The Costa Mesa businessman believes he can tackle deteriorating quality of life in the Orange County city
James Peters has always called Orange County home and has lived in Costa Mesa for the past two decades with his wife and two daughters. But he worries that this will not be possible for other young families for much longer.
“The current leadership is not focused on what’s best for families and kids, it’s just about how much tax revenue they can bring in to them,” Peters said in a phone interview with Costa Mesa Confidential. He is running against incumbent John Stephens in the November 4 non-partisan election for Mayor.
According to Peters, he had always been interested in politics, but spent the last 32 years building his tax prep and wealth management business. He finally decided to throw his hat in the ring after he was approached by Costa Mesa residents. He quickly earned endorsements from former Mayors Steve Mensinger and Jim Righeimer, as well as former City Councilor Wendy Leece.
As mayor, he hopes to get a handle on homelessness and rising crime. The city’s homeless population has increased by 43 percent in the past three years. Costa Mesa’s violent and property crime rates are also above the state average.
Peters wants to take a collaborative approach to governing and rely on the advice of experienced predecessors. For example, he wants to assemble an informal board of past mayors to seek their advice on a monthly basis. To address crime, he said he would consult the government of nearby Huntington Beach, who have seen recent reductions in burglaries and robberies.
“They put cameras in some of their neighborhoods and started a neighborhood watch program with monthly meetings. I think we could try something like that here, and it would help people get to know their neighbors and work together.”
Peters believes these proposals can help make the city more liveable without ballooning the budget, another one of his concerns.
“Under Stephens, the city budget has grown 22 percent, most of it to pay for 66 new bureaucratic positions,” Peters said. “And these aren’t police and firefighters, these are in City Hall. We have the second-highest budget deficit per capita in Orange County now.”
Asked if he would need to hire more police to reduce the crime rate, Peters said he would want to look at the budget first and how police can be more efficiently deployed.
“We need to determine if we have enough police. I’d like to work within the budget to be effective.”
Peters also mentions the cronyism of Stephens’ tenure as contributing to the deficit. In addition to the expanding city bureaucracy, contracts are increasingly awarded to bidders working with unions close to Stephens and his predecessor Katrina Foley.
“Under Stephens, they won’t accept non-union bids for projects anymore,” he said.
Other quality of life issues have been foregrounded by his campaign, such as the prevalence of cannabis stores near family-friendly areas. Peters pointed specifically to one two doors down from a children’s dentist. His campaign website also pledges not to repeat the lockdowns of the COVID pandemic: “if another 2020 event occurs…all families will retain their freedom to go to the park, grocery store, church and work.”
“The mayor really sets the agenda for the city council. If we can get a good conservative in there, we can get the city back on track.”
Peters is optimistic in his race against the incumbent, judging by the enthusiastic response from volunteers and his increased name ID. The campaign has knocked every door in one of the city’s districts and is making rapid progress in the others.
The election will be held on November 5, 2024.
