MOORPARK : 2 to Serve Short Stints as Mayor

The Moorpark City Council has settled a four-month squabble over the ceremonial title of mayor by agreeing that two council members will take turns in the post until the November elections.

Mayor Paul Lawrason will continue as mayor until mid-May, when Councilman Bernardo Perez takes over, council members decided on a 4-1 vote. Perez will be the city’s ninth mayor.

For the first time, Moorpark voters will select a mayor in November. The mayor had been selected by the City Council since incorporation in 1983.

Councilwoman Eloise Brown opposed the move, saying that Perez had indicated in November that he did not want to accept a short-term position.

The decision settles a dispute that broke out at a council meeting Nov. 15 when Councilman Scott Montgomery suggested that three people who had not served as mayor share the post. Until that point, Lawrason, Montgomery and Perez had not served as mayor. At that time, Perez and Councilman Clint Harper opposed the decision.

However, Montgomery on Wednesday said he decided to give up his ambitions to the post to resolve what has become a sometimes comic debate referred to as “musical mayors.”

The position of mayor carries no benefits other than presiding over council meetings and representing the city at official functions.