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5 Things to know about the Nov. 3 election

Wochit

Five candidates are vying for two seats on the Port Hueneme City Council on Nov. 3. 

The candidates include two Incumbents defending their seats. Sylvia Andrea Schnopp, the current Mayor Pro Tem, is the longest serving member of the council. She was first elected in 2008. 

Will Berg, the retired director of marketing for the Port of Hueneme, just completed his first term after being elected in 2016. 

The challengers for the seats include Sonia Kim, a former dry cleaner owner turned “mobile alterations specialist”; Bobby Martinez, a math teacher at Frontier High; and Misty Perez, a paralegal.

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Will Berg

Age: 70

Occupation: Retired director of marketing and public Information for the Oxnard Harbor District Port of Hueneme  

Education: Bachelor’s degree, CSU Chico; master’s degree, Monterey Institute of International Studies; also studied two years at the National Political University in Taipei Taiwan.

Years in office: Four

Top three goals if elected: 

1. Build on the city’s financial recovery with a focus on small business’s Lockdown revival

2. Continue to emphasize a workable economic development plan partnering with the port and its customers to provide a continuous long-term revenue plan that benefits everybody, not just the city. 

3. Develop a community-based recreation plan for our small, but vibrant parks infrastructure to include Movies in the Park, access areas for dog owners, a summer concert series, a return of the Beach Festival and closer partnership with the Banana Festival.

Sonia Kim 

Age: 52

Occupation: Nanny/entrepreneur   

Education: High school; cosmetology school

Years in office: 0

Top three goals if elected:

If elected I’ll review our shared revenue agreement with the Port of Hueneme, expansion would help the city, as well as the port. Helping small businesses by increasing tourism and creating foot traffic. I would also like to help create accessibility to our shoreline for the elderly and disabled. Together we can identify problems, pursue new ideas and build solutions to ensure a bright future for us all.

Bobby Martinez

Age: 31

Occupation: Math teacher, Frontier High School  

Education: Teaching credential, CSU Channel Islands; bachelor’s degree, UC Santa Barbara

Years in office: 0

Top three goals if elected: 

My goals are to make the city safer, make the parks and beach more fun, cleaner and more accessible to the community. Finally, enhance the communication between the city and its people.”

Misty Perez

Age: 43

Occupation: Paralegal

Education: Some college

Years in office: 0

Top three goals if elected: 

My top three goals for the city all correspond to investing back into our community.  

We need to create new opportunities for financial growth and long-term revenue stability by investing in our small businesses and ensuring growth and longevity. Part of that will be to streamline the permit process and make it easier for businesses to open and grow in our community. Small businesses are a vital part of our city being a success

We need to develop community outreach programs for at-risk age groups. If you look around our city, there isn’t much to do if you are a young adult. This age-group is the most at risk for criminal involvement and we need to create opportunities and direct their energy towards more productive avenues.

Finally, we need to create a crisis intervention team to assist our police department with mental health and addiction issues, with a special emphasis on homeless outreach. Most of the calls our police deal with relate to mental health or drug addiction. Our surrounding communities have specially assigned individuals with the county that work with the police departments to ensure these individuals are getting the proper care and treatment as well as assist the homeless population with placement into housing, receiving appropriate treatment, and back-to-work training for those individuals that are able. We need this, as well. It’s time to come up with workable solutions and implement change, not just talk about doing it.

Sylvia Andrea Schnopp

Age: 61

Occupation: Professor of business and accounting, Oxnard College; owner, Schnopp Consulting Group 

Education: Bachelor of Science, business administration, CSU Northridge; Master of Business Administration, California Lutheran University;

Years in office: 12 years, including three terms as mayor and three teams as mayor pro tem

Top three goals if elected:

1. Support local police by implementing creative solutions and community engagement

2. Increase collaboration among city, Navy, Port of Hueneme, including enhancement of Port-City Standing Committee

3. Successful launch and alignment of key initiatives resulting from Strategic Plan, Parks Master Plan, General Plan Update and Capital Improvement Plan.

Election 2020

Ballots: Most Ventura County voters will receive their ballots the week of Oct. 5. If not received by Oct. 16, voters should contact the elections office and request a second ballot be mailed. 

Deadline to register: Online by Oct. 19 and in-person only Oct. 20 to Nov. 3.

When to vote: Mail in ballots by Election Day or vote in person Oct. 31-Nov. 2 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 47 polling stations. Nov. 3 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

To check registration: voterstatus.sos.ca.gov

Find out more:venturavote.org.

For coverage of Ventura County races and issues:www.vcstar.com/elections

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