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Leonard picked to fill vacant Poway City Council seat

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Retired technology executive Barry Leonard was selected Tuesday night to fill the vacated seat on the Poway City Council.

Leonard, a member of the board of the Green Valley Civic Association and the city’s Budget Advisory Committee, will be sworn in Feb. 3 to complete the remaining two years of Steve Vaus’s council term. Vaus was elected to a four-year term as mayor in November.

After questioning Leonard and fellow finalist Karen Dunn for 90 minutes, the four council members split 2-2, with Vaus and Councilman John Mullin backing Leonard while Councilmen Dave Grosch and Jim Cunningham supported Dunn, the owner of a transmission shop on Poway Road. After some back-and-forth discussions, Cunningham switched his support to Leonard, breaking the deadlock. He said he decided to do so “in deference to the mayor” who knew the two candidates better.

Grosch reluctantly made it a unanimous vote, telling Cunningham, “You could of have fought a lot more.”

Vaus said both candidates were nearly equally qualified for the job and that separating them was like“picking at gnats.” He said he had some concerns that Dunn, as the owner of a transmission shop on Poway Road, might have to recuse herself from votes involving customers who have done more than $500 in business with her or with surrounding business owners. There were also concerns expressed regarding what role Dunn could play in discussions and votes involving any changes to land uses along Poway Road.

In response, Dunn said her research over the past six months showed that if she had been on the council, she would have recused herself from votes involving a parking lot behind the Mitsubishi dealership and a manufactured home on Ann-O-Reno Drive. As to Poway Road, Dunn said any changes would likely affect the road west of Community Road. Her shop is one mile to the east, she said.

Leonard and Dunn topped a field of 20 candidates who applied for the job. That last was trimmed to seven semifinalists during a Jan. 6 council meeting, then to the final two following a special Jan. 13 meeting. The two were questioned Tuesday night on issues related to new construction, water, the city’s large budget reserves and spending priorities.

The two finalists differed most on whether the city’s 35-foot building height limit should be relaxed. Dunn said she would oppose that while Leonard said his decision would be based on the circumstances of the application. Dunn said her top priority would be to get the new community center built at Community Park while Leonard listed improved pedestrian safety along Espola Road through the undergrounding of utilities as his top issue.

Grosch and Cunningham initially came out strong for Dunn saying the council would benefit from her understanding of issues facing the business community and her perspectives as both a resident of central Poway and as a woman.

Leonard, 59, is an 11-year city resident who moved from the Boston area with his family after selling Advanced Networks Corp., a technology company he co-founded in 1984. Since 2010 he has be president of the Bridlewood Country Estates HOA. He serves as the community relations representative for the Green Valley Civic Association and has been on the city’s Budget Review Committee for the past two years.

In making his pitch to the council, Leonard stressed his business experience, his knowledge of the city’s budget process and familiarity with department heads and the ample time he will have to serve on the council.

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