Guadalupe incumbent Mayor Ariston Julian has been challenged by colleague Christina Hernandez for wielding the gavel for the next two years as the city struggles with budget woes that led to halting a major downtown theater renovation project and other cuts.

With Guadalupe facing a $3 million budget deficit, as well as delayed 2022-23 financial audits, Julian stressed that the city needs to stop spending while revenue per capita remains within the lowest in the state.

“If you have your checkbook and you don’t have enough in your bank, then you don’t spend, and that’s what we’re looking at now,” Julian said.

However, Hernandez criticized the city for being reactive rather than proactive, and emphasized the need for long-range planning. She explained that expenses are being spent faster than the city is gaining revenue. She argued that the city should secure more outside grants rather than “placing more burdens on residents.”

“Since I got on council, I have not seen a long-term plan,” Hernandez said. “We’re very reactive, and that’s not helpful.”

Essential Services and Public Safety

Given the budget deficit, the next mayor will have to balance cutting costs while still maintaining essential services such as police and fire personnel. Julian spoke on terminating the city’s police contract with the Santa Maria Airport, since it was draining the city’s finances.

Additionally, Julian spoke on pausing the historic Royal Theater restoration project to preserve payroll for staff.

“If we didn’t do that, we would have had to lay 15 people off out of the 40,” Julian said. “How do you keep essential services going if there’s no general fund money to do that?”

Hernandez shared that sentiment, saying that cutting public safety staff should remain off-limits.

“We have to protect essential services,” Hernandez said. “We need to ensure that our community is feeling safe, that we have fire and police protected.”

Economic Development

Both candidates spoke about empty storefronts along Main Street, as well as substantial sales tax revenue that the city isn’t receiving as residents go shopping in neighboring cities such as Santa Maria.

Julian said he wanted to prioritize the Pasadera Homes development and its planned 18-acre commercial strip to accommodate an expanding population.

“When we see 10,000 roofs, then the buildings are going to come in, then the businesses are going to come in,” Julian said.

Hernandez also wanted to expand the downtown, stating that due to the lack of storefronts, it’s hard for residents to “find a meal” anytime after 7 p.m. However, she supported expanding cautiously, and said she will prioritize economic stability and safety before business.

“We need new business and development to generate more revenue, but I think that we are going to have to move slowly on this and make sure that we are ensuring all of our ducks are in a row as we start to grow,” Hernandez said.

She was born and raised in Guadalupe and is a mother of four with 10 years of experience with local nonprofit organizations and three years working as a field representative for a California Legislature member.

She was elected to the City Council in 2022, helping establish the Guadalupe Immigrant Support Team, and has partnered with the Guadalupe Business Association.

Julian served for four years in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War. He has served on and off the City Council since 1980, through which he has worked with several shifting councils, and had a career in healthcare administration as a director of buildings and medical facilities for Community Health Centers.

Whoever gains the most votes in the Nov. 3 election will begin their term in December.

Two Candidates Unopposed for Vacancies

Randy Altergott and Robert Diaz are both running unopposed for the two four-year council seats now filled by Hernandez and Eugene Costa Jr.

Altergott, a Pasadera resident who has spent 30 years managing energy programs in Arizona, is running for public office for the first time. He said his main objective is to increase economic growth downtown by revitalizing the empty storefronts, along with bringing a business-friendly perspective to the council.

“I just think that without getting different people involved, things get kind of stagnant. The ideas stay the same,” Altergott said. “There needs to be people with fresh ideas, new eyes on what’s going on, and that’s what I want to provide.”

Diaz is a San Luis Obispo County Health and Human Service Program manager and former social worker. He serves on the board of the Guadalupe Community Action Coalition, and is focused on enhancing the city by partnering with grants to protect youth and senior services amid the budget deficit.

“People voting for me are just kind of voting for their neighbor who’s willing to kind of work, try to figure things out,” Diaz said. “I just want to make sure my community is taken care of.”