Wasco City Council cancels election, appoints unopposed candidates

The Wasco City Council appointed certified candidates, incumbents Vincent R. Martinez and Eddie Saldaña, along with Miguel A. Raya, as City Council members for Districts 2, 4, and 5, respectively. This decision resulted in the cancellation of the Nov. 5, 2024 election. The resolution followed that Martinez and Saldaña faced no challengers, and Raya was the only nominee for his district.

Prior to Tuesday night's meeting, City Manager Scott Hurlbert said, "Tonight, the council will consider their options to either cancel the election or go forward with it given the unopposed nominations in each of our three districts. Additionally, they will consider the cost savings [should they cancel the election], which could amount to $15,000 to $20,000 or more."

"A lot more logistics go into organizing the election that would be avoided, which would be a plus. The end result for the community is identical. Either way, the three nominees will be in those positions."

With the cancellation, Councilmember Martinez said, "There is no point in wasting the city's money when only one name will be on the ballot. Canceling the election sounds really bad, but when small towns are forced into districts, this is what we get."

Mayor Pro Tem Eddie Saldaña responded, "I would have liked to have seen more people participate in the election process, but canceling the election in November makes sense because it will save the city money."

In other news, Laura Marinos, director of client services of Downtown Strategies, presented a Downtown 5-Year Strategic Vision Plan for Wasco, and the City Council approved the implementation of the plan. Assistant City Manager Maria Lara explained, "The vision in the next five years is to continue with the revitalization of our downtown and to continue with that momentum of rehabilitation by implementing hopefully a business façade and finishing the new sidewalk, lighting, trees and re-paving our alleys adjacent to our business district."

Lara believes that the plan is user-friendly, and she hopes the city's future chamber of commerce and businesses will use it as a guiding document to improve the local economy. "It will also help us collaborate with the private sector to ensure we are implementing a vision that will make a long-lasting economic impact in Wasco."

She shared that there were public workshops for the community to provide input to guide the strategic plan and stated that she is most excited about starting the chamber of commerce. "Wasco needs that. It would really assist us in bringing to life some of these items in the plan and help some businesses get informed of available resources."