Blog: Time to Shine Some LIGHT on City Hall

Through the years our City Hall has evolved a culture that kowtows to developers and dismisses environmental impacts and resident concerns as a nuisance.  Our City government is designed to give elected representatives of the residents a check and balance on the actions of City Hall. The problem is our elected officials have been complicit in actions that are overly beneficial to developers at the expense of our quality of life.

Over the past decade I have uncovered evidence of this culture time and time again. Through the years I have:

• Exposed blatant flaws in the City’s traffic studies that understated the traffic impacts of new development
• Caught City staff withholding public information that showed substantial traffic impacts of a rezoning action proposed by City staff
• Revealed major impacts to our streets buried in a staff report that would have been passed with no public input

A resident should expect that once revealed, our elected officials would act swiftly and decisively to stop these actions, but, unfortunately, the opposite is true.  A resident who opposes a city action or reveals such activities is subject to bullying, intimidation and public ridicule by certain Councilmen.

District 1 deserves a Councilman who is independent, free of conflict of interest, and dedicated to the enhancement our town and quality of life... someone looking to serve the community rather than his own self interests. We need someone with integrity who will ensure a City Hall that is transparent. Someone who will ensure City studies are accurate and unbiased. It is time to stop the cronyism, back room deals, and insider politics at City Hall. It is time for a true representative of the people.

Insider Politics or Independent Representation?

My opponent is a political insider who parties with current Councilmen and is funded by the Chamber of Commerce and special interests like Redondo’s garbage contractor. He campaigns with the current District 1 Councilman.  He lists as accomplishments items he simply voted for in his appointed position on a commission.  His business as a realtor and property owner/property manager for residential and commercial properties throughout Redondo creates a conflict of interest when deliberating on future development and zoning decisions. With his home and business office in Riviera Village, it is no wonder he focuses so much of his campaign platform on this area.   My opponent represents business as usual at City Hall.

I have a decade long track record of standing up for our quality of life. Rather than idly sit by, I have led actions to restore the balance at City Hall for over a decade. Examples of my actions include:

• Taking a lead role in the fight against the 3000 condo zoning of Heart of the City
• Drafting a 92 page analysis that stopped the rezoning of Torrance Blvd for hundreds of condos by demonstrating blatant flaws in the City’s environmental/traffic analysis
• Preventing the City Council from illegally violating the City Charter by filing a lawsuit funded by hundreds of residents
• Authoring and leading Measure DD, the City Charter amendment that put a check and balance on upzoning actions of the City by giving residents the final vote

My entire focus is preserving and enhancing our quality of life, balancing developer profits with resident quality of life, and making Redondo the Crown Jewel of the South Bay.

The choice is yours...

My independence and proven track record have won the support of many community leaders including both my former District 1 Council competitors, Kim Fine and Dianne Prado, and community leaders like two term School Board members, Todd Loewenstein and Drew Gamut. Combined, Kim, Dianne and I accounted for 60 percent of the votes cast in the March election.

You have a clear choice for your next Councilman. If you value an independent Councilman with a track record of true leadership protecting our quality of life, who is focused on revitalizing Redondo without cookie-cutter overdevelopment, and who is unbiased and free of conflict of interest, I would be honored by your vote on May 14th. 

For more information, go to jimlightforcouncil.com or email me at jl4council@gmail.com or call 310-989-3332.

Thanks!

Thanks to Kim Fine for the great banners she donated to my campaign and her help getting my name up at some of her favorite businesses. Thanks to all those who have donated... far exceeding my expectations! And thanks to everyone who helped walk District 1 for the last three weeks. I cannot tell you what an honor it is to have friends and residents donate their precious free time to my campaign.