La Habra Councilman Steve Simonian has announced he’s resigning from the council, effective April 5, to focus more on his health and spending time with family.

Simonian first served on the City Council from 1998 until 2010, including four times as mayor. He was elected again to the council in November 2020.

Serving on the council in the same city his kids were raised in has been “unforgettable,” Simonian said, and something he is extremely proud of.

“I was not the No. 1 candidate when I was selected in 1998, but I offered the council solutions to the problems they were having,” Simonian said. “And, they saw that as a benefit, selected me and started us off on bringing several big box, tax-producing companies to La Habra. Turning that downward spiral into a positive was a very good sense of accomplishment.”

Simonian’s time in public service didn’t start with the La Habra City Council.

He started a career as a police officer with the city of Montebello in 1966. Between 1998 and 2000, he worked as assistant city manager and interim police chief for the city of Bell Gardens. Simonian also served as chief of the Bureau of Investigations of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office from 2000 to 2006. In 2008, he returned to Bell Gardens as the city manager.

“I am very blessed to have some great positions with some great organizations, and I’ve enjoyed all of them,” Simonian said. “They all had wonderful, dedicated people. And that to me is what makes a great organization.”

The La Habra City Council is expected consider how to fill the vacant councilmember seat at its meeting Tuesday, Feb. 20. City staff noted in their report to the council on the options for the seat that Simonian can “legally rescind his resignation before April 5.”  (Simonian said he chose the date for the convenience of the city’s staff.)

After that date, the council has 60 days to make an appointment or decide to leave the seat open until November’s general election. Simonian’s four-year term would have been up and the seat would have been on the November ballot anyway.

A special election is also an option, but given the rules for timing “the actual effect of choosing this option would be to leave the seat vacant until the winners of the Nov. 5, 2024 election take office on Dec. 16, 2024,” city staffers noted.

The council can do interviews for an appointment before April 5, but couldn’t make the appointment until after Simonian’s resignation date.

Simonian said he will continue to live in La Habra and be an active member of the community.