Endorsement: Desert Sun Editorial Board picks for La Quinta council, mayor race
Laid-back La Quinta has recently been anything but, it seems. Citizens are duking it out over short-term vacation rentals and rose up to beat back the Coral Mountain surf resort project in a contentious process that lasted many months. And those are just two hot-button issues.
On Nov. 8 La Quinta voters will elect a mayor and two councilmembers who will have to deal with the fallout from those brawls and find a way to move the city forward — and bring it together.
Mayor Linda Evans is facing two challengers, Alan Woodruff and Robert Sylk, in her bid for a fifth term. (In La Quinta, the mayor is elected every two years, while council members are elected at large and serve four-year terms.)
John Peña, a member of the council since 2014 who also previously served as mayor, is seeking another term. Councilmember Robert Radi is not running for re-election. Peña is vying with Richard Gray, Brian Hanrahan, Joe Johnson and Deborah McGarrey. The top two vote-getters of the five will win the council seats.
Though there are three mayoral wannabees and five for council, that creates the illusion of more choice than voters actually have when the qualifications of candidates are considered.
Mayoral race
With Evans having served four terms, we theoretically could see an argument for fresh leadership in the mayor’s office. Unfortunately, neither Sylk nor Woodruff has what it takes to lead a city of La Quinta’s size and complexity.
Woodruff is a congenial enough personality, with a passion for animal welfare and physical fitness, but his policymaking background is lacking — he hasn’t even been a volunteer on a key city commission. Sylk, on the other hand, has broader business experience but can be more of a fault-finder than a bridge-builder. He claims to want to get the city “back on track,” but is short on specifics about how he would do that.
Evans knows the city, its budget and its processes well, and with economic clouds on the horizon — including the possible decline of transient occupancy tax revenue should Measure A pass — the city needs someone with her professional experience at the helm. She is a hard worker and visible leader. But she would do well to acknowledge that the electorate is restless.
Many constituents see city hall as deaf to their concerns, and too cozy with or lenient toward developers and business interests (Exhibit A: SilverRock, aka Talus). At the same time, some residents of unincorporated areas to the south and east of the city — in what some refer to as La Quinta’s “sphere of influence” — have been miffed about tone-deaf suggestions that projects deemed inappropriate for La Quinta could be hunky dory if relocated to their backyards.
We hope — and expect — Evans can course-correct.
Council race
On the council front, the three most qualified candidates are Peña, McGarrey and Johnson. The choice here is whether to stick with the status quo or shake things up.
Peña’s depth of knowledge on city issues is unparalleled, and would be valuable to retain on the council given the uncertainty ahead.
Peña and McGarrey seem to be two peas in a pod, with Peña — and the rest of the current council — endorsing McGarrey, a 22-year La Quinta local resident who has worked in public affairs for Southern California Gas for the last 13 years.
Although McGarrey has not held public office before, her professional background seems to have given her a good working knowledge not only of city operations but also regional issues and organizations such as CVAG and California League of Cities.
Johnson, a former consumer affairs investigator for Los Angeles County, is more of an outsider, though he has been on La Quinta’s housing commission. He has been particularly critical of the city’s approach toward development projects and unlike the current council, he supports Measure A, which would curtail short-term rentals in much of the city. We expect he might bring more skepticism and transparency to council affairs, which could be what the city needs in wake of recent developments.
Frustrations and tensions have been running high among some La Quinta residents as of late. While those animated by a particular issue — STVR or Coral Mountain opponents, for example — may have an inclination to vote out all incumbents, a sudden shift to a new mayor and two new councilmembers with zero or limited city government experience could be chaotic and fracture La Quinta even further as economic clouds gather on the horizon. It’s important to consider the big picture in such votes.
For those reasonably satisfied with La Quinta as is, Evans, Peña and McGarrey promise continuity. For those who want to see a bit of new thinking in city hall without totally upending the apple cart, Evans, Peña and Johnson — or Evans, McGarrey and Johnson — would have our vote.
Editor's note: Editorial Board member Laura James recused herself from the council race endorsement due to a conflict of interest.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Endorsement: Desert Sun Editorial Board picks for La Quinta council, mayor race
