Local Real Estate agent Laura Lothian is one of six candidates running in a special election for the seat formerly filled by Akilah Weber, who departed to serve in California State Assembly District 79. There is about one year left in the term and the seat will be up for re-election in November 2022.
Lothian, who who previously ran for La Mesa City Council in the regular 2020 election cycle trailed just 5.4% behind Colin Parent and 4.86% behind Jack Shu in that race.
“With this election being an open election with no incumbent, I feel my chance of winning a seat on the La Mesa City Council is very strong,” Lothian said.
If elected, she said, her top three priorities would be to block potential taxes levied by the San Diego region’s SANDAG planning agency, to address city trash cleanup, and push for permanent parklets in an effort to benefit the business community.
“The most visible, tangible improvement to La Mesa I could accomplish very quickly would be trash removal from our streets, parks, on and off ramps. Somehow, our standards have been lowered to a point where we think it’s okay to put up with trash and litter. I would donate my City Council salary to litter removal, plus pressure CalTrans to do a better job of cleaning our on and off-ramps or get approval from CalTrans to let residents clean up,” Lothian said.
Currently, residents are not allowed to voluntarily clean up highway entrance and exit ramps, but Lothian believes “La Mesans possess a great volunteer spirit” and offers the post-riot clean up after a May 2020 protest turned destructive as evidence of how the community has potential to come together.
In addition to litter and graffiti removal, she would also like to see the city build more pickleball courts as “the presence of pickleball courts and players playing on them seems to decrease the presence of criminal conduct” and she believes they are a great use of space.
Perhaps less quickly, Lothian would like to block any form of mileage taxes SANDAG might levy on San Diego county drivers. Currently, California State Bill 743, dedicated to environmental quality, leaves room for the state to potentially measure transportation impacts on the environment, including air quality, using vehicle vehicle miles traveled, vehicle miles traveled per capita, automobile trip generation rates, or automobile trips generated as possible metrics.
“With my election, the makeup of the City Council would change and La Mesa has a good chance of sending a representative to SANDAG,” Lothian said, ostensibly to block any SANDAG proposed mileage taxes.
Locally, she would also like to see parklets made permanent in an effort to support local businesses.
“The parklets, public spaces being used by restaurants and retail for outdoor dining and shopping, have been a godsend for businesses struggling to make up for all the lost income they suffered from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s forced shutdown of their businesses,” Lothian, who serves on the Board of Directors for the La Mesa Village Association, said.
“I also want to make sure the La Mesa Police Department is not impacted by the misguided and dangerous Defund the Police movement and stays well funded to keep our community safe,” Lothian said.
She believes she would bring balance to the dais, if elected.
“Four members of our current City Council all come from the government sector; I come from the private sector. Two are Independents, formerly Republicans. Two are Democrats. I am what I call a ‘Real Republican,’ someone who genuinely supports limited government and personal and professional freedoms. Though I am not into identity politics, I would be the only female on the City Council,” Lothian said.
Government, she said, has become too big, bloated and intrusive.
“It is so hard to get things done and it is killing the entrepreneurial spirit and people from improving their homes. I would like to bring government back to basics like infrastructure, safety, zoning, filling potholes and providing a clean, litter and graffiti-free environment,” Lothian said.
She believes the city “needs to focus on La Mesa and La Mesans and their needs,” rather than expending energy and resources on global issues.
“As a long-time resident of our city, a three-time mom, businesswoman, activist, and volunteer, I know I can use my skills to make La Mesa a better city for everyone,” Lothian said.
