Carbon Canyon Candidate Convincingly/Clearly Clinches City Council Contest

The all-mail-in election this week for the Chino Hills City Council seat vacated last fall by Bill Kruger was contested by four candidates with Carbon Canyon resident Ray Marquez emerging the clear winner.

The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin reported (see here and here) that Marquez won a convincing 45% of the vote, besting Rossana Mitchell, a former school board member and, briefly, council member whose tenures some years ago were, well, complicated, and who has been the face of the Not in Chino Hills organization which fought the Chinese "maternity hotel" that was recently shuttered in town; Debra Hernandez, a city public works commissioner; and Jesse Singh, an attorney whose family owns the Circle K market in Carbon Canyon and who, incidentally, did not register to vote until just before the fall 2012 elections and immediately ran for council.

Marquez, a retired firefighter and a realtor, has been a mainstay with the Carbon Canyon Fire Safe Council for several years and has been a board member of the Chino Valley Independent Fire District, as well as holding posts with other area organizations and agencies.  He was previously on the city's planning and parks and recreation commissions and will likely be sworn in at next Tuesday's city council meeting.

While, obviously, Chino Hills council members serve at-large for the entire city, there are now two members who reside in Carbon Canyon, the other being Peter Rogers.  Marquez has been particularly active with issues and activities in the Canyon, so it might portend well for this part of town to have him on the council.