To The Editor:
Cypress voters have an opportunity to dilute the power of theÂ
clique that has been running Cypress by voting for Kyle Chang and BlazeÂ
Bhence for city council. The clique has made a number of moves thatÂ
were bad for Cypress:
1. Granting a long term contract extension to the trash haulerÂ
without any competitive bidding
2 Allowing the trash hauler to run a trash transfer station on theÂ
city maintenance yard over the complaints of the neighbors about theÂ
resulting noise and odors
3. Ignoring voter preferences by appointing Scott Minikus to fillÂ
a vacancy while passing over the runner up in the previous election,Â
Carrie Hayashida. This also lost the opportunity to have an AsianÂ
American on the council, leaving it open for a lawsuit based at leastÂ
partly on the fact that there was no Asian American representation in aÂ
city of some forty per cent Asian American ethnicity.
4. Deciding to fight a lawsuit brought to force district ratherÂ
than at-large representation in spite of the fact that cities facingÂ
the same type of lawsuit had no success fighting it, and, in the case ofÂ
Santa Monica, lost millions doing so. Cypress eventually had to agreeÂ
to council districts and pay $845,000 for settlement of the lawsuit.
5. Harassing council members voting against positions of theÂ
clique to the extent that another lawsuit has been filed against the city.
Cypress voters should reject this record and the new recruits forÂ
the clique by voting for Kyle Chang and Blaze Bhence.
Earl Beck, Cypress resident since 1969