Two challengers eye Calabasas council election

The three Calabasas City Council incumbents and their two challengers will be pitted against each other at a candidate's forum hosted by the city next month.

Mary Sue Maurer, James Bozajian and Jonathon Wolfson are up for reelection in the March 3 election, and challengers Dale Reicheneder and Bob Sibilia are looking to unseat two of them.

Maurer, 49, is the city's current mayor. She is a teacher and has been a member of the council since 2005. Mayor Pro Tem Wolfson is an attorney and is also completing his first term in office. Bozajian, 43, is a deputy district attorney in Los Angeles County. He has been on the council since 1997 and has been named mayor three times during his service.

Reicheneder, 43, ran unsuccessfully for a council seat two years ago. He is a lawyer who is running on an anti-development platform.

Sibilia is a former Calabasas mayor and City Council member, serving from 1997 to 2000. He ran again in 2003 and 2005, but lost both times. Sibilia, 50, a consumer attorney, says preservation of open space will be a top priority.

The city is partnering with the Center of Governmental Studies, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that helps individuals participate in their communities and governments. The two entities will host the 2009 City of Calabasas City Council Candidates Forum at 6:30 p.m. Wed., Feb. 4 at the Calabasas Library Founders Hall.

Forum organizers are asking the public to submit questions at www.cityofcalabasas.com/election2009/forumquestions. The most pertinent will be chosen and asked of the candidates at the forum. Questions may also be submitted via e-mail at calabasaselections@cgs.org.

The forum will be videotaped and cablecast on CTV Channel 3 and archived on the city website at www.cityofcalabasas .com.

More information on the election and the candidates is available at www.cityofcalabasas .com/ election2009.html.

Feb. 16 is the last day to register to vote in the March 3 election.