VOTE WINNERS EAGER TO ROLL UP SLEEVES SOME FEAR CHANGE IN FINAL RESULTS.

Byline: ERIC LEACH Staff Writer

SIMI VALLEY -- Top vote-getters say they are anxious to go to work fighting for safer streets and better schools in Simi Valley and Moorpark, but some of the apparent winners fear that results from Tuesday's election could change as late absentee and provisional ballots continue to be counted.

Even after Ventura County's polls closed Tuesday, thousands of ballots remained uncounted countywide, and officials said the results would probably not be finalized until this week.

For the Simi Valley Unified School District's Board of Education, the unofficial preliminary results showed veteran educator Jeanne Davis and financial analyst Eric Lundstrom filling the two open seats vacated by Carla Kurachi and Greg Stratton, both of whom decided not to run for re-election.

Davis, a retired teacher and principal, said she has worked nearly 40 years with the district and will fit in well on the school board with people she knows and respects.

Lundstrom, whose wife is a Simi Valley elementary-school teacher, said he looks forward to lending a businessman's perspective to district finances -- especially regarding remaining money from the $145 million 2004 C-4 bond issue -- but said he was not assuming he won before the final ballots are tallied.

``I'm being cautiously optimistic,'' he said.

As for district finances, he said, ``I believe we need help with this severely. We need to get outside assistance from a construction management company. Some of the bond money hasn't been spent as effectively as it could have been. We have to have true cost estimates and have conservativeness built into our numbers so we don't get stung.''

District official announced in July that construction costs had risen unexpectedly 10 to 20 percent, which made it impossible to complete all the projects planned under the bond issue.

Lundstrom ran unsuccessfully for the school board two years ago but said he thinks people supported him this time because of his financial background.

``I want to help find ways to increase classroom funding within the budget that we have,'' he said.

Davis said that as a teacher, vice principal and principal, she has already given 38 years of her life to the district she loves.

``It boils down to education being my passion,'' she said. ``I like to see kids succeed. I'm happiest when I'm talking to kids and listening to parents.''

She said her mother and grandparents were teachers, and she looks forward to getting along with everyone connected with the district.

``I'm a positive person and very analytical,'' she said. ``I listen carefully to everyone. People know that I'm honest and sincere.''

Meanwhile in Moorpark, Janice Parvin, who was elected to her second term on the City Council, said one of the biggest unresolved problems remains truck traffic that runs through the middle of the city.

On the positive side, she said, the city takes over the local library in January, and as the city grows, so do the local business environment and shopping opportunities.

``I'm very excited about the library,'' she said. ``We have a slogan: `Life Can Be This Good.' I really feel this way. It really feels good. It makes me feel very proud to have the community's support.''

Mark Van Dam was the second-highest vote-getter in the preliminary results for the council, but as in other races, the rankings could change when the absentee and provisional ballots are counted.

Van Dam is a middle-school teacher and former Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy who said maintaining a safe environment for children is a top priority. He's also concerned about traffic in the growing community of about 35,000.

``Whatever growth we have is being funneled right through the middle of the city,'' he said. ``That has to be addressed, finding alternate routes for the residents and for the trucks.''

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