The Weekly endorses Steve Dallas, Bobby Richards and Richard Kreitman for council.

For a city encompassing only 1 square mile and 3,800 full-time residents, Carmel-by-the-Sea has experienced a disproportionate amount of controversy.

Among the issues, the city has seen numerous employees who were fired sue to win both cash settlements and jobs back. Outside contractors with long-standing ties to the former city manager were brought in and the costs of their contracts spiraled out of control with little-to-no oversight. An air of secrecy permeated City Hall, as officials stonewalled Public Records Act requests and “lost” a report – by one of those contractors­ – on problems with the city’s IT department. The city was also the subject of a stinging civil Grand Jury report, not the kind of recognition a world-class destination ought to obtain.

About 1,500 people are expected to vote in the Carmel elections. Two councilmembers are vying for mayor and five citizens are running for two council seats. Ken Talmage, first sworn in as a councilmember in 2006, faces Steve Dallas, a homebuilder and property owner who was elected to council in 2014, in the mayor’s race.

Talmage, a financial advisor and owner of a water purification company, has deep knowledge of water issues and a number of laudable achievements on his council record, including helping to refinance bonds that will save the city more than $4 million in interest. He’s also endorsed by four of the last five mayors.

Despite that, Talmage fails to win our endorsement. Talmage served on council throughout the city’s administrative nightmare and the Weekly endorses Steve Dallas for mayor.

Talmage mostly dismisses the city’s recent problems. (The litigation, he says, only cost $10,000 – but that was the cost of the insurance policy that paid out $1 million in settlements.) Dallas is running on a platform of transparent government.

Even though Dallas is rough around the edges, he admits it and refreshingly speaks his mind. He called “piggish” a study that found fires on Carmel Beach were mostly enjoyed by out-of-town visitors and says the public beach is there for everyone. As he puts it, he’s a “what you see is what you get” kind of guy. That’s what Carmel needs.

For council, the Weekly endorses Bobby Richards and Richard Kreitman. Richards, a hotelier, serves on the Community Activities & Cultural Commission and has a vision for how to improve Carmel. He believes there’s a place for cultural vibrancy, like permitted live music.

He wants to see more diverse perspectives represented in public meetings, and keep a closer eye on public spending. He’s also shown real leadership on beach fires, actually building a demonstration propane unit he’s happy to show off to the public.

Gallery owner Richard Kreitman led the charge for a grand jury investigation into the former management at City Hall, and was prepared to lead a recall attempt if the council didn’t act. We think he’d do well on the other side of the dais. He’s a self-described “prickly spreadsheet guy,” and considering the mess City Hall has been though, it couldn’t hurt to have a stickler for detail.

The Weekly editorial board comprises Founder & CEO Bradley Zeve, Publisher Erik Cushman, Editor Mary Duan, Managing Editor Mark C. Anderson and Assistant Editor Sara Rubin.