Original Murrieta City Councilman Passes Away

This article was first posted at 7 p.m. July 30 and updated at 9:30 p.m. with comments from Murrieta Mayor Rick Gibbs on the passing of Dave Haas, who served on the first Murrieta City Council.

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An original Murrieta city councilman who had a hand in Murrieta's cityhood passed away Monday, according to reports.

Dave Haas died Monday in Lone Pine, a community of about 2,000 people in Inyo County, where he moved several years ago, according to a local publication. It was unclear how old he was.

Haas had quickly made a name for himself in Lone Pine as “Rattlesnake” because of the snakeskin hats he wore, but also because of his community involvement and philanthropic ways.

The Inyo Register reported in December 2012 that Haas, a contractor by profession, purchased an old bakery in Lone Pine, had it renovated, then dedicated it as community center.

But Haas had kept Murrieta close to his heart: in June 2011, he made an appearance at the City of Murrieta’s 20th Birthday Bash. He helped current City Council members celebrate when a birthday cake was brought out.

When Murrieta officially became a city on July 1, 1991, it had a population of approximately 24,000, compared to about 104,000 in recent years.

“It’s a grown a lot since then,” Haas told Patch that June day. “More people. More homes. More everything.”

Haas had lamented that the City had lost much of its original ranch land and rural areas—there was a population of about 2,200 in 1980, when Haas moved to Murrieta—but said he was proud to see the community he helped found flourish into a major urban center.

“We must have done something right to have that many people want to come here,” he said.

Haas served on the Murrieta City Council for two years, then lost a bid for re-election, wrote columnist John Hunneman of The Press-Enterprise.

Murrieta resident Steve Harding, the City of Murrieta’s first planning director and second city manager who is now the city manager for Jurupa Valley, remembers Haas fondly.

“Cantankerous and honest, he was a good man,” Harding said in an email to Patch. “He put his heart and soul into everything.”

And though Haas held office much earlier than current Murrieta Mayor Ricks Gibbs, Gibbs said he had the occasion of meeting Haas a few times because the former councilman still owned property in Murrieta.

"The words I would use to describe him are colorful and a straight shooter," Gibbs said in an email. "He wore the rattlesnake band on his hat and did not mince words. Given that so much of what today’s politicians say is filtered so as to not offend any interest group, Dave was refreshing in his candor."

Next week's City Council meeting will be adjourned in memory of Haas, Gibbs said.

Patch will update this story if further information about Haas’ legacy in Murrieta or his passing is received.