Q&A; with City Council candidates

The Coastline Pilot asked all four candidates for Laguna Beach City Council — Elizabeth Pearson-Schneider, Kelly Boyd, Toni Iseman and Verna Rollinger — three questions. The questions and the candidates’ responses appear below. Election day is Tuesday, Nov. 7.

Elizabeth Pearson-Schneider

Why do you think you should be elected to the City Council?

It has been my honor to serve my community for the last 22 years — on the board of the North Laguna Community Assn. for 12 years (three terms as president); on the Planning Commission for more than six years; and as your City Council member the last four years.

I am seeking reelection to the City Council so that I can continue, using Vision 2030 as a basis, to help our city plan for our future. I also want to move forward projects in which I have been involved, including:

* identifying funding and breaking ground on the Village Entrance Project, which will boast a 580-car garage that will help reduce parking constraints in the downtown;

* breaking ground and opening the new community/senior center;

* creating more peripheral parking and increasing tram service to reduce neighborhood and downtown congestion;

* obtaining the funding and beginning implementation of the $45 million Super Project to address ocean water pollution from Aliso Creek — something that could be fully funded within three to four years.

I am asking for your vote to ensure a continued focus on strategic planning and to bring many important projects to fruition.

What will be your primary goal if elected, and how will you achieve it?

My primary goal is to see that we plan strategically and map a course to ensure the quality of the lives of our residents as well as ensuring the economic viability of our city.

No longer are we a sleepy little beach town. The entire world knows about us, and they will continue to come. We need to plan how to balance the need for a high quality of life for ourselves with the need to fuel our economy with tax revenues to support our ever-growing public safety and infrastructure demands.

What many don’t realize is that we have to staff our police, fire and marine safety departments to meet both the demands of ourselves AND our visitors.

We have to create parking and increase tram service for ourselves AND our visitors, to manage congestion.

We must re-pave our streets due to wear and tear from both residents AND the hundreds of thousands who visit our city each year.

And we must keep our ocean clean so the hotels will continue to attract guests who want to visit Laguna because we are not only beautiful, but also safe.

These are expensive challenges that must be anticipated and planned for NOW.

What is the biggest issue currently facing the city?

The biggest issue is: How do we manage our popularity and still remain the city we’ve all come to love?

When I’m out working throughout Orange County, I’m always told, “Laguna Beach is my favorite city because — you have a quaint downtown; all your houses don’t look the same; your beaches are so beautiful; it’s like the country, driving in through the canyon.”

We must retain our uniqueness, because that’s why we’re all here. And we must retain it because that’s why others visit.

Those in City Council seats before me recognized the need to preserve our little slice of heaven and they found ways to do it: a strict sign ordinance that prevents billboards and flashing lights; business ordinances that encourage one-of-a-kind stores; housing ordinances that encourage the preservation of historic cottages; a height limit that prevents high-rises; budgets that place a priority on preventing ocean pollution and purchasing open space.

That’s insightful leadership, and that’s why we have to stay ahead of the curve so that the residents who come after us say, “I’m sure glad those city council members in the 2000s thought ahead. Aren’t we lucky to live here?”

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Toni Iseman

Why do you think you should be elected to the City Council?

Our council faces decisions that require attention to detail and the ability to build consensus.

Eight years on the council have given me knowledge, awareness of the community and honed my problem solving skills.

The senior/civic center will break ground this spring. Final details are pending. The Village Entrance will provide more than 500 parking places.

If properly designed, it will blend into the hill and not interfere with Laguna’s natural beauty.

The Civic Arts District will be defined and refined. It must be done with oversight that improves traffic and circulation along with environmental sensitivity. Projects must not create circulation and parking issues.

As a professionally trained counselor, I am a skilled listener.

Our hearings require the council to make decisions that impact individuals.

We need to listen to the concerns of our residents. I work hard to be the person I would hope to have representing me.

What would I want in an elected official?

I want someone accessible.

I want someone well-informed.

I want someone who will protect our environment, open space and our neighborhoods.

I want someone dedicated to keeping our downtown vibrant.

I want someone to quiet down the roar of the Harleys and restore peace to our town.

I want someone working to keep Laguna a community that embraces the arts and the artists.

I want an independent thinker.

I want someone who knows how to negotiate and knows when to stand strong.

These are my standards for service to our community.

What will be your primary goal if elected, and how will you achieve it?

My primary goal, if elected, would be to resolve neighborhood animosity related to the design review process.

Many contentious issues could be avoided if we informed people earlier in the process about city design guidelines.

City personnel are needed to implement the work of the Design Review Taskforce.

The pressure of new development and many remodels stretch talented staff thin.

Council must know what areas require additional personnel, but before we hire we must evaluate our procedures and make things more efficient for the public and employees alike.

Finally, we spend hours refining details of approval but we must ensure finished projects match approved plans.

These procedures should improve relations in our neighborhoods.

What is the biggest issue currently facing the city?

Water quality. Significant improvement to the quality of our ocean water can’t be achieved by our community alone.

To see children playing in Aliso Creek water, laden with pesticides and fertilizers, is a disgrace.

Our resources alone cannot repair the damage to our ocean. The council must reach out to our neighboring cities, South Orange County Wastewater Authority, the County of Orange, and to the state and the federal government.

Public awareness is key to making this a priority.

I have worked over the past eight years to establish relationships that will make it easier to reach agreements with other cities and agencies that will help fund a joint plan of action. We have lobbied to receive $45 million to clean up Aliso Creek. I want to continue my work on this vital issue.

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Kelly Boyd

Why do you think you should be elected to the City Council?

The business community has not had representation on the City Council in decades. I will bring my experience as a successful businessman in Laguna Beach for 20 years, including fiscal responsibility, customer service and managing staff.

As a lifetime resident, a former Laguna Beach mayor pro tem and councilman and Traffic & Circulation Committee member, I’m experienced in city government and have the passion to ensure the quality and character of Laguna Beach is maintained, including preserving Laguna Beach as an art colony.

I do not answer to any special interest groups. I will represent all the residents of Laguna Beach, ensuring balance to all matters brought before the City Council.

What will be your primary goal if elected, and how will you achieve it?

My goals are many; however, my primary goal will be to ensure city projects move forward and are not delayed, as in the past.

The Village Entrance parking structure is my highest priority. Since 1984, the City Council discussed the vital need for an additional parking structure.

Having shelved the project over the years, the costs have now tripled!

I will ensure the parking structure project is brought to the forefront of discussion and begin the process for making the additional parking structure a reality.

What is the biggest issue currently facing the city?

The biggest issue is maintaining the quality and uniqueness of our neighborhoods. I will work toward preserving individual property rights, while ensuring the quality, character, compatibility and view preservation of our neighborhoods.

The Aliso Creek cleanup is of vital importance today. Aliso Creek is the site of my grandparents’, Joe and Marie Thurston, first homestead, and I will work with the city, state and federal agencies to expedite the short-term cleanup and support the long-term Super Plan.

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Verna Rollinger

Why do you think you should be elected to the City Council?

I’ve worked hard to help make Laguna Beach the special place it is. I’ve demonstrated my ability to bring people together, listen and work with those whose viewpoints differ and get results.

I believe we must:

* Improve ocean-water quality, stop polluted water from pouring onto our beaches from inland and clean nuisance water for reuse.

* Protect and extend our open space — both in our neighborhoods and the surrounding greenbelt.

* Dedicate resources necessary to ensure the city’s infrastructure, public safety equipment and emergency preparedness are second to none.

* Serve residents’ needs first, re-establish customer service at City Hall and make better use of technology.

* Enhance our transit and shuttle systems, create peripheral parking and relieve traffic congestion.

* Protect our neighborhoods from mansion invasion and the impacts of commercial development. Adopt house size limits based on lot size or average house sizes in the neighborhood.

* Support artists as well as arts organizations and our non-profit organizations.

* Ensure that our seniors have the support systems they need to remain independent.

* Work with the school district to make better use of community facilities.

This is what I’ll work for — this and much more.

What will be your primary goal if elected, and how will you achieve it?

To accomplish the above.

What is the biggest issue currently facing the city?

Lack of sufficient progress on the above.