Laguna Beach Candidates Seek To Fill 2 City Council Seats

LAGUNA BEACH, CA — A longtime Laguna Beach resident and business owner, a land use attorney, and the oc-founder of Laguna Residents First all seek to unseat two incumbents on the Laguna Beach city council in the Nov. 2020 election.

INCUMBENTS:

Mayor Steve Dicterow, an attorney, was first appointed to city council in 2012, was mayor in 2016, now serving as Mayor Pro Tem.

Bob Whalen, appointed to council in 2012, has served as mayor since 2018. He also was mayor in 2015, and has a background as public finance attorney.

CANDIDATES:

Ruben Flores, a resident of Laguna Beach for 25 years, has owned Laguna Nursery for many of them. Flores has served on many committees in town, including: The View Restoration Committee, the President of the Laguna Beach Beautification Council. He has served on the board of the Pacific Marine Mammal Center. He established thecity's first Arbor Day celebration, and has been outspoken on tree removal.

He hopes to focus on enhancing Laguna Beach's parks, beaches, parkways and canyons. He will also focus on issues of civility, he says.

According to his candidate statement:

"Laguna deserves fresh and creative leadership,” Flores wrote. “I will use experience from 24-plus years as a local business owner and resident to serve Laguna, championing improvements and policies that amplify the extraordinary character of Laguna Beach, respecting needs of residents, and promoting healthy businesses.”

Larry Nokes is another long time Laguna Beach resident. He is a land use attorney, and has served as Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce, as chairman. He served on the View Equity committee in 2013, and aided in the drafting of the city's historic preservation ordinance.

His focus will be on traffic, streamlining permitting and applications, and city infrastructure.

George Weiss, founder of Laguna Residents First, is a once president of the Laguna Beach Beautification Council. He has served as chair of the Housing and Human Services Committee in 2016. His focus will be on city spending, increasing transparency, and development.