VOTE LOW-KEY IN HIDDEN HILLS.

Byline: Anne Burke Daily News Staff Writer

``Well, here comes Joy Coburn. How ya doin' luv?'' Poll worker Kitty Andrews hugged Coburn warmly Tuesday at the lone balloting location for this affluent, gated enclave.

Another voter, octogenarian Wes Steyer, got a wet one on the cheek from poll worker and longtime friend Rosalie Hollingsworth. And voter Ruth Kuehl Fredricks, who recently turned 90, was feted with belated birthday wishes.

Election Day in Hidden Hills, but the atmosphere at the polls was more like a coffee klatch.

Voters snacked on free muffins. They caught up on family news. And there were no long lines. Of the 1,266 registered voters in this town lined with shady pepper trees and ranch-style homes, only a few hundred were expected to turn out for this off-year election.

As for hot issues to fuel voter turnout, Mayor Monty Fisher was hard pressed to name one. So was Steyer, but then, ``when you're 80 years old and 5-foot-4, you don't get upset about much of anything anymore,'' he said.

The race for two City Council seats pitted longtime incumbent Dr. H. Brian Herdeg against challengers Ronald S. Berg and Larry Gabriel, both attorneys.

When the results were tallied late Tuesday, Herdeg and Gabriel had won council seats, picking up 237 and 230 votes, respectively, followed by Berg with 155 votes, according to city officials.

With no lawn signs and slate mailers to sway them, some voters said they based their choices on the candidate's reputation around town.

Some candidates had a bit of an edge.

``Dr. Brian Herdeg is my nephew,'' Fredricks said. ``But I'm not voting for him for that reason.''

And while most people learn about election results on the late-night news, in Hidden Hills, the winners' names will be posted today alongside the notices about lost dogs and free kittens on the community bulletin board.

The results will also go out over cable Channel 3. ``It's like our local C-SPAN,'' said resident Doug Trotman, 28.

Then there's the fastest form of communication in town - word of mouth.

``This town is so small, you'll know in about five minutes, said Ruth Matheson, 68.

Many people who voted Tuesday said they were worried that Hidden Hills was losing its quaint, rural charm.

``So many of the homes are like Fifth Avenue, New York. To each their own, but it's not my cup of tea,'' Fredricks said.

Hidden Hills was incorporated in 1961 to thwart westward expansion of Los Angeles. It's rustic, rural and very horsey, with one-acre lots, and equestrian-themed street signs. It is home to movie stars, doctors, lawyers and successful businesspeople.

There are no stores and hardly any crime. Apartments? Don't even mention the word, cautioned Mindy Hough, the assistant manager of the powerful Hidden Hills Community association.

The city sits snugly against the western border of Los Angeles, but it might as well be a thousand miles away, its residents claim.

``We feel like we have our own little world here,'' said longtime resident Andrea Ashley.

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PHOTO Mary Tochner, left, helps her children and a friend through a gate at the polling place in this rural community on L.A.'s western edge.

Terri Thuente/Daily News