CITY HALL — Gleam Davis may not have Michael Jordan and Larry Bird on her side, but, at least in Santa Monica politics, she’s got a pair that’s just as potent: Former mayor and one-time Chamber of Commerce president Nat Trives and former mayor and Santa Monicans for Renters’ Rights co-founder Denny Zane.
They’re just two of the names that make up the “Gleam Team” — an all-star lineup of current and former Santa Monica politicians that Davis announced Tuesday will be backing her for a seat on the City Council this November.
The team also includes state Sen. Fran Pavley (D-Santa Monica), state Assemblywoman Julia Brownley (D-Santa Monica), and Sheila Kuehl, the former state senator from Santa Monica.
The statements of support were the first high-profile endorsements in a campaign season in which five of seven City Council seats are up for grabs.
Davis, who was appointed to the City Council to finish out the term of deceased mayor Herb Katz in 2009, is running to complete the remaining two years of Katz’ term.
In backing Davis’ bid, her supporters cited her record of service with organizations such as senior service provider WISE & Healthy Aging, the Santa Monica Child Care and Early Education Task Force, the Community for Excellent Public Schools and Santa Monica’s Planning Commission.
“I have worked with and admired Gleam Davis for many years,” Brownley said in a press release. “With a keen analytic point of view, Gleam embodies public service and is passionate about keeping Santa Monica a wonderful place to live for all residents.”
During her year-and-a-half as a council member, Davis said she has made it a point to listen to a variety of perspectives on city issues and has tried to “be the council person for all people.”
As a former co-chair of SMRR, Davis’ support from Zane, Pavely, Brownley and Kuehl — who are all aligned with the political party — was unsurprising. But the support from Trives, a non-SMRR member who is more closely associated with the business community, was more unusual.
While some SMRR members have clashed with the chamber, especially on issues of development, Davis said she’s cultivated good working relationships with people in the business community.
“I think that everyone in SMRR recognizes that to do all the tremendous things we do in the city, we need to have a sustainable environment and a sustainable economy, and the chamber is a crucial part of maintaining that sustainable economy,” Davis said.
Trives added: “Gleam cares deeply about our city’s safety and security, both on the streets and within its economy. As a council member, Gleam regularly demonstrates her depth of understanding about the issues in our city and willingness to advocate on behalf of all of its residents and employees.”
In a statement, Zane called Davis’ voice “critical to keep on the Santa Monica City Council.”
He applauded her for working “to protect and enhance our city’s unique livability for all Santa Monicans” and said she has been a leader working to promote sustainability and protect city services.
This month, Davis was a leading voice in support of a ballot initiative that would add a half percent transaction and use tax to Santa Monica’s sales tax in order to raise about $12 million per year for City Hall, which is projecting budget gaps the next several years. Davis also was a strong supporter of giving half the revenue raised from the new tax to the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.
Davis is corporate counsel for AT&T and supervises all of its litigation in the Los Angeles area. Before joining AT&T, she prosecuted civil rights violations as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division in the United States Department of Justice and was a partner at the law firm of Mitchell, Silberberg & Knupp.
She graduated from Harvard Law School in 1981 and from USC in 1978. Davis and her husband, John Prindle, have one son, Jackson, who is 13 years old.
Besides Davis, Councilman Terry O’Day is also running for a two-year term after being appointed to the council this year to fill the seat vacated when Mayor Ken Genser died.
Among City Council incumbents, only Mayor Bobby Shriver and Councilman Richard Bloom have terms that expire in 2012.
nickt@www.smdp.com
