promote community involvement Spicer basically suggested parties. If you make it fun, he said, and include food, people will show up. He added that for seniors he'd like to provide food for them each month from a different restaurant; that and provide more trips and activities.

Someone asked how the city could be more welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community. Shevlin said all city programs are open to everybody. Spicer said the city should provide more programs surrounding Pride Month, and promote it as it does for others.

- Brad Haugaard

20 comments:

  1. I always love the comment that city hall needs a new way of thinking when they have been on council for several terms.

    On paper Belden seems to make the most sense but if you look at LinkedIn page he really is deeply rooted in the political system and I don’t think will bring change we need.

    I’ll go for the guy that is pro police and fire hopefully he can clean up Monrovia.

    ReplyDelete

  2. The recent coverage of candidate Spicer in the Monrovia Now has raised concerns about bias and fairness in reporting. While Ms. Shevlin receive balanced scrutiny, Spicers actions and policies are consistently portrayed sometimes in a negative light, often without context or alternative viewpoints. This one-sided reporting not only undermines the principles of impartial journalism but also risks misleading the public and influencing their perceptions unfairly. It's essential for media outlets to uphold their responsibility to provide objective coverage, allowing voters to make informed decisions based on a comprehensive understanding of the candidates and their platforms.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There has been ZERO coverage of Larry Spicer‘s campaign until this article, so it’s unclear to me how I could have been biased in “recent coverage” and "consistently" portraying him in a negative light and not providing "alternative viewpoints." I don’t believe I am being biased, but if I am, how am I supposed to know what to correct if you don’t give examples?

      If you are referring to comments on Becky Shevlin’s campaign statement, those are other people’s opinions, not my coverage. Further, you should know that I actually deleted one negative comment against Larry Spicer because I thought it went too far.

      Delete
  3. When you go for the guy that is pro law and order, why not consider who has been here and served the City for years. Generally speaking, you do not start at Council or Mayor, you dig in and learn the machinations of the City. Officer Rojas (Sargent?) is commended for his public safety efforts, but what has been done to roll up the shirt sleeves and serve our town? Both Messrs. Belden and Jimenez have been active agents for public good in the 91016. Edward’s activism with respect to our natural resources and parks is without question, and Sergio is a very personable public servant who tirelessly serves, is responsive,, and follows through. I would choose these two known candidates any day of the week.

    Becky and Larry are both friends. I remain Switzerland with respect to each publicly. But Brad does a wonderful job keeping us informed, and I have not witnessed any jaundiced journalism. The fact the author above chose anonymity leads me to believe the bias is theirs. I read Brad’s religiously and am grateful for the insights. I would send the previous commenter a Snicker Bar if it would help.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I did not choose Anonymous, the system did. This is Gayle.

      Delete
    2. Yes they have done a lot in the community. However Who says what they have done for the city is the direction that we want it to go?

      Increasing homelessness, crime etc. giving land to the feds who have run it into the ground, canyon park still closed, increasing density etc.

      Delete
    3. Who is We as in we want it to go? Are you speaking for yourself or some unnamed organization. Homelessness is the byproduct of skyrocketing rentals and surging inflation. Giving what land to the feds? Be specific. Canyon Park is closed because of fire and flood and cannot be reopened until it is safe to do so. Increasing density is the byproduct of population growth. Even the best of volunteers or public servants cannot fix most of these variables. There is no magic wand. Be realistic. I think I am going to have to get you a case of Snickers.

      Delete
  4. Here’s a box of 3 musketeers for you.

    1. Canyon Park has been closed for years now. If you find that acceptable, great. Our reps should be up in arms about that.
    2. Policy created those byproducts and not allowing police to deal with the drug related issues.
    3. You can look up yourself the land that was given to the feds that city purchased. Also putting the land in as national monument negatively impacted us as well. You can also look up a number of LA times articles on that discussing Azusa canyon.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the Musketeers, D’Artanian. You are conflating larger geopolitical issues with the hometown stuff that our reps would have oversight over. A Council candidate cannot be blamed for your laundry list of things you do not like. Myopia may be impeding your ability to separate forest for trees. Some of the issues you identified are Federal.. Some are State, others are County. I get it, you are unhappy. Because the issues you berate are outside of the purview of a City election, I am going to bypass all other sticky wickets save one. Canyon Park. You bet your sweet bippy I am good with Canyon Park being closed unless and until it is in such a state that public safety is not in jeopardy. I had serious concerns at the beginning of the week that these atypical storms we have been having would set back the reopening of Canyon Park. But look at images of the floods of 38 and the catastrophic damage they wrought. We have too many people who live close to our treasured park to run that risk. Do I want it open? Absolutely. As for the storm we just had, there is another 5-day ration expected on the 17th. Because your issues cross areas of responsibility, you might consider dialoguing with Mayor Shevlin who has done a very good job of networking inter regionally. Some of what you seek requires interregional partnerships. As for the environmental component of Canyon Park, consider sitting down with Edward Belden and review his work on MPWR. One of the things the latter org does is to underwrite the cost of students who wish to participate in city sports and could not otherwise afford the cost. Often, these are the children who most need the chance. You might want to step up and lend a hand in that regard.

      Delete
    2. Mr. Belden’s MPWR Bio https://monroviapwr.org/meet-the-board/

      Delete
    3. I think serving on several boards and coaching youth sports qualifies as lending a hand. You?

      Delete
  5. You clearly haven't seen Canyon Park since the floods. These are not quick fixes and the money for repairs doesn't grow on the park trees. Opening before it is safe would be irresponsible.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Could afford me about money growing on trees isn’t that why we have the inflation that we have because of overspending.
      Let’s face it we’re not very good with our money. And how we allocate it.
      Where has all the bond money go gone that was approved to help the school infrastructure. All I see are them adding more administrators, and paying off superintendence that they have fired. I’ve yet to seen any work being done to the exterior of any of the buildings that are worth noting

      Delete
    2. Are you the gent who has repeatedly run for mayor?

      Delete
  6. Actually, I’ve been up to Trask multiple times every time I’m up there I don’t see any work being done. Again our local politicians should be calling on their contacts throughout various branches of government and get this done. And if it is someone else’s fault for the delays Why don’t they educate us on where we are in the process.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Trask and Canyon Park are two different places.

      Delete
    2. Do you subscribe to and read the City Manager’s report?

      Delete
  7. Whoah! Calmate, people.

    ReplyDelete
  8. If Larry Spicer said [parties], then … let’s party!

    ReplyDelete