Editor’s note: This story is one in a series on the Nov. 5 general election. For more coverage, visit vcstar.com/news/elections.
Fillmore voters will go to the polls to choose candidates in the city’s first district election races Nov. 5.
The city approved the switch from at-large candidates to districts in December, and Districts 1, 2 and 5 are up for election this year.
Members of the City Council set policy for the city of nearly 21,000 residents, hire the city manager, approve budgets and pass or amend ordinances.
One person, Luis Alberto Rodriguez, seeks the District 1 seat. The other two districts have two candidates apiece vying to represent each. The Star is covering contested seats.
Current City Council member Mark Austin and John Garnica will face each other on the ballot for District 2. In District 5, Gary Cushing is challenging Christina Villaseñor, who is also a council member.
Below are responses to The Star’s questions in the candidates’ own words. They have been edited for clarity and space. City races are nonpartisan, but The Star asked candidates and checked public voter rolls to include party registration information for readers.
Fillmore City Council District 2 candidates
Mark Austin
Occupation: Business owner of environmental consulting firm
Age: 59
Party affiliation: Republican
Education: Bachelor of Science from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Master of Business Administration, CSU Channel Islands
Elected office and years in office: Fillmore City Council, 2016 to present, Fillmore mayor in 2020, 2022
Campaign website: austinforcouncil.com
In 150 words or less, whatâs your top priority and how do you plan to accomplish it? Grow the local economy: Business development, job creation and tax revenue are extremely important to Fillmore because it creates more opportunity and a better quality of life for citizens. Over the next four years, I will continue to work toward streamlining the permitting process to allow businesses to open and locate within Fillmore more quickly. Provide public safety resources: Ventura County, which includes Fillmore, is recognized as one of the safest counties in the State of California. Over the past eight years, I have provided the funding needed to maintain service ratios for our police and fire departments. Improve our cityâs street system: Many of our streets are in dire need of repair with many major potholes due to the substantial rains. I plan to tackle this issue over the next four years by setting aside general fund reserves each year to be used only for citywide roadway improvements.
John Garnica
Occupation: Small business owner of a CNC machine shop
Age: 58
Party affiliation: Democrat
Education: Bachelor of science in computer science from United States Military Academy at West Point
Elected office and years in office (if applicable): Fillmore Unified School District Board, 1999-2015
Campaign website: www.garnica4fillmore.com
In 150 words or less, whatâs your top priority and how do you plan to accomplish it? I am running for City Council because I have a deep love for Fillmore and want to give back to the community that gave me my start in life. I have a long record of service in Fillmore, and I have the leadership skills and community ties necessary to be an effective advocate for the needs of our district and our community at large. I believe that Fillmore can continue to be a place of amazing opportunity, especially as we continue to grow. To that end, I would prioritize: (1) responsiveness: I would commit to regular office hours for listening to constituent concerns and for updating constituents on city business; and (2) community spaces: This includes shared physical spaces such as city parks, our downtown, walkable neighborhoods, pedestrian safety and even online spaces that our citizens use to interact with our city government.
Fillmore City Council District 5 candidates
Gary Cushing
Occupation: Owner of Marie Callenderâs Restaurant in Camarillo
Age: 69
Party affiliation: Republican
Education: Bachelorâs degree in political science from CSU Channel Islands, master’s degree in public policy and administration, California
Elected office and years in office: None
Campaign website: Cushingforfillmore2024.com
In 150 words or less, whatâs your top priority and how do you plan to accomplish it? My top priorities are economic development. The city budget over the last five years has risen 32.5%, the amount that has been dedicated to economic development has dropped by 50%. There needs to be a focus on strengthening business. Highway 126 has two problems, the first being the backup of traffic that pushes traffic to the side streets. We need to work with Caltrans to synchronize the signal lights through town. There was a plan to make 126 safer back in 2016, with Caltrans, but it was never followed through. There have been 27 deaths on the 126 in the last five years that is unacceptable. I will advocate revisiting parts of the plan. Public safety and homelessness go together. We need to work with the county to solve the problem but donât just rely on the county to fix the problem here. Be proactive in finding solutions.
Christina Villaseñor
Occupation:Stay-at-home parent, City Council member
Age: 46
Party affiliation: Democrat
Education: Bachelor’s degree in sociology, UC Berkeley; master’s degree in public health with an emphasis community health sciences from UCLA
Elected office and years in office (if applicable): Fillmore City Council, December 2020 – present
Campaign website: www.4more4villasenor.com
In 150 words or less, whatâs your top priority and how do you plan to accomplish it? My top priority is meeting the needs of our growing community. Between 2013 and 2023, the population of Fillmore increased by nearly 13%. With such increases, I plan to ensure that 1. Our infrastructure â roads, water system and power sources â are keeping up with the demand through pro-active monitoring and keeping our D Street sewer line expansion moving forward; that 2. We provide quality community programming and recreational opportunities for families, including prioritizing upgrades to Two Rivers and Shiells Parks and developing public/private partnerships to expand cultural arts within our city; and that 3. More opportunities are created for Fillmore residents to invest their time and consumer spending within the city, from improving the external and internal environments for small businesses to be supported and succeed, to forming an exploratory committee for bringing back our beloved May festival.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Election 2024: Meet Fillmore’s City Council candidates
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