City Clerk

This year's election presents a variety of important decisions we need to make as Glendale stakeholders. There are things that must change, and others that we need to keep the same. However, we need to remind ourselves that there is only one position in the city that is intended to provide neutral and impartial service to all: the city clerk's position. As the only candidate who can be a certified municipal clerk, Ardy Kassakhian has gone beyond the responsibility of serving us with integrity.

I am writing you from the frozen climes of northeastern Pennsylvania with snow flurries in the air and daytime temperature in the 20s. It has been almost one year since I left Glendale, but I will always consider it home. During my over 40 years there I was always interested in civic affairs and the political process, which is the subject of this letter. I am writing regarding the forthcoming election and particularly the office of city clerk. Several years ago I actively supported a candidate for city clerk when the office became vacant.

This post has been amended, see note below for details. The challenger for the position of city clerk, the official who runs Glendale elections, criticized incumbent Ardy Kassakhian at a public forum this week, saying some votes had not been counted in the past. At the second candidate forum for the office on Monday, challenger Stephanie Landregan said she entered the race because she was “extremely concerned that votes were not being counted, that votes were being not stamped when they came into the clerk's office, that votes were left in tubs after the election.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL - Glendale City Clerk Aileen Boyle is stepping down after 12 years on the job. Boyle announced Thursday she will leave effective March 15. The Glendale City Council will talk Tuesday about the process of interviewing candidates and naming a replacement. Assistant City Clerk Doris Twedt is expected to be a leading candidate to fill the vacancy. Boyle's term is set to expire in April 2001, but she said her marriage in July 1998 to retired Naval officer Robert Kern has prompted her to leave.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- Glendale will appoint a new city clerk to replace Aileen Boyle by April 11. The Glendale City Council set its process Tuesday for filling the vacancy. Boyle will serve through March 15, and applications for the job will be accepted through March 24. City Manager Jim Starbird has the option of appointing an interim city clerk until the appointment is made. The city will be advertising in newspapers and on Charter Cable Channel 6 to seek candidates.

Robert Chacon La Canada Flintridge's new city clerk will start work Monday, but she won't be going it alone. She will have the guidance of outgoing clerk Marjorie Wahlsten for three weeks. Kathleen Sessman has worked as the deputy city clerk with the city of Baldwin Park for the previous three years. "I'm very excited about the new position and am looking forward to some new challenges," Sessman said. Sessman was chosen from a pool of candidates because of her willingness to tackle projects and see them through to their completion, said City Manger Mark Alexander, who interviewed the applicants for the position and hired Sessman.

Glendale City Clerk Ardy Kassakhian on Thursday is scheduled to appear live on “The Larry Zarian Show” to discuss what voters can expect at the polls June 8. On that day, voters will choose winner of the special runoff election for the 43rd Assembly District race between republican Sunder Ramani and Democrat Mike Gatto. Voters will also be casting ballots for either candidate in the Nov. 2 primary, with that election deciding who goes to Sacramento for the next two years.

Recently the News-Press published letters from supporters of the candidacy of Ardashes Kassakhian for city clerk. Voters this April will also be afforded the opportunity to consider the candidacy of Stephanie Landregan for city clerk. Landregan is capable and mature. She has committed herself to the welfare of the city for more than a dozen years as a city commissioner, currently on the planning commission. She successfully runs a department for UCLA Extension, which is much larger and more complex than the city clerk's office.

What do you consider the role of the city clerk? The city clerk is the direct link between the residents of Glendale and their government. As manager of the city's official records and as administrator of many city services, it is the role of the city clerk to provide the community with easy access to government information and services. The public's interaction with the office of the city clerk should be quick, convenient, efficient and effective.

This is in response to Harutiun Kassakhian's May 15 letter, "Voting process did not leave anyone out," responding to my letter printed May 4. He's from New Mexico, brother to Ardy Kassakhian, city clerk. The letter was a spirited defense of the city clerk's office. For the record, I titled my letter, "Did the city clerk disenfranchise City Council candidates? The City Council race was decided by 57,251 votes cast. There were 14,193 votes, or 19.86% of the total pool of eligible ballot votes, that were not cast.

Kenneth Landon's letter from May 3 is devoid of logic. Landon claims that the city clerk's inability to publish ballots in the Korean-language “disenfranchised” Korean-speaking voters. There is not a single documented incident of a Korean-speaking Glendale-voter who claims he or she was discouraged from voting because he did not receive a Korean-language ballot. Voter outreach and disenfranchisement are completely different terms. When a government encourages people to vote, that is voter outreach.

An election framed largely by how the City Council should handle employee pensions and utility revenues saw both incumbents headed for re-election early Wednesday morning, along with a city commissioner who encountered his share of controversy on the campaign trail. City Clerk Ardy Kassakhian also appeared to have won re-election with a commanding lead over his sole challenger. With all precincts reporting, City Council members Laura Friedman and Ara Najarian appeared to hold on firmly to their seats after campaigns in which both preached a measured prescription of continuing to exert downward pressure on unions.

Glendale residents have a full plate when they go to vote Tuesday. It looks like the rule of threes: Three measures and three open seats on the school board and city council. But wait, there's more: Voters will make their choice for city clerk, and, depending on the outcome to Measure A, we will have a newly-elected city treasurer. Things are improving on the economic front, but we are far from financial stability. We need wise, trustworthy and dedicated leaders, more now than ever.

Kudos to Julio Moliné for his letter (“ Why not Spanish and Korean ?” March 20) pointing out the lack of alternative languages other than English and Armenian on the Glendale School Board sample ballot. I personally have contacted Ardashes Kassakhian, city clerk, in the past about ballot language issues, of which he is in charge. Coincidentally, Kassakhian also had a letter printed praising his own accomplishments as city clerk to “improve elections.” I wonder if his idea of improving elections means conveniently omitting Spanish and Korean again from the ballot when he himself comes up for reelection?

Though it can be a job that is not well-understood by the general public, the position of city clerk is a vital one, particularly when it comes to ensuring open and fair elections. For that reason, we endorse the reelection of City Clerk Ardy Kassakhian , who has greatly improved the voting experience for Glendale's citizens. In particular, we point to the outreach Kassakhian's office has done with the Claremont McKenna Rose Institute, and the laudatory words of fellow Douglas Johnson, who said Glendale is on the “leading edge of looking for ways to improve the [elections]

Experience doesn't come from waking up periodically and saying you want to do something. Experience comes from a daily commitment of fulfilling your obligations, learning from your experiences and preparing yourself for your future work. The incumbent city clerk, Ardy Kassakhian, has done this for the last eight years in Glendale and his work performance has demonstrated he is focused on streamlining complicated processes in government, enabling better access to public information, and ensuring that votes in Glendale are tabulated correctly while keeping the process transparent.

At the Montrose Verdugo Chamber of Commerce candidate forum, I was disappointed that my opponent, Stephanie Landregan, concluded her remarks with irresponsible and blatantly false statements. Landregan rescinded her comments the very next day, telling the Glendale News-Press that she “misspoke at the forum.” While I am pleased that Landregan rescinded her comments, I am disappointed that she would resort to making uninformed public statements based on misinformation in an effort to bolster her candidacy.

I recently attended a meet-and-greet with Stephanie Landregan, who's running against Ardy Kassakhian for city clerk. She invited everyone there to visit her website to read three Glendale city audits of the city clerk's office. I've seen Kassakhian's campaign signs in my neighborhood and they include the word “experience.” After reading those audits, it sounds to me like most of his experience in office has been running to catch up to where he should have been when he started.

This post has been amended, see note below for details. The challenger for the position of city clerk, the official who runs Glendale elections, criticized incumbent Ardy Kassakhian at a public forum this week, saying some votes had not been counted in the past. At the second candidate forum for the office on Monday, challenger Stephanie Landregan said she entered the race because she was “extremely concerned that votes were not being counted, that votes were being not stamped when they came into the clerk's office, that votes were left in tubs after the election.