By admin 
Citrus Heights’ mayor, MariJane Lopez-Taff, if elected for another term, said she planned to prioritize neighborhood safety and cleanliness, youth programs, fiscal responsibility, economic development and blight.
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Lopez-Taff’s challenger, Charles Stone, who previously ran in 2012, said he is running again in response to the recent changes made to the Citrus Heights Police Department.
Though District 2 does not include Sunrise Mall, Lopez-Taff and Stone each brought up the property in interviews with the Bee — as did every council candidate — and described it as economically important for Citrus Heights. Both said they supported the city’s ambitious specific plan for the site, passed in 2021, which would see it filled with housing, transform a “sea of surface parking lots into a green oasis” with walking paths and a “commons” for festivals and concerts. Still, Stone said he believed the city has at times been overly rigid about following that plan.
Both candidates said they supported a proposal by Mill Valley-based Tallen Capital Partners to acquire a majority of the real estate, build housing, hotels and retail, and sell 14 acres to developers of a planned sports complex.
Lopez-Taff opposed a proposal last year by a developer looking to bring in drive-thrus and a Home Depot, an idea that some residents panned on the belief it would increase traffic and introduce businesses that are repetitive of others nearby. Stone, meanwhile, said he would have voted in favor of that proposal, had he been on the council at the time, arguing that it would have “solved a lot” and brought some momentum to the site’s development.
Stone said he decided to run for council in response to budget changes made to the Citrus Heights Police Department. This summer, four officers from the traffic unit were moved into vacant positions in regular patrol and investigative units, and their former positions were eliminated. Three non-sworn managers were laid off. The budget estimates two positions — a sergeant and a lieutenant — will be lost through attrition.
Though the changes represent a reduction of seven positions — three employees and four vacant positions — plus two expected through attrition, the overall budget for the department increased by $1.11 million.
Lopez-Taff emphasized that the department lost no sworn officers, and Citrus Heights is “not a ‘defund the police’ city.”
“Truly, what we did was we organized for better efficiency,” she said. “At the end of the day we increased their budget by over a million dollars… I believe, in that effect, we made our police department more effective because of beefing up that investigative unit.”
Stone did not propose specific changes to the department but said if elected he would request data on officer calls, solve rates and response times, to inform decisions about how to fund the department going forward.
Where is District 2?
District 2 extends from Sunrise Boulevard to the Citrus Heights city boundaries on the north and east. To the south, it is bounded by Greenback Lane.
Who are the candidates?
Lopez-Taff grew up in San Francisco, and discovered Citrus Heights in the late 1990s.
On a drive to Reno, she said, her paper map flew out the car window. After giving up the search, she and her then-fiance stopped in the nearest town for lunch and picked up a real estate magazine.
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“Our jaws dropped, our eyes popped out of our heads,” she said. “We were thinking, what is this magical place called Citrus Heights, where they have houses that are still under $200,000?”
Absent a four-year stint in Houston, Lopez-Taff has lived in Citrus Heights since 2000.
In San Francisco, she worked in nonprofit management. She worked for the Red Cross and the Cancer Society. She became a stay-at-home mother when she moved to Citrus Heights, then later became a leadership and management trainer, and worked for Junior Achievement.
She ran for council for the first time in 2021 — her first campaign for elected office. She now serves as mayor, a position that rotates among the council, selected by the members.
Stone grew up in Orange County, then studied criminal justice at Sonoma State. He attended the night program at the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law and began working for the California Environmental Protection Agency in 2000.
Stone continued working for the California EPA, in environmental crimes investigations for the Department of Toxic Substances Control, looking into large companies illegally disposing of hazardous waste.
In 2007 Stone joined the California National Guard reserves as a judge advocate general — essentially a military attorney — one weekend a month, two weeks a year. Following the 2021 Sexual Assault Reform Act, he worked in defense for personnel accused of a range of military crimes.
Stone retired from the state EPA in December. Since then, he has taken on cases locally, primarily in family law.
Who is funding the race?
Lopez-Taff received a $1,000 contribution from Sacramento Area Fire Fighters Local 522 PAC, and a $5,900 contribution from the Associated Builders & Contractors Northern California Chapter Political Action Committee, per her campaign contribution reports.
Stone’s campaign filings did not list any contributions.
Who else is supporting the candidates?
Lopez-Taff was endorsed by Sacramento Area Fire Fighters Local 522, State Assemblyman Josh Hoover, former mayor Jeannie Bruins, Sacramento County Supervisor Rosario Rodriguez, San Juan School Board Presidnet Tanya Kravchuk, among others, per her campaign website.
Stone said in a text message that he had “not asked for nor received any endorsements,” as he had entered the race late to do so.
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