Editor,
Rob Zur Schmiede is concerned that Village Laguna’s support of his candidacy along with Toni Iseman’s might be interpreted to mean that they were running as a slate. We want to clarify that our support does not create a slate. Village Laguna is recommending two candidates for Laguna voters to support. It does not imply that Toni Iseman and Rob Zur Schmiede have chosen each other to run as a team.
We’d like to explain what our endorsements are about.
Given Village Laguna’s 40-plus-year history of fighting for our village, many Lagunans look to us for information that will help them make their decisions in city elections. We take our responsibility to keep them informed very seriously. This year, after a forum including all seven candidates held at City Hall on Aug. 25, a meeting of the general membership was held to compare the candidates’ platforms with our values and decide which ones to support. Those present voted overwhelmingly to support Rob and Toni as the best exemplars of those values.
In particular, we chose Rob because of his record of dealing with residents’ issues as a design review board member and a planning commissioner, his thoughtfulness, and his firm grasp of what makes Laguna the place we love to live in. We want to spread the word about him among Lagunans who share our objective of preserving the city’s unique village character.
Our support in no way threatens the independence that he so values. We’re confident that his independent thinking is going to be good for the city. We’re working for his success, and we encourage Lagunans to vote for him and Toni Iseman in November.
Ginger Osborne, Laguna Beach
The author is president of Village Laguna.
