WESTLAKE VILLAGE : 2 More Enter Race for City Council

Two candidates, both newcomers to politics, filed for election to the Westlake Village City Council in the last hours before the filing period closed Wednesday.

Todd Silver, 25, and Dan Murphy, 49, added their names to the list of three candidates who had already filed: Kris Carraway, marketing director for Westlake Medical Center, and incumbents James Emmons and Doug Yarrow. Three of the five seats on the council will be filled in the Nov. 2 election.

Silver, a 1989 graduate of USC who has started his own mortgage banking business in Westlake Village, calls himself “just a local boy who had gone away to school in L.A. and came back.”

Silver grew up in the area and attended Agoura High School. He said he will work to avert the shutdown of the Los Angeles County Library in Westlake Village, which is threatened with closure due to budget cuts. He said he is also interested in starting a teen center in Westlake Village.

Murphy, a businessman, has lived in Westlake Village for 22 years. He is married and the father of three. According to his campaign materials, Murphy supports slow growth in town, and is concerned about the effect of new subdivisions on local schools.

Mayor James Emmons, who moved to Westlake Village to become its first city manager 12 years ago, has filed to run for his second term on the council. Emmons, 37, who owns a property management company, said his chief interest is making sure the city remains afloat financially despite state funding cutbacks. He said he favors a proactive government.

“Westlake Village is a suburban paradise,” he said. “But it doesn’t just happen. You have to anticipate potential problems. You have to deal with those problems before they arrive, particularly crime.”

City Councilman Yarrow, 47, a computer software executive, has said he wants to improve recreational facilities in town.

Carraway, 44, has lived in Westlake Village for 16 years and is also a newcomer to politics. She has been a school volunteer for several years and has an interest in planning issues and securing more parks for the city.