Municipal elections in Anaheim, California (2016)

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In November 2014, Anaheim voters approved a measure, Measure L, to elect members of the city council by district rather than at large. City voters also approved a measure, Measure M, in 2014 to increase the size of the city council from four council members and the mayor to six council members and the mayor. The changes went into effect in 2016, and four seats on the expanded city council were up for election in the November 2016 general election. Learn more about the changes to Anaheim's city council elections process by clicking here.

Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait and advocates for the city's Resort District lined up on opposite sides of the 2016 city council elections, backing opposing slates of candidates. Tait opposed two initiatives that affected the district: tax subsidies for luxury hotels in the city and a streetcar project from Anaheim's central transportation hub to Resort District attractions. Learn more about these and other issues facing Anaheim by clicking here.

Two sitting councilmembers—Jordan Brandman and Lucille Kring—filed to run for re-election. Brandman ran for District 3 against four opponents, and Kring ran in District 4 against three opponents. Seven candidates filed to run in the openAn open seat or election is one in which the incumbent officeholder does not seek re-election. race for District 1, while four individuals ran for the open seat representing District 5. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was August 12, 2016.[1]

## Contents

* 1 Elections
* 2 General election
* 2.1 District 1
* 2.2 District 3
* 2.3 District 4
* 2.4 District 5
* 3 Ballot measures
* 3.1 November 8, 2016
* 4 Campaign finance
* 4.1 Background
* 4.2 Issues
* 4.2.1 Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait and the Anaheim Resort District
* 4.2.1.1 Hotel tax subsidies
* 4.2.1.2 Streetcar
* 4.2.2 Short-term rentals
* 4.2.3 Homelessness
* 4.3 About the city
* 4.3.1 City government
* 4.3.2 Demographics
* 4.4 Recent news
* 4.5 See also
* 4.6 External links
* 4.7 Footnotes

## Elections[edit]

# General election[edit]

### District 1[edit]

☑ Denise Barnes (Tait endorsement)
☐ Mark Daniels
☐ Freddy Carvajal
☐ Leonard Lahtinen
☐ Steven Chavez Lodge (SOAR PAC endorsement)
☐ Orlando Perez
☐ Angel VanStark

### District 3[edit]

☐ Jordan Brandman (SOAR PAC endorsement)
☐ Linda Lobatos
☑ Jose Moreno (Tait endorsement)
☐ Robert Nelson
☐ Jennifer Rivera

### District 4[edit]

☐ Arturo Ferreras (Tait endorsement)
☑ Lucille Kring (SOAR PAC endorsement)
☐ Jose "Joe" Moreno
☐ Robert Williams

### District 5[edit]

☐ Donna Acevedo-Nelson
☐ Sandra Angel
☑ Steve Faessel (SOAR PAC endorsement)
☐ Mark Lopez (Tait endorsement)

# Ballot measures[edit]

See also: Orange County, California ballot measures

### November 8, 2016[edit]

• Measure U: Anaheim Require 2/3 Vote of the City Council to Propose Taxes a

|  A yes vote was a vote in favor of requiring a two-thirds vote by the city council to place new taxes on the ballot for voter consideration, requiring a vote of five out of the seven city council members to approve taxes for the ballot.

|

|  A no vote was a vote against requiring a two-thirds vote by the city council to place new taxes on the ballot for voter consideration, thereby keeping a simple majority requirement for the city council to approve taxes for the ballot.

|

# Campaign finance[edit]

Anaheim City Council campaign finance summaries, 2016 calendar year through October 22, 2016[2]

District | Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash | Debt
1  | Denise Barnes  | $22,295.00  | $18,872.31  | $3,422.69  | $4,000.00
1  | Freddy Fitzgerald Carvajal  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
1  | Mark Daniels  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
1  | Leonard Lahtinen  | $59,785.00  | $41,057.17  | $22,694.60  | $28,066.77
1  | Steven Chavez Lodge  | $55,514.06  | $56,365.58  | $7,023.48  | $13,425.00
1  | Orlando Perez*  | $695.00  | $1,161.98  | $433.02  | $0.00
1  | Angel VanStark  | $2,451.82  | $2,735.42  | $16.40  | $300.00
3  | Jordan Brandman (i)  | $194,246.52  | $146,862.61  | $47,533.91  | $30,000.00
3  | Linda Lobatos  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
3  | Jose F. Moreno  | $46,079.53  | $35,201.60  | $10,921.93  | $100.00
3  | Robert Nelson  | $6,998.00  | $5,907.18  | $1,090.82  | $6,998.00
3  | Jennifer Rivera  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
4  | Arturo Ferreras  | $18,359.20  | $24,163.39  | $5,322.50  | $20,059.89
4  | Lucille Kring (i)  | $16,550.00  | $140.00  | $627.36  | $16,550.00
4  | Jose "Joe" Moreno  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
4  | Robert Williams  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
5  | Donna Acevedo-Nelson  | $4,750.00  | $4,601.85  | $148.15  | $0.00
5  | Sandra Angel  | NA  | NA  | NA  | NA
5  | Steve Faessel  | $80,357.00  | $51,668.65  | $28,400.35  | $25,000.00
5  | Mark Lopez  | $36,166.50  | $25,454.05  | $10,778.23  | $2,035.83
*Summary covers the 2016 calendar year through September 24, 2016.

* * *

The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may not represent all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer, and campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

* * *

## Background[edit]

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) brought a suit against Anaheim in 2012 under the California Voting Rights Act. "Through its at-large electoral process," the ACLU said, "the city has made it nearly impossible for Latinos, who make up more than one third of the electorate, to be fairly represented on the city council."[3] The California Voting Rights Act specifies that "[a]n at-large method of election may not be imposed or applied in a manner that impairs the ability of a protected class to elect candidates of its choice or its ability to influence the outcome of an election, as a result of the dilution or the abridgment of the rights of voters who are members of a protected class."[4]

As part of the settlement for the lawsuit, the Anaheim City Council put the choice between at-large and by-district city council elections to a public vote.[5] That ballot measure, Measure L, was paired with Measure M, a proposal to increase the size of the council from four members plus the mayor to six members plus the mayor, on the November 2014 ballot. Measure L had the official backing of Mayor Tom Tait and Councilman Jordan Brandman and faced official opposition from the One Anaheim campaign and former Mayor Curt Pringle, former Councilwoman Shirley McCracken, Anaheim Chamber of Commerce President Todd Ament, Anaheim Neighborhood Association Chairman Mitch Caldwell, and Anaheim Citizens Advisory Commissioner Gloria Ma'ae. Measure M was supported by Tait and opposed by Anaheim Home Owners Maintaining Our Environment board member Denis Fitzgerald.

Voters approved Measure L by a vote of 68.8 percent to 31.2 percent and Measure M by a vote of 54.2 percent to 45.8 percent. With the changes to the city council electoral process approved, Anaheim had to set the boundaries of the newly established city council districts. The redistricting process generated some controversy. Activists objected to a proposal to schedule the election for the proposed Latino majority district, District 3, for 2018 rather than 2016.[6] And, shortly before the final city council vote on the map, officials discovered that the Latino population in District 3 had actually dropped below a majority, to 49.1 percent.[7] However, the finished version of the map won final city council approval, as well as support from Latino activists, in February 2016. The "People's Map" kept the 49.1 percent Latino District 3 but slated its first election for 2016. Jose Moreno, the lead plaintiff in the ACLU case, defeated incumbent Councilman Brandman to claim the seat in that race.[8][9]

## Issues[edit]

### Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait and the Anaheim Resort District[edit]

Anaheim's Resort District is home to Disneyland, the Anaheim Angels, and the Anaheim Convention Center, and it helps attract more than 20 million visitors to the city each year.[10][11] Two initiatives related to the district have faced opposition from Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait: tax subsidies for luxury hotels in the city and a streetcar project that would connect Anaheim's central transportation hub to Resort District attractions.

Tait endorsed one slate of candidates in the 2016 city council election. SOAR PAC, the Disney-funded political action committee for the business and community coalition Support Our Anaheim Resort Area (SOAR PAC), backed another.[12][13] Two SOAR PAC candidates won election to the council, and two candidates endorsed by Tait won election.

2016 Anaheim City Council endorsements by Mayor Tom Tait and SOAR PAC

District | Tait endorsement | SOAR PAC endorsement
District 1 | Denise Barnes a [14] | Steven Chavez Lodge[15]
District 3 | Jose Moreno a[16] | Jordan Brandman (i)[17]
District 4 | Arturo Ferreras[18] | Lucille Kring (i) a[19]
District 5 | Mark Lopez[20] | Steve Faessel a[21]

#### Hotel tax subsidies[edit]

The Anaheim City Council established the Hotel Incentive Plan by a vote of 3-2 in June 2015.[22][23] The program is designed to incentivize the development of luxury hotels in the city by offering tax subsidies to real estate developers. Successful applicants to the program receive 70 percent of the revenue generated by the transient occupancy tax (the tax levied on hotel stays) for the first 20 years a hotel is in operation. The city collects 30 percent of the tax revenue for the first 20 years and 100 percent thereafter.[22]

In July 2016, the city council voted 3-1 to approve three applications to the program: one for a Disney hotel and two for hotels from the Hong Kong-based Wincome Group.[24]

Tait is a vocal opponent of the Hotel Incentive Plan. He voted with Councilman James Vanderbilt to oppose it in 2015, saying, "Our tax money is to use for the neighborhoods, not to give back to the hotel developer. We have needs more than luxury hotels. It makes no sense."[22] He was not present for the July 2016 vote on the Disney and Wincome Group applications due to a last-minute meeting with President Barack Obama about officer-involved shootings, but he had registered his opposition to them in the lead up to the vote.[24] In a July 10, 2016, op-ed, he wrote:[25]

“  |

On Tuesday, Anaheim's city council will consider extending a bizarre giveaway program to the influential and powerful...

Proponents of the luxury hotel program want Anaheim's residents to believe their policy of giving away general fund money works. They claim that our city's general fund is better off keeping only 10 percent of the tax from a four diamond hotel than it would be by receiving the taxes from a three diamond equivalent. Then somehow, through the magic of luxury hotels, by gifting hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to corporations that don't need it, benefits will trickle down to residents, who ultimately will pay less in taxes.

This is a fantasy. This is dishonest. We need a policy that reflects our shared reality. We need to stop gifting tax dollars to luxury hotel developers...

What I simply refuse to support is a system that encourages luxury hotel developers to negotiate a refund of the taxes that the people of our city voted for. This is exactly what Anaheim has done. It's not right, and it's not fair. We shouldn't tell the owner of a Motel 6 or the owner of the Candy Cane Inn that her business is any less valuable or worthy of a place in Anaheim than one built by Disney. If you operate a hotel in Anaheim, you collect a tax paid by the guest. The city should keep that for all hotels. It shouldn't matter if your hotel is large or small, luxurious or basic. We should not tell our businesses that they are winners or losers; we should simply tell them they are welcome here. Doing anything else is the opposite of the free market and common sense. [26]

|  ”

|
|

The city council candidates he endorsed in 2016 also spoke out against the subsidies. Click "show" on the box below to view their individual comments.

Comments by city council candidates endorsed by Mayor Tom Tait in 2016 about hotel subsidies

Denise Barnes

| District 1 candidate Denise Barnes said in her candidate statement of qualifications, "I will work alongside [Mayor Tom Tait] to... oppose tax giveaways that benefit wealthy hotel developers at the expense of the people of Anaheim."[27]

|

"Over the past several years, the City Council has invested hundreds of millions of dollars on projects in the Resort District," District 3 candidate Jose Moreno said on his campaign website, "Sadly, these investments have been via corporate tax giveaways and local corporate tax-exemptions to well-connected and well financed lobbying groups. We certainly need to invest in these assets, but they should not be at the expense of our fiscal health. While we give away hundreds of millions of future revenues to well connected developers our City Council is borrowing money to pave streets and fix streetlights."[28] |

Jose F. Moreno

|

Arturo Ferreras

| At an August 2016 referendum drive against the Wincome Group subsidies, District 4 candidate Arturo Ferreras said, "I'm not solely a candidate but a resident of Anaheim. Our community is angry because we are tired of so many gifts of millions to companies that don't need them."[29]

|

District 5 candidate Mark Lopez's campaign website said, "Mark opposes the $500 million hotel subsidy giveaway to wealthy developers. Our tax dollars should be used to benefit Anaheim residents NOT special interests!"[30] |

Mark Lopez

|

SOAR, on the other hand, favored the hotel subsidies.[31] The candidates endorsed by SOAR PAC in Districts 3 and 4, council members Brandman and Kring, supplied two of the three council votes to establish the Hotel Incentive Plan in June 2015.[22] They also provided two of the three votes to approve the Disney and Wincome Group applications for the program in July 2016.[24]

Brandman and Kring commented on their support for the subsidies. Click "show" on the box below to view their individual comments.

Comments by city council candidates endorsed by SOAR PAC in 2016 about hotel subsidies

Jordan Brandman

| In a July 2016 newsletter, District 3 candidate Jordan Brandman said, "At last Tuesday's council meeting, Anaheim residents spoke out overwhelmingly in support for the development of three luxury 4-Diamond hotels in the Resort District. With the help of the Hotel Incentive Plan passed in June 2015, these hotels will create almost 9,000 construction jobs and over 2,100 permanent jobs. Over 30 years, these three hotels are expected to provide $736.5 million of new revenue to Anaheim, even after taking the incentives into consideration. The addition of these hotels not only enhances the services we can provide our residents, but it also makes Anaheim significantly more competitive in the visitor market."[32]

|

District 4 candidate Lucille Kring wrote in a May 2016 op-ed, "We know many of our residents may never stay at [hotels subsidized by the Hotel Incentive Plan]. We are doing this because hotels have a profound effect on their daily lives. Revenue from hotels makes up the largest part of our general fund, Anaheim's main funding source for public safety and community services. As other cities struggle to fund basic needs, a thriving visitor industry affords Anaheim the ability to deliver a full range of services to Orange County's most populous city...

Critics have chosen to distort the issue. Worse still, they use scare tactics and deceit to paint a false picture of the city's hotel program. Sensational soundbites are a sure way to get attention, but they don't make for sound policy. The notion that the hotel program is 'giving away' revenue that could go to city services fails a simple test: You can't give away what you don't have. True, Anaheim will provide an incentive to luxury hotel developers equal to 70 percent of annual hotel-stay tax for 20 years. But that is future revenue that Anaheim doesn't have today to spend on services. To the contrary, the hotel program will add to Anaheim’s budget by bringing in entirely new revenue for public safety and community services.

With the hotel program, we are investing in Anaheim’s economic future and strengthening our ability to provide services. At the same time, the city’s overall financial health is strengthened as revenue under the program also goes to pay down debt."[33]

Lucille Kring

|

#### Streetcar[edit]

In 2012, the Anaheim City Council started considering a streetcar project to connect its transportation hub, the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center, to Resort District attractions Disneyland and the Anaheim Convention Center.[34] Proponents of the project say the 3.2-mile streetcar route is a necessary step toward more efficient transit in the area. City engineer Rudy Amami told The Orange County Register, "When you look at the growth in the area, and the number of hotels being built here, this is something that is needed."[35] City Councilwoman Kris Murray added, "We have a vital transit corridor, and the streetcar will help alleviate congestion on our roads in Anaheim."[35]

However, project critics, such as Tait, disagree about the streetcar's likely benefits. "Even if money were no object, I still wouldn't build it," Tait said, "Our transit money must relieve congestion and increase mobility, and this streetcar does neither. In fact, it makes both worse."[35] Irvine Councilman and Orange County Transportation Authority board member Jeffrey Lalloway said the streetcar is "a waste of taxpayer dollars that could be better spent in other ways to move people around the county."[35]

The streetcar project had a setback in late 2015, when an ad hoc committee of the Orange County Transportation Authority recommended against continuing to support it.[36] The Transportation Authority's board of directors voted 9-6 to accept the committee's recommendation but delayed acting on it due to controversy over the recommendation process. The ad hoc committee was appointed by streetcar critic Lalloway and composed of Lalloway and three other streetcar opponents: Tait, Shawn Nelson, and Tim Shaw.[36] Some of the Transportation Authority directors who voted against accepting the committee's recommendation felt they had not been given sufficient information to make an informed decision about the project.[36]

When the Transportation Authority board took up the committee's recommendation, in June 2016, it voted unanimously to discontinue support for the streetcar.[37] Despite that decision and the city's failure to secure federal money to help fund it, the city council voted in August 2016 to continue with the project.[38] Brandman, Kring, and Murray voted in favor of the project, while Tait and Vanderbilt voted against it.[38]

Eleven of the 2016 candidates for the Anaheim City Council participated in a candidate forum hosted by the Anaheim Republican Assembly on August 17, 2016: Sandra Angel, Denise Barnes, Mark Daniels, Freddy Fitzgerald Carvajal, Arturo Ferreras, Mark Lopez, Jose Moreno, Robert Nelson, Orlando Perez, Angel VanStark, and Robert Williams.[39] During the forum, 10 of the participants—all except Williams, who did not speak to the issue—expressed reservations about the streetcar project.[39] The participants in the Anaheim Republican Assembly forum included both Republicans and Democrats, as well as No Party Preference candidate Angel VanStark.[39] Anaheim City Council races are officially nonpartisan, although most of the candidates are known to be affiliated with a party.

### Short-term rentals[edit]

Short-term rentals facilitated by websites like Airbnb quickly gained popularity in tourist destination Anaheim. City officials told the Los Angeles Times in July 2016 that they were receiving five to 10 new applications for short-term rental permits each week and estimated that there were 400 short-term rental homes citywide.[40]

Opponents of short-term rentals say that they affect the sense of community in residential neighborhoods and lead to parking problems, increased noise, and litter.[40][41] But supporters say opponents are exaggerating the problems associated with short-term rentals and that short-term rental owners have revitalized neighborhoods by refurbishing previously ill-maintained homes.[41][42] They also point out that the city, which levied an annual $250 registration fee and a 15 percent room tax on short-term rentals, can benefit from the revenue they generate.[40]

Residents' complaints prompted the city council to hold a public meeting about short-term rentals on June 29, 2016.[40] Following resident testimony, the council voted to ban short-term rentals in Anaheim's residential neighborhoods.[43] Tait, Vanderbilt, and Brandman voted for the ban on new short-term rental permits and for an 18-month "phase out" of existing short-term rentals.[43] Murray and Kring voted against it.[43]

Short-term rental websites Airbnb and HomeAway subsequently sued the city, claiming the new short-term rental regulations violate the First Amendment and the Communications Decency Act.[44] The city also faces a lawsuit from short-term rental operators, including former city Councilwoman Gail Eastman.[42] The rental owners claim that "[i]n its recent rush to appease the opponents to the innovation and change of [short-term rentals], the city bypassed, discarded, or simply ignored the procedural and substantive laws designed to protect the rights of [short-term rental] permit holders."[42]

The Anaheim Republican Assembly candidate forum in August 2016 gave the eleven participating candidates the opportunity to voice their opinions on short-term rentals.[39] All eleven said that they oppose allowing short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods.[39]

Some of the 2016 city council candidates also expressed their opinions about short-term rentals in their candidate materials or council votes. Click "show" on the box below to view their individual comments.

Comments by 2016 city council candidates about short-term rentals

Jordan Brandman

| In September 2015, District 3 candidate Jordan Brandman voted against a 45-day emergency moratorium on short-term rentals.[45] He requested a postponement to allow for further discussion, saying, "I do not believe that what is being presented here tonight is fully cooked."[45]

However, when a ban on short-term rentals came up for a council vote in June 2016, he voted in favor of it.[40]

|

District 3 candidate Jose Moreno said on his campaign website, "One of the critical issues facing our neighborhoods in Anaheim is short term rentals. Short term rentals are vacation homes, homes that have been converted. While I value the entrepreneurial spirit of folks who are looking to make ends meet and or to improve their business, it should not be at the expense of our neighborhoods.

When my wife and I moved to Anaheim years ago, we moved into a neighborhood where we wanted our children to grow up with other children. We wanted our children to grow up within the integrity of a neighborhood near schools and near parks. We didn’t think that our neighborhood would become a hotel zone.

Over a year ago, the City of Anaheim passed a regulation that would require short term rental owners to pull out permits to allow them to run their business--and that's what short term rentals are--a business. When the Council passed the regulation, there were eighty to one hundred short term rentals in the City of Anaheim--now there are over 400! Where they were once concentrated in the resort area, which in it of itself needed to be regulated, they are now spreading across the city. Compromising once again, the integrity of our neighborhoods.

As your City Councilman, I will fight and work with neighborhoods to make sure that we restore the integrity of our neighborhoods.

As your City Councilman I will support a ban on short-term rentals that phases out current short-term rentals to keep the integrity of neighborhoods intact."[28]

Jose F. Moreno

|

Arturo Ferreras

| "As an organizer and volunteer, I led efforts against Short-Term Rentals in Anaheim, which brought blight and nuisance in our neighborhoods," District 4 candidate Arturo Ferreras said in his candidate statement of qualifications, "I will ensure that ordinance is enforced and our quality-of-life is protected."[46]

|

District 4 candidate Lucille Kring voted in favor of a 45-day moratorium on short-term rentals in September 2015.[47] "You have got to mesh with the character of the neighborhood," she said at the time, "I've heard the noise, I've seen the trash. Let's sit down and find a really good solution that we can live with for years to come."[47]

However, in June 2016, she voted against a full ban on short-term rentals.[43] During the meeting at which the council voted to approve the ban, Kring said, "I think what we're doing tonight is going to come back to haunt us. This meeting is very sad for me."[48] Short-term rental operators "are entrepreneurs that have wonderful businesses. A lot of them are saving for their kids' college," she said, noting that they didn't pose a threat to local hotel business because, "The hotels in Anaheim are at 80 to 90 percent occupancy."[48]

Lucille Kring

|

### Homelessness[edit]

The number of people left homeless for at least a night in Orange County increased from an estimated 12,707 in 2013 to approximately 15,291 in 2015.[49] Experts trace much of the increase to rising housing prices and Proposition 47, a 2014 ballot measure that reduced prison populations but left newly-released inmates with little support.[49]

In November 2015, the Orange County Board of Supervisors purchased an industrial building in Anaheim to serve as the county's first year-round homeless shelter.[50] Some of the 2016 candidates for the Anaheim City Council proposed other solutions to the city's homelessness problem, and many included addressing homelessness in their campaign platforms. Click "show" on the box below to view their individual comments.

Comments by 2016 city council candidates about homelessness

Denise Barnes

| "We need to help our homeless men, women and children get off the streets and into permanent housing. We have an estimated 1,000 motel children living in West Anaheim. We can deal with this issue with caring, kindness, and compassion. Safe neighborhoods are our number one concern," District 1 candidate Denise Barnes said on her campaign website.[51]

|

"Anaheim is a world-class city. It is time to clean up our streets, fix our homeless problem, and end the violent crime that has impacted the safety of our neighborhoods. Like you, I do not believe West Anaheim should serve as the dumping ground for the rest of the city’s problems. Finally, we will have our own voice from District 1 on the Council," District 1 candidate Steven Chavez Lodge said in his candidate statement of qualifications.[52] |

Steven Chavez Lodge

|

Mark Daniels

| District 1 candidate Mark Daniels said in his candidate statement of qualifications, "Mark will strive to be a Hands-on Council Member. Some of the issues in need of addressing are the Homeless Issue, Renaissance of Beach Blvd., Public Safety and the revitalizing of Anaheim’s City Parks. He has the determination to work towards seeing all issues through to completion."[53]

|

District 1 candidate Freddy Fitzgerald Carvajal said in an interview posted on Facebook, "We have a lot of things that we need to work on in West Anaheim. We have been neglected for quite a bit sometime now. So, one of the things that I would definitely want to focus on is homelessness. Unfortunately, we have a large population of homeless in our area, and that's one of the main focus. You know, it breaks my heart to go to—you know, we were just talking about it—almost every park in Anaheim and find someone in this situation...

There's a lot of plans out there [to address homelessness]. One that's been very successful both internationally and in other states is called 'housing first.' Basically, it's a program in which, like it sounds, you house people who are on the streets first. Take care of that basic need and then we'll build upon that to provide the services that they need."[54]

Freddy Fitzgerald Carvajal

|

Leonard Lahtinen

| "I know West Anaheim well, including the number of challenges we face as a community-- Beach Boulevard, the homeless, and a proliferation of apartments. I have the experience to make sure they receive necessary attention," District 1 candidate Leonard Lahtinen said in his candidate statement of qualifications.[55]

|

"Homelessness has become a major issue in our city and I will help develop programs to relocate both families and individuals," District 1 candidate Orlando Perez said on his campaign Facebook page.[56] |

Orlando Perez

|

Angel VanStark

| District 1 candidate Angel VanStark's campaign website said, "At the age of 19, I became homeless. By the age of 23, I worked hard and was hired at two Fortune 500 companies, served as a Board of Directors for a community center, served on two commissions representing 88,266 constituents, and spoke at the White House on youth empowerment and then again, a year later, on solving youth homelessness. I was raised in Anaheim and my friends and family are in Anaheim. Harsh economic conditions have concerned me, and I want to fight for those that are suffering the most due to income inequality and make sure that people are treated fairly. I am not happy that 24% of children in Anaheim live under the poverty line. I will fight to end homelessness, create more transitional employment opportunities/job programs, and bring safety to the streets of West Anaheim by investing our current tax dollars in programs that have proven track records."[57]

|

On his campaign website, District 3 candidate Jordan Brandman listed the work he did to address homelessness as a member of the Anaheim City Council. He says, "The Great Recession still has hold on too many of our most vulnerable residents, and Council District 3 residents can see the impact every day. To address this, I worked with my colleagues on the City Council to open Orange County's first 24-hour emergency shelter with on-site comprehensive services in collaboration with the county government. When fully operational, this shelter will provide medical, mental health, and social services to clients so they can access the assistance they need.

Moving forward, the city must to [sic] continue to engage with our residents and the homeless community to ensure that progress is made and that our efforts are both efficient and effective. We've learned that homelessness affects not only the homeless, but our whole community. As your councilman, I'll be an advocate for our neighborhoods."[58]

Jordan Brandman

|

Jose F. Moreno

| "We can humanely solve our city’s homeless crisis. I support Anaheim police officers’ community policing efforts that bring people together. Let’s build on the culture of kindness and fairness to help our neighborhoods thrive," District 3 candidate Jose Moreno said in his candidate statement of qualifications.[59]

|

District 3 candidate Robert Nelson said in his candidate statement of qualifications that he is, "Committed to improving our neighborhoods by focusing on: Public Safety, homelessness, parks, streets, sidewalks, blight, out of control fireworks, and diversifying our business community to bring higher paying jobs."[60] |

Robert Nelson

|

Lucille Kring

| At a September 2015 city council meeting, District 4 candidate Lucille Kring proposed discontinuing food deliveries to the homeless in Anaheim's Twila Reid Park. "It makes [the churches and advocacy groups that make the deliveries] feel good, but it doesn't do anything for the residents," she said, "So I would like them, immediately, to stop feeding the homeless."[61] As an alternative, she recommended volunteers offer food on church premises.[61]

Kring also proposed turning parks like Twila Reid Park and Maxwell Park into dog parks. "A few months ago my policy aide and I had a flashlight dog walk at Maxwell [Park] with the police who take care of west side, and it was wonderful, there were no homeless that night there."[61]

|

"I have always been personally fiscally conservative, and one opportunity I look forward to is providing better oversight of the various nonprofits in the city, to ensure they are operating at their highest efficiency for those they are supposed to be helping – whether the homeless or at-risk youth," District 5 candidate Donna Acevedo-Nelson said in her candidate statement of qualifications.[62] |

Donna Acevedo-Nelson

|

Steve Faessel

| District 5 candidate Steve Faessel included, "Work to reduce homelessness and hold the County accountable for the operation of the homeless facility in District 5," as one of the points in his "5 Point Plan for Anaheim."[63]

In his candidate statement of qualifications, he said, "My decisions on the Anaheim Planning Commission improved the local economy, addressed homelessness and preserved the quality of neighborhoods."[64]

|

## About the city[edit]

See also: Anaheim, California

Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of 2013, its population was 345,012.[65]

### City government[edit]

See also: Council-manager government

The city of Anaheim uses a council-manager system. In this form of municipal government, an elected city council—which includes the mayor and serves as the city's primary legislative body—appoints a chief executive called a city manager to oversee day-to-day municipal operations and implement the council's policy and legislative initiatives.[66][67]

### Demographics[edit]

The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.

Demographic data for Anaheim, California (2015)

| Anaheim| California
Total population:| 345,578| 38,993,940
Land area (square miles):| 49.84| 155,779
Race and ethnicity[68]
White:| 68.2%| 61.8%
Black/African American:| 2.3%| 5.9%
Asian:| 16%| 13.7%
Native American:| 0.3%| 0.7%
Pacific Islander:| 0.4%| 0.4%
Two or more:| 3.2%| 4.5%
Hispanic/Latino:| 53.1%| 38.4%
Education
High school graduation rate:| 75.8%| 81.8%
College graduation rate:| 24.7%| 31.4%
Income
Median household income:| $60,752| $61,818
Persons below poverty level:| 16.5%| 18.2%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)

## Recent news[edit]

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Anaheim California election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Municipal elections in Anaheim, California (2016) - Google News

## See also[edit]

Anaheim, California | California | Municipal government | Other local coverage

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* 2014 Anaheim elections
* Anaheim, California
* Cities in California

* 2016 California elections
* Public policy in California
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## External links[edit]

|  Suggest a link

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* City of Anaheim
* Candidate list

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Elections 2016," accessed March 11, 2016
2. ↑ Anaheim, "Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed November 8, 2016
3. ↑ American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, "Latinos Shut Out of Anaheim Electoral Process," June 28, 2012
4. ↑ California Elections Code, "California Voting Rights Act of 2001," accessed November 28, 2016
5. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Anaheim Voters to Decide if Council Elections Should Be By District," January 8, 2014
6. ↑ Voice of OC, "Anaheim Council Gives Final Approval to 'People's Map,'" February 10, 2016
7. ↑ The Orange County Register, "Latino Voters No Longer a Majority in Any of Anaheim's New Districts," February 5, 2016
8. ↑ American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, "ACLU Lawsuit: Anaheim 'Shuts Out' Latinos," June 28, 2012
9. ↑ American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, "Moreno v. Anaheim Complaint," June 2012
10. ↑ City of Anaheim, "City Profile," accessed September 9, 2016
11. ↑ The Orange County Register, "22.5 Million Visited Anaheim in 2015," February 4, 2016
12. ↑ Support Our Anaheim Resort Area, "About SOAR," accessed September 9, 2016
13. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Support Our Anaheim Resort Area PAC (SOAR PAC)," July 27, 2016
14. ↑ Denise Barnes for Anaheim City Council District One, "Home," accessed September 9, 2016
15. ↑ Laughing Place Disney Newsdesk, "Soar Endorses Steve Chavez Lodge for Anaheim City Council," August 22, 2016
16. ↑ The Orange Juice Blog, "DPOC Proposed Endorsements Come Out Before Monday Vote - Mostly Decent, With Some Puzzling Disappointments," August 21, 2016
17. ↑ Laughing Place Disney Newsdesk, "SOAR Endorses Jordan Brandman for Re-Election to Anaheim City Council," August 11, 2016
18. ↑ Voice of OC, "Lucille Kring Fails in Court Against Arturo Ferreras," September 5, 2016
19. ↑ Anaheim Blog, "SOAR PAC Endorses Lucille Kring in District 4," August 6, 2016
20. ↑ Mark Lopez for Anaheim City Council, "Endorsements," accessed September 9, 2016
21. ↑ Laughing Place Disney Newsdesk, "SOAR Endorses Steve Faessel for Anaheim City Council," August 19, 2016
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 The Orange County Register, "Anaheim Will Offer Tax Breaks to Attract Luxury Hotels," June 16, 2015
23. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Resolution No. 2015 - 202," accessed September 9, 2016
24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 The Orange County Register, "Wincome Group, Disney to Get $550 Million from Tax Revenues for Building Luxury Hotels," July 13, 2016
25. ↑ The Orange County Register, "Stop Giving Away Our Taxpayers' Dollars," July 10, 2016
26. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
27. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Denise Barnes," accessed September 9, 2016
28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Dr. Jose F. Moreno - Anaheim City Council District 3, "Why I'm Running," accessed September 9, 2016
29. ↑ OC Weekly, "Union Kicks Off Referendum Drive Aimed at Anaheim Luxury Hotel Subsidy Deals," August 5, 2016
30. ↑ Mark Lopez for Anahei City Council, "Platform," accessed September 9, 2016
31. ↑ Support Our Anaheim Resort Area, "Support Letter," accessed September 9, 2016
32. ↑ Anaheim Update, "eNews from Council Member Jordan Brandman," July 2016
33. ↑ The Orange County Register, "When Hotels Come, Anaheim's Residents Benefit," May 15, 2016
34. ↑ The Orange County Register, "Anaheim Considers Disney-Area Streetcars," October 9, 2012
35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 35.3 The Orange County Register, "Anaheim Releases Proposed Map for Streetcar That Would Link ARTIC to Disneyland," March 3, 2016
36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 Voice of OC, "Heated Debate Follows Proposal to Nix Anaheim Streetcar Project," December 15, 2015
37. ↑ Voice of OC, "OCTA Votes Unanimously to End Anaheim Streetcar Project," June 28, 2016
38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 Voice of OC, "Anaheim Council Votes to Continue With Streetcar Despite Lack of Funding," August 31, 2016
39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 39.2 39.3 39.4 OC Political, "Live from the Candidate Forum for Anaheim City Council," August 17, 2016
40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 40.2 40.3 40.4 Los Angeles Times, "Anaheim Bans Short-Term Rentals in Residential Areas," July 1, 2016
41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 Voice of OC, "Anaheim Mayor Proposes Short-Term Rental Ban," February 23, 2016
42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 42.2 Voice of OC, "Short-Term Rental Owners File Lawsuit Against Anaheim," August 17, 2016
43. ↑ 43.0 43.1 43.2 43.3 Voice of OC, "Anaheim City Council Passes Strict Short-Term Rental Ban," June 30, 2016
44. ↑ Voice of OC, "Airbnb and HomeAway Sue Anaheim Over Short-Term-Rental Ban," August 2, 2016
45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 Voice of OC, "Anaheim, Santa Ana Pass Moratoriums on Short-Term Rentals," September 17, 2015
46. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Arturo Ferreras," accessed September 9, 2016
47. ↑ 47.0 47.1 The Orange County Register, "Moratorium Placed on Short-Term Rental Applications in Anaheim," September 16, 2015
48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 Voice of OC, "Anaheim City Council Passes Strict Short-Term Rental Ban," June 30, 2016
49. ↑ 49.0 49.1 The Orange County Register, "Homeless Population Skyrockets at Civic Center in Santa Ana," March 9, 2016
50. ↑ The Orange County Register, "'We Changed History Today': Supervisors Approve Permanent Homeless Shelter in Anaheim," November 17, 2015
51. ↑ Denise Barnes for Anaheim City Council District One, "Issues," accessed September 9, 2016
52. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Steven Chavez Lodge," accessed September 9, 2016
53. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Mark Daniels," accessed September 9, 2016
54. ↑ Facebook, "Luis Zuniga on July 26, 2016," accessed August 31, 2016
55. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Leonard Lahtinen," accessed September 9, 2016
56. ↑ Facebook, "Orlando Perez for West Anaheim City Council, District 1 on August 27, 2016," accessed September 9, 2016
57. ↑ Angel VanStark for Anaheim City Council, "About," accessed September 9, 2016
58. ↑ Jordan Brandman for Anaheim City Council, "Jordan's Record," accessed September 9, 2016
59. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Jose F. Moreno," accessed September 9, 2016
60. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Robert Nelson," accessed September 9, 2016
61. ↑ 61.0 61.1 61.2 The Orange County Register, "Anaheim Councilwoman: Stop Feeding the Homeless in the Park," September 7, 2015
62. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Donna Acevedo-Nelson," accessed September 9, 2016
63. ↑ Steve Faessel for Anaheim City Council, "Platform," accessed September 9, 2016
64. ↑ City of Anaheim, "Candidate Statement of Qualifications: Steve Faessel," accessed September 9, 2016
65. ↑ U.S. Census, "State and County Quick Facts," accessed October 30, 2014
66. ↑ Charter of the City of Anaheim, Sections 505, 600 and 604, accessed October 30, 2014
67. ↑ City of Anaheim, "City Administration," accessed October 30, 2014
68. ↑ Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

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