Artesia News

Meet the Mayor

“Every Day’s a Good Day in Artesia” – Larry R. Nelson

Mayor Larry R. Nelson has two philosophies that guide his life. “I can’t smile unless you do” and “Every day is a good day in Artesia.”

He clarified the first of his philosophies as meaning, “If you’re not happy, then I’m not happy”.

As for the latter, Nelson explained that “Artesia is a town people go to die.” At first, one may think this is a morbid expression for a mayor to say, but he explains.

“This is a town people go to retire … Artesia is also a town where families have stayed for generations. Look at the Portuguese, there are Portuguese families in Artesia that have been here for generations. Someone moves into Artesia, they have children, and their children want to stay in Artesia.”

Nelson first decided to run for mayor because he didn’t like how the city was being run. “My perception was that it was a ‘no-growth’ city. Everything was to keep the status quo.”

His goal and the city council’s goal for Artesia is for prudent growth. “It’s either grow or die,” said Nelson, “I’m not saying I want every inch of Artesia to be developed. I’m talking about prudent growth, things that are good for Artesia.”

Nelson elucidated that there have been times when plans were passed up that may have been “okay” for Artesia, but the council was waiting for something that would be “great”. Nelson’s view of Artesia’s council is that it works like a team. “We have a saying in our business, ‘One man doesn’t make a show.’”.

In Nelson’s opinion, hiring Maria Dadian as the city manager was the catalyst for Artesia’s most recent growth. “Going back to what I said earlier, a team is no good unless it has a visionary … Maria Dadian came and had us all sit down and have a goal-setting session, we prioritized the goals which we wanted to accomplish. Maria was the catalyst for the team to become visionaries as well.”

Nelson also expressed a desire for Artesia to truly become a “full-service” city. He expanded on what he meant. “What I mean is that whatever needs there are, we meet them.” Nelson admitted that the city is closer to that goal, but there’s always room for improvement.

Nelson doesn’t wish to get into higher levels of politics. “I have no interest at all in further politics, just Artesia and how to make it better.”

Mayor Larry Nelson addresses the public at the recent Mayor's Breakfast.

Mayor Larry Nelson at a ribbon cutting ceremony with dignitaries from congress, Artesia's council, and the postal system.

Testing the facilities prepared for the public, Mayor Nelson tries out the new "Snorkel Lane" at the Post Office.


A Short Bio


Nelson grew up in Superior, WI. At the time, Superior’s largest industry was U.S. Steel, which was to become Larry’s first employer. Nelson worked at U.S. Steel in his late teens.

Nelson said that Superior was very rural and agricultural, a stark contrast to Los Angeles County. “From my high school, you could look across the street and see the pasture where the cows grazed! People hunted deer 500 yards from the school!”

Larry said that it was in Superior that he first came to embrace ethnic diversity. “Back there in Superior ethnic diversity isn’t anything like it is here,” explained Nelson. At the time, ethnic groups in Superior were primarily of European background.

“Sometimes we’d go to a German function, sometimes a Swedish one,” said Nelson. “Exposure to those different cultures [in Superior] help me as a mayor today … as I learned to embrace each tradition and culture I’ve come across.”

In Wisconsin, “there weren’t as many cultures as here in Artesia, but the general premise is the same.”

At 17, Nelson joined the U.S. Navy, first as an aviation machinist mate and then as a Seabee (construction). Larry served in Guam, Vietnam, Japan, Port Hueneme, CA, and Chapel Hill, NC during his four years in the service. It was after traveling to different countries that Nelson began to truly appreciate his status as a U.S. citizen. “It may sound corny, but began to appreciate America and veterans more … until you’ve been somewhere that doesn’t have the things we’ve [taken for granted], you can’t truly appreciate what we have.”

After his enlistment, Nelson returned to Superior and began working again for U.S. Steel. However, the plant closed down and Nelson transferred to Torrance, CA. He moved to the Bellflower. In those days, the 91 freeway wasn’t completely built, and went only as far as the 710 freeway. Larry would take the surface streets from the 710 to the plant in Torrance.

Today, he owns a pony ride business which he’s had since shortly after arriving in California. About his business, he described first that he grew up around horses and with characters like Roy Rogers and Gene Autry.

“Business isn’t what it used to be. The kids today are looking for different venues, things that are loud and go 90 mph, whereas my business is laid back. I cater more to an older age group now.”

 

 

 

 

 

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