Candidate for
Council Member; City of San Diego; District 6

Why am I running for City Council?

My goal is to represent my community and make a better San Diego. This is something I am passionate about. District 6 has been my home for nearly 30 years and I have the leadership, experience and commitment to serve our community on the San Diego City Council. The city center has had an abundance of city resources over the last two decades. Now it is time we put forward policies that build on our great neighborhoods and put our neighborhoods first.

I believe the challenge of effectively representing a Council District can be met only by someone who is well grounded in the community, understands its needs and priorities, appreciates its vibrant potential, has established and enjoys goodwill across all ethnicities.

As an elected Board member on the San Diego Unified School District's Board of Education, I had a direct experience prioritizing and addressing the needs of the community.

My extensive experience representing this district on the San Diego Unified School District Board of Trustees and in other roles, and the increasing support I have gathered over those years, has convinced me that I should undertake this campaign to represent the residents of District 6 on the city council. I believe District 6 needs a voice on the city council that represents well informed moderation, not extreme partisanship or a neophyte with very little political experience. I believe I can provide a stabilizing voice on the council, one that recognizes the value of current city employees, and the need to address the current staffing shortcomings of the city, while pursuing a fiscally responsible course of action (avoiding the problems our city experienced during the last decade).

It is said that the district representative shall be the voice of the community in City Hall, and conversely the eyes and ears of City Hall in the community. I say that being a representative is more than that. With humble and prudent stewardship and noble public service as guiding principles, the district representative should help the community define and chart its future, and translate this vision into activities and programs that are actionable today. Current social and political realities mandate that the district representative be not simply a messenger but a strong advocate and enabler. The district representative is a community builder and mobilizer ready and willing to work with leaders in the community.

While we should attend to the needs of our community as a matter of first priority, we must not put blinders on and solely focus on our own needs to the exclusion of the rest of the City. District 6 does not and cannot exist in a vacuum. We should not tread on that dangerous path of "us and us alone." We have to work with Mayor Faulconer and the rest of the City Council to get San Diego stronger and moving forward. I believe that District 6 will be enriched as the City progresses.

My experience and background as well as my personal beliefs and principles make me the excellent choice for District 6. My neighborhood roots are in the District. It has been my home for 30 years. I understand our neighborhood's values and priorities.