Three candidates vying to replace First District Councilmember Sherri Lightner, who terms out in 2016, debated all things La Jolla discussing what they\u2019d do to polish the Jewel at a public forum Oct. 8 at La Jolla Rec Center.
\nUnless one of the three candidates \u2014 Joe LaCava, Barbara Bry and Ray Ellis \u2014 gets 50 percent plus one of the vote in the June 7, 2016 primary, the two highest vote-getters will be in a runoff in the Nov. 8, 2016 general election.
\nSteve Haskins, president of La Jolla Town Council, which co-sponsored the forum, noted the Council is the only civic group in town that “covers all the residences and businesses anywhere in La Jolla.” Haskins said he hoped candidates in the debate would “share their vision” for improving the community.
\nAfter introducing themselves in opening remarks, Bry and Ellis stressed their business acumens and backgrounds. LaCava positioned himself as the political “insider” with the experience and know-how downtown.
\n“I\u2019ve been an entrepreneur, a journalist, a teacher, a wife, a mom, a community volunteer and a grandma,” said Bry, an entrepreneur in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors who co-founded ProFlowers.com and is currently COO of Blackbird Ventures, which invests in early-stage technology companies. “I am running because I love our community and want to help make it safe, clean and prosperous.”
\n“I came to San Diego in 1987, raised a family and started a business with every nickel I had that had 15 employees and has since grown to 180,” said Ellis, founder, CEO and principal shareholder of MC Direct, one of the largest full-service direct response agencies on the West Coast. “I am a nonpartisan problem-solver who wants to bring common-sense reform.”
\n“I\u2019ve spent the last 10 years working on community planning in La Jolla and citywide,” said LaCava, an San Diego State University grad and a civil engineer who\u2019s served on 26 committees and boards, including the San Diego Community Planners Committee, overseeing the city\u2019s 42 planning groups. “What I can tell you is that promises made by past council members \u2014 I\u2019m going to deliver for you.”
\nAll three candidates fielded numerous questions from citizens and from forum co-sponsors, the San Diego Police Officers Association and La Jolla Light.
\nThe candidates weighed in on the hot-button issue of Short Term Vacation Rentals (STVRs).
\n“I believe STVRS should be in two different categories \u2014 homesharing, where the owner is in the home, which is OK, and businesses renting out whole houses,” LaCava said. “People shouldn\u2019t have to live next to mini-hotels in single-family neighborhoods. I can support home sharing but am opposed to whole-house rentals.”
\n“I oppose STVRs in single-family neighborhoods because that takes housing away from permanent residents, and it destroys the character of the neighborhood,” said Bry. “We don\u2019t need businesses adjacent to neighbors making them feel like they\u2019re next door to the La Jolla Marriott.”
\n“We need to get rid of the bad actors who\u2019ve been operating STVRs and toughen existing laws to provide more enforcement,” said Ellis. “This is a quality-of-life issue in our neighborhoods. We have to crack down on the investor types who are moving in just trying to make a buck.”
\nAll three candidates had divergent takes on the long-simmering issue of shared use between humans and seals at Children\u2019s Pool.
\n“There is a plan in place now that appears to be working,” said Ellis. “That issue has not bubbled up in my interaction with neighbors in the community. I would vote to leave it the way it is right now.”
\n“Shared use doesn\u2019t work; too many visitors here for the first time don\u2019t know the rules (about staying away) from the animals and (consequently) having to be chased away,” said LaCava. “I\u2019m no longer in support of shared use.”
\n“I support the Coastal Commission ruling having the beach off limits (to people) during pupping season,” said Bry. “We\u2019ve put enough attention into this issue. There are more important things in La Jolla to talk about.”
\nAll three candidates iterated their campaign platforms during closing remarks.
\n“I\u2019ve already been working for you for the past 10 years down at the city,” said LaCava. “If you support me to do this as a full-time job, I will work for you as a councilmember.”
\n“I have a proven track record (of accomplishment),” said Ellis. “I promise to have a nonpartisan, problem-solving approach. I hope to have your vote.”
\n“As an entrepreneur, I\u2019ve been able to develop numerous (economic development) programs and initiatives,” said Bry. “I would bring that to City Hall.”<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Three candidates vying to replace First District Councilmember Sherri Lightner, who terms out in 2016, debated all things La Jolla discussing what they\u2019d do to polish the Jewel at a public forum Oct. 8 at La Jolla Rec Center. Unless one of the three candidates \u2014 Joe LaCava, Barbara Bry and Ray Ellis \u2014 gets […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11560","_seopress_titles_title":"Debate among council hopefuls centers on STVRs, Children's Pool","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11560,11551,11593],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-299539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-la-jolla-village-news","category-news","category-no-images"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299539\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}