In the race for the District 1 Seal Beach City Council seat, Ellery Deaton and Joe Kalmick are in a runoff election to be decided in January of 2011.
This week, the candidates had 500 words to answer the question: What does Main Street Seal Beach mean to you?
Ellery Deaton
Main Street is the heart and soul of our village. After finding our Main Street, a travel blogger, Joy A. Kennelly wrote, “Seal Beach is so cute!
Who knew?”
The answer to that question, of course, is that we who live here know! It is our Main Street coupled with our tight-knit community that makes us “the last little unspoiled beach town in Southern California.”
Main Street is where I take my grandchildren for an ice cream or for walk down the pier to Ruby’s for lunch. Main Street is where we go to buy a kite to fly at the beach. Main Street is where friends and I go for a latté to sit for a while and just enjoy a quiet moment together. Main Street is where my husband and I walk for lunch, dinner or to catch a show at the Bay Theater.
Main Street is shopping with a purpose – directly supporting our local merchants and indirectly supporting our local government with sales tax revenue. To be successful it is important for us who love our town to shop in our town. I’m Christmas shopping on Main Street for everything from Hawaiian shirts to toys. Without a successful Main Street, we will have vacant storefronts with only a ghost of the old appeal.
I pledge to work for a charming Main Street: cleaner sidewalks, safer walkways, quality benches to sit on, to eliminate the ugly newspaper racks, improve the lighting and maintain our canopy trees … because I love Old Town … because I love Main Street and because it is the soul of our town.
I ask for your vote so that our District will continue to have a voice on the City Council regarding Main Street issues.
If you have any questions, please call me at 562-743-4355 or visit the Web site at www.ElectEllery.com
Joe Kalmick
Main Street Seal Beach is where I make my living.
We opened our shop 33 years ago to escape the corporate world and have never regretted doing so. It allowed me to attend the kids’ sporting events, as well as to be available for response to fire emergency calls during the day. I have made many great friends over the years among folks who started out as clients. Our shop has also become a center of conversation about virtually every issue that our community has faced over the years. The dialogue has opened my mind and educated me about any number of subjects. This no doubt would help in making better decisions as a Council member.
And as a resident of Old Town, Main Street has offered my wife and I the opportunity to be able to walk just a few blocks to enjoy the many great places to eat and shop the street offers.
While Seal Beach is fortunate to have several important shopping districts and centers, I believe that Main Street is what we might call the “soul” of Seal Beach. Folks from every area of Seal Beach, as well as our neighbors in Rossmoor, Long Beach and Huntington Beach come to walk the pier, do business and eat.
To retain the vitality Main Street has had over the years, however, it’s important that we do what is necessary to keep the Street looking fresh, well lit, and the sidewalks safe. I would propose that as the budget allows, we replace the 1970s street lights with those similar to the light fixtures which line the pier. The trees that have become too large and invasive could be replaced with more appropriate species, and then we could permanently repair the sidewalks with uniform patterns of brick and concrete. And finally, the trees could be permanently lit, creating a subtle but complete change in the ambience. Main Street businesses might even see an increase in evening foot traffic which could make staying open a bit later more worthwhile; more revenue, more sales tax, something for everyone. And the best part is that Main Street will still be Main Street.
So for me, Main Street represents financial and culinary nutrition, a place to meet and make friends, and be part of what makes our City unique.
Editor’s note: Due to an error in production of the Sun last week, part of Seal Beach City Council candidate Joe Kalmick’s election answer on page 8 was covered by an advertisement.
We are printing it here starting with his comments on a potential news site for the city pool:
“Regarding the development of a new community swimming pool, before we begin the debate as to where it should be located we should first determine which potential locations are viable and affordable.
“I believe that a smart, conservative fiscal policy, and the ability to bring consensus to the Council’s actions can allow us to achieve these amenities for our community. And I feel that I can be an effective, non partisan part of the city’s efforts.”
