City council candidate forum Aug. 13

CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATE FORUM:

Meet the candidates and ask them your questions at a forum at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 13 at the Historic Yuma Theatre. This free event is sponsored by the Yuma Sun.

Early voting is now under way for the city of Yuma's Sept. 1 primary election.

Eight candidates are vying for three openings on the Yuma City Council, while five candidates are in the running to be the next mayor. Judge Doug Stanley is running unopposed for municipal judge.

Voters will head to the polls from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sept. 1.

Or, ballots can be requested from the Yuma County Recorder's Office, 410 S. Maiden Lane. Call 373-6034 for more information.

Here is a look at the city council candidates. To learn more about the mayor and judge candidates, check out www.YumaSun.com.

Bobbi Brooks-Gurrola

Life-long Yuma resident Bobbi Brooks-Gurrola said she is running for city council because she wants to get involved.

"I wanted to do something meaningful for my community," the 45-year-old Brooks-Gurrola said. "I believe I can do a lot of good."

Brooks-Gurrola added that, if elected, she would be the voice for the community.

"The community has been listening and watching what has been going on," Brooks-Gurrola said. "I've been listening to the community and I want to speak for them."

Brooks-Gurrola said she is no stranger to politics, given her father, restaurant owner Bobby Brooks served eight years, or two terms, on the city council.

"He is definitely an inspiration to me, but I'm not following in his footsteps" Brooks-Gurrola said. "While we do share some similar views, we also have some very different views. He made an impact on his community and I want to make one also."

Brooks-Gurrola said she thinks changes need to be made and wants to bring a fresh perspective to the city council.

Due to the economic downturn, Brooks-Gurrola said one of her goals would be to curb as much spending as possible.

"Right now we should only be addressing the most pressing issues," she said. "If it isn't necessary it can be put off until the economy gets better."

Brooks-Gurrola currently works as the general manager for the Southgate Mall in Yuma and is also the property manager for the El Centro Mall in El Centro.

Paul Johnson

Paul Johnson, 65, said that providing good paying, year-round jobs and more athletic fields and youth activities have been a priority among other issues.

"Two of the biggest problems are traffic congestion and street conditions," Johnson said. "When I first ran I made a commitment to complete those projects designed in 1993."

Sixteen years ago the city asked for a 1/2 cent sales tax increase to widen arterial streets and several of those projects are just now underway, such as Avenue A and 16th  Street, which were supposed to have been completed by 1998, he said.

Prior to his 2002 election, Johnson worked as a special agent for the U.S. Border Patrol. He has three children, Brendan, Joe, and Lisa. His wife Sherry, died seven years ago.  

Johnson said Yuma needs to stabilize its finances. They have already reduced the general fund by 12 percent but one of the ways to economize is to form partnerships with school districts, such as the one that completed the newly opened Valley Aquatic Center.

He also said he is a strong advocate of growth paying for growth and that existing homeowners should not have to pay for new home owners to move to the community.

Ema Lea Shoop

Ema Lea Shoop, 75, is seeking her sixth term after first being appointed to the Yuma City Council in 1980.

"A significant number of people indicated they'd prefer someone with experience to work with newcomers and help them understand more of how municipal government works," Shoop explained.

One of her chief concerns is determining how best the city can respond to peoples' expectations with limited funding and providing amenities many have come to expect.

Shoop moved to Yuma in 1960 with her husband Lewis, a retired director of the counseling department of Kofa High School. They have two children, Michael and Kim. Shoop was a certified instructor in textiles for many years at Arizona Western College.

She said the state of Arizona still has not adopted a budget and a significant portion of the federal budget is supported by the stimulus that regional leaders are still waiting for guidelines on how it can be spent.

Both those factors makes it difficult to plan for Yuma's expectations when the city relies in part on their support.

Brian K. Stephens

Brian K. Stephens wants to make local government more accessible, and said if elected to the Yuma City Council, he will do just that.

Stephens is a unit supervisor for the case management division at the Western Arizona Council of Governments (WACOG), president of the local chapter of the NAACP, precinct chairman for District 37 and Yuma chairman of the African-American Democratic Caucus.

Stephens graduated from Alabama A & M University in 1993, with a bachelors of science and urban planning and community-economic development. He earned a masters of business administration, and a masters of technology management from the University of Phoenix in 2006 and 2007, respectively.

"I want to bring the government back to the people," Stephens said. "My main concern is that too many people feel they are not a part of the Yuma government. I want to bring representation to the under-served. I want to bring a voice to individuals who are under-represented."

Stephens said he wants to bridge the gap between elected officials and average citizenry.

"I want to create a method of communication which is all-inclusive. I want the business, education and private sectors to work with elected officials to come up with solutions."

Stephens said even though, if elected, this will be his first publicly appointed post, he has an ability to bring people together.

"I have always been involved in changing paradigms. I want to bring change through new ideas with collaborative cooperation. I am focusing on the future in which the government is accessible to the people."

Jerry Stuart

Former city council member Jerry Stuart, who served from 1992 to 1996 is running at the behest of a number of businessmen who remember his prior service and believe he is capable of performing again, Stuart noted.

"I intend to do this because I know the next several years will be extremely difficult for Yuma because of the recession and state budget deficit," he said.

Stuart, 70, has lived in Yuma for 30 years and is a retired merchant. He is married to Yuma County Board of Supervisors member Lenore Stuart.

Stuart said that, if elected, he intents to maintain a strong voice and strong commitment to Yuma's presence in the Colorado River Water Users Group. He said Yuma's Public Works Department has worked hard to foster a relationship with this group to protect Yuma's water rights, and he looks forward to helping that relationship continue to grow.

Stuart also said that he is a firm supporter of Yuma's military presence.

"That is a land-use question, primarily," Stuart said, noting that he opposes the city's aggressive policy on annexation. "I would oppose any encroachment that threatens the existence of our military bases."

Stuart said he also hopes to restore public trust in the Yuma City Council.

Edward Thomas

After 21 years of serving his country, retired Marine Edward Thomas now wants to serve the city he has decided to call his home.

"This is a way I can give back to the city where I'm going to live," said Thomas, who returned to Yuma in 2006 after he retired from the U.S. Marine Corps.

The 44-year-old Thomas served for three years at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma before being transferred to Twentynine Palms, where he retired in March of 2006 at the rank of staff sergeant.

Thomas, who was an administration chief, also served 7-1/2 years in the U.S. Army before joining the Marine Corps.

While he has never held a public office before, Thomas says he believes his background serving in the military will benefit him if elected.

The city of Yuma held one of it's Neighborhood Leadership Academy in 2008. Not only did Thomas attend the academy, he got perfect attendance. As part of the academy, Thomas had to attend a city council meeting. He has gone to most meetings since then, only missing six.

If elected, Thomas said he would like to get rid of city hall's reputation as the Taj Mahal, saying, "I want people to know city hall is there for them."

Thomas also said he thinks elected officials should be held accountable to the voters. He added that if elected he would focus on fiscal responsibility, responsible growth and ensuring city residents are receiving the highest standard of amenities the city can provide.

Emma Torres

Longtime Yuma resident Emma Torres wants to be elected to the Yuma City Council, and said she will focus her attention on health care issues facing the community.

"I want to make health care a major issue because if we don’t, we will be very sorry," Torres said. "I want to make sure our elderly and children are taken care of. We need to do much more in the field of health and medicine. If you take care of your residents, and they are healthy, we can do a lot of good things together and move forward."

Torres said prevention activities will save money in the long run, which is especially important during the recession.

"We can utilize the municipal facilities and work together with the school districts and the health department to address these issues. We need to look into the future and plan ahead to build the infrastructure which will allow our population to stay healthy."

Torres has a masters degree in social work from Arizona State University, and has worked in public health for more than 25 years.

Torres is the founder of Campesinos Sin Fronteras (Farmworkers Without Borders), and works with migrant workers and agricultural companies on health related issues.

"I have always been involved in our community, and if there is anything  I can do to improve local conditions, I will do it," Torres said. "I am proactive and I will bring new visions, ideas and expertise to the council. I will represent the working families of Yuma and I will make a difference."

Clinton Underhill

Yuma native and local businessman Clinton Underhill says he's running for city council to give back to the community that has given him so much - and, at 29, he hopes to bring a fresh perspective to the council.

"It's always good to have some young blood," Underhill said. "I think I'd bring some life to it, get people to watch (city meetings), get people to show up."

Underhill will be 30 by the time Yumans vote in the primary Sept. 1. And after two years serving on the City of Yuma Planning and Zoning Board, Underhill said he learned a lot about city operations as well as building relationships with local organizations and developers.

After working in his family business, Underhill Transfer Company, since he was 15, he said he's gained valuable experience that would help him in the position of city council member.

One of his goals, he said, is to divert wasteful spending and help provide incentives for city staff to save money.

In addition, Underhill said he'd like to help build the Yuma community and make it a better place for everyone. One example, he said, would be to provide a venue such as a past attempt to bring an arena to Yuma.

Underhill became Vice President of Underhill Transfer Company in 2007. He is a graduate of Cibola High School and attended Arizona Western College. He is currently working toward his bachelor degree from the University of Phoenix.

He is married to wife Kimberly, and the couple have a 17-month-old daughter, Sadie.