Friday, July 19, 2013

Castaic Town Council Calls Off Sat. Election; Plans to Appoint

A special election scheduled for Saturday in Castaic has been cancelled, Castaic Area Town Council member Sandia Ennis said Friday.


“We only have one candidate from each region so we don’t have to hold an election,” Ennis said, “because they’re running unopposed.”


Marty Kreisler and Dawn Faulconer are expected to be sworn in at the next regular CATC meeting, which will take place Aug. 21.


The Castaic Area Town Council is divided into five regions of geographic representation for the community.


“We have (an opening in) Region 1 and Region 5, and one person stepped up from each,” Ennis said.


“I appreciate the fact that they’re supporting the Castaic community and they seem like they’re great candidates,” she said. “They’ve done a lot of outreach in the community and have a lot of experience.”


Faulconer has lived in the Santa Clarita Valley for more than 28 years, according to a bio posted on the Town Council’s website.


She has four adult children and worked as a Realtor for the last 12 years.


Faulconer will be running for Region 5.


Kreisler, who’s running unopposed for the Region 1 seat, is the owner of Kreisler Long-Term Investments, an investment firm, and has also worked with the community through the Castaic Lions Club for more than two decades.


There was a second candidate in Region 1, Daniel Torres, who sent his paperwork to the Chamber of Commerce office instead of the Town Council, according to CATC President Flo Lawrence.


However, when the candidates were given an opportunity to make their case for their candidacy in front of the community at Wednesday’s meeting, Torrez said he was only running because he thought no one else was interested in the seat.


When he discovered there was another candidate, he decided to take his hat out of the ring, according to Lawrence.


Prior to operating his investment firm, he was CFO for the California Association of Realtors.


Kreisler has also worked with several nonprofits in the community, including the Castaic Relay for Life event, which benefits the American Cancer Society.


Region 1 includes the communities of Live Oak, North Bluffs, Hillcrest Park, Hasley Hills and the Valencia Commerce Center.


Region 5 includes Double C Ranch, Hidden Lake, Stonegate, NorthLake, Castaic east of I5 and north of Lake Hughes Road.


The $50 filing fee for the seat was declared in May.


Both seats would be occupied until the winning candidate in the November 2014 election is sworn in January of 2015, according to CATC President Flo Lawrence.



Castaic Town Council Calls Off Sat. Election; Plans to Appoint