Friends, family and supporters joined La Jolla Community Planning Association president Joe LaCava, who’s served on 29 working boards and committees during his public service career, in officially kicking off his campaign June 28 for the First District City Council seat as he seeks to replace council president Sherri Lightner, termed out of office in 2016. The campaign launch took place at a private residence in Bird Rock, where LaCava and his wife Lorene, a public school kindergarten teacher, have lived for 30 years. In introducing the candidate, longtime friend and supporter Leslie Davis, who has worked with LaCava to prevent the La Jolla post office from being moved, described him as “a gentleman of grace and intelligence.” Davis noted LaCava “has filled so many volunteer posts that he has earned the right to run.” LaCava, a native San Diegan, is the son of an Italian immigrant who graduated from San Diego State University and is a practicing civil engineer. He said he decided to run because he feels he’s the right person for the job and because “it was the right thing to do.” During a half-hour speech followed by a question-and-answer session, LaCava promised “not to make any promises” and to “tell people what they really need to know about the condition of our city so they can make informed choices about how we’re going to move forward.” Describing the city’s projection of a $1.7 billion infrastructure deficit as “just a talking number,” LaCava said “our real deficit is probably $2 billion, $3 billion or $4 billion. “Telling you the good news, lulling you into a false sense of security, doesn’t help us,” he said. “Everybody knows where I’ve been, where I stand and what I’ve been willing to fight for,” LaCava said about his candidacy adding, “Because I’m a great collaborator, don’t mistake that for weakness. When our principles and values are challenged, you need to stand up and fight for what you believe in.” Like Lightner, LaCava comes from a grass-roots background politically. He started out becoming active at Bird Rock Elementary and Muirlands Middle School when his two grown daughters were young. He graduated from that to lead the Bird Rock Community Council before moving on to become president of the planning association, which makes land-use recommendations to the city. LaCava is currently chair of the San Diego Community Planners Committee, an umbrella group overseeing the city’s 42 community planning groups. In that role, he’s been instrumental in framing and managing the first citywide neighborhood input process on infrastructure priorities. LaCava pointed out that city council members are “responsible for a $3 billion company that has a lot of things already in the works.” The District 1 candidate said he “builds on the smart ideas of other people taking it to the next level and actually making things happen. “What keeps me energized is being able to help people on a regular basis,” LaCava said, adding he intends to be a voice for neighborhoods. “City Hall,” he noted, “often forgets the impact of what it does on our streets and in our neighborhoods.” Describing himself as a “voice of calmness and reason,” LaCava said, “We don’t need new ideas. We need new ideas that are actually realized.” Discussing his political agenda, LaCava said he would continue the work on establishing a comprehensive water policy, something Lightner has already begun. He noted the city “doesn’t create jobs,” but he added that what the city can do is “create a positive environment for job growth. “I want to make government more inclusive, more accountable and more transparent,” LaCava said. Noting it takes a great deal of money to run for public office, LaCava said of his fundraising campaign, “I’m obviously not a charity. This is an investment in my candidacy for a better district and for a better San Diego.” In closing, LaCava asked his supporters to join him in “our march to June 7, 2016,” the date of the District 1 primary election.