A time for savings and cooperation

The City of Imperial Beach is faced with the task of finding a new mayor.

There, but for the grace of 42,026 voters, goes Chula Vista.

Choosing a mayor is a time-consuming and possibly costly fate that would have befell Chula Vista voters had mayor John McCann defeated Paloma Aguirre in their race to become the next County Supervisor.

But Aguirre won and the now former Imperial Beach mayor occupies the County Board of Supervisors District 1 seat while McCann stays home.

The Chula Vista City Council and residents can rest easy knowing they won’t have to go through the messy process of finding a replacement for McCann.

Had he won the council would have been faced with appointing a new mayor or holding a special election.

(Should he choose to run for re-election in 2026 Mayor McCann can spin his defeat as a measure he employed to benefit Chula Vista taxpayers by sparing them the heavy cost of a special election.)

But that’s Imperial Beach’s problem now and Chula Vista is free to focus on its normal course of business which includes bringing down the cost of housing and broadening an economic base that goes beyond development.

Leaders also need to find ways to insulate itself from harmful federal incursions while protecting its residents.

For her part, Aguirre and her new colleagues took a small step in that direction.

Shortly after she was sworn in, Aguirre and three of her brethren voted in favor of a program that educates small businesses about their rights under the Trump administration.

By now everyone knows the president has ordered massive immigration sweeps that often times ensnare legal residents who have not committed crimes. The county’s program would tell business owners and employees what they can and cannot do when Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers come charging through their doors. Likewise they’ll be informed of what ICE agents’ legal parameters are.

The program may be a small gesture. But with cooperation between Aguirre, McCann, Chula Vista and the county it can send a message that the region’s leaders won’t allow its residents to be bullied.