By Mary O’KEEFE

Although the statewide general election is over, there is still an important local election that residents who live in the unincorporated portion of Los Angeles County need to step into the voting booth for – the Crescenta Valley Town Council.

There are six open seats for the CVTC and six candidates. Even though it seems like even odds that everyone will get a seat at the council, it is the length of the term that is significant.

“It is [about] who [the voters] want on council to represent them for three years,” said CVTC President Robbyn Battles.

Of the six seats, three are for three-year terms and three are alternate seats serving one-year terms.

“I think we have some strong people running this year,” Battles added.

The candidates are Mariam Barnes, Desiree P. Rabinov, Leslie Dickson, Charles K. Beatty, Lisa Griffin and Kevin Kang.

Barnes is at present a third alternate CVTC member. She is the co-founder of an advertising company and in her candidate application she stated she would like to see the town council working alongside the CV Chamber of Commerce to encourage small business growth. She is a mentor for the CV Youth Town Council and is one of three candidates endorsed by the Armenian National Committee of America, CV Chapter.

Rabinov is a transportation planning manager for the Los Angeles County MTA. In her application she stated she would like to see more community involvement by establishing an outreach plan. She also would like to examine the “possibility of developing a community-specific overlay plan that can clearly define the land use needs, zoning, ordinances and specific infrastructure improvement that will support economic growth, jobs, education, transportation and public services.”

Dickson describes herself as a “professional volunteer/stay-at-home mom to five kids in the GUSD [Glendale Unified School District] schools.”  She is presently serving on the CVTC as an alternate, a seat she has held for two years. In her application statement she stressed the importance of communication between the town council and the community. Dickson has also been endorsed by the ANCA.

Beatty is a broker who has served for many years, and presently serves, on the CVTC. In his application Beatty emphasized pedestrian safety by stating he would like to add a flashing crosswalk at Mountain and Briggs avenues, near Mountain Avenue Elementary School.

Griffin is a retired schoolteacher. In her application she praised the work the CVTC has done in the past and would like to see more outreach. She would like to help create a plan to best serve students if the Sagebrush area is transferred from GUSD to La Cañada Unified School District. This would directly impact students at Mountain Avenue Elementary. “The Town Council needs to address the needs, concerns and ideas of local youth,” she stated.

Kang is a student youth pastor/director. He stated he would like to focus on the youth in the community. If elected, he believes his role would be to reach out to young people as well as young adults. Kang has been endorsed by the ANCA.

The CVTC election is held at the La Crescenta Library community room at 2809 Foothill Blvd. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Registered voters living within the unincorporated area of Los Angeles County/La Crescenta are eligible to vote.

  Mary Okeefe