Wendy Leung, Staff Writer
Created: 03/07/2010 06:02:26 AM PST
RANCHO CUCAMONGA – So much of November’s City Council race rests on what happens this summer.
By then, results of the Republican primaries for the 63rd Assembly District will be in, which will indicate whether Mayor Don Kurth has a chance to replace termed-out Assemblyman Bill Emmerson, R-Rancho Cucamonga, and leave the City Council.
By summer, the outcome of Councilman Rex Gutierrez’s criminal case might be clearer, which will indicate whether his political career will continue.
But a councilman and a former mayor aren’t waiting until summer to ponder their political future.
Bill Alexander, 66, who led the city for 12 years, said he now wants to be a councilman. Councilman Dennis Michael, 62, said he wants to be mayor regardless of what happens in the June 8 primaries. Michael, whose term is not up until 2012, has already garnered two key endorsements for his bid for mayor – firefighter and sheriff’s deputy unions.
“I would not be running for mayor had the mayor not chosen to run for higher office,” Michael said. “However, he has made that choice and I’m not going to wait until June to make a determination. I’m moving forward with my campaign now.”
Michael said he endorses the mayor for the heavily Republican 63rd Assembly District because he believes Kurth’s physician background will be an asset in Sacramento.
“I’m certainly endorsing (Kurth), not because I want to be mayor but because he’s the right person for the job,” Michael said. “If he’s not successful and he runs for mayor, that’s OK too.”
Kurth, 60, is mum about Michael’s bid for his seat and equally taciturn on his plans should he lose the Assembly bid.
“My focus is really on winning,” Kurth said. “I wouldn’t close any options but I think this is going to be a tight (Assembly) race. In the end, I’ll pull it off.”
Kurth, Gutierrez and Councilwoman Diane Williams are up for re-election this year. Williams is determined to run for her sixth term but Gutierrez has been vague about his plans, citing his pending court case.
Gutierrez, 50, faces criminal charges of grand theft, misappropriation of public funds and filing a false claim in relation to his alleged involvement in county corruption during his employment with the San Bernardino County Assessor’s Office. Gutierrez’s trial is expected to begin mid-April.
The embattled councilman, who was ready to run against Kurth for the Assembly seat but pulled out when his legal troubles surfaced last year, said his future is up in the air.
“I don’t even know if I can run for re-election,” Gutierrez said. “I need to re-evaluate my status legally in June before I can find out what I can do. I might not be a councilman in June. I don’t even know.”
The possibility of a City Council without Gutierrez and Kurth has brought Alexander out to join the political conversation. Alexander, who considered a political comeback in 2008 but decided against it, said he will run for a council seat this year.
Alexander lost to Kurth in a surprising upset in 2006. This time around, the former firefighter said he’ll campaign harder.
“I probably should have run more aggressively. I did not take Kurth very seriously because he was somebody who looked for a position and never planned to stay there,” said Alexander, a reference to Kurth’s bid for higher office after one term on the City Council.
Alexander said he wants to scrutinize the budget more while providing more services to seniors. He thinks the city pays too much for consultants to do superfluous studies and too much for mediators to do the annual team-building sessions.
“You don’t need to pay money to build a team,” Alexander said. “Quite frankly, you need to show more transparency.”
With Alexander looking to resurrect his political career against a backdrop of uncertainty on the City Council, November’s race could prove to be one of the more interesting ones in the Inland Valley.
But with four months to go before the start of the filing period, it’s still premature to speculate who all will be on the November ballot.
Back in 1990, Williams decided to run for City Council 24 hours before the filing period ended. Now Williams, 68, is the longest-serving member on the council.
Despite her tenure, there is still a long list of projects Williams would like to see complete or move forward in her sixth term.
Williams said she’d like to work on Central Park and the final stage of the Biane Library.
“I still have a dream of a wilderness park on the northwest part of the city,” Williams said, referring to the Carrari Ranch area. “I would like to make sure the natural terrain of that area remains open space. I’m not sure what that end result would be but I just don’t want to see it terraced over.”
Williams and Councilman Sam Spagnolo are both endorsing Michael for mayor. Michael has asked Gutierrez for backing but Gutierrez said he will not give an endorsement until he knows who all is running for mayor.
Michael, a former fire chief for the city, pondered running against Alexander for mayor in 2006 but opted out. Now he sees the possibility of an empty mayoral seat as an opportune time.
“I believe I’ve prepared for many, many years for this position,” Michael said.
A son of a citrus rancher and prominent water district official, Michael has lived in the city his entire life and watched the community transform.
He became a firefighter in 1976 and served as fire chief for nearly two decades.
“As fire chief, I’ve been through more than one economic downturn,” Michael said. “I understand how to do more with less. I’m a fiscal conservative.”
Michael said he has no intention to leave the city.
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Go Bill go!
Hey Abernathie, how much did you spend to get Alexander out of office? I think it was over half a mil wasn’t it? If he wins it will just show how stupid you really are. Ha Ha.
Way to go Alexander! Your right by saying the city pays to much money for cosultants and mediators. Isn’t that what the voters elect the Mayor and council to do. If they can’t do it, please leave office.
SEBA will endorse any candidate who will keep the contract with the Sheriff’s Department versus starting their own Police Department, PERIOD!!
You do great as Mayor, you’ll do great representing us in Sacramento.
You are the only CONSERVATIVE elected official in this race. Both of the other two have raised taxes and fees and have unbalanced budgets.
We may be sick of politicians as usual, but you have proof you don’t forget your roots. GO DON!
So what if he likes to smack women around. That doesn’t make him a bad guy now does it? Check the archives of the Daily Bulletin. Check out the stories about his ex wives especially the teen ager he married when he was in his 40′s. He should fit right in with the Sacramento perverts. There is a reason why he lost numerous bids for city council.
I will vote for Bill Alexander and Diane Williams and Dennis Michael
Hey “I read the paper”, do you believe everything you read in the paper, you fool?
Perhaps we have unworthy public servants servicing the public, which consists of those such as yourself, because you’re unworthy of any better.
America is going down hill fast when people, such as yourself, are stupid enough to believe everything they read in the papers and in negative mailers.
Kurth may be not be perfect, but he sure is real and you know what you’re getting. Or you can vote for the other candidates who claim to be squeeky clean and just like Jesus and Ronald Reagan. Please.
“He thinks the city pays too much for consultants to do superfluous studies and too much for mediators to do the annual team-building sessions.”
Alexander wasn’t singing that tune when he supported bringing in a consultant, Nathan J. Winograd, who had no consulting experience at the time and this was noted in a council meeting by Michelle Dawson. During the fiasco with animal control, Alexander supported a consultant who had no references and only had experience with about 10,000 shelter animals, hardly an expert, considering that Rancho handles about 5000 animals a year. And this consultant’s program absolutely destroyed the shelter in Philadelphia and a few others since then.
Since that time, the Annual Report of Local Rabies Control Activities shows that the Rancho Shelter, under this program Alexander supported, is allowing animals to die in their kennels/cages. Each year since 06 with the filing of the Annual Report, Rancho puts a note on that the numbers are not accurate. I thought it was a law that public records had to be kept accurate, guess not when it comes to the Rancho Shelter. And each of the current council members are aware of the horrors at the Rancho Shelter, but God forbid that they admit their mistake and save some animals from suffering. Rancho taxpayers are paying over $12 per person per year for animal control, twice the recommended amount by every major animal welfare organization and still they can’t make this program work that they bought into. No, I won’t vote for any of them.
It is time we send all of these politicians packing. WE need new blood and ideas. All of these pols carry baggage full of rocks. I am sick of it. I want to hear from new voices not old worn out retreads. Go away Alexander, you are not needed or wanted. Kurtz good luck. Gutierrez try to stay out of jail. Diane you should retire with dignity. New blood, fresh ideas and the next generation is ready to step us. We need to support professionals, business owners and the like that have stayed away from local politics because of these slime machines that support these pols. Tea party people make your voices heard for one of your own. I am so fed up with the state of affairs I could scream.
Michaels 4 Mayor
Alexander 4 Council
Williams 4 Council
Gutierrez 2 County Jail
I would like to ask about the dangers of early voting.
If you were going to vote for Williams if for not your vote for Gutierrez…. And you did vote Rex…. didn’t you just vote against Williams?
Nothing against Williams, just an example for the question.
Alexander is a loser who’s going to get trounced tomorrow!