We asked each candidate to answer a few questions so that you can know a little more about their priorities. See responses from other candidates: Joe Benson, Emily Francis and James Papp.
Rank the issues in order of importance for our city:
If elected, what will you do to address the issue you identified above as most significant?
As a council member and former planning commissioner, I have prioritized affordable housing and advocated for ways to create housing of all types. For instance, I voted to approve hundreds of deed-restricted housing units and recommended approval of the Froom Ranch Specific Plan, which will include a mix of “missing middle” and affordable housing, commercial space and new parks and open space. If elected, I will continue these efforts, look for creative solutions to fund affordable housing, and approve policies that break down barriers to housing production to help people who work in SLO, live in SLO.
What is your approach on traffic and parking issues? Are there any policies that you are committed to advocating for or against?
I support solutions that reduce traffic and parking demand, like transit, bike and pedestrian improvements. We need innovative transit initiatives that will increase ridership by improving bus frequency, reliability and ease of use. I also understand how important reliable parking is to downtown businesses and residents. At a recent city council meeting, I asked staff to continue the free first hour in the parking structures and requested a comprehensive cost study to consider solutions like surge pricing. I also asked staff to propose ideas to support retail and restaurant workers downtown, as well as people with access and functional needs.
Which theme in the Chamber’s economic vision, Imagine SLO, do you think deserves the most focus in the next four years and why?
While each of the Imagine SLO themes resonates with me, the theme that local government can impact most is Love of Place. After all, governments are the main providers of parks and shared outdoor spaces, quality schools and public safety/police. Governments also depend on an engaged citizenry to function and create a place we all want to live. As a council member, I have already proven my desire to listen and respond to residents, create a sense of belonging, and ensure that services are accessible to all. I am committed to preserving these values.
For more than ten years, buildings in the downtown core have been allowed to be up to 75 feet tall if they provide significant community benefits; do you support these current regulations? Why or why not?
If San Luis Obispo is going to meet its workforce housing needs, we need to be open to higher density in the downtown core. That means supporting policies that allow for taller buildings, smaller units (eg. efficiency units) and housing that may not include parking. This doesn’t necessarily mean that we must allow every downtown building to be 75 feet tall. But we should approve it in some places, as long as we allow for historic preservation and ensure that new, denser buildings are congruent with the streetscape, scale and mass of their surroundings.
For the first time in decades, the City is approaching our self-imposed 1% limit on new housing development. Would you support amending this 1% cap to address our housing crisis or do you believe that it is essential to maintain this limit?
I support the increase in housing production currently occurring in the City of SLO. The reason for the 1% cap is to ensure that the city can grow within the availability of its resources. A change to that would require a General Plan amendment so that the city can update its resource assessments. So far, the 1% cap has not limited the amount of housing that industry has wanted to build. If that changes, I would support increasing the cap to the extent that we can do so without jeopardizing the security of our water and other critical resources.
What are you most proud of having contributed to our community in the past 10 years?
I’ve had the unique opportunity in my 20-year public health career to have provided services to many of our most in-need residents, from people living with HIV and AIDS to those who lack any access to healthcare, to community members trying to navigate Covid-19. In my first 10 months on city council, I am proud to have voted to spend over $3 million on affording housing projects, as well as approving the addition of public electric car charging stations, open space acquisitions, and the most sidewalk and pedestrian improvements ever approved in one year in SLO history.
What is the biggest opportunity for our City in the next four years?
During Covid, we learned that SLO can be nimble in response to challenges. We can build on this creativity and momentum in the next four years by aggressively pursuing our climate change goals and building community resilience.
Is there something the city is not currently focused on that you would bring to the forefront if elected?
I’d seek ways to improve public access to government and services. Some examples include: increasing access to broadband in underserved areas, encouraging youth participation in government, and making public meetings more accessible to those who have historically had difficulty participating.