The incumbents are facing two challengers in the four-way race for two seats on the La Habra City Council.
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La Habra remains one of the few local municipalities in Orange County with at-large elections, which means all voters can cast a ballot for who they think should serve the next four-year terms for those two council seats.
Incumbents James Gomez and Jose Medrano are facing challenges from Miles Matias and Susan Pritchard.
Gomez, who has been on the council since 2002, emphasized in his campaign statement: “Together, we have made meaningful strides. We have expanded opportunities for local businesses, bringing in more places to shop. Places such as Costco, Walmart, Hobby Lobby and Trader Joe’s are a few businesses that have strengthened our local economy while creating local jobs.”
He also noted he and the other councilmembers have prioritized open spaces for the community and “building a safer community where people feel secure.”
Matias said some of the biggest needs facing the city are improving its financial operations and protecting public safety and the quality of life residents enjoy.
“We must institute a strict, open competitive bidding process for all city contracts to ensure we get the absolute best value for taxpayer dollars. Budgetary reform also means auditing city departments to eliminate unnecessary overhead,” he said, answering questions in The Orange County Register’s voter guide. “By controlling city spending and revitalizing underutilized commercial properties, we can work toward lowering local sales tax burdens to spur economic growth without sacrificing core public operations.”
Medrano, who has been on the council since 2018, said in his campaign statement he also makes public safety a priority by hosting “Crime Watch” meetings in the city’s various neighborhoods.
“I have been committed to making local government more efficient, responsive and accountable to everyone,” he said, also noting he’s supported fiscal responsibility through having balanced budgets, getting capital improvement and road improvement projects completed and revitalizing and adding park spaces.
Previously a La Habra City school board member, Pritchard said in her voter guide responses that she wasn’t afraid to ask questions and “transparency is alive and well when speaking the truth clearly and continuing the dialogue with questions and data.”
As a councilmember, she would encourage business forums with plenty of time “to delve into problems, solutions, ideas and concerns. Make it a forum open to the public where, like a town meeting or work session, people are heard, ideas are shared and potentially viable solutions are found.”
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Matias also talked about greater communication with the community and said he would want to host regular question-and-answer sessions on social media to engage with the community. He also mentioned open-data financial dashboards “so residents can track municipal spending, vendor contracts, and project budgets in real time.”
“Bringing modern digital interaction to city governance,” he said, “will build real trust and keep local leaders accountable.”
Gomez said past accomplishments, such as investing in street improvements, ensuring adequate water supplies, and ensuring safe sidewalks, “did not happen overnight and they were not achieved alone. They are the result of listening to you, working alongside you and staying committed to what matters most for our city.
“But there is still more to do,” he added. “On the heels of our centennial comes new opportunities and new challenges, but I know that we can overcome them. I am ready to keep building on the progress we have made, to keep pushing for smart development, to protect what makes our city special and to ensure that every resident benefits from the work we are doing.”
Medrano said he is supporting efforts to “address traffic through signal synchronization on Imperial Highway, Lambert Road, Hacienda Boulevard, Whittier Boulevard and traffic calming measures in various neighborhoods.”
“I have addressed the homeless issue in La Habra,” Medrano added, “by supporting our efforts with our two homeless shelters in neighboring cities and staffing two homeless outreach liaisons.”
Pritchard said City Hall could do better to educate residents on the programs available to help with homeownership and be “forward-thinking in problem solving for solutions to the housing shortage by working together with our businesses and residents, encouraging their ideas and input.”
“With improved, easier access to our city’s website and other communication formats,” she added, “we can try to bring more people to ‘the table’ where ideas can flourish.”
Read more of the voter guide, including candidates up and down the ballot at ocregister.com/voter-guide.
Ballots may be returned by mail (must be postmarked by Nov. 3 and received within a week of Election Day) or to the OC Registrar of Voters’ drop boxes around town now, and the first vote centers will open for casting ballots in person on Oct. 24.
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