The race for the 1st Ward: Estrada versus Marquez

Andrew Edwards
Staff Writer

SAN BERNARDINO - The political competition to represent the city's 1st Ward involves the City Council's longest-serving member and a political newcomer.

Incumbent Esther Estrada, the longtime leader of Casa Ramona, is seeking her sixth full term on the council.

Challenger Virginia Marquez, who works for U.S. Rep. Joe Baca, has entered politics after a lengthy career with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Both women are products of San Bernardino's Westside, part of which is within the 1st Ward. The Ward includes the historically Latino communities around the Mount Vernon Avenue corridor, the government offices of downtown and on the east, the developing San Bernardino International Airport.

ESTHER ESTRADA

Estrada, 68, has worked as executive director of Casa Ramona since 1981. She took the job after working for the Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund as the organization's national community education director.

Estrada said that during her five years with MALDEF, she traveled around California and to destinations in Illinois, Texas, Arizona, Colorado and on one day, found herself delivering an address at Princeton University. Wherever she spoke, Estrada said her message was based on one principle: "Study. Learn. Go back to your community."

Estrada said that when she took on the management of Casa Ramona, the Spanish-tiled school house on Seventh Street offered job training services and welding classes to the community. The building also housed offices for city government and San Bernardino County mental health services.

The site is now home to a charter school called Casa Ramona Academy.

Estrada said the facility is due for a major restoration project.

Plans retain the part of the old school house that faces Seventh Street, but the rest of the building is slated to be torn down and replaced with new construction. A technology building and vocational training facility are set to be built at Casa Ramona.

When those projects are accomplished, Estrada said she will be ready to retire from Casa Ramona. She is also not ready yet to leave public office.

"Obviously, if I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't do it," she said. "I enjoy very much government and a policymaking environment."

In her bid for re-election, Estrada has said she wants to remain on the council to oversee the replacement of the Mount Vernon Avenue bridge. She also supports the potential construction of a new civic center to be shared by city and county government on the site of Carousel Mall. Another subject close to her heart is the gas station now under construction on Mount Vernon.

Her priorities also include redevelopment. She serves as one of San Bernardino's representatives on the Inland Valley Development Agency's board. The board is responsible for drawing business to the former Norton Air Force Base land around the airport. Business in the area includes Stater Bros. corporate headquarters.

She also seeks to guard the San Bernardino Economic Development Agency's funding from City Hall. The EDA has its own budget and Estrada opposed the council's decision to follow City Manager Charles McNeely's recommendation to borrow more than $5 million from the EDA as a means to balance the budget without making deep budget cuts.

Estrada was also at odds with a council majority in 2008 when she sought to exercise the council's rarely used subpoena power. Estrada wanted to compel city personnel to testify after the arrest of an Operation Phoenix youth center manager on suspicion of child molestation opened the door to revelations and allegations of mismanagement within the city's recreational programs.

The only council member to support Estrada's bid or for subpoenas was Wendy McCammack. On controversial votes, Estrada is often on the dissenting side of 4-3 votes that include McCammack and Councilman Chas Kelley in a council minority.

The minority bloc is generally supported by City Attorney James F. Penman, who is running for mayor this election. Estrada said she considers herself independent of any faction and Penman's frequent clashes with Mayor Pat Morris. She said she disagrees with Penman's repeated efforts to go beyond legal advice and influence city policymaking.

"We don't have to love each other, but we do have to do the right thing for the city," Estrada said, adding she doesn't see the existence of divided opinions on the dais as necessarily being a bad thing.

"This whole thing about disagreements, isn't that what democracy is about?," she asked.

VIRGINIA MARQUEZ

Marquez, 53, entered political life after retiring from a career in corrections. She works as a part-time field representative for U.S. Rep. Joe Baca and is now seeking elective office in her own right.

The candidate lists her political heroes as presidents John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama. She also admires suffragists Susan B. Anthony and Alice Paul and said Baca and San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris - who she says she first became aware of when he was a drug court judge and she worked in corrections - have also had an impact on her life.

"Both have been mentors to me, but none had any influence on who I am as a candidate," she said.

Marquez said she started working for the California Youth Authority in 1981 and switched to what is now called the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation three years later.

Within the prisons system, Marquez worked in a variety of assignments, and after leaving San Bernardino in the early 1980s, has lived in Oakland, the San Fernando Valley, El Centro, Chino and on two occasions, San Diego.

It was in San Diego where Marquez said she had her final and most fulfilling assignment in the prisons system, working at a drug treatment furlough facility for female inmates. If inmates stumbled, Marquez would have to drive them up to Chino Institution for Women.

"I really enjoyed working with those individuals who were in recovery because it shows people can change," she said.

Marquez said she officially retired from corrections in April. She carries a card in her purse that identifies her as a retired peace officer with the right to carry a firearm. She said she returned to San Bernardino from San Diego in 2008 to care for her elderly mother.

The sight of a palm tree growing in a storm drain, she said, led her to believe that that the 1st Ward needs more attention.

"She's (Estrada) a good lady. She's been a good leader, but perhaps it's time for a new leader," Marquez said.

Besides the palm tree, Marquez said one of the issues she would like to address immediately is the beautification of the 1st Ward. She also wants to launch a business advisory council for the Ward.

One current worry for city officials in San Bernardino and other municipalities is the potential release of tens of thousands of state inmates. San Bernardino's council recently made an attempt to address this issue by banning new group homes for parolees in the city.

Marquez said in an interview Friday that she would need to review research before saying if she thinks the council made the right call.

She said she generally supports initiatives intended to rehabilitate offenders.

"I'm all for programs that will enlighten people provide them with employable skills," she said.

In her job with Baca, Marquez said she works mainly with constituents in Rialto on issues affecting seniors and related to public safety.

She said she doesn't expect to experience a steep learning curve if she wins a seat at the dais.

"Working for Congressman Baca keeps me on my toes because we have daily discussions on current events," Marquez said.

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Candidate: Esther Estrada.

Age: 68

Occupation: Executive director, Casa Ramona Academy

Education: Three years at San Francisco State University

Family: Single, one adopted son

Candidate: Virginia Marquez.

Age: 53

Occupation: Part-time field representative for U.S. Rep. Joe Baca, D-San Bernardino.

Education: Bachelor of Arts in sociology, Cal State San Bernardino.

Family: Divorced.