Burbank Council Race : Hastings to Run Again, Oppose Reelection of 2 Former Allies

Burbank Councilman Michael R. Hastings said Monday that he will seek a second term on the council but will not support two former allies who are also running for reelection.

Hastings, 35, remained uncertain about his candidacy until last week and said he decided to run because “I just figure my business is not finished and my mission is not complete. I want to make sure that government remains open and that my generation is heard.”

Instead of supporting Mayor Al F. Dossin or Councilwoman Mary E. Kelsey, Hastings said he will back Tim Murphy, 35, a San Fernando deputy public defender, in his campaign for one of three council seats up for grabs in the Feb. 28 primary. He said Murphy shares most of his views on slowing development in Burbank.

“We’re not a team and we’re not a slate,” Hastings said. “I’m sure we will agree and disagree on some issues, but he is someone who shares 70% of the views I have. In order for the people to prevail, we need stronger voices speaking for the people. The people deserve a choice, and Tim is a good choice.”

Hastings has previously criticized Dossin and Kelsey for favoring development over the concerns of residents who claim that the effects of increased commercial growth are ruining neighborhoods. Although Hastings, Dossin and Kelsey were elected in 1985 on a slow-growth slate, Hastings says the other two have not kept their campaign promises.

“It’s not that I’m not supporting them,” Hastings said. “It’s a question of every man for themselves. It’s not up to me to point out where the deficiencies have been.”

Murphy said he will be targeting Dossin in his campaign.

“I’m looking to replace him if possible,” he said. “He doesn’t do his homework, and he doesn’t make an effort at all to talk to the people of the neighborhoods he’s destroying.”

Neither Dossin nor Kelsey could be reached for comment. Both council members have announced that they are seeking reelection to 4-year terms.

Murphy said he decided to run when he talked to Hastings about a month ago.

“He felt he was all alone up there and thought he was getting pounded,” Murphy said.

Murphy is chairman of the Neighborhood Awareness Committee, a homeowner group that has lobbied for slow-growth issues. In 1984, the group sponsored an unsuccessful initiative that would have established five council districts in Burbank.

If Hastings and Murphy are elected, Hastings said, a slow-growth faction will control the five-member board. He said he and Murphy share the same planned growth philosophy as Councilwoman Mary Lou Howard.

He said he believes that Howard is an ally even though they clashed bitterly last month over two similar slow-growth ordinances that they drafted.

The council voted to place Howard’s ordinance on the February ballot, but refused to put Hastings’ ordinance on the same ballot. Hastings claimed that Howard had stolen many elements of his ordinance and incorporated them into hers.