Campaign down the stretch

Biggest field ever in Triunfo race


CANDIDATES FORUM—In the past, only two board seats were elected by voters. Now all five positions are elected. Procedure dictates that four seats will be decided in the coming election.

CANDIDATES FORUM—In the past, only two board seats were elected by voters. Now all five positions are elected. Procedure dictates that four seats will be decided in the coming election.

The election is five days away and counting. Recently, 10 of the 11 candidates vying for four seats on the Triunfo Sanitation District board of directors sounded off on various water issues at a forum hosted by the Community Foundation of Oak Park.

Janna Orkney is the only incumbent seeking reelection. She lives in Oak Park and was elected to the Triunfo board in 2006.

Other candidates present were Ray Tjulander, James Wall, Dean Fields, Ron Stark, Timothy Nanson, Henry Press, Mike McReynolds, Steve Iceland and Bobby Ray Harris. Phil Janke did not attend the forum for medical reasons.

In the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District race, incumbent Jeff Smith and challenger Barry Steinhardt are locked in a heated campaign.

At the Triunfo forum, Ron Stark, who served on the Triunfo Sanitation District’s board of directors for 24 years before losing his bid for reelection to Michael Paule in 2008, outlined his years of community service to the Oak Park and Conejo Valley communities.

Jay Kapitz, a member of Oak Park’s Municipal Advisory Committee, asked the candidates several questions gathered from the audience. He asked them to discuss the recommendations made in a recent Ventura County Grand Jury report on how Triunfo Sanitation District could be better run.

Many of the candidates said they support the grand jury’s suggestion that the district hire an independent general manager. Cur- rently, one general manager oversees both the TSD and the Ventura Regional Sanitation District.

“Local problems require local responses,” Iceland said.

When asked what are the two most important issues facing the district over the next few years, Harris said how the agency handles biosolids was critical.

Wall said water conservation, cost control and emergency preparedness were crucial. Stark said more seasonal water storage is needed, and Press said sustainable solutions to water issues were necessary.

Answering a question about whether they favor sharing the cost of converting biosolids into compost with Las Virgenes Municipal Water District—or trucking the sludge to a distant landfill— the panel gave varying opinions. Harris said he had a “visceral dislike” for the idea of trucking the solid wastes to a landfill, but Nanson said costs had to be considered.

“Costs have to be clearly defined,” Nanson said, adding that the board needs to weigh a potential $2-million savings against what is the most environmentally sensitive way of handling sludge.

Orkney said only one or two trucks would be needed to transport the biosolids to a landfill. She also called for a tighter contract with the Las Virgenes district. “Checks and balances are needed,” she said.

The candidates were asked what measures they would employ to reduce water usage to meet the quota imposed by the California Water Project on the district’s annual water use. While many candidates spoke in favor of low-flow shower heads and toilets, Tjulander recommended using artificial turf instead of sod for landscaping.

Seventy percent of water consumption is used for landscaping, he said. Tjulander said he uses ar- tificial turf in his own backyard. “It looks really good,” he said.

Fields said he would pressure Sacramento to “open the spigot.”

McReynolds said he would make an effective board member because he has in-depth knowledge of regional and local water issues.

Stark said, “I know where all the skeletons are,” and Fields said that, as an “outsider,” he can look at all issues with a fresh eye. Orkney said she was not afraid to ask questions.

To hear each candidate’s opening statement, visit www. oakparknow.org.

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