Gene Hernandez, a 12-year Yorba Linda City Councilmember, saw an opportunity to delve deeper into his “keen” interest in water, he said, and last week resigned from the dais.
The opportunity presented itself “out of the blue,” the former three-time mayor said on Monday, a day before his council colleagues are expected to discuss on Tuesday, Jan. 16, the new vacancy and how they will fill it.
Hernandez came onto the council in 2012 and would be termed out in November. He said his next step would have been to campaign for a spot on the Yorba Linda Water District’s board of directors.
“As luck would have it, a director submitted his resignation,” Hernandez said, adding he saw it as an opportunity to apply for the resulting appointment. “This was a very hurry-up and fill it within 30 days thing. It wasn’t my intention to resign before my term was up, but the opportunity presented itself, and I couldn’t pass it up.”
Hernandez was appointed to the water board on Jan. 4, and submitted his resignation on Jan. 11, the same day he attended his first water board meeting. He will hold the water board seat until November, at which time the seat will appear on the ballot.
“We thank Gene for his many years of service on the Yorba Linda City Council,” Mayor Tara Campbell said in a statement. “Having been elected to the Yorba Linda City Council three times, Gene’s leadership included serving as mayor in 2015, 2018 and 2023 and representing Yorba Linda on several local and regional agencies, including the Orange County Transportation Authority and Orange County Fire Authority.”
Hernandez served in law enforcement for 34 years, starting with the Fullerton Police Department and then the Orange Police Department, where he rose to the rank of a captain. He then served as chief of police in Chino before retiring.
But he said he has always been interested in water, becoming involved with the Rotary Club and going on missions to build wells in Africa,…
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