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Hear Them: 8th District Candidates Laurie Angel & Wesley Turnbow Put Incumbent Councilman Al Austin On Defensive Re His Record On Airport Int'l Flights, Dense Daisy Ave. Housing Development, Resident Outreach And Sales Tax Hike Ballot Measure

Audible audience displeasure, scoffing and some boos, as Austin defends tax hike ballot measure and housing development vote


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(Mar. 10, 2016) -- Eighth district Council incumbent Al Austin found himself on the defensive but conceded no ground as candidates Laurie Angel and Wesley Turnbow publicly challenged and required him to defend aspects of his record during a Mar. 9 candidate forum at the Petroleum Club.


Left to right: Laurie Angel, Councilman Al Austin, Wesley Turnbow

[Scroll down for further.]




During the one-hour candidate forum presented by the Los Cerritos Neighborhood Association, candidates Turnbow and Angel challenged the 8th district incumbent regarding his response to a proposed customs facility/international flights at LB Airport; criticized his voted support for a dense housing development on the former Will J. Reid site (4747 Daisy Ave.); called neighborhood outreach inadequate during his term of office; and opposed a sales tax hike ballot measure -- that Austin supports -- that would raise LB's sales tax to 10% (when it's 9% in Signal Hill/Lakewood and 8% in most OC cities.)


The audience of roughly 150 people responded with audible displeasure / scoffing when Councilman Austin voiced support for the sales tax hike...and with boos and some shouted disapproval when he offered arguments in support of the dense housing development that he voted (with a unanimous Council) to approve at 4747 Daisy Ave.


LBREPORT.com provides salient on-demand audio below.

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Asked about a federal customs facility, Councilman Austin noted that he'd voted against conducting a feasibility study (which the Council voted to pursue 6-3.) "I think as a City we should be driving the future of our airport, not the tenants at the airport. I think the risks [of having an international terminal] far outweigh the rewards...The only party that really benefits from that is the airline, JetBlue, and there are unintended consequences [including] private jets."


Councilman Al Austin

Candidate Turnbow said he opposes international flights but said the key was "managing" the noise ordinance...and cited the interests of some Airport tenants. "JetBlue has been a great citizen; you have to work with them...[Cited Aeroplex, general aviation facility] we've got to work with these people...you don't just say 'against, against' and then wonder why the FAA comes knocking on your door one day...I've spent my life on boards and working these kind of deals." Mr. Turnbow also criticized a proposal (co-agendized by Austin a few weeks earlier but quickly withdrawn) that would have created an Airport "Master Plan."


Wesley Turnbow

Candidate Angel said simply casting a vote against the feasibility study on the customs facility was insufficient to meet the task. "You have to get the rest of the City Council on board...You can't just passively sit back, say you're against [international flights]...[W]e have to do something about it, and I believe that I can bring the leadership that will do that."


Laurie Angel

Ms. Angel also said Councilman Austin knew about Airport actions related to the customs facility in 2013 [August and November 2013 Airport memos to Councilmembers described Airport mgm't actions exploring a customs facility] but failed to disclose those Airport actions to the public and didn't move to stop them at the time, effectively letting the proposal advance to its current status.

"Our incumbent [Austin] had knowledge of the international facility way back in 2013 but failed to inform the community, to engage you and let you know that this occurred," Ms. Angel told the audience. "If he had been more proactive, then we might have been able to put the stops to such an action...[but now] there is all kinds of momentum built up for the international facility and now we're going to have to figure out how to put the brakes on..."

To hear the candidates exchanges on the Airport, click here.

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In contrast to 2nd and 6th district candidates, 8th district candidates Angel and Turnbow both said they opposed the June sales tax hike ballot measure. Candidate Turnbow called the measure "inherently short-sighted. It is an arm's length pushaway of any business who wants to be in Long Beach."

Candidate Angel said she's opposes the sales tax hike "because there's no accountability in the measure. If you read the measure, the ordinance basically says it may be used for infrastructure, may be used for police services; it's wide open; there are no guarantee that the money will be spent according to what's being proposed." She added, "It's also going to be a burden on our local businesses. We're going to lose business in Long Beach."

Councilman Austin didn't respond directly to either candidates' arguments but cited infrastructure and police staffing needs and said the Council had acted "boldly" and is giving residents the choice of whether to approve the sales tax increase. "If we want to have a world class city, then we need to step up and sacrifice as a city to do it," Councilman Austin said...and addressing taxpayers, he added: "You guys have passed school bonds, you've passed community college bonds, you've passed metro bonds, you have not passed anything in the city of Long Beach in 40 years."

To hear the candidates exchanges on the proposed sales tax increase ballot measure, click here.

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Citing as an example the Riverwalk housing development (4747 Daisy Ave., which Councilman Austin voted to support), candidates were asked how they would balance the desires of their 8th district constituents with the desires of other Council districts and the Mayor on issues that might affect the 8th district.

Candidate Angel replied, "I'd listen to the residents, because the majority of residents that live in that neighborhood did not want that development [Riverwalk] with that level of density." Ms. Angel continued, "We have to have the discussion with the public beforehand, on all these issues, we have to talk about balance. We can't let some people suffer for the benefit of others and that's citywide. It's the same thing with the airport; it has to be about balance; you can't be unduly be impacted in the 8th district so everybody else can have a trip to Mexico, you can't do that. It's not right and it's not fair."

Councilman Austin said, "That sounds great. The real issue with Riverwalk is the fact the Boy Scouts decided to sell their property. [Audience shouts "no."]...It was a private transaction...There were several meetings [audience laughter, scoffing] I was at a meeting just the other night with the Dominguez Gap neighborhood association...and most of the residents there are in favor of the project...Ms. Angel wasn't engaged in that outreach because she didn't live in the neighborhood...and I reject the fact that somehow Riverwalk is going to impact Los Cerritos in anyway, because it won't. There will be no car traffic trips in Los Cerritos...The density of Riverwalk is very similar to the density of another gated community [in Los Cerritos], that's Crowne Point [audience shouts "no, no."] Amid shouts of "no, no" Councilman Austin added, "You guys put me in office to do something and not do nothing, so if it means developing park space, if it means improving infrastructure, in a neighborhood that's been neglected for decades...that's a positive."

Ms. Angel responded; "I did go to the meetings from the beginning. I did sign the petition against it, as 250 people in the neighborhood did...The public had meetings, but [the project] was already done. Nothing changed on that project after it came [to the Council.] It may be similar density [to Crown Pointe] but there's no accommodation for vehicles. You have 2 and 3 story homes with 3-5 bedrooms that have a two car garage, no driveways and you can't park on the street...and then it is setting the tone for other projects..."

On the "private transaction" aspect of the issue, Mr. Turnbow said the city started to develop brand new zoning, but didn't go through with that process and didn't go through with the normal process of the project coming to the Council with Councilmembers negotiating with the developer for lesser density. "The City got involved [in two ways] in a private transaction and got it wrong," he said.

To hear the candidates exchanges on the issue of neighborhood vs. citywide impacts, click here.

In their closing statements:

Candidate Laurie Angel said: "I have been lived in the neighborhood for 27 years. I have been active in the community, very active, for 20 years. I have worked for 16 years...to try to do Redevelopment in the North Long Beach Project Area Committee, which included 7 Council districts and Bixby Knolls...I have a background in finance for 35 years...I know what a challenge it is for small businesses...I've worked in a medium size manufacturing company and I've worked in a Fortune 500 company...In terms of bringing things before the public, that's what having regular community meetings is all about...It's a dialogue; you don't tell people what you're doing; you listen to what they have to say so you can help solve the problems that are going on in the neighborhoods...And we've been missing this for four years now. And I like getting the newsletter but you know, it's not enough. So my plan would be to bring back the community meetings, and work more closely with the 9th and the 7th district in terms of coordinating effort..."

Councilman Al Austin said: "This community looks a lot better than it did four years ago. Business along Atlantic and throughout the district is a lot more vibrant today than it was four years ago. Our community is much more engaged than it was four years ago. To hear that this community is not engaged in laughable...We're making progress and the chemistry is right now in the 8th district. Uptown is now relevant...We have this Airport issue and I think we're going to get through that and not everybody agrees on that, but we're going to get past it, we're going to prevail...Continuous progress; there's no reason to push the reset button; I've given you no reason to do that; there's no egregious action that's happened...or to try a new experiment. I'm the one with experience and I'm the one who's delivered..."

Candidate Wesley Turnbow said: "I am a businessman...I've made cuts when necessary. I made sure it's competitive...I understand budgets...As your Councilman, I dedicate myself...to standing town hall meetings throughout the district, throughout the city. we will make sure our neighborhoods are listened to..."

To hear the candidates closing statements, click here.

Vote by mail ballots begin flying next week; election day is April 12. If no candidate receives 50%+1 votes, the top two proceed to a June runoff...when they'll be on the same ballot with the LB sales tax increase alongside Dem and Repub presidential candidates.



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