Laura Rosenthal brought snacks to little league games. She attended PTA meetings to help improve the quality of Malibu’s schools and she even “friend requested” her two sons on Facebook — just like many other mothers of teenage boys.But this Malibu mother is taking her duties to a bigger table than the one in her dining room.Rosenthal a 20-year Malibu resident is the only woman running for the town’s City Council this spring and her platform stems from her time spent raising her family here and becoming an active promoter of resident-centered ideals in the community.”I want to maintain our small town atmosphere and take care of our environment while ensuring that all residents of Malibu have the services they need and deserve Rosenthal said of her campaign, which boasts the motto Community First.”Rosenthal and her husband of 21 years Walter made the decision to move to Malibu more than two decades ago because of the city’s natural and serene beauty and its distance from the traffic and urbanization of the greater Los Angeles area.Her two sons Joe and Will spent their childhood in Malibu. They played AYSO soccer and little league baseball moved through the public school system and are now cheering as their mother takes on nine other candidates for one of two seats on the City Council— the other of which she hopes to be filled by her long-time friend Lou La Monte.”Lou and I are running two separate campaigns but we have endorsed each other Rosenthal said. We have known each other and worked together on different commissions for 10 years and have a lot of mutual respect for each other.”Rosenthal’s family also proves to be one of the biggest and most important assets to her campaign.”My family has been very involved Rosenthal said. My husband Walter has been to most of the forums and fundraisers my college student son Joe helped me while he was home on spring break and my dad Len helps me hand out literature and is on my campaign committee.”Rosenthal’s son and Malibu High School student Will says he is excited about the election though he also gets “embarrassed” seeing his mother’s name on all of the signs. He and his friends are ardent supporters and helpers of his mother’s campaign.Rosenthal hopes this strong relationship with her family will help her take more of a familial and communal business approach to the problems facing the city. She says her 15 years spent serving Malibu while also running her own clinical psychology practice and owning and managing an eating disorder center in Brentwood will help her address the issues that she believes are the most crucial to the city’s well-being and development.The three issues that Rosenthal stresses as priorities— cleaning Malibu’s water obtaining local control of parks and making the city more resident-friendly— are common hot-button issues being addressed by all of the city council candidates.Rosenthal takes their discussion a step further by promising her supporters that they will be the first priorities she will address if elected.”It is time for Malibu to be pro-active and not reactive and we must start now Rosenthal said of the city’s water clean-up efforts. The city’s plan for a small centralized wastewater treatment plant would be an important and vital step towards cleaning our local waters.”Rosenthal also spoke at a March 13 candidate forum about taking the efforts a step further by working with environmental groups to create new facilities that can recycle water and even produce energy to filter back to local businesses and residences.Rosenthal is endorsed by the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters and was a member of the Measure BB oversight committee that worked to make the buildings at Malibu High School more environmentally friendly among other accomplishments.Another issue that Rosenthal believes deserves immediate attention by the city council is getting back local control of Malibu parks and making them function in favor of residents.”I am currently on the Public Works Commission and have been on the Parks and Recreation Commission in the past said Rosenthal. I support the city’s litigation against the SMMC Malibu camping plan. It is a public safety nightmare and we should never have camping in Malibu. It is just not reasonable to assume that people will not build campfires or smoke cigarettes in a highly flammable area.”As a Parks and Recreation Commissioner Rosenthal labored to keep Bluffs Park for Malibu. If she is elected she hopes to make park rangers available 24 hours a day to regulate the parks and respond quickly to potentially dangerous situations with campers.The third issue that Rosenthal stressed was her hope of making Malibu a more resident-friendly and resident-centered environment.A message on her campaign Web site reads: “I will maintain our small town style of living while making sure that our families from babies to seniors have the amenities they need and want. I am very attuned to the needs of residents and want to make sure that our city government is also.”Rosenthal is a coordinator for the Malibu Foundation for Youth and Families where she organized a youth summit to promote arts recreation and other cultural activities— not only for elementary and high school students but also for college students from Pepperdine and neighboring universities.Rosenthal says she wants to be able to give the youth of Malibu “what they want.” Some ideas include a teen center more field space for sports and community leagues for sports outside of school and increased opportunities for internships jobs and volunteer opportunities for students.These ideas directly parallel Rosenthal’s “mother-like” family and resident-friendly perspective about change for Malibu. “We haven’t had this kind of perspective on city council before Rosenthal said. I hope to be the first.” At the candidate forum Rosenthal stressed in her closing statement the importance of “building community.”She hopes to protect Malibu’s natural scenic beauty while simultaneously bringing the citizens together to preserve the “small-town local feel” that this coastal community has always prided itself on.This base that Rosenthal has built her campaign around has attracted the attention of numerous Malibu organizations and citizens and has lead to their endorsement of Rosenthal for the city council position.Rosenthal has received the endorsement of the Malibu Chamber of Commerce Malibu Mayor Sharon Barovsky and the Malibu Times among others.Julia Brownley Malibu’s Assembly member in Sacramento also endorses Rosenthal’s campaign.”I have worked with Laura for many years and have seen firsthand her ability to comprehend complex issues and then navigate city district and state agencies with unfailing leadership Brownley said. Laura is a solid leader.”Rosenthal’s campaign website lists the names of more than 100 Malibu residents who support her cause.”Malibu’s families have always had a friend and an advocate in Laura Rosenthal said Kathy Wisnicki, past president of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education. Now more than ever we need Laura representing our children on the City Council.” Rosenthal is hopeful that her unique approach to keeping families first and abundance of direct experience will help her get elected and immediately begin making improvements in Malibu.”Laura has a great desire to preserve the beauty and protect the environment of this special city her father and Malibu resident Len Zahn said. Ever since she was a little girl Laura has always been a big-picture thinker. and has never been one to hold back her beliefs and desires. When she wants something she’ll get it.”