Results tagged “Gary DeLong” from Press Corps

With state Sen. Alan Lowenthal endorsing Assistant City Auditor James Johnson in the 7th District City Council race Sunday -- on the heels of a couple of other significant endorsements and some new candidate faces -- next April's election is getting intriguing.

Last week, the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce announced endorsements in two races, supporting 9th District Councilman Val Lerch and 3rd District Councilman Gary DeLong for re-election. Before that, 7th District Councilwoman Tonia Reyes Uranga was endorsed by the city's largest employee association, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

While the 7th District and 9th District races have had a slate of contenders for several months, a second challenger who is likely to shake things up recently joined in the 3rd District race. Tom Marchese, an attorney who is vice president of the University Park Estates Neighborhood Association and a board member for the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust, is running against DeLong. Marchese has been an outspoken critic of the DeLong and city plans such as the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Swap. Another vocal critic, former Redevelopment Agency board member Terry Jensen, has been considering a run against DeLong since last month. I don't know whether these two will split the vote against DeLong, but I think they have potential to make a serious run for the 3rd District seat.

Now, things are starting to get intriguing, and Election Day is still five months away. This election may be one of the most significant ones for Long Beach in recent memory, as the city battles budget deficits, dwindling resources and a growing demand for serious reform at City Hall. The winners will have their work cut out for them. But first they have to get there, and that in itself won't be an easy task, even for many of the incumbents.

In case you're wondering who was behind those candidate endorsements announced Thursday by the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, keep reading.

The Chamber's Political Action Committee chose the endorsements, although only 10 of the 14 PAC members were able to attend candidate interviews, according to Chamber President and CEO Randy Gordon. Gordon said that PAC members are chosen by the existing PAC based on interviews with the Chamber members who are interested in joining.

Following is the list of the PAC members who were involved in the endorsement process, as provided by Gordon:

• Matt Kinley (Co-chairman of the PAC) - attorney with Tredway, Lumsdaine & Doyle, LLP
• David Neary (Co-chairman of the PAC) - president of WestLand Construction
• Randy Gordon (PAC secretary) - president and CEO of the Chamber
• Joanne Davis - president of Davis Group political consulting firm
• Lori Lofstrom - attorney for Holmes Lofstrom, PC
• Trini Jimenez - director of government affairs for Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Co.
• Jerry Miller - managing consultant for IMC Municipal Consulting and former Long Beach city manager
• Joshua Owen - president of Ability/Tri-Modal, a trucking, warehousing and distribution company
• Jay Davis - president of Universal Healthcare Insurance Agency
• Nancy Ahlswede - executive director, Apartment Association, California Southern Cities

While the PAC membership includes a few notable names, the one that jumps out at me is Jerry Miller, former city manager and now lobbyist. Miller was (perhaps still is) working for Los Cerritos Wetlands owner Tom Dean to convince the City Council to engage in a deal to exchange the wetlands for several city properties. The still-unresolved deal is highly controversial and faced criticism from fiscal conservatives and environmentalists alike.

What's interesting is that council members Val Lerch and Gary DeLong both voted for the deal, and now the PAC of which Miller is a member has unanimously endorsed both of them. Meanwhile, Councilwoman Tonia Reyes Uranga, who was one of four council members to vote against the land exchange, didn't receive the Chamber PAC's endorsement, which instead chose to stay neutral in the 7th District race.

Is there a connection? It's hard to say. To be fair, the Chamber has endorsed DeLong and Lerch in the past, but has never endorsed Uranga. One could also argue that Miller's experience as city manager makes him an ideal PAC member to opine who should lead Long Beach. Still, DeLong also happens to be running against two vocal critics of the wetlands deal, Tom Marchese and Terry Jensen. I can't imagine Tom Dean would be too happy if he learned that Miller had endorsed one of them.

Melody Ross, the 16-year-old girl who was fatally shot Friday night after the Wilson High-Poly High footballl game, wasn't on the agenda at Tuesday's council meeting. But she was on the minds of council members and the public alike.

Several council members and Mayor Bob Foster remarked on the teen's tragic death. A few members of the public demanded that the city create more park and recreation programs to keep youths out of trouble and more police to keep the streets safe.

Despite cuts implemented this year to every city department -- parks funding was drastically reduced and the number of police officers in Long Beach were slashed back to almost 2002 levels -- Councilman Gary DeLong noted that the council had voted at the end of the budget discussions to restore $500,000 to parks and rec programs.

Still, with more budget deficits expected through 2012, one has to wonder just how city officials will keep public safety programs -- both prevention and law enforcement -- at the levels that Long Beach needs. There's no way to know if Melody would have been saved if there had been just one more cop on the street or if the shooter had gotten a little more positive attention as a child. But having more of those resources couldn't hurt.

The District Weekly reported over the weekend that Terry Jensen, a former Redevelopment Agency board member who gained recognition last year for opposing the Measure I infrastructure parcel tax, plans to run against Councilman Gary DeLong in the 3rd District. Jensen certainly gained a following among gadflies and council critics, but will he have enough support -- financially and otherwise -- to unseat DeLong?

Read the District's story here, and stay tuned for a follow-up by the Press-Telegram as well.

 

 

 

The Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce released a statement today in support of a proposal by City Council members Robert Garcia and Gary DeLong to begin investigating how to increase the number of locals who receive affordable housing. About 60 percent of the city's affordable housing residents were already living in Long Beach. Here's the full statement:

Randy Gordon, President and CEO of the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce
released the following statement today regarding Councilmembers Robert
Garcia and Gary DeLong's proposed housing preference:

"It is a policy priority of the Long Beach Chamber to support responsible
housing policies that help attract and retain Long Beach businesses.
Specifically, the Chamber is committed to supporting efforts, such as the
proposed housing preference, which will increase workforce housing
opportunities for Long Beach residents."

"The Chamber supports Councilmembers Robert Garcia and Gary DeLong's
upcoming request of the City Attorney and City Manager to return to the
Council within 60 days to report on approaches to strengthen the local
housing preference program in new and existing residential developments."


"When housing developments open, the City of Long Beach conducts an outreach
effort to local residents before opening up the new housing to applicants
who do not live in Long Beach. According to Garcia and DeLong,
approximately 60% of new units go to people who live or work in Long Beach
at the time of application. This leaves 40% of Long Beach's workforce
housing stock to residents who do not live or work in Long Beach. Long Beach
residents deserve better."

"The Chamber looks forward to working with Councilmembers Garcia and DeLong
to create a stronger housing preference for Long Beach residents and
workers. City resources should serve Long Beach residents first."

Long Beach City Council members Robert Garcia and Gary DeLong want to examine giving preference to more local residents in affordable housing developments. They announced today that at next week's council meeting they will be asking the council to approve having city staff report on the feasibility of stronger local presence.

According to a press release from DeLong and Garcia, 60 percent of affordable housing in Long Beach goes to local residents, but they would like to see more. No changes to the current affordable housing system would be implemented at Tuesday's meeting. It would only be the first step in the process of possibly changing Long Beach's policy.

See the full council agenda here.

Councilman Gary DeLong seemed to surprise everyone in the Council Chambers moments ago when he announced he would vote against a new contract with the Long Beach Police Officers Association that would save the city millions of dollars.

After months of negotiations between POA and city officials to get police officers to forgo some pay raises, POA President Steve James called DeLong's vote a "slap ... in the face" and Councilman Patrick O'Donnell said DeLong was "grandstanding."

DeLong said he couldn't support the contract because it doesn't contain reforms of the city's costly pension program. Other council members thanked police officers for reopening their contract and reducing their pay raises even though they didn't have to.

The new contract will give officers an 11 percent raise spread out over five years instead of the nearly 9.3 percent raise they were due Sept. 30. The deal, which was overwhelmingly approved by POA members, will save the city $7.6 million this year and $15 million over the next five years.

"Your comments are the epitome of the dysfunction we've dealt with," James told DeLong. "Don't slap these people (police officers) in the face. This needs to pass with a 9-0 vote. They deserve it."

DeLong responded that he had tried to reach James on Monday to inform him of his decision and that he doesn't like to "blindside" people, but O'Donnell interrupted DeLong, saying: "Why didn't you tell us?"

As DeLong and O'Donnell began to argue and Mayor Bob Foster tried to silence O'Donnell for speaking out of turn, O'Donnell shouted out: "This is grandstanding."

The council approved the POA contract 8-1, with DeLong dissenting.

As Long Beach City Council members went through some of the most collaborative negotiating and compromising that I have seen to come up with a viable budget plan Tuesday, an entertaining exchange occurred between Mayor Bob Foster and Councilman Gary DeLong, chairman of the Budget Oversight Committee.

After DeLong sat down and ticked off a long list of the revised budget restorations that had been agreed upon, Foster asked: "Mr. DeLong, do these balance?"

"Within $12,000," DeLong replied.

"I guess that's good enough for government," the mayor quipped, half-jokingly.

The sad thing is, when it comes to government accounting, Foster was probably right.

When times are tough, common sense says to put that extra cash in the bank, under the mattress, in the cookie jar or wherever else people squirrel away money.

Well, times couldn't be tougher for the city of Long Beach, as officials try to pass a budget that has the largest general fund deficit - $38.3 million - in the city's history.

In the middle of seemingly endless budget talks Tuesday, the City Council approved a measure that would give Long Beach its own cookie jar. Maybe a better term would be a safe, because it would come with a lock to which only the people of Long Beach would hold the key.

The proposal by council members Val Lerch and Gary DeLong is to create a City Charter amendment requiring a "rainy day fund."

Under their proposal, whenever the city's revenue growth exceeds 5 percent over the previous year, half of that money would be placed in the fund. In lean fiscal times, the city could withdraw up to 50 percent of the rainy day fund in one year, but no more than the amount of the revenue decline from the previous year.

The council unanimously approved having the Charter Amendment Committee consider the feasibility of implementing the fund when it meets Sept. 22. The council would have to approve placing the fund on the election ballot, likely in 2010, and Long Beach voters would decide whether to approve the charter amendment. 

It wasn't heated debate, fiery dialogue or hot tempers that stoked the fires of Monday evening's Budget Oversight Committee meeting and City Council budget workshop. It was the air conditioning system, or lack thereof.

Apparently, the AC wasn't turned on for the meetings that began at 5 p.m. and ended close to 8:30 p.m. True, it is unusual for a meeting to take place in the council chambers on a Monday night. The chambers are tall and spacious, and the crowd was small, both of which probably helped the situation. But by night's end, the room was hot, humid and uncomfortable on a day when the high temperature reached 91 degrees in Long Beach. I know I was sweating, and I wasn't one of the city staffers sitting in the hot seat (no pun intended, really) as council members asked them rapid-fire questions about the budget.

Maybe that's why council members Gary DeLong and Patrick O'Donnell disappeared midway through the 6 p.m. workshop (both are part of the Budget Oversight Committee and had been there since 5 p.m.). Councilman Dee Andrews disappeared later as well, as did Mayor Bob Foster, ironically just shortly after he responded to Councilwoman Rae Gabelich, who had been complaining about the members being absent during an important budget meeting. He told there was nothing he could do to make people stay, and apparently that included himself.

Let's just hope the AC is on tonight, when budget discussions very well could go on for hours. My guess is the meeting could approach midnight. So, a plea to whoever is in charge of that "on" switch at City Hall: Sitting through hours of city budget meetings can seem like hell, but please don't make the room temperature feel like it.

Ron Nelson, executive director of the Long Beach Museum of Art, sent out an e-mail over the last few days trying to rally support to attend Monday night's City Council Budget Oversight Committee meeting as the council considers whether to support Mayor Bob Foster's proposal to eliminate funding for the museum's administration. A few members of the Museum Foundation's board and other supporters were there, but as you can read in my article today, committee chairman Councilman Gary DeLong didn't have the most sympathetic words for Nelson.

The museum director is also hoping to rally support before the council goes into closed session today at 5 p.m. to discuss the museum's property lease and other issues. Confused about why Foster would want to cut the museum's funding? It's a case of everyone showing up to eat a seven-course meal, but no one wanting to foot the bill. Read an in-depth account of the standoff in the following file: Museum of Art.doc.

Soon, the council may make a decision in an open meeting. They have about two weeks to do it, because the Sept. 15 deadline to pass the budget is growing ever closer.

Long Beach City Councilman Gary DeLong, 3rd District, has been elected chairman of the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority's board for 2009-2010.

The Alameda Corridor is a 20-mile railroad expressline that connects the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles to the transcontinental rail network east of downtown Los Angeles. The authority has been involved in widening roads and improving rail infrastructure to improve the efficiency of transporting cargo.

Work on the corridor has resulted in significant air emission reductions. Since the opening of the Alameda Corridor in 2002, more than 10,000 tons of total emission reductions have resulted from the consolidation of freight rail operations and the alleviation of traffic congestion at the more than 200 rail crossings in the Southland, according to ACTA.

I'm still catching my breath after covering last week's news about Police Chief Tony Batts leaving for Oakland, so here is something that the City Council approved last week -- their committee appointments.

Snoozing already? Sure, committees aren't the sexiest things in the world, but they do serve a purpose, as gatekeepers to much of the legislation that ends up before the council. Mayor Bob Foster made the committee appointments, and most members are on three or four committees, not including the Charter Amendment Committee that is headed by the mayor and on which every council member sits. However, Councilwoman Rae Gabelich sits on five committees.

Councilman Gary DeLong will continue as chairman of the Budget Oversight Committee, supported by council members Patrick O'Donnell and Suja Lowenthal, which could be considered one of the most important ones right now during Long Beach's budget crisis.

Many of the committee appointments seem quite appropriate. Who better to head the Housing and Neighborhoods Committee than man-of-the-people Councilman Dee Andrews? And of course, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd district council members are on the Tidelands and Harbor Committee, since they're the only ones whose districts include a shoreline or port areas. Unlike the other council members, who each leads one or two committees, newcomer Councilman Robert Garcia doesn't have such a role, but he is a member of the Federal Legislation Committee, the State Legislation Commitee and the Tidelands and Harbor Committee.

Click the following link and see the entire committee list for yourself:

Council committees.pdf

Last year, two Long Beach City Council members sat on the four-member Los Cerritos Wetlands Authority board. But that only lasted about two months until someone discovered a stipulation in the Authority's bylaws that says elected officials, appointed officials or employees of city governments can't represent the two non-government entities that make up half of the organization.

So, Councilman Patrick O'Donnell, then representing the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, was out. Councilman Gary DeLong continued to represent the city of Long Beach on the Wetlands Authority's board. The other two entitities on the board are the city of Seal Beach and the State Coastal Conservancy.

Now, O'Donnell or any other elected official may soon be able to represent any of the agencies that oversee the Wetlands Authority, which is in the process of acquiring and restoring pieces of Los Cerritos Wetlands in southeast Long Beach and by Seal Beach.

Tonight, the council will consider approving this change to the Wetlands Authority's bylaws, which also has been approved by Seal Beach's city council and the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy. The Coastal Conservancy is expected to approve the change next month, which would make the bylaw revision official.

DeLong has asked the council to approve the change tonight, although O'Donnell wouldn't tell me yesterday whether he necessarily wants to return to the Wetlands Authority.

"Our goal is to potentially give Long Beach one more voice on the board, which would allow us to further advocate for the wetlands area and ultimately its restoration," O'Donnell said.

O'Donnell, long an environmental advocate, received some flack last week for joining the council in a 5-4 vote approving a deal to exchange Long Beach's public service yard for part of the wetlands. Environmentalists criticized the lack of a provision to ensure that the wetlands area is preserved and won't ever be sold off or developed by a greedy council. Under the wetlands plan, the Wetlands Authority will buy the property from the city and preserve it.

The Wetlands Authority's board won't have the power to pay more for the wetlands than the state is willing to fork over based on the land's appraised value, so having multiple Long Beach representatives on the board shouldn't influence the deal one way or the other.

Among the many items that went before the Long Beach City Council in a busy and long-running meeting Tuesday was a resolution in support of the state propositions that will be on the ballot next week.

The council voted 4-3 to support the resolutions. Council members Suja Lowenthal, Patrick O'Donnell, Dee Andrews and Tonia Reyes Uranga voted in favor, while council members Robert Garcia, Gerrie Schipske and Rae Gabelich dissented. Vice Mayor Val Lerch abstained, as he usually does on resolutions about ballot measures or similar issues. Lerch has said a non-partisan governmental body like the council shouldn't take a position on issues going before voters, just as it shouldn't back political candidates. Councilman Gary DeLong was absent from the vote.

Will the council's vote make a difference? Polls show voters are likely to reject the propositions May 19. Only Garcia articulated Tuesday why he couldn't support the legislation -- he said he can't support Prop. 1D, which would shift First 5 Children's Commission funding to general health and human services programs for children, and he called the Prop. 1E mental health measure "draconian."

Read up on all of the propositions at the California League of Women Voters voter guide site. It's an objective site that shows the arguments on both sides of each proposition.

What's happening with the Long Beach Airport's modernization plan? How does the airport impact the city, positively and negatively? What's going to happen with JetBlue and the Boeing C-17 program?

These are a few of the issues that will be discussed Tuesday night at Beer & Politics, a monthly discussion forum. The event will begin at 7 p.m. at Gallagher's Pub & Grill, 2751 E. Broadway. The speakers at the event will be 3rd District City Councilman Gary DeLong, 7th District Councilwoman Tonia Reyes-Uranga and Airport Director Mario Rodriguez.

Check it out. Beer & Politics is always a lively discussion.

The monthly Beer & Politics event Tuesday night at Gallagher's Pub & Grill started out a little bawdier than usual.

City Councilman Gary DeLong and Assistant City Manager Suzanne Frick were there to discuss a proposed land swap to preserve Los Cerritos Wetlands.

The night began with organizer Michael Clements joking that Councilman Gary DeLong was a Beer & Politics "virgin." Funny at first, but the joke stayed alive longer than it should have.

Shortly after that, DeLong was discussing how past efforts to preserve the wetlands have failed and said: "Hopefully, the key difference between now and then is we're actually going to consummate the deal."

Ooohhh. Maybe that Beer & Politics virgin shouldn't be talking about consummating anything.
Of course, as the saying goes, "politics makes strange bedfellows."

Apparently, Councilman Gary DeLong isn't a fan of long-winded, late-night City Council meetings on Tuesdays.

During tonight's meeting, when the council was discussing possible furloughs for workers, DeLong heartily agreed with a statement by Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske that even the legislative department -- council and mayor -- should make cuts. DeLong joked that he would suggest council members take Tuesdays off for their furloughs.

No one is seriously suggesting council members should take part in the furloughs, I think. Their jobs after all are only part-time.

But heck, if the council took Tuesdays off, I don't know that I would complain. Are there any good TV shows on Tuesday nights? Maybe a reality show?

Actually, I guess I already watch a reality show every Tuesday in the council chambers. There's drama, conflict and the occasional crazy person. Now if only we could get DeLong and Rae Gabelich to show us their salsa moves. Or perhaps Mayor Bob Foster would regale us with a song.