CRAWFORD EYEING CITY COUNCIL POST.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

LANCASTER - Eastside School District Board President Janette Crawford announced Friday her candidacy for Lancaster City Council.

Standing in front of the Lancaster National Soccer Center, the site of her childhood home, Crawford said she is proven leader.

Crawford cited her 10 years on the Eastside board, her work with the Lancaster West Rotary Club, the city's crime task force, and the Antelope Valley illegal dumping committee as examples of her civic involvement.

``I am not afraid to step up and work hard to get the job done,'' Crawford said. ``I am a team player. I've known the other members of the council for many years. I know I can work with them.''

Crawford deferred discussing issues, saying she will wait until the candidate forums begin before discussing them.

``I will not be discussing specific issues at this time except to say that I feel we need a balance between building our industrial base and bringing in more restaurants and retail shopping into our city,'' Crawford said. ``I will also tackle the issue of having areas outside of our valley dump registered sex offenders into our community.''

Crawford made her announcement just a couple of days before she leaves on a three-week trip to India as part of a Rotary delegation.

The filing period for the April 11 election was to end Friday. However, the filing period was extended to Jan. 18 because two incumbents did not file to run for re-election. Mayor Frank Roberts decided not to run for re-election and Vice Mayor Henry Hearns has chosen to run for mayor instead of his council post.

Jim Skeen, [phone]

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com

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