Westlake’s McSweeney says experience an asset

ELECTION 2018



McSweeney

McSweeney

Mayor Mark Rutherford holds the record as the longest-serving member of the Westlake Village City Council, 21 years. But he may have to share that title with Councilmember Sue McSweeney if she’s reelected this November.

McSweeney, who has served on the council for 17 years, is running for one of the three seats on the ballot this year. She’s joined in the race by fellow council member Brad Halpern and challengers Ted Corwin and Ray Pearl.

One of the seats is open. Rutherford announced in July he would not be seeking reelection. Longtime city manager Ray Taylor also announced his retirement earlier this year, signaling big changes ahead for the little city.

“I’ve said it’s my last election every time (I run),” McSweeney said. “I wait to see how all the pieces fit together, in my life and what’s going on with the council. Is there more I can do? I feel like there is, as far as bringing morale further with the staff or building a culture without Ray (Taylor) and saying, ‘Well this isn’t the way we have to do it’but go to greater lengths to try to keep everybody in the loop.”

McSweeney, 67, said that during her tenure on the council she’s made a point of keeping a low profile. She’s campaigning with the same strategy—she’s not going door to door and said she’d only have about 30 signs made endorsing her candidacy. She would have reused the ones from her last campaign but had thrown them out.

She’s considering starting a Facebook page for her campaign.

“I don’t want to go door to door and say, ‘This is what I’m going to do.’ I’ve realized that in a city like Westlake Village I’m one vote. I can have ideas about things I’ll vote for, but anybody that’s interested can see what’s going on.”

McSweeney said the city has to look toward to the future but stay true to the founding principles. She said the best way to do that is to listen to residents.

She said she makes a point of asking everyone she can what the city needs or what it can do to improve residents’ lives.

“I feel like a volunteer because I appreciate the city so much. In all these years, nobody has ever really come up to me and said they were mad about a decision I made as a member of the council,” McSweeney said. “It’s always been really pleasant. That’s my biggest thing. I want to listen and look at things from a resident’s perspective. In a city as small as ours, I think websites and hundreds of signs is over the top.”

McSweeney said she doesn’t often hear complaints about the city. The most common topic that gets brought up is public safety, which she empathizes with. As a mother of three, she said, she had the same expectation when raising her family.

She first ran for council in 2001 at 50 years old, when her youngest child had left for college. After nearly two decades and several stints as the mayor, she’s looking to continue her career of public service and lend her experience to the city as it welcomes at least one new council member and says goodbye to its longtime city manager.

There’s no frills to her candidacy. Her slogan?

“‘Reelect McSweeney.’ I’ve always had good luck with that,” she said.