I decided to run for Mayor of Carlsbad because I believe I offer our residents a focused vision for the future, uniquely comprised of local knowledge from having grown up here, plus a vast array of national and global experiences to understand the things that make a city somewhere people desire to live and the things that don’t.
I learned this lesson earlier in life and this hard truth has never left me: character always matters. In every circumstance. The ability to maintain one’s integrity in the face of any challenge should be, at a minimum I think, what the residents of Carlsbad should expect of their elected leaders. I’ve long had a simple definition for integrity: “Say what you do. Do what you say.” I haven’t found that to always be the case in some of Carlsbad’s leadership in the last few years, even shockingly breached, and I’m running to restore the public trust in how their elected leaders conduct themselves.
01
For me, “quality of life” is an all-encompassing term containing distinct elements like: public safety, social harmony, environmental harmony, and housing density. As I see it, the primary job for an elected leader in Carlsbad is to ensure the safety of all - residents and visitors alike. I think the foundation of a good quality of life is built on people being able to safely go about their lives and conduct their business. Having grown up here, I’ve always felt safe and I will work tirelessly to ensure every Carlsbad resident and visitor continues to feel the same way.
I chose “One Carlsbad” as my campaign theme to promote those core values, some of which I’ve seen become strained in recent years over some community issues that became antagonistic. So many people I’ve spoken with are tired of those things that have divided us and would like to see Carlsbad come back together as “One” again. To me, that starts with respect – respecting all points of view and a willingness to listen to everyone. When I am elected as your Mayor, I will represent everyone, fairly and equally, with compassion and respect.
Clean water in our homes and at our beaches, clean air to breathe, a generally litter-free landscape, parks in which to play for our children and families, and natural open spaces for our recreational enjoyment. I am committed to protecting and maintaining those elements at the highest level of which a city is capable.
As I said at the outset, change is inevitable so it’s up to City leadership to efficiently manage change for the greatest benefit to the residents. I am in favor of smart growth where my grandchild could someday afford a home. I am in favor of residents turning their single family homes into duplexes when that makes sense for them. I am in favor of increased density in transit corridors which will get cars off the street, alleviate traffic, increase housing supply to lower cost, and help us reach our important Climate Action goals. I am not in favor of adding a large number of units or high-rises to single family Carlsbad neighborhoods in a short period of time, against the will of the people who live there. When I am elected Mayor, I will personally take that fight to the regional and State levels and advocate for Carlsbad residents’ rights to largely determine the makeup of their environment.
02
This issue was a big motivating factor in my decision to run for election. Behind maintaining Public Safety, I consider the responsible fiscal stewardship of taxpayer’s money the next most important job of an elected leader. I have watched for the last few years in dismay at the financial decision-making by a majority of the City Council, and in some cases, it seems to be driven by special interests from outside our City. I will only represent the interests of the residents of Carlsbad. In addition, there appears to be a demonstrable lack of understanding of how Carlsbad’s budget is impacted by the global economy, as evidenced by what I consider suspect financial assumptions. I think that the taxpayer dollars must be carefully and responsibly managed in order to maintain sufficient reserves to be able to weather a financial downturn of any length, while still providing an uninterrupted level of services that our residents expect. Hiring additional Staff has continued at what I believe to be an unprecedented rate that’s not consistent with either population growth or prudent management practice in an uncertain economic environment.
03
In most every conversation I’ve had with residents recently, the homelessness issue has been top-of-mind. While it seems that Carlsbad has made some progress in addressing this problem, it’s apparent there’s a long way to go. I care deeply about all human beings, and I personally don’t think there’s any element of compassion in allowing anyone to sleep on the streets of our City. It’s not fair to the unsheltered population, nor is it fair to the residents of Carlsbad. For this reason, I support increasing our City’s supply of supportive housing and also empowering our City officials to help unsheltered individuals locate and avail themselves of these services. I believe in enforcing the laws on the books to cite, and in extreme cases arrest, egregious offenders of anti-loitering and encroachment laws. Homelessness as a societal issue is too large for any city’s budget to handle alone. The costs associated with various approaches must be borne by the combined resources of city, regional, State and Federal governments, but I don’t see any truly unified efforts underway to alleviate chronic homelessness.
What I see that can be accomplished at the city level is taking a slightly different approach. It seems there are a multitude of groups in the city working on homelessness, based on their own particular interest and perspective. It also seems obvious to me that all of the disparate groups have the same goal: To eliminate homelessness in Carlsbad. I think we all could agree on that simple goal. I hear a lot of these groups talking, but I’m not sure there’s a lot of listening going on. It seems to me that quite often the interest groups are talking AT each other, as opposed to WITH each other, creating an environment where facts and misinformation are freely traded. I would like to see a citywide forum created that brings all the interest groups together in an open environment of tolerance and respect to develop and agree on a common way forward. I heard it said almost 50 years ago: “Governments don’t live together. People live together.” That struck me as inherently true the first time I heard it and it strikes me as appropriate for developing a community-based approach to Homelessness.
04
I come from a business background and I firmly believe that economic vibrancy is the core driver of a city’s overall vibrancy. To me, a good business base begins with an educated workforce. Carlsbad does a good job of sending its youth on to 4 year colleges after high school, but that avenue is not one that everyone chooses. As our economy and business base continues to evolve, it seems apparent to me that there’s an increasing need for technical skills that are a fit for the jobs of today, but even more so for the jobs that will evolve tomorrow. I think that technical training is currently underserved today, not just for those beginning their career path, but also for those currently employed who need constant upskilling to keep up with advancing technology. Consequently, it is great to see a bright future for an opportunity that already exists in Carlsbad. We are fortunate to have a “center of excellence” in this regard that exists today in the form of MiraCosta College’s Technology Career Institute. I would love to see Carlsbad grow and expand this partnership with the Technology Career Institute to provide our children with educational options that will prepare them for lucrative career opportunities in the future.
05