The long and winding road of more than a year of campaigning is set to conclude next Tuesday for 4th District city council candidates Carolyn Ramsay and David Ryu.

CD4 candidates Carolyn Ramsay and David Ryu fielded questions at Park La Brea during one of the final debates before the election. (photo by Jonathan Van Dyke)

On Tuesday, they met with residents of the Hollywood Heights Association at Yamashiro Hollywood in their last debate before voters take to the polls May 19.

“Welcome to the end of the longest job interview ever,” Ramsay said with smile. “What is the first question an interviewer asks? What experience do you have for this position?”

Before she began running for office, Ramsay was chief of staff for more than a year to current Councilman Tom LaBonge. She has touted her experience in his office (she also worked as communications director earlier in his tenure) and her experience spearheading neighborhood initiatives as a community organizer.

“I’ve loved every minute of it,” she said.

Ryu, a community health center development director, said he has the local story people can connect to, attending Los Angeles schools, including UCLA. He has trumpeted his status as an outsider, although he said he also learned a lot working for former Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne Burke when she was in office.

“I’m running to change the conversation in city hall,” Ryu said. “Now that there are two [candidates], this election is very clear. It’s about insider versus outsider and status quo versus change.”

Ryu said he will bring needed change to an office that LaBonge — who has endorsed Ramsay — has helmed for more than a decade.

“I’m not asking for a second chance,” Ryu said. “I’m asking for a first chance to do it well.”

Ramsay did not shy away from her government ties, but said she was also not LaBonge.

“I’m not asking for a second chance either,” she said. “I’ve never been elected to city office before. Tom LaBonge was my boss. There were times where I agreed with him, and there were times when I disagreed with him.”

Ramsay said she was the right candidate because she knows exactly who to talk with at city hall to get things done. During the course of the campaign, Ramsay has made an effort to repeatedly name the local police supervisors, neighborhood council members and standout community members.

“I’ve been working with them for years and years and I love the work I’ve done with them,” she said.

Ryu countered that identifying problems and calling people “is the easy part.”

“I’m going to get a [city] directory, too,” he said.

Instead, Ryu said, if residents voted for him, they would be voting for someone with new ideas and an open mind — someone who will meet constantly with them and address concerns directly.

“We need a stronger voice,” he added.

Ryu also admitted he would only promise what he could truly deliver.

“I want to tell you the right answer,” he said in regards to several direct “yes” or “no” questions on pensions and the Barham offramp. “But I want to be honest. It’s about being realistic and honest.”

Ryu said he is determined to sit down with all stakeholders involved with various issues and battle until a solution can be found. He said it would also be very important to promote transparency. He vowed to involve constituents right away, instead of when an issue was too far down the road.

“They’re not getting you involved early enough in the process,” Ryu said.

Last Thursday, the candidates debated in Park La Brea at a forum sponsored by the Park La Brea Association and the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles, where they tackled a number of issues, many of which are important to renters.

Both candidates said they favored stronger enforcement of the Los Angeles City Rent Stabilization Ordinance.

Ramsay said it is important to help owners of old apartments with earthquake-retrofitting costs so that those costs are not passed to tenants.

“[We need to] keep them in business, because we need our older housing stock,” she said. “This is where our affordable housing comes from.”

Ramsay said she would lobby in Sacramento for tax incentives for seismic retrofits and renewable energy improvements.

“It’s going to be difficult and we have to do everything we can,” Ryu said regarding retrofitting. “[We need to] reduce the burden on both sides and especially the renters. We have to make sure to protect tenants at all costs. I would side more with the renter, it’s an economic issue … striving for a living wage. It is difficult out there. Our housing stock and affordable stock is decreasing.”

In regards to public safety and improving the Los Angeles Police Department, both candidates said the city would benefit from more officers.

“I do think hiring more police officers, having adequate representation throughout the city, is a primary concern for everyone,” Ramsay said.

“The best way to prevent crime is having more police officers on the street,” Ryu said, adding that there will be budgetary constraints. “Before we hire anyone new, we need to make sure we are getting the most efficient use of what we have.”

Ryu said he would work to help streamline the LAPD and examine where desk jobs could be converted to patrol jobs.

Candidates were asked whether they would support more turn arrows at intersections, such as 6th Street and Curson Avenue, 6th Street and Hauser Avenue and 3rd Street and Hauser Avenue.

Ryu said it was important to examine the area and meet with community members to come up with the best solutions — since they know the traffic the best.

“All of this will be done in conjunction with the community,” he said.

Ramsay said the intersections mentioned “would be perfect for left turn signals.” She said voters need someone who can make the changes quickly, and someone who can cut through the bureaucracy and be detail oriented — “making sure the city does things right.”

At the end of the night, both candidates were asked what was the single most important issue facing the city?

“The drought is the overarching issue of our day,” Ramsay said. “We have to save the water that falls here so it all doesn’t rush into the river and out into the ocean.”

She said it is important to push for innovative ideas and infrastructure, including permeable surfaces and storm drains that could capture more water.

Ryu said it was important to cut through the lack of transparency and “cronyism” that has bogged down city hall. He said he would be a voice of the people, even if that means angering others and being the lone “no” vote.

“They vote unanimously maybe 98 percent of the time,” he said. “Who is the city council accountable to?”

The city’s general election will take place on Tuesday, May 19. For information on polling locations and real-time results, visit clerk.lacity.org/elections.