By Ben Gibbons
Staff Writer
Manhattan Beach residents appointed four new Manhattan Beach residents to city positions and approved Measure H on March 7th at various polling locations in Manhattan Beach, based on the location of their residence.
Manhattan Beach residents chose Los Angeles County projects coordinator Steve Napolitano, attorney and Manhattan Beach Planning Commissioner Nancy Hersman and small business owner Richard Montgomery as City Councilmembers. Residents also voted on Tim Lilligren as City Treasurer, although he was the only candidate for the position.
“During my time [as planning commissioner], I became more aware of the way the city works and how decisions are made,” Hersman said. “I decided to run for City Council because I felt we [as a city] could do better: we can work together better, make decisions more thoughtfully and not kick decisions down the road.”
A two-thirds vote within Los Angeles County approved Measure H, a measure to combat homelessness in LA. The measure will increase sales tax by a quarter of a cent, in order to fund anti-homeless programs and will generate $355 million annually to fund this cause, the LA County Voter Information Guide said. LA County residents approved Measure H with 67.44% of the votes in favor, a total of 379,005 votes, according to lavote.net.
“Measure H has outlined a process for housing, training, and rehabilitation,” Manhattan Beach resident Carrie Cook said. “I am a staunch supporter of Measure H; there should not be a homeless person in Los Angeles.
The candidates held four candidate forums, which gave them the opportunity to campaign by presenting their ideas regarding the community, if elected. Many residents left signs promoting their candidate of choice in their yard, and candidates were able to voice their views on the city website. Each elected candidate will be in office for one term, lasting three years and eight months.
“I had a great team of people who helped me to campaign,” Hersman said. “I sent one mailer to residents, had many meet and greets, ads in the Beach Reporter and went to several forums sponsored by different groups in the City.”
Napolitano won with 23.86% of the votes, a total of 3,026 votes. According to his website, Napolitano wants to keep the small town atmosphere of Manhattan Beach and hopes to make the city safer with improved police protection. He hopes to change the attitude of city hall and make it more accessible, inviting and responsive to residents.
“I ran for [city council] because I served [in city council] before and want to serve my community again,” Napolitano said. “I want to make sure that the city is doing the best it can and the most it can our citizens. We need to make sure that what makes Manhattan Beach a special place continues to be special.”
Hersman won with 18.29% of the votes, a total of 2,319 votes. According to her website, Hersman hopes to be a common sense voice for all residents and wants to protect individual and property rights of citizens. She also wants to improve the fiscal health of Manhattan Beach.
“One issue that is particularly important to me is the Joint Use Agreement between the City and MBUSD,” Hersman said. “I would like to see open discussions with all residents and come to a satisfactory result for both the City, the school district and the community that uses all of these facilities annually.”
Montgomery won with 15.03% of the votes, a total of 1,906 votes. According to his website, he promises to improve the city’s finances by fixing the previous council’s municipal spending issues. He also supports the city safety services and wants improved police force.
“We want to finish off and sign the shared use land agreement for the schools,” Montgomery said. “This current council extended it for one year but gave no intention to carry it forward. Our council not only wants to carry it forward, we want to make sure that payment is fair for all school fields.”
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