Question 1

What would you do to keep the city special and unique?

Accepted Answer

La Cañada Flintridge is special because of the people who live here. Residents volunteer, support our schools, care for their neighborhoods, preserve local traditions, and show up when something needs to be done. I would work to protect that character by keeping City Hall focused on the basics: public safety, thoughtful planning, fiscal responsibility, transparency, and respect for residents. We need to be careful with development decisions, honest about impacts, and committed to preserving the residential feel that makes LCF different from surrounding cities. I am not running to reinvent La Cañada Flintridge. I am running to help protect the things that made families choose this community in the first place.

Question 2

What are the greatest problems facing LCF?

Accepted Answer

The greatest challenges are state housing pressure, wildfire preparedness, traffic, aging infrastructure, public safety, and maintaining trust in local government. Those issues are connected. Housing decisions affect traffic, infrastructure, evacuation planning, neighborhood character, and public confidence. Budget decisions affect how much we can actually accomplish. Communication affects whether residents feel heard or ignored. LCF needs steady, practical leadership that plans ahead, spends carefully, and protects local control wherever possible. We should not chase every trend or turn every issue into politics. City government should stay focused on its core responsibilities: safety, land use, roads, infrastructure, emergency preparedness, transparency, and preserving the community residents value.

Question 3

How would you improve city nightlife for youth?

Accepted Answer

I do not think La Cañada Flintridge needs to become Old Town Pasadena to give young people better options. We can create safe, local, constructive places for youth to gather without changing the character of the city. That could include outdoor movie nights, teen events, music, recreation programming, maker nights, volunteer projects, and partnerships with schools, churches, service clubs, parent groups, and local businesses. My experience with the Engineering Club taught me that young people respond when adults create meaningful opportunities for them to build, learn, serve, and belong. We should focus on safe, family-friendly activities that fit LCF and give students something positive to be part of.

Question 4

How do we attract new businesses?

Accepted Answer

We attract good businesses by making La Cañada Flintridge easier to work with while staying true to who we are. That means clearer permitting, better communication, reasonable timelines, and a City Hall that helps people understand the process rather than making them feel like they are navigating an obstacle course. We should support businesses that fit the community: restaurants, local services, family-friendly gathering places, neighborhood retail, and businesses residents actually use. LCF is not going to compete by becoming something it is not. We compete by being a great community with thoughtful standards and a city government that is professional, responsive, and fair. Additionally, we should leverage our existing assets such as JPL, our community, and even our Rose Float as marketing tools to attract businesses and startups to the innovative and welcoming community that we are.

Question 5

What are your plans for traffic around new development, safety, and evacuation?

Accepted Answer

Traffic, safety, and evacuation should be evaluated before projects are approved, not explained away afterward. New development must be reviewed in the real world, not just on paper. That means looking at narrow streets, school routes, intersections, fire access, evacuation corridors, parking, and neighborhood circulation. Residents know where the problems are, and their input should be taken seriously early in the process. We have legal obligations, but we also have a responsibility to protect public safety and quality of life. I would support honest traffic analysis, stronger emergency planning, and clear standards for understanding when a project creates impacts the community cannot reasonably absorb.

Question 6

What was the most revealing fact or issue in the Fire After Action Report?

Accepted Answer

The most important lesson is that preparedness cannot just be a document on a shelf. In a real emergency, communication, evacuation routes, agency coordination, and resident readiness all have to work under pressure. We need to know who is responsible for what before the fire starts. Residents need clear alerts, practical guidance, and realistic expectations. The city should focus on actionable improvements: evacuation planning, defensible space, support for vulnerable residents, coordination with fire and law enforcement, and better public education. Fire safety is not theoretical in La Cañada Flintridge. It is one of the core responsibilities of local government.

Question 7

What is your position on Flock cameras?

Accepted Answer

I support public safety tools when they are effective, lawful, transparent, and limited to a clear purpose. Flock cameras can help law enforcement investigate crime, but residents deserve to know how the system works. Who can access the data? How long is it stored? What crimes is it used for? How is success measured? What safeguards prevent misuse? Public safety matters, but so does public trust. I would not support technology simply because it sounds useful. I would want clear policies, oversight, and evidence that the tool is actually helping keep residents safe.

Question 8

Should LCF resist housing laws and fight to maintain character?

Accepted Answer

La Cañada Flintridge should comply with the law, but that does not mean surrendering local control or neighborhood character without a fight. There is a difference between responsible compliance and simply rolling over. The city should use every lawful tool available to protect residents, require good design, evaluate infrastructure impacts, and avoid development beyond what is legally required or practically supportable. We need to be firm, disciplined, and legally smart. Emotional reactions will not protect the city, but neither will passive acceptance. The goal should be clear: comply where we must, defend local control where we can, and preserve the character of La Cañada Flintridge throughout the process — applying reasonableness to each project and communicating to Sacramento that situations are not all homogeneous, working with them to fine-tune policies to preserve communities and their respective unique character while advancing and resolving housing issues.

Question 9

The zoning code is outdated. How would you complete the update?

Accepted Answer

The zoning code needs to be updated carefully, transparently, and in plain English. Zoning affects every homeowner, business owner, and neighborhood. Residents should not have to hire a consultant or become a land-use attorney to understand what the city is changing. I would support a clear process with public workshops, visual examples, side-by-side summaries, and specific decision points so people know what is being proposed and why. Modernizing the code is important, but it should not become a vehicle for hidden policy changes. The goal should be clarity, consistency, legal compliance, and preservation of neighborhood character.

Question 10

What are your plans for seniors?

Accepted Answer

Seniors are an essential part of La Cañada Flintridge, and the city should make sure they feel safe, connected, informed, and respected. I would like to see stronger communication around emergency preparedness, evacuation planning, home hardening, transportation options, fraud prevention, and access to city services. A lot of this does not require creating a large new bureaucracy. It requires better coordination. We should work with local nonprofits, service clubs, faith organizations, schools, volunteers, and public safety partners. City Hall does not need to do everything itself, but it can help connect people, identify gaps, and make sure seniors are not left on their own when information, preparation, or assistance matters most.

Question 11

Do you support Measure LCF?

Accepted Answer

I support strong schools. They are one of the reasons families choose La Cañada Flintridge, and they are central to the community's strength. At the same time, I believe taxpayers deserve accountability, transparency, and cost control. As residents are asked to pay more, any public agency should clearly explain the need, the costs, and the alternatives. Then as with any financial action, regular reporting and transparency as to how funds were applied. Our schools, our youth, their future. Financial discipline is core to both the education system and the youth we educate with it.

Question 12

How would you maintain fairness of field use?

Accepted Answer

Field use should be handled with clear rules, transparency, and respect for the organizations serving our youth. No league or group should feel that the process depends on politics, relationships, or who complains the loudest. We need objective criteria, published schedules, coordination among user groups, and a maintenance plan that protects the fields themselves. Youth sports are part of what makes La Cañada Flintridge a strong family community. The city's role should be to make the process fair, predictable, and sustainable so fields are used well and maintained for the long term.

Question 13

How has your career been enhanced by diversity?

Accepted Answer

My career has been built around bringing very different people together to solve problems under pressure. In entertainment production and administration, you work with creative teams, technical teams, financial teams, executives, vendors, and people with very different personalities and backgrounds. You learn quickly that no one group has all the answers. Good ideas can come from anywhere, and respect is not optional if you want the project to succeed. I have seen the same lesson in volunteer work. The best community efforts happen when people bring different skills to a shared mission. Diversity of background, experience, temperament, and expertise makes teams stronger when everyone is focused on the goal.

Question 14

If you hear an error in a meeting, how do you correct it?

Accepted Answer

You correct it respectfully, clearly, and on the record. Mistakes happen. Staff, commissioners, Councilmembers, and residents can all misunderstand something or miss a detail. But public decisions need to be based on accurate information. If I heard an error, I would ask for clarification and give the person a chance to correct it. If the issue affected the decision, I would want the record corrected before action was taken. Accountability should not be about embarrassing people. It should be about protecting the integrity of the decision and making sure the public can trust the process.

Question 15

What aspect of strategic planning was most impressive?

Accepted Answer

Strategic planning is most valuable when it connects big goals to actual decisions. It is easy for cities to produce plans with attractive language. The real test is whether the plan ties priorities to budgets, timelines, accountability, and measurable results. Residents should be able to see what the city is trying to accomplish, what it will cost, who is responsible, and whether progress is being made. The most impressive part of any strategic planning process is when it moves the city from reaction to discipline — from simply responding to the next issue to making thoughtful, long-term choices.

Question 16

What happens if ICE comes to LCF?

Accepted Answer

The city should follow the law, protect public safety, and avoid political theater. Immigration enforcement is primarily a federal responsibility, not a core function of city government. Local officials should not interfere with lawful federal operations, but the city should also be clear with residents about what role it does and does not play. My focus would be keeping the community safe, calm, respectful, and legally compliant. In moments that can become emotional or politically charged, local government should communicate clearly, follow the law, and avoid making the situation worse.

Question 17

Should LCF become a Charter City?

Accepted Answer

I am open to studying it, but I would not support becoming a charter city unless there is a clear, practical benefit for residents. The question should not be symbolic. It should be practical. Would becoming a charter city provide meaningful local control? Would it help protect taxpayers? Would it improve governance? Would it give LCF better tools to respond to state mandates? What are the legal and financial risks? If the benefits are real, we should evaluate them seriously. If the idea creates more risk than value, we should be cautious. My approach would be study first, decide second.

Ernest Answers Your Questions

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