TIMOTHY K. GASPAR

Why Thrive LA endorses TIMOTHY

Tim Gaspar is a lifelong West San Fernando Valley resident who built Gaspar Insurance from the ground up in 2008, growing it into one of the largest independent insurance firms in Los Angeles with over 60 team members and 11,000 clients before selling in 2021. He holds a B.S. in Finance from Cal State Northridge and has served on the boards of the West Valley YMCA (chairman since 2015) and the West Valley Boys and Girls Club (since 2013). He topped the June 2026 CD3 primary with 46% of the vote and now heads into a November runoff. District 3 needs a councilmember who understands what it costs to meet a payroll, sign a lease, and navigate the city's permitting bureaucracy. If elected, Gaspar would be the only member of the Los Angeles City Council who has ever built and run a business. His opponent, Barri Worth Girvan, carries the endorsement of DSA-LA, an organization whose agenda includes expanded rent control, new taxes on housing providers, and a "care-first" approach to homelessness that rejects enforcement. The West Valley cannot afford a councilmember beholden to that coalition. Gaspar offers the opposite: a pro-growth, enforcement-first agenda backed by the people who keep the city safe and the economy running. Gaspar's endorsement sheet reads like a blueprint for competent city governance. He is the only candidate in the race endorsed by the Los Angeles Police Protective League. He also carries the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, the LA Airport Peace Officers Association, and the LA County Professional Peace Officers' Association. On the business side, BizFed, the LA Chamber PAC, the Valley Industry and Commerce Association, the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles, and the Southland Regional Association of Realtors all back his campaign. Former Councilmember Laura Chick, outgoing CD3 Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, Councilmembers John Lee and Monica Rodriguez, LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, and third-place primary finisher Christopher Robert Celona have all endorsed him. On homelessness, Gaspar has done the math that City Hall refuses to do. He points out the city spends over $700 million a year on homelessness with dismal results: Inside Safe costs $257,000 per person for permanent housing placements and $80,000 annually per motel room. His alternative is zero tolerance for illegal encampments, aggressive enforcement of anti-camping laws, and partnerships with cost-effective organizations like the Salvation Army. He has already coordinated encampment clearances with LAPD through his "Serving Before Swearing In" initiative, delivering results before taking the oath of office. On housing, Gaspar supports cutting the red tape that drives up construction costs and slows building timelines. He backs development in appropriate areas like Warner Center while opposing mandated density increases in single-family neighborhoods. He opposes rent control expansions that discourage new housing investment. On the economy, he wants a top-to-bottom review of the city's permitting and licensing process, a crackdown on unlicensed operators who undercut legitimate businesses, and the restoration of a standalone economic development department. Tim Gaspar is the pro-growth, pro-safety, pro-accountability leader District 3 has been waiting for.