Jan Marx wants seat on Coastal Commission

February 16, 2011

Jan Marx, who just took office as mayor of San Luis Obispo, following a narrow election victory in November, has decided to seek a seat on the California Coastal Commission. [Tribune]

The mayor’s surprise announcement on Tuesday puts her in the running against three other candidates in the county: Pismo Beach City Councilwoman Mary Ann Reiss, Arroyo Grande City Councilman Joe Costello, and District II County Supervisor Bruce Gibson.

Reiss was appointed by then-Governor Schwarzenegger in December to fill a vacancy on the powerful state commission when Katcho Achadjian resigned after winning election to the state Assembly. However, new governor Jerry Brown, a Democrat, is reviewing the Reiss appointment and is expected to make a final decision later this month.

Marx said on Tuesday that people have urged her to run, including John Laird, the state’s new Natural Resources Secretary and former mayor of Santa Cruz.

Less than a month in office, Marx found herself the subject of media allegations about the extent of her involvement in trying to defeat the Dalidio Shopping Center project in San Luis Obispo. Marx has sought to downplay her role in the anti-Dalidio campaign despite newly-released documents from the California Fair Political Practices Commission suggesting the opposite.