LOCAL ELECTIONS / BUENA PARK CITY COUNCIL : Eight Candidates Evenly Split on Fire Department Issue

BUENA PARK — The decision to close the city’s Fire Department and join the countywide Joint Powers Authority has divided City Council candidates here as neatly as any canyon firebreak.

Half of the eight candidates fighting for three open council seats said the controversy propelled them to run for office, and they have vowed to bring the city department back.

The remaining candidates insist that the Fire Department issue is a “done deal” that few residents care about. They are turning to the same pro-business and anti-crime issues that fuel other Orange County campaigns. Transportation is also a hot topic, with a Buena Park Metrolink station already penned into the county’s master plan.

Arthur C. Brown, the only incumbent in the race, said voters understand that closing the Fire Department was a prudent financial move, and he has urged them to look instead at issues that will determine the future of the city. He carries endorsements from Supervisors Gaddi H. Vasquez and William G. Steiner, and he has raised about $6,000, including a $500 donation from the Buena Park Fireman’s Assn. political action committee.

Brown, 57, a retired Los Angeles County deputy sheriff, boasts of the new business he has brought into the city. He would work to continue expanding Auto Row and the entertainment corridor, he said. He is a member of regional agencies such as the Southern California Assn. of Governments and the I-5 Joint Powers Assn. in his current council position.

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The most successful fund-raiser is candidate Patsy Marshall, a former journalist who worked in the public relations department of Knott’s Berry Farm for 18 years and now has her own business. She has raised about $12,000, with donations from Knott family members and Steiner’s campaign, among others.

Marshall, 50, also said the Fire Department issue is moot, and she points to crime, business development and graffiti as the real concerns of the community. She would make city offices easier for businesses to navigate if elected, she said. As a specialist in tourism, Marshall said, she is prepared to shepherd the city through upcoming upheavals when Beach Boulevard and Dale Street are closed for major improvement projects.

Candidate Larry T. Wieck has raised only about $2,000, but he has name recognition from six years on the Planning Commission. An insurance agency owner, Wieck, 45, is in his third campaign for a City Council seat.

Wieck has taken a middle road on the Fire Department issue. He would work to heal the divisions caused by the controversy, he said, and he believes his appeal to voters lies in his ability to reason and compromise with integrity. His expertise in land-use planning would give him an edge in developing new business, he said. He is the only candidate to be endorsed by both the Buena Park Police Assn. and the Buena Park City Employees Assn.

Another planning commissioner stepping into the ring is Gerald N. Sigler, a former manager for U.S. Steel and Ameron Corp. He has pledged to smooth the way for new business development, search for government waste in the city and promote crime-fighting programs such as Drug Abuse Resistance Education.

Sigler, who has raised more than $5,000, is known for 20 years of work with the Buena Park Coordinating Council, which helps low-income and homeless residents. He also served two years on the Personnel Board and belongs to a slew of service groups such as the Elks and the Noon Lions. He has the endorsement of the Buena Park Police Assn.

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The third candidate to get the nod from the police union is Wiley S. Drake, pastor of the First Southern Baptist Church. Drake, 50, was a volunteer firefighter when he lived in Texas, and he has vowed to resurrect Buena Park’s department.

Drake also said he would propose firing the city manager because he rules by intimidation and does not defer to the authority of the council. In an unusual twist to the crime issue, Drake said he would fight crime, poverty and graffiti by bringing all the clergy of the community into City Hall to offer counsel on various issues. In general, he said, he would bring Judeo-Christian values to government.

Accountant Larry Barstow, 56, said that he too was pulled into the race by the Fire Department controversy, but his main campaign issues are streamlining City Hall operations and establishing one-stop shopping for new business. Wasteful spending and over-regulation is keeping Buena Park from recovering from the recession, he said.

Candidate Marilyn Kietzman, 60, points to a long career as a budget analyst for McDonnell Douglas as good council preparation. She said she would work to establish a new Fire Department and to raise money for the city by proposing an entertainment tax. She won the endorsement of the Buena Park City Employees Assn. by promising to give them a greater voice in affairs and to cut back contracts with outside consultants.

The youngest candidate, Leslie MacAdams, 26, is a physical therapist who was drawn into politics by the Fire Department issue. He advocates that the council draw up a long-range financial plan and stabilize its policies. And the council should be more aggressive in winning and retaining business, he said.

MacAdams said that transportation issues need more attention and that he would work to make up for the demise of Dial-A-Ride with a new system. He would like to see the entertainment corridor be made more accessible to tourists through better transportation links.