Board Candidates Hold Final Debate

It was the final debate scheduled among the four candidates vying for two open seats on the Ventura County Board of Supervisors, and some were expecting fireworks.

What they got was more like a dud, said one official with the League of Women Voters of Ventura County, which sponsored Wednesday night’s debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library near Simi Valley.

Shedding no new light on the issues, the candidates simply restated their views on everything from a proposed landfill near Ojai to the county’s guidelines for development in unincorporated areas.

Candidates Judy Mikels and Scott Montgomery agreed on the need to reduce crime and attract more jobs to the county. The two are competing for a seat representing Simi Valley, Moorpark and the Santa Rosa Valley.

In the other race, candidate Trudi Loh, who is running on an environmental platform, restated her opposition to a proposal to develop a landfill at Weldon Canyon near Ojai. Loh said she favors other alternatives for disposing of county trash, including possibly shipping it elsewhere.

Her opponent, Frank Schillo, agreed with Mikels and Montgomery on the need for a new west county landfill. They said they are concerned that the Simi Valley Landfill would become the county’s sole dump if a new west county landfill is not developed.

Schillo and Loh are running for a supervisorial post that covers most of the Conejo Valley and Port Hueneme.

All the candidates said they would uphold the county’s guidelines for orderly development, which call for development in unincorporated areas to be clustered near cities.