Publication Date: Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Q&As with Palo Alto City Council candidates
Q&As with Palo Alto City Council candidates
(October 12, 2005)
John Barton
Age: 45
Occupation: Architect
Other Affiliations: Board Member, Palo Alto Unified School District
Board member, past chair, Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce
Board Member, Community Working Group
Education: Master of Architecture, University of California at Berkeley, 1988
BA, University of California at Berkeley, 1983
Family: Married, with two sons, 16 and 13
Weekly: The Library Advisory Commission is currently considering the future of the city's library service. What changes, if any, should occur?
Barton: I'm probably going to lose the election on the following sentence: Closing some branch libraries to make a strong library is not something that completely scares me, if that's what we really need to do. I think libraries are increasingly becoming information hubs in a very different way.
The other thing that I've talked to (Library Director) Paula (Simpson) about -- and I think it goes to mitigating the challenges of potentially closing libraries -- is that we've just spent a tremendous amount of money building libraries at all of our schools. ... If we can find a way to mix our collection, and encourage people at reasonable times of the day to come use our libraries, then potentially we have more libraries in the community than we had before.
I can imagine a scenario in which the reading program ... can alternate through our (school) libraries that are so convenient for parts of our community. I can imagine scenarios in which certain magazines and periodicals are also brought into our libraries and folks could come and read the newspaper and then read to kids. I can imagine a scenario in which our libraries are open for periodicals and certain kinds of materials on weekends.
It's a real potential that Paula and I have talked about a lot. That may be a way to -- by mixing our resources -- be able to get at what Paula's looking for in terms of a modern library system.
Weekly: The city has a large backlog of capital projects to repair and upgrade. What's the most important unfinished infrastructure project in the city?
Barton: I would say it's going to be a combination of road repair, sidewalks and streets -- the whole public aura of the city, if you will, of the community.
In parts of the community, the trees haven't been trimmed for a long time. That needs to be focused on. We've got weeds growing in the street, and sidewalks that need repair. I think those are areas that are symbolically very important. It's not that they are unsafe at this point.
But I've heard from plenty of people who come to Palo Alto who say, "This is Palo Alto?" So having a real focus on that very public component of our infrastructure is very important.
Weekly: What one recent council decision would you overturn, and why?
Barton: What I've would have done is made a vote on Alma Plaza. I would have required that that come up. I realize I couldn't require that as a single council member, but I would have pushed really hard for a decision on that.
That was, to me, a real lack of leadership, that (Albertson's) was allowed to go away. I think that was a shame, because I think ultimately that last scheme -- the fourth of the four schemes that were brought forward -- was probably a reasonable one and should of at least have gotten a hearing and proceeded.
Weekly: What will be your pet project?
Barton: Affordable housing. This is something that's really important to me. I think it's almost a moral issue.
I don't want to live in a community that's only for the wealthy. I think we need -- as a moral issue as well as an economic issue -- to have folks living here who work here, of all ranges. A more diverse community economically is a good thing and we're heading in the wrong direction. We do need to build higher-density, affordable housing.
I know there are those folks in the community who have problems with higher density. I respectfully disagree with their view. We need to work on that and that will be my pet project.
Weekly: Do you participate in PaloAltoGreen?
Barton: I honestly don't know. I'll have to ask my wife and let you know.
Norman Carroll
Occupation: Activist, un-housed community
Age: 51
Other Affiliations: Program manager, Downtown Streets Team
Committee member, Off the Streets Team
Education: BA, Broadcast Communication Art, San Francisco State University, 1988
Family: Divorced
Weekly: Why are you running for council?
Carroll: The answer I generally give is, "Why not?" I'm just as much a citizen of Palo Alto as anyone else. I'm probably as qualified as anyone else as far as the requirements for running for City Council -- and that's to be a responsible citizen. It doesn't necessarily have any requirements of having prior involvement with city government or any of those kinds of things.
There have been candidates in the past (where) just community involvement was enough for them to feel that as though they were deserving enough to give it a shot and the community could benefit from whatever they had to offer.
Weekly: The Library Advisory Commission is currently considering the future of the city's library service. What changes, if any, should occur?
Carroll: Ideally, I'd like to see a newer, more up-to-date Main Library. The question is: "How does that get paid for?" The community already has rejected a bond issue on that subject once before.
I think the neighborhood branches (are) important in Palo Alto because of the ... policy that's been set by the city, but at the request of the citizens that it be a more walkable community. ... In order to satisfy that, you would need to maintain having branch libraries.
Do branch libraries need all the frills and whistles and bells and stuff that the Main Library needs, in the way of high-tech stuff? I don't really think so. I mean Internet access, yes, but do they really need to have the wireless access at all of the branch libraries? ...When it wasn't there people still used the library, they still used the Internet terminals.
Weekly: What will be your pet project?
Carroll: My pet project doesn't necessarily require being on the council. It's something I've tried and encouraged people to do, and that's to be more responsible citizens. If someone else isn't taking some responsibility, to try and help them be one.
Weekly: Can you give me an example of that?
Carroll: Those times when people have complaints that they don't address the complaint directly. They complain about it to their friends but not to anybody who can do anything about it, and then they come forward and say, "Well, it's an ongoing problem, I've been talking about it for years." Then you find out they didn't complain to the appropriate city entity, whether it be the police or fire department or public works or whatever.
If somebody else is creating a problem for the community, it needs be addressed as a problem, with a solution sought, not an issue that gets discussed and answers suggested for somebody else to find a solution.
Weekly: What's the most important environmental issue facing the city and how would you address it?
Carroll: I think one part of it is the recycling issue that some people in the city are so proud of and other people in the city just blatantly ignore. Everybody talks about it but not a whole lot really gets done.
The cans for recycling that were put on University Avenue, the first week they were out I went to oral communications at the City Council meeting and told them, "Those cans are a mistake." They look just like the trash cans, they're next to the trash cans, they're the same color as the trash cans. And guess what? They're always full of trash. ... But everybody feels good about the fact that there are the recycling cans there.
Weekly: Do you participate in PaloAltoGreen?
Carroll: Since I'm not responsible for my own utilities, no. Would I encourage people to do so? Yes.
In some cases, it's simply a matter of convenience for people to not do it but I would ask people to really look honestly whether it's to their benefit or not. I think most people would find in the long run it will be if they think of the long-term implications of green power versus getting electrical power from coal-fired power plants.
Peter Drekmeier
Occupation: Conservationist, People for Land and Nature
Age: 40
Other Affiliations: Former executive director, Earth Day Network
Co-founder, former executive director, Bay Area Action/Acterra
Founder, former director, Stanford Open Space Alliance
Education: BA, Political Science, University of California at Berkeley, 1987
Family: Single
Weekly: What one recent council decision would you overturn, and why?
Drekmeier: One thing that I would look at again is the Mayfield deal (with Stanford University). I know that there was a lot of excitement for those playing fields and I know we need playing fields. But I question if that was the best location (the corner of El Camino Real and Page Mill Road) for them.
I think that would have been a better location for a hotel, which brings in a lot more revenue for the city. The transient occupancy tax, the hotel tax -- which I think is 10 percent for Palo Alto right now -- 100 percent of that comes directly to the city. So it's a great source. It's not something that we are sharing with the county and the state.
But we need playing fields and I think there is an opportunity for reconfiguring the golf course out at the Baylands. It's much larger than other golf courses of that ability. It's 180 acres. I think there is a win-win where we can create a much better golf course ... and we could probably free up 30 acres for playing fields and other uses.
Weekly: When it comes time to cut the budget, which current service or program would you first look to cut?
Drekmeier: I think the problem we have right now comes from past decisions. In the past, when negotiating with the unions the city felt it wasn't in their best interests to give up-front benefits or raise salaries. So they back-ended it, and gave great benefits for retirement, which encouraged a lot of people to come work for Palo Alto, which is a good thing. ...
But the problem is it was an easy decision to make then because paying for it comes later. Now this council is faced with some real problems. One of the problems in the past was that after just five years of working for the city, employees after retirement were entitled to 100 percent benefits from the city. To me, that is just very excessive. Now there is tiered system and people are entitled to 50 percent benefits after 10 years and 20 years 100 percent. That makes a lot more sense to me.
Weekly: What kind, if any, of police oversight should the council set up?
Drekmeier: I think we need a stronger police review commission. It's pretty important for police officers to be role models for the community.
My own experiences with Palo Alto police has been very positive. I feel they have been courteous and I have been treated very well. Then again, I'm a middle class white man and some of the problems recently have involved minorities.
A lot of times, there's pressure on police officers. The person might not have been doing anything wrong, but they weren't cooperating. I think there has to be a lot of training. If a rookie officer doesn't have enough experience, I think it's important to call in someone who does have the judgment and experience.
I like the idea of a police review commission. I'm very big on checks and balances. It needs to be something that the community is comfortable with, not just a cosmetic commission.
Weekly: What will be your pet project?
Drekmeier: My pet project is to make Palo Alto a leader in environmentally sustainable technologies, with a special focus on energy. Because I think climate change is going to affect everything from agriculture to water quantity ... to competition over resources. It's something that we're seeing ... get more and more serious.
Palo Alto is poised -- owning our own utility, with an educated population here, with our concern for the environment and being leaders -- I think we're in a great position to lead that.
Do you participate in PaloAltoGreen?
Drekmeier: I do. I am a renter and we have PaloAltoGreen. ... I think it's a great program.
The only thing that would make it better is if the electricity is produced closer to Palo Alto. We're importing from the Columbia River Gorge. I do have some concerns if, in a crunch, is that going to be available.
Karen Holman
Age: 56
Occupation: Conservation land-use planner
Other Affiliations: Member, Planning and Transportation Commission
Project Director, Palo Alto History Museum
Member, Palo Alto Zero Waste Task Force
Education: BA, Graphic Arts, University of Arkansas, 1970
Family: Divorced
Weekly: What one recent council decision would you overturn, and why?
Holman: I would have voted against the recent amendment to the city manager's contract. ... There are a few things about it. It was coming at a time when the city was facing a budget deficit and the city had just adopted a budget ... There were people who were losing their jobs and I thought -- in the light of that and in the light of the fact I think there should be clearer benchmarks and performance criteria -- I felt like it wasn't a good issue to bring forward to begin with. ... It didn't show the best, I think. ...
Weekly: Was it the raise? Or the issue with his house (allowing him to live in the home, which he owns jointly with the city, after he retires)?
Holman: It was both. People earn their salaries and (City Manager) Frank (Benest) works hard, there's no denying that. But I think that when you come forward with a raise for someone -- in the light of the fact that other people are losing their jobs entirely and that there needed clearer performance standards set for managers to determine raises or not. It's unprecedented that a city employee would be allowed to stay in their house beyond their term of employment.
I think all of it incongruous with the other budget issues that have come before the council most recently.
Weekly: Real estate development is typically the most controversial issue in the city. Do you consider yourself more "slow growth" or "pro-growth"?
Holman: Well that's putting it in black and white. What we have is we have a Comprehensive Plan and we have also a California Environmental Quality Act. My view of growth/no growth/slow growth/any kind of growth is: Does it satisfy the zoning? Does it agree with the Comp Plan? If there are exceptions, can findings be made? And if there are impacts have they been mitigated or have the impacts been removed? Those are the criteria.
If you stick to that process you actually have a pretty simple process. While there are some complexities within, CEQA, for instance, essentially it's a pretty simple process. Our governing documents exist and that's what we need to be following.
Weekly: In terms of policy-making style, the current council has been divided between those who challenge staff with tough questions and those more trusting of staff's professional expertise. Where do you see yourself in that dichotomy?
Holman: I think my record on the planning commission would indicate that I am not hesitant to ask questions. You know, a lot of those questions can be asked ahead of time and not at the council meeting. But having said that, there are times when all the salient information that needs to be provided in order to make an informed decision isn't presented at the beginning. That's not always true, of course.
We have some very good staff, some very hard-working staff. But I am someone who thinks that if there are gaps in information that need to be provided that the questions need to be asked. Again, we are responsible to the public.
Weekly: What will be your pet project?
Holman: It's hard to pick one. I guess the most important one is council leadership: being clear on setting policy, being more creative in trying to attract and retain retail services and quality of life, and being more forthright in becoming, again, environmental leaders. ... It all does come down to council leadership. It's the old, "The buck stops here."
Weekly: Do you participate in PaloAltoGreen?
Holman: I don't. For no good reason, frankly. I intend to do that and just haven't done that yet.
Victor Frost
Age: Refused to state
Occupation: Panhandler
Family: Single
Weekly: What do you suggest will improve communication among Council members and between Council members and the public?
Frost: A barbecue. This is nothing to laugh at. I'm serious as hell, and I mentioned this at the last forum. We have to bring the people to together with a barbecue for the residents of Palo Alto, multifunctional. We'll have different restaurants, different people coming together, for a barbecue.
Weekly: Real estate development is typically the most controversial issue in the city. Do you consider yourself more "slow growth" or "pro-growth"?
Frost: In real estate development, as in Japanese management, we have to take line-item-by-line-item, case-by-case. We cannot generalize.
We must go after, "What are the repercussions now; what are repercussions in 10 years?" The other thing, which hasn't been mentioned in real estate development in this area, is, "How many jobs are going to be created through real estate development?" Duh, no one's said nothing. Well, I am.
Weekly: Is the city doing enough to protect its economic base? If no, what specifically should be done?
Frost: No. Lawsuits are a problem. We have animosity and people looking to make money off the city.
We also have to start and we have to look dynamically at creating jobs so people can pay their property taxes, which will decrease the deficit, OK? That is the thing that people haven't looked at.
"Well, we need to increase taxes." No! Not increase taxes. ... Let's create jobs for residents -- not just the homeless, but for the residents so they can pay their property taxes and then the deficit comes down.
Creating 1,000 jobs is a very hard thing to do but we need to do it.
Weekly: What kind, if any, of police oversight should the council set up?
Frost: An independent police commission, or an investigating commission totally independent of the police department. That means in-depth investigations. Now if that includes the FBI, fine. If it means criminal charges or civil charges, let's do some in-depth investigation.
Do we have felonious complaints? Are we going to have felonious complaints, legal complaints in City Hall? Let's investigate these.
Sometimes, yes, there are people who go after city hall to make some money intentionally. But then we do have, sometimes, valid cases that need to be resolved to a competent level, like the one I had to go through. No one wanted to help me.
Weekly: What was that?
Frost: It was a homeless harassment suit, a suit against the Palo Alto (police department).
I was harassed every goddamn night, practically, with a bad police officer at night that went around and harassed all the homeless people. He got off on that. ... The only thing that I missed was the filing (deadline), by about two months.
Now I know how to file a lawsuit against the city, anybody else that goes in my way. This also goes for the nonprofits.
Weekly: How would you rate the performance of City Manager Frank Benest?
Frost: He was at his best six months ago. He is a true professional. But as a city manager, you have to take destructive feedback from the people. I think Frank has lost touch with the people of Palo Alto. He' s good administrator, he's an excellent professional, he does his job well but he must be in touch with the people.
I think Frank should sit out here for a day with me and just take questions from the people and meet the people, face to face. Let's meet the people.
Weekly: The Library Advisory Commission is currently considering the future of the city's library service. What changes, if any, should occur?
Frost: We've got to readjust the library commission, first of all. We got some people that have -- what's it called? -- political delusions, and their priorities need to be straightened out.
For our children to learn, in a positive and safe environment, is paramount. I feel the library commission sometimes forgets that.
Weekly: Do you participate in PaloAltoGreen?
Frost: My Mercedes Benz does not have a solar cell yet. I am not connected up. And my hotel room doesn't. But if I had a house or if in California when I get my 20 acres and my log cabin, I will be totally solar, wind. I will not be connected to the power grid, whatever.
I will be a total solar man.
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