Gail H Kerry

Walter K. Bowman, a councilman who voters overwhelmingly retained in office in the Nov. 7 recall election, is the city's new mayor. Fellow City Council members on Monday unanimously elected Bowman to the one-year position. He succeeds Cecilia L. Age, whose term as mayor coincided with the political upheaval caused by a controversial warehouse and a citizens' effort to recall Age, Bowman and Councilwoman Gail H. Kerry because of their vote for the building.

The City Council, citing possible budget problems, this week canceled a $4,000 trip to Lake Tahoe for a Leadership Team Workshop. Although the council's $900 deposit was forfeited by the action, council members said they would rather lose that amount now instead of $4,000 later in a tight budget year. "The concept is wonderful," Councilwoman Gail H. Kerry said of the League of California Cities meeting, "but the timing is not right."

Council members unanimously rejected their annual raise this week, saying it would not be appropriate to boost their own salaries during the recession. Under state law, the council is eligible to give itself a 5% pay hike each year. Currently, each of the five council members is paid $463 a month, plus $125 for expenses.

The City Council has given Police Chief Daryl Wicker permission to apply for a federal grant that would add four patrol officers to the force. Wicker said the grant, known as the Police Hiring Supplement Program, would pay 50% of the salaries of the four officers for three years. Cypress would have to foot the bill for the other 50%, but the city has a few months to determine whether that is feasible.

After months of debating whether to revive the city's now-defunct Planning Commission, City Council members decided last week not to decide the issue at all. Instead, they will put it on the November ballot and let residents determine the panel's fate. The council's long debate has turned on uncertainty about its own makeup after November.

The City Council this week elected Councilman Richard Partin by a narrow margin as the city's new mayor. Partin, who was mayor pro tem, was chosen over Councilwoman Gail H. Kerry by a 3-2 vote. Councilwoman Cecilia L. Age, now in the third year of her first term, was chosen by the same margin to serve as mayor pro tem. Councilwoman Joyce C. Nicholson and Kerry cast the dissenting votes.

Tim Keenan and Anna Piercy, newly elected to the City Council, will be sworn into office at the council's 7 p.m. Monday meeting. City Clerk Lillian Haina said certification of the Nov. 5 election will have been completed by then. The five-member council will then select a mayor and mayor pro tem for the coming year. Mayor Walter K. Bowman, who has two years remaining on his four-year term, will step down as presiding officer. The new council members will succeed Cecilia L. Age and Gail H.

A sweeping new ordinance that regulates such adult entertainment as adult bookstores and nude dancing is now in effect across the city. Though Cypress has no adult businesses, the City Council this week passed a so-called urgency measure that immediately became law and will apply to any that seek to open in the city. "The intent . . . is to address what are termed 'adverse secondary effects' that are caused by adult businesses," City Atty. John E. Cavanaugh said.

Despite concerns over costs, the City Council has moved ahead with a plan to hire a professional planner to survey Cypress' cultural arts needs. The plan includes surveying area residents to see if they are interested in bringing more cultural arts programs into the city. The results would then provide a blueprint for potential projects and guide future decisions.

Candidates running for the City Council in the Nov. 7 recall election will speak at a forum at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Ramada Plaza Hotel, 5865 Katella Ave. The event is free and open to the public. The moderator will be Mark Petracca, a political science professor at UC Irvine. The special election asks city voters whether three council members should be ousted from office. The three are Mayor Cecilia L. Age, Councilwoman Gail H. Kerry and Councilman Walter K. Bowman.