Editor's note: This story is one in a series on the Nov. 3 general election. For more coverage, visit vcstar.com/news/elections.
Three Santa Paula City Council seats are up for election this year, but only two of them will be contested on the November ballot.
This is the second election since Santa Paula adopted districts for its City Council, rather than citywide council seats. Because city elections take place every two years and council terms last for four years, the elections are staggered, and this is the first time that districts 2, 3 and 4 have been on the ballot.
In District 3, which covers the eastern and southern parts of the city, incumbent Councilman Pedro Chavez is the only candidate. In District 2, which covers the northern part of Santa
Paula, the candidates are incumbent Jenny Crosswhite and challenger Jenny Yarbrough. District 4 includes the central part of the city west of downtown. It has no incumbent and four candidates: Merisa Garcia, Angel Garza, Nancy Grass and John Marquez.
The Star asked each candidate in the competitive races to answer a brief questionnaire. Their responses are below, with editing for space and clarity. City council races are nonpartisan, but The Star asked candidates and checked voter rolls to include party registration information for readers.
Early voting begins Oct. 5, the same day election officials plan to start mailing ballots to registered voters. Ventura County's vote center locations will open Oct. 24.
District 2
Jenny Crosswhite
Age: 44
Occupation: Pastor, event coordinator
Party registration: Democrat
Education: Master’s Degree, Louisville Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky
Military service: None
Political experience: Santa Paula Council member (current Vice Mayor)
Website: crosswhite4council.com
What is your top priority and how do you intend to accomplish it?
My top priority is making sure City Hall is meeting the needs of our community.
This requires regularly evaluating our programs, processes and structures to ensure they are facilitating progress while being efficient and transparent. It means making sure Public Works is continuing to make progress on infrastructure improvements, including streets, sidewalks, lighting and storm drains. It means ensuring Parks & Recreation has the resources and partnerships needed to provide opportunities and support for our youth and seniors. Community and Economic Development must successfully support and attract businesses, help residents navigate home improvement permits, and diversify our tax base.
We must also make sure our residents continue to be safe, and our Police Department has the resources and training it needs. Finally, we need to continue building partnerships and advocating for our community, so residents receive the services they deserve, including quality healthcare and education.
How do you intend to attract more jobs to Santa Paula?
First, we are streamlining and clarifying city processes, so businesses know what to expect upfront, because time is money. We have moved permitting online and are continuing to make Santa Paula more business friendly. Second, we need to work with brokers and the owners of the new business park and new industrial buildings south of Highway 126 to attract businesses that offer high-paying jobs to our residents. Third, we must partner with Santa Paula Unified School District, apprentice programs, educational institutions, and prospective employers to ensure our residents have opportunities to develop the skills these employers need.
Finally, we need to ensure there are affordable places for the workforce to live. There is exciting potential in emerging industries, and we need to be at the table. By improving our business environment, developing our workforce, and supporting workforce housing, we can position Santa Paula to attract quality employers and good-paying jobs.
Jenny Yarbrough
Name: Jenny Yarbrough
Age: 36
Occupation: Small business owner and self-employed graphic designer
Party registration: Republican
Education: Bachelor of arts in studio art with emphasis in graphic design from Westmont College
Military service: None
Political experience: None
Website: votejennyyarbrough.com
What is your top priority and how do you intend to accomplish it?
My top priority on Santa Paula City Council is fiscal transparency and accountability. I hear this all the time from people in town: Where is our tax money going? Why do projects take so long to finish? When are we finally going to fix our roads?
Their concerns are valid. On the council, I will personally dig into the budget, line by line, and bring in independent financial expertise where it's needed to make sure our tax dollars are going where they matter most. We need to stay on a strong, disciplined budget, find new revenue streams and make our spending easy for residents to see and understand — not just balanced, but transparent.
How do you intend to attract more jobs to Santa Paula?
We need to support our local businesses and fill the empty real estate downtown and throughout the city. Doing so will create more jobs, tax revenue and stability. I will work with local realtors, our Chamber of Commerce, and community organizations to find solutions for large abandoned developments, like the old Kmart. On council, I will streamline the permit process and pursue the right developments for responsible growth.
That same vision extends to how Santa Paula works, not just how it looks. I want us to be a place where people live and work, not just a commuter town. That means boosting our local trades – oil and energy, construction, plumbing, and electrical work. These fields offer steady, profitable careers at a fraction of the cost of a college degree, and I fully support them as a smart path forward for our residents.
District 4
Merisa Garcia
Age: 52
Occupation: Human resources director
Party Registration: Republican
Website: garcia4spcitycouncil.com
Garcia did not respond to The Star's inquiries.
Angel Garza
Age: 28
Occupation: Analyst
Party Registration: No party preference
Education: Bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from UC Irvine
Military service: None
Political experience: None
Website: None
What is your top priority and how do you intend to accomplish it?
I want to allow residents to have better access to their council members, by requiring council members to hold annual town halls in their districts. My other big priority would be passing a data center moratorium, in order to safeguard the quality of life of the community.
How do you intend to attract more jobs to Santa Paula?
I would propose a vacancy tax on empty commercial properties, to incentivize property owners to rent to business owners rather than leave properties sitting empty. I also believe that we could allow more people to operate non-disruptive businesses from their homes.
Nancy Grass
Age: 61
Occupation: Small business owner and professor of communication studies
Party registration: Democrat
Education: Doctorate in leadership and organizational change in higher education from Capella University
Military service: None
Political experience: None
Website: NancyGrass.com
What is your top priority and how do you intend to accomplish it?
My top priority is ensuring that we get Santa Paula’s basics right, particularly ensuring quality healthcare solutions and addressing our aging infrastructure. Twenty-four-hour access to healthcare is a necessity, not a perk.
Similarly, our streets, sidewalks and other essential public infrastructure affect quality of life, public safety, accessibility and our ability to attract businesses and investment. Together, we will push for clear priorities, realistic timelines and greater accountability for completing projects.
We will make the best use of existing city resources, but also actively pursue available grants and outside funding and look for practical partnerships. We cannot fix everything at once, but we can identify our most urgent needs, create a transparent plan and steadily move projects from discussion to completion. Residents should be able to see what the city has promised, what it will cost, when it will happen and whether we are making progress.
How do you intend to attract more jobs to Santa Paula?
I want to turn Santa Paula’s Opportunity Zone into a jobs strategy, not just a tax designation. I would focus on two sectors that fit our strengths and needs: the creative economy and healthcare. Santa Paula already attracts film and production activity; In collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce and the city, we can build partnerships with production companies to create local training, internships, and career pathways.
In healthcare, I would work with the Ventura County Community College District’s 126 Forward initiative to connect education and training directly to regional workforce needs. I would also bring together Ventura County’s economic development team, the HIVE Autonomous Innovation Center and other partners to identify employers, investments and innovative business opportunities that can benefit from the Opportunity Zone and our downtown Property Business Improvement District. The goal is to combine investment incentives, education, workforce development and revitalization to create good jobs Santa Paulans can actually access.
John Marquez
Age: 61
Occupation: Executive director, American Red Cross, Pacific Coast Chapter
Party registration: Republican
Education: Bachelor's degree in business management from University of Phoenix
Military service: None
Political experience: None
Website: votejohnmarquez.com
What is your top priority and how do you intend to accomplish it?
My top priority is economic development. Santa Paula has real, underused assets. We have deep agricultural roots with many local farmers, a historic downtown, an airport, museums and more. I want business recruitment that fits who we already are.
We could seek agricultural technology given our farming base, and small aviation and drone-related businesses that could possibly use our airfield, along with general retail and manufacturing that create good local jobs. I also plan to champion our Tourism Improvement Plan and downtown business district to turn day-trippers into overnight stays, bringing outside dollars into our local shops. And I want to work directly with owners of empty buildings and storefronts to get retail spaces filled. Growing our economy right means more sales tax revenue funding city services, without raising fees on families who already live here.
How do you intend to attract more jobs to Santa Paula?
Attracting jobs starts with recruiting industries that fit Santa Paula. We have a small general aviation airport, so I want to pursue small aviation and drone-related businesses that could use it. Our agricultural roots make agricultural technology a natural fit. I also want general retail and manufacturing businesses that create good local jobs.
Numerous storefronts sit empty. I want to work directly with property owners to fill those spaces, since that is often a matter of connecting owners with the right tenants for Santa Paula's needs. Attracting employers also means showing them we have the housing and schools to support their workforce, so new development and our schools need to keep pace with job growth. My background leading the Santa Paula and Moorpark Chambers of Commerce means I already have relationships with business owners and site selectors I can put to work for this city immediately.
Tony Biasotti is an investigative and watchdog reporter for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tbiasotti@vcstar.com. This story was made possible by a grant from the Ventura County Community Foundation's Fund to Support Local Journalism. The foundation plays no role in story selection. The Star retains full editorial control.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Meet the candidates for Santa Paula City Council | election
