Skip A. Keesal, Jr. is Long Beach’s most powerful person.
6:15am | This marks our fifth annual 10 Most Powerful People In Long Beach list where we highlight the people in Long Beach who are making a difference. There are thousands of people who impact Long Beach each day in powerful ways so narrowing the decision to the top ten is not an easy task.
Click here to find our October 2011 print version of the Long Beach Post.
Nominations from our readers and the advice from Long Beach Post staff including current and former writers assisted in developing this year’s list.
This list is full of people who have gained notoriety for the decisions they have made, the actions they have taken, and their leadership throughout Long Beach to produce results. We also looked for “the ones to watch” who will continue to have influence in the future.
We look to these ten people who use their power to shape our community so that Long Beach continues to be the best city in the world.
1. Skip A. Keesal, Jr.
Founding Partner
Keesal, Young & Logan
There are few people in Long Beach who have ever had breakfast with the President and dinner with the Queen of England. Only one can do both and then squeeze in hosting a luncheon fundraiser for the Long Beach Boys and Girls Club with a Four-Star General as the guest speaker. Few people, that is, besides Skip Keesal, Jr., founder of the city’s largest law firm, Keesal, Young & Logan.
Skip’s influence reaches far beyond the courtroom into the lives of everyday Long Beach residents, whether it is in his role on the Board of Governors at Cal State Long Beach, the Board of Trustees for the Boys and Girls Club or his involvement with the Long Beach Police Foundation. He is also an influential businessman with major development assets in Downtown Long Beach.
Skip is the heartbeat of Long Beach — his fingers are firmly on the pulse of the city and nothing big happens unless Skip is behind it. Skip is our most powerful person in Long Beach.
2. Dr. Charles B. Reed
Chancellor
The California State University
A resident of Long Beach since assuming his post as Chancellor in 1998, Dr. Charles Reed is the leader of the California State University (CSU). Headquartered in Downtown Long Beach, the CSU is the largest higher education institution in the world. The CSU boasts 23 campuses, nearly 433,000 students, 44,000 faculty and staff, an annual budget of $5 billion, and has achieved the rank of being the most diverse, and one of the most affordable university systems in the country, if not the world.
At the top of the list of powerful institutions is a powerful man who in thirteen years at the helm as Chancellor has seen good times and bad times. Increasing investments in the CSU by California’s Legislature welcomed Dr. Reed to his post early in his tenure. Over time, that funding eroded, causing friction between the faculty unions, students and elected officials at all levels of government over the best course of action to protect the future of the CSU. Chancellor Reed never wavered from what he believed was the best way forward. He told the Long Beach Post in January 2009, “If we continue to chip away at public funding for higher education, we jeopardize the very investment in our state’s human capital and in the strength of the economic engine that has propelled California to a position of global leadership.”
3. Bob Foster
Mayor
City of Long Beach
Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster continues to make major impacts on our city and the region. His work ranges from replacing nearly 20,000 container hauling trucks in the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles with cleaner-burning models.
Foster has built a reputation of keeping the city focused on fiscal responsibility. He presented and successfully secured the passage of a balanced city budget this past September. Included in the budget deal was a historic pension reform plan that the Mayor personally negotiated with Long Beach’s police union. The plan is estimated to save the city over $100 million in the next decade.
When Governor Jerry Brown proposed the elimination of redevelopment agencies back in January, Mayor Foster was one of the first Mayors in the state to vocally oppose the Governor’s proposal.
In 2007, Mayor Foster championed the Architecture, Construction, and Engineering (A.C.E.) Academy at Jordan High School which now graduates 270 young people each year.
Sacramento-based Capitol Weekly recently named Mayor Foster one of California’s “10 Good Mayors” recognizing him for his long-standing ability to “give-and-take with the press” and his “practical knowledge of politics and business.”
Mayor Foster’s powerful ability to get things done is not going unnoticed.
4. The Molina Family
Since being founded in 1980, Long Beach-based Molina Healthcare has been continually noted as one of the nation’s best healthcare systems. When their father passed away in 1996, his sons Mario and John took over as President/CEO and as CFO, and since then the company has flourished, becoming a prominent healthcare enterprise serving the city’s vulnerable populations.
John and Michelle Molina are constantly exercising their power in the realms of healthcare, charity, development, and media throughout the city.
Michelle is one of Long Beach’s most tireless charity advocates. Her sister Janet Molina Watt has broken new ground with her Little Owl Preschool in North Long Beach, the first privately-owned LEED (Leader in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified building in the city. It’s just one more example of the changing face of education care of the Molina crew.
Lastly, Martha Molina Bernadett has taken a proactive role with the ever-expanding Molina Foundation, taking profits made through investments and reinvesting them into the community through various local charities.
Truly, the power exercised by the Molina Family ranges through many aspects of Long Beach life.
5. Chris Steinhauser
Superintendent
Long Beach Unified School District
Eloy Ortiz Oakley
Superintendent-President
Long Beach City College
Dr. F. King Alexander
President
California State University, Long Beach
Dr. F. King Alexander, Eloy Ortiz Oakley, and Chris Steinhauser collectively impact the lives of over 160,000 students each day.
Education and political leaders from around the world routinely call upon the three men to talk about the Long Beach College Promise, a pact between all three institutions dedicated to increasing college access and seamless education in Long Beach. Individually, they lead large education centers dedicated to providing high quality education to all that seek it. Together, they are a powerful force for change, innovation and partnership.
6. Patrick West
City Manager
City of Long Beach
Long Beach City Manager Patrick West leads the day-to-day operation of California’s seventh largest city. Working with Mayor Foster and the members of the city council Patrick has a tough job managing the various priorities and projects coming out of city hall.
Since becoming city manager in September 2007, Pat has transformed city government by eliminating hundreds of city government positions, cutting nearly $170 million in general fund obligations, all the while remaining focused on improving the lives of all Long Beach citizens. As an avid cyclist, Patrick is dedicated to making Long Beach one of the country’s most bike friendly cities. He was instrumental in the implementation the bike lanes in downtown and the sharrows in Belmont Shore to name a few.
Patrick is a hands-on leader who is active in the community and is seen all over town meeting with people and looking for ways to get a better understanding of how Long Beach can do better.
7. Wayne A. Cheney, Jr.
Pastor
Antioch Church of Long Beach
Over forty five years ago, his grandfather set the stage for a young, aspiring Wayne. A Long Beach legend for a generation, the late Joe Chaney Jr. inspired many into service and to becoming the best they could be. The young Wayne grew up and now leads Wayne Chaney Ministries. Pastor Chaney is in the business of transforming lives and he does so through the Antioch Church of Long Beach.
Pastor Chaney and his wife Myesha also founded the Long Beach Gospel Fest. A summer gathering of over 35 of Long Beach’s religious organizations for a showing of music, food and community, it has grown into the premier religious event in Long Beach.
Pastor Chaney told the Los Angeles Times this past summer, “Against the backdrop of a big-city skyline, it has an especially beautiful resonance. Beyond the gospel music, we are witnessing the addition of something new and wonderful to Long Beach.”
8. Justin Rudd
Founder
Community Action Team
An exclamation point is a commonly used punctuation mark typically used to indicate strong feelings. In Long Beach, the exclamation point is synonymous with the name Justin Rudd! He can definitely spark strong feelings of volunteerism.
Through his non-profit, the Community Action Team, Justin hosts a number of events ranging from Beauty Pageants, to Spelling Bees, to the famous Howl’oween Dog Parade to nearly 200 beach clean-ups. Thousands of people depend on Justin to provide diverse opportunities to improve the city they love.
9. Suzanne Frick
Assistant City Manager
City of Long Beach
Amy J. Bodek, AICP
Director
Development Services
If anything is to be built in the city of Long Beach there are two lines of defense that any development project must encounter: Assistant City Manager Suzanne Frick and Development Services Director Amy Bodek.
Frick is intimately involved in the details of every major project and Bodek is focused on navigating the tedious development process from start to finish. Both have the best interest of the city at heart. And, every developer knows that nothing can be taken for granted when going up against Frick or Bodek.
10. Steve James
President
Long Beach Police Officers Association
Since 2001, Steve James has served as president of the Long Beach Police Officers Association, the union representing the sworn officers of the Long Beach Police Department.
Steve James has been at the helm of the city’s most powerful union for over a decade and he has no intention of slowing down. He has made the LBPOA a dominating force in local politics.
A call by Steve James is answered by everyone in City Hall and Sacramento. He recently negotiated a historic pension reform package with the Mayor and the city council passed the plan which will save the city millions in costs over the next decade.
Ones to Watch…
We Love Long Beach
Brother and sister Scott and Robin Jones love Long Beach. So much so that they started a local non-profit and named it We Love LB. We Love LB grew from an idea in 2008 to nearly 40,000 Facebook fans dedicated to knowing and serving the people and neighborhoods of Long Beach.
Along with Adam Ferry, the three leaders are focused on the future. As they enter their fifth year in 2012 many will be watching to see what the future holds for one of Long Beach’s most powerful non-profits.
Mario Cordero
Commissioner
Federal Maritime Commission
Last year, Long Beach Harbor Commissioner, community activist, and vocal advocate for the Latino community Mario Cordero was appointed to the Federal Maritime Commission.
His new role took him away from Long Beach to be back in Washington, D.C., however, his impact on Long Beach will continue and that is something to continue to watch for.