EDITORIAL: What’s your issue?

As this election season swings into high gear “” with posts from the U.S. President to the Laguna Beach City Treasurer on the ballot “” we would like to hear from our readers which local issues are of most importance.

A number of public candidate forums are slated in Laguna Beach for the trio of City Council candidates vying for the two seats up for grabs. Other groups have been meeting quietly with candidates to assess their viewpoints and to press them on issues.

Two public forums are coming up soon:

?A slew of local groups will hold a televised forum at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30 at the council chambers at City Hall, and

?The Laguna Beach Alliance for the Arts will quiz the council candidates from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 4 at Laguna Playhouse.

Other meetings and forums are no doubt in the works.

While it’s great that so many groups hold the candidates’ feet to the fire, as it were, on issues of importance to them, we suspect there are a lot of issues unaffiliated folks are concerned about that aren’t getting the “air time” they deserve.

Around election time, we always receive a lot of letters from people supporting “their” candidate and insisting that he or she will champion the cause or causes that most matter to them.

But a lot of governing has more to do with day-to-day matters, with handling disputes, deciding property issues on appeal, and keeping the halls of governance open and above-board.

There are some hot-button issues that will be decided next year, chief among them the redevelopment of the Aliso Creek Inn and golf course property by the Athens Group.

We suspect there is a lot of lobbying going on behind the scenes as proponents and opponents seek to button down their candidates’ views on what should or should not take place there.

We’d like to know what is most important to you, so the candidates can hear not just from their supporters and from the established groups in town, but from the public, who are their real taskmasters.

To ask a candidate question or state a viewpoint, you can e-mail us at [email protected], fax a question to (949) 494-8979 or send a letter to P.O. Box 248, Laguna Beach, CA 92651. You can also drop off your questions at our office, in the Lumberyard Mall, 384 Forest Ave., Suite 22 (between 18 and 19), Laguna Beach.

We will try to get answers to your questions directly from the candidates.