On Tuesday night, two incumbents and one challenger learned they had won a highly contentious election for the board of the Beach Cities Health District. The election precedes the district’s review of the largest development project in its history, known as the Healthy Living Campus.
Dr. Martha Koo, a psychiatrist, psychologist, and business owner in Manhattan Beach, garnered the highest number of votes, about 25,000, or nearly 24 percent of the total.
During a televised debate last month, Koo described herself as a “woman of science and business.” She said her experience advocating for and working in mental health prepares her to weigh in on discussions about adapting to Covid-19 and a post-pandemic society.
“The whole bent of my career is listening to people, understanding their needs and desires, and dealing with conflict resolution, whether that’s internal conflict or conflicts with others,” she said. “I think I bring that to the table. It’s so important, the idea of listening — not just hearing, but listening — and understanding somebody’s perspective and valuing and honoring that.”
Vanessa Poster, who has been on the board for more than two decades, won the second-highest number of votes, or 22.8 percent of the total count. Poster has long advocated for the work the health district does, including the strategies its leadership finds to raise revenue, thereby lessening the burden for taxpayers.
“We can’t provide the programs everybody loves so much at no charge without the revenue to support them,” she said during the recent debate. “So we have always used all of these different methods to create a very impressive budget. We’ve won awards for that budget. People need to know that if they’re voting for a strong Beach Cities Health District, these programs will survive, and if they’re voting for me, they’re voting for a strong Beach Cities Health District.”
Jane Diehl, an incumbent and former Redondo Beach Unified School District board member, won 22.3 percent of the vote. She took the position that in a contentious time, experience is an advantage.
“There are some really great challenges facing the health district right now,” Diehl said during the debate. “My thinking is that continuity is really important. If incumbents return to the health district in this challenging time, we can move forward and resolve things much quicker.”
Incumbent Vish Chatterji, a businessperson, and yogi, finished fourth in the race for three open seats, with 21,368 votes or 20 percent. Outgoing Manhattan Beach school board member Karen Komatinsky, finished fifth with 12,500 votes or nearly 12 percent of the vote ER
