Health & Fitness
Selecting New Planning Commissioner - Part 1
This week the City Council will consider applicants to fill the vacant position on the Planning Commission (PC) created by the resignation of long time Planning Commissioner Jerry Zechmeister. To date the Council’s success at making good decisions selecting Commissioners is questionable. Just to review what’s happened as a result of the Council’s selections in 2013 –
In less than a year, the PC had more appeals and more decisions overturned than in their previous 20 year history.
For the first time ever, a sitting chairperson of the PC resigned, citing the conduct of the new appointees as a reason.
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Then, within a few months, his replacement as chairman, another veteran, resigned.
The PC’s level of cancelling meetings is more than 20%. Throw in the number of times the new commissioners miss meetings and a full PC meeting is getting to be a rare event.
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The Parks and Recreation Commission (PRC) spent more than a year looking for a location for a dog park and came up empty handed.
Then the PRC spent more than half a year trying to come up with a plan to solve the problems at Village Pond Park, and again, came up empty handed, managing to violate the Brown Act in the process.
What are the chances that the Council will make a good decision this time? Stop groaning! Until there is an election in November we are stuck with them.
Here is the data from the Planning Commission applications so you can compare and contrast the qualifications of the 10 applicants. Not everyone gave responses to every item, so there are some blank spaces.
Years Lived in Lake Forest?
Thomas Ludden - 38
Marcia Rudolph - 35
Frank Deni – 25
Barry Fast – 20
Steven Campos - 15
Debra Okano – 14
Robert DeAlmeida – 12
Hugh Everhart – 6
Tom Cagley - 2
Lawrence Arthur – 1 month
Lives in…
Thomas Ludden – Lake 2
Marcia Rudolph – Kimberley Gardens
Frank Deni – Normandale
Barry Fast – Trabuco Canyon
Debra Okano – Portola Hills
Hugh Everhart – Lake 2
Tom Cagley – Lake 2
Voted in 2012
Everyone except Barry Fast claims to have voted in 2012
Graduated from the City’s Leadership Academy?
Marcia Rudolph is the only graduate of the Leadership Academy.
Participate in City Advisory Groups?
Tom Cagley is the only candidate who participates in a City Advisory Group.
Regularly attend Council/Commission meetings?
Marcia Rudolph – attends almost every Council meeting
Tom Cagley – “attended nearly every council meeting for the past seven months…attended a few Planning Commission meetings”
Thomas Ludden – “attended several”
Hugh Everhart – “attended 4 meetings”
Robert DeAlmeida – “occasional visits”
None of the rest regularly attend City/Commission meetings
Served on Committees, Clubs, Boards, or Organizations
Tom Cagley
Member, Orange County Grand Jury
Chairman of City Committee, Grand Jury
Vice-chair Architectural Review Board
Secretary, Association of Former Intelligence Officers
Lake Forest ad hoc committee to support Marine Battalion
Marcia Rudolph
President (4 times) SACC
HOA President Kimberley Gardens
Subcommittee chair El Toro RAB
Frank Deni –
Normandale HOA Board Member
OC Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Board Member
Steven Campos
Scoutmaster (7 years)
Oso Lake Director of Shooting (5 years)
Thomas Ludden –
Lake 2 HOA Board (several years)
ETHS Band Boosters (2 years)
Lawrence Arthur
Chairman Architectural Review, Quail Point Estates HOA (2 years)
Robert DeAlmeida
Member OC BIA (2 years)
Member OCTA Corridor Advisory Board (2 years)
Forest Gardens HOA Board member (1 year)
Barry Fast – AYSO Board Member (6 years)
Education
Hugh Everhart, MBA (Pepperdine)
Frank Deni, MBA (UCI)
Barry Fast, BA (Business Administration)
Debra Okana, BA (Organizational Management)
Thomas Ludden, BS (Industrial Technology)
Marcia Rudolph – BA
Robert DeAlmeida – AA (Urban Sociology)
Current Occupation
Barry Fast – Real Estate Broker and Managing Partner in luxury home development company.
Debra Okana – AT&T Mobility Area Manager
Lawrence Arthur - Realtor
Frank Deni – Retired. Was Director of Facilities, Boeing
Robert DeAlmeida – Retired Architect
Steven Campos – Application Support Specialist (Covenant Care)
Thomas Ludden – Medical device manufacturer
Marcia Rudolph – Retired. School teacher
Hugh Everhart – Commercial Real estate appraiser
Tom Cagley. Retired Colonel
Ties to the Council
Marcia Rudolph – “Kathy McCullough is my best friend.”
Tom Ludden – “I have been friends with David Bass for 15 years. I know Adam Nick and Scott Voigts.”
Bear in mind that the best single predictor of being selected is having some connection to Voigts and/or Robinson and to have little or no actual planning background or experience. FWIW - Note to applicants. There are still 3 more days to make a campaign contribution to Scott Voigts and/or Dwight Robinson.
Tomorrow we'll look at their responses to the fill-in questionnaire.