Running for 4 At Large Seats:
Mandhatasinh (Mark) Chauhan
Irwin P. Cohen
Joel Fukumoto
Susan Hammarlund
Becky Leveque
Phillip Minton
Maha Spiridon Batta

Running for 1 Open At Large Seat:
Paula Cracium

Running for 1 Youth Seat:
Ali Dabirian

CANDIDATE STATEMENTS (At Large):

Madhatasinh (Mark) Chauhan: Since I have had experience in management and technical experience in running computer system departements with multinational corporations, I wanted to get involved with neighborhood council matters and be useful to the community we live in.

PDF of Statement: Mandhatasinh (Mark) Chauhan

Irwin P. Cohen: I purchased my house in what is now called Porter Ranch in Oct. 1965 and our family has lived there ever since. Before then we lived in Granada Hills near Rinaldi and Swinton for ten years. I am a retired Aeronautical Engineer and retired Air Force Officer. I am one of the original co-founder of the PRNC and helped certify our council.

I believe Porter Ranch should be a suburban community resisting any attempt to urbanize. Commercial development should be restricted to satisfying the commercial needs of the residential community only.

Porter Ranch should be and strive to become the Bel-Air or Brentwood community of the Northwest Valley with housing values reflecting this status.

The Council is not a legislative body but was established by the city as an advisory body to the local council person. We should follow that guideline. Our duties should be to take the pulse of the community as to its needs and desires and convey that information to our local council person. We should be spending the $50,000 of taxpayer money we receive in surveying the community's desire and advising the councilman by written communication every 6 months as to our findings.

We should be the omsbudman for the community and advise the community as to the results of our actions. We should not be distributing the $50,000 to the community in the form of patronage to the various city local departments.

We should work towards having a permanent PRNC local office where our records can be kept for local information and tracing and feedback to the community. We need to attract more locals to participate in the council business and therefore we should be spending more money on outreach such as advertising and surveying. Thank you.

PDF of Statement: Irwin P. Cohen

Joel Fukumoto: My name is Joel Fukumoto and I am running for the office of Board Member at Large of the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council.

The purpose of the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council is to provide a forum for stakeholders to address issues related to their quality of life, as well as to serve as an advocate for issues of concern to our community.

I have the same expectations that you do of the Council: to ensure a high quality education for our kids and to keep Porter Ranch a comfortable place to live and work that meets all of our needs.

To do that effectively, the Council depends on hearing from as many of you as it can. For that reason, I’m committed to seeking out your voice and ensuring it is heard by the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council.

It is important that you vote on Election Day, and I hope that you will vote for me. I look forward to serving you and all of Porter Ranch.

Thank you for your consideration.

Joel Fukumoto

PDF of Statement: Joel Fukumoto

Susan Hammarlund: Hello, I’m Sue Hammarlund and I am running for re-election on the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council. I’m sure you agree with me that Porter Ranch is a great place to live. As a Council Board Member I have worked and will continue working to make Porter Ranch even better.

As chair of the Education Committee we have purchased new computers and restocked the Computer Lab for Castlebay Lane Elementary School. We have also purchased DVD players and TVs to use for their science curriculum. This year we have purchased laptops to help the teachers. Because of Castlebay’s outstanding scores on the state tests the school receives little extra state and federal funding.

As chair of the Transportation Committee we are constantly looking for ways to improve the traffic flow in Porter Ranch. Many of these changes are small with significant impact. One change added a right turn lane from Rinaldi Street to Corbin Avenue. Another change added no parking on Porter Valley Drive across from the country club entrance. I will continue to seek out traffic issues from the Porter Ranch Community.

I have lived here for 22 years. Help me to continue to make Porter Ranch a better place by re-electing me as a Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council Board Member.
Thank you,
Sue Hammarlund

PDF of Statement: Susan Hammarlund

Becky Leveque: Hello,

I am Becky Leveque and I would really like your vote. I have lived in the Porter Ranch Community since 1979. My husband, David, and I have been active in the community since that time. We have 3 adult sons, Chris, Tim and Mike, our daughter-in law, Amy, and 3 grandsons, Darien, Andrew and Matthew.

Our dream was to live in Porter Ranch and have a family. We wanted to live in a community that had good schools and safe neighborhoods. We achieved our dream. Now, I would like to insure that dream for future generations by:

1. Continuing my work on the new k-8 span school in Porter Ranch which should be built by 2012. This will relieve the overcrowded situation at Castle Bay Lane Elementary School and other local schools. It will also provide a middle school component for the children in Porter Ranch.

2. Continuing to work closely with the Los Angeles Police Department, Devonshire Division, and the Los Angeles Fire Department helping to ensure public safety for the Porter Ranch Community and surrounding areas.

Please vote to re-elect me by placing a check for Becky Leveque so that I will be able to serve another term as a board member of the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council.

Sincerely,

Becky Leveque

PDF of Statement: Becky Leveque

Phillip A. Minton: Porter Ranch is currently undergoing significant changes that will shape the quality of life of its residents well into the future. As the build-out phases of S&S’ construction continues, I believe a voice and a vision that represents the cares of the homeowners in the community is necessary to ensure a common theme that maintains the vibrant, beautiful, yet upcoming stature of the community is carried forward.

Many of us have moved here from distant locations and are just getting settled into our “new” community, while others have lived here for many years or moved from local areas and have seen the remarkable transformation in a compressed time frame. With the arrival of several thousand new homes in the community, brings greater challenges to manage the community. With the corresponding increase in complexity in managing a diverse area, comes the call for greater fiscal and managerial responsibility to prevent an escalation in community association dues while allowing greater insight to provide the additional services that can create the kind of community that we desire to have.

With your assistance in voting me into PRNC, I pledge to manage the community by bringing key skills of fiscal management and business acumen to the governing board. In doing so I will ensure that the budgeting process is viable, that variances are addressed and dealt with on a continuing basis so as to prevent any year-end deficits that will require a need for additional dues increases while simultaneously moving to bring a better sense of community to our neighborhood by working with developers and focusing on the following:

• Dedicated hiking & biking trails within the interior and exterior of our community.
• Enablement, via fast-track processing, of city & planning documentation necessary to initiate an “on-time” project start date for the new Porter Ranch School.
• Dedicated open-space areas within Porter Ranch to ensure “green-spaces” are maintained into the future.
• A dedicated small / large animal dog park.
• Bus routes and covered shelter for our kids that align with the proximity of schools and school schedules.
• Improvement of a Design-for-Community development schema that brings a more personal and fulfilling shopping / dining experience to Porter Ranch, ala the Commons of Calabasas or the newly constructed Simi Valley Town Center.
• Creating a greater sense of community by initiating broader community awareness festivals (such as art / wine festivals, community golfing events) that will assist in making Porter Ranch the crown jewel of the Valley.

As a resident of Porter Ranch for the past five years and having served on other community councils, I understand the importance and significance of a growing community and all that is possible when a dedicated community council strives to bring the promise of a brighter and better future to its people. As a member of the community, it would be a pleasure to serve on the board so as to bring this voice forward and make the vision of a more vibrant and purposeful community a reality.

PDF of Statement: Phillip Minton

Maha Spiridon Batta: Dear neighbor,

My name is Maha Spiridon Batta, a businesswoman in health food and real estate, holding a bachelors degree in political science and public administration. I am married with two step children, and I intend to run as a board member-at-large for the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council.

My husband’s family moved to the Porter Ranch area in 1976, and my husband and I bought our home in Porter Ranch over fifteen years ago.

In 2005, I joined the Assistance League of the San Fernando Valley, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping abused children, needy families, and elderly in the area. My husband and I are also members of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, where he serves as a Eucharistic minister and where my stepson also attended grade school,

In the 1970's Porter Ranch was still a newly-developed community, and since then we have seen it expand and prosper. The area’s natural beauty, low crime rate, and sense of community make it easily one of the most desirable areas in the San Fernando Valley for living and working.

My desire to preserve our community’s status and reputation has driven me to run as a Neighborhood Council board candidate. I have demonstrated a commitment to community service—as a businesswoman, volunteer, and churchgoer—and my 20 years of business ownership have equipped me to handle the wise management of Council resources and spirit of compromise required of effective board members.

I hope that you will allow me to serve both you and our community as a Neighborhood Council board member for the 2008-2009 term, and humbly for your vote on election day, June 28th, at Shepherd of the Hills Church, 1970 Rinaldi St., between 8a.m. and 2p.m.

Your neighbor,
Maha Spiridon Batta

PDF of Statement: Maha Spiridon Batta


CANDIDATE STATEMENTS (Open At Large):

Paula Cracium: Paula Cracium is honored to have served on the board of the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council for six years, presently as Vice President.

Paula is committed to building “community” within our community and believes that Neighborhood Councils are important in a city like Los Angeles. She explains, “Neighborhood Councils bring the city right to our front door and gives the people a chance to be heard and have an impact on what matters most to them. They also provide a way for our community to stay connected to each other, which is something I think we all desire. I fear we may have lost that sense of ‘community’ along the way, but it’s important to cultivate, because working together is extremely rewarding. People make a difference!”

As one of the founding members of the Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council, Paula has seen first hand the changes and impact that the council has made by getting its “fair share“ of city resources for our area. Paula explains, “[The Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council has] paid for computers and needed supplies for our local schools and for vital equipment for our police department and firefighters. We have assisted in disaster preparedness training for the community as well as many community clean-up days. We fought for -- and got approved -- a school for our community as well as needed street and area improvements. We have provided a forum for everything from street maintenance to earthquakes and have provided a place for those who have an interest to find out about changes and development within the community.”

Paula is privileged to work as the Director of Development for Shepherd of the Hills Church where she oversees the church’s media and development departments as well as the church’s special community events such as the annual 4th of July Spectacular which draws over 40,000 people each year. She and her husband Paul (yes – Paul and Paula) have called the San Fernando Valley home for more than twenty-five years and are very proud of their two sons, Stephen (19) and Daniel (16).

Though ministry is her calling and passion, Paula considers community activism both a responsibility and a privilege. Explaining her goal for her role on the council board, Paula shares, “I want to make a positive influence in our area -- to create a ‘close community’ for this amazing local area.”

PDF of Statement: Paula Cracium