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TOP NEWS SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO SHOULD KNOW THIS WEEK

District 3 Election Draws Trio of Council Candidates

BY COLLIN BREAUX

With the General Municipal Election for a seat on the San Juan Capistrano City Council getting closer each day, the field of candidates has been finalized.

Three individuals—Cody Martin, Paul Lopez and John Campbell—have been certified to run in the election on Nov. 8, when the seat for District 3 is up for election.

Lopez, Campbell and Martin have been campaigning for the seat, currently held by Mayor Derek Reeve, who has said he will not be running for reelection.

Reeve announced during a City Council meeting on Aug. 2 that he would not be running again, saying he felt he and others had accomplished their goal of making San Juan Capistrano a better place after his 12 years on the dais.

Martin—who currently serves on the city’s Parks, Equestrian and Community Services Commission—previously ran in 2018 and spoke about his intention for a second go in an interview with The Capistrano Dispatch.

“I’d really like to emphasize we take care of our parks. I’d like to see a skateboard park get built … for our youth and for the average Joe,” Martin said. “I think we’ve done a pretty good job on Parks and Rec keeping our open space nice.”

Martin’s other emphasis is on keeping “small-town vibes” with San Juan Capistrano and ensuring “responsible development that fits with the community that we can get consensus with the general public.”

“It’s very important to protect the city, protect the Mission, keep Los Rios Street, Los Rios Street, get the traffic under control,” Martin said. “We have too many Irvines and Santa Anas. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, and those cities serve their place, but people love this town for a reason.”

Lopez is currently on the city’s Cultural Heritage Commission and moved to San Juan five years ago from two blocks away in Dana Point. During an interview about his campaign, Lopez said he has always had a passion for helping other people from a young age.

Lopez works as an attorney for a nonprofit that provides mental health services to low-income and underserved communities in Southern California and is raising his kids in San Juan. Lopez said he is running for the City Council, because he loves San Juan Capistrano.

“I’m deeply invested in this community,” Lopez said.

Lopez’ time on the CHC has taught him how to balance considering the city’s past with serving its future, he said. His wife teaches at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School.

“It’s given me more insight into the workings of a city and what the citizens want,” Lopez said.

Issues that Lopez said are important are public safety, homelessness and traffic. New and creative ways to address homelessness that are also comprehensive and permanent are needed, he said.

Solutions should come forward for homelessness that don’t involve law enforcement, such as treatment, Lopez said.

“Traffic is another issue that comes up all the time,” Lopez said. “For anyone that lives or works in San Juan Capistrano, it can get backed up on Del Obispo.”

Lopez also mentioned the need to deal with parking availability.

Campbell was not available to be interviewed as of press time, but he did discuss his campaign and platform during a recent Coffee Chat discussion.

During a campaign talk at a recent Coffee Chat discussion, Campbell said he has been in San Juan for 16 years and observing city politics for a long time.

Campbell said he likes the stability of the current City Council, respects councilmembers and wouldn’t consider running if Reeve was up for re-election. The City Council is a place to make decisions for the citizens, and he would serve with integrity if elected, Campbell said.

Campbell said he loves San Juan and wants to give back to the community. The City Council is not a place for agendas or drama, he said.

In his candidate statement, Campbell said he is a semi-retired businessman who worked in construction and as a medical industry consultant.

“My wife and I have called this historic town home since 2006. I am deeply involved in our community,” Campbell said. “I serve as Treasurer and Board Member of the Camino Real Playhouse and have financially supported and hosted events for nonprofits, including The Boys and Girls Club, Homefront America, CREER and Mission Basilica School.”

Fully funding first responders and deputy sheriffs “to promote a safer city,” exploring immediate and long-term solutions to homelessness, and facing traffic and parking challenges “headon” are listed as some of the focuses of Campbell’s campaign.

Prioritizing fiscal accountability and stability, supporting the business economy, fighting “any attempt” to raise taxes and defending and protecting open spaces and the town’s equestrian heritage are also noted as important issues for Campbell. He said he also wants to develop a program for San Juan residents to receive a free parking pass for the downtown corridor, where paid parking has been instituted.

The elections for Districts 2 and 4 have been canceled by the city, because incumbents Troy Bourne and John Taylor are the only people who filed to run. The two incumbents will be sworn in for a new four-year term beginning in December.

Taylor will serve his second consecutive term after previously sitting on the council from 2010 to 2014 and lives in the Los Rios Historic District. Bourne, currently in his first term, is a developer who helped helm Reata Glen, a retirement community in Rancho Mission Viejo.

Canceling the District 2 and 4 elections will reportedly result in a savings of approximately $12,000.

The only election for the San Juan Capistrano City Council this year is for District 3, which has drawn three candidates: Cody Martin, Paul Lopez and John Campbell. Photo: File

City Adds Further Housing Element Updates in Attempt to Meet State Requirements

BY COLLIN BREAUX

Like every municipality throughout California, the City of San Juan Capistrano is working through satisfying an update to its housing regulations, which is required by state law.

As part of the update, the city recently sent in a new Housing Element—which serves as a municipality’s housing guidelines—to the state for certification. While the California Department of Housing and Community Development found the update “addresses many statutory requirements,” further revisions were requested before the Housing Element is certified.

Particularly, Paul McDougall—senior program manager for the Department’s Division of Housing Policy Development—required the city to explicitly make affordable housing goals clearer; target geographic areas or neighborhoods and areas of higher need; further address the needs of what are deemed to be extremely low-income households; and reduce government restraints when it comes to facilitating housing.

Extremely low-income is defined as being less than half of Orange County’s annual median income of $119,100 for a four-person household. The city must accommodate for 324 housing units for extremely low-income households.

“Specifically, they wanted additional goals, actions, metrics and milestones associated with the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing program,” said City Senior Planner Laura Stokes during a presentation to the City Council on Aug. 16. “What that means is we have 21 different programs identified within our Housing Element, and the state wanted us to add more information as far how each of those programs furthers fair housing.”

In response, city staff recommended several tweaks to the Housing Element include sending out newsletters with information about fair housing laws in English and Spanish; adding information about plans to incorporate affordable housing for at-risk populations at the current City Hall site; and expanding the city’s service contract with Mercy House, which assists people dealing with homelessness.

“The state identified that we needed more information about our reasonable accommodations process. Reasonable accommodations are needed when a city’s code acts as a barrier to individuals with disabilities,” Stokes said. “In that, the city already initiated a code amendment back in June in order to codify a reasonable accommodations process that will give a clear and legible process for any citizen to review and pursue, should they need it.”

The City Council approved the changes on Aug. 16. The revised Housing Element will be sent back to the state for possible approval.