I ran in 2020 because I care about our community.  By community I mean both our stunning natural and built environment as well as the people who live here. My prime priorities have been to get residents’ concerns heard and problems solved as well as to conserve Laguna’s natural and built environment. 

 

You’ve sent me messages this past year about the impact congestion has had on your quality of life in Laguna.  We’ve seen worse congestion of our streets, neighborhoods, beaches, and trails and more violent crime since the end of the pandemic. (We are now the 3rd in violent crimes for all OC cities).  This congestion, and increase in violent crimes, needs to be solved by more than visitor education programs. 

 

Here’s where I stand on solving congestion and other issues:

 

Congestion and Safety
 

• Solving Congestion: Plan how to limit so that we can get visitors and residents safely out in an emergency

• Crime Mapping:  Ensuring safe neighborhoods means giving residents tools like knowing what crimes are occurring where

• FIre Safety:  Purchase privately owned land in high severity fire zones to reduce the fire risks associated with development in those areas and preserve the green belt for future generations

 

 Fiscal Responsibility
 

• Fund the City Council passed/promised projects first:  Like the community pool and the $4.2M we have from the County to upgrade the Library

• Prioritize spending:  Limit which projects to undertake, and fund those that benefit residents the most.  The City Council has spent millions on a number of large projects which have yet to be completed, such as the Promenade, ($3-5M), and has other large financial projects on the horizon:  The desalinization project ($23M), the undergrounding of Laguna Canyon Rd ($150M), the Downtown Action Plan ($14M), the takeover of Pacific Coast Highway, and the quest to build more large parking structures.  Since these projects could cost residents more in taxes, City Council needs to limit funding to those that will benefit our residents and community the most, such as pedestrian safety.
   

• Establish Public/Private partnerships: To fund projects like affordable housing. Our artists, local workers, and seniors deserve affordable rentals.

 

Keep Our Promises to Our Neighborhoods
 

• Community Center:  Turn the St. Catherine’s property into a real community recreation center for residents.  Residents have been asking for a community pool and a skateboard park for over a decade.  Isn’t it time we explore some of those options?

• South Laguna:  Get families their own park and dog owners one of their own.

• The Canyon:  Retain its rural nature as we promised and not make it the dumping ground for every large project

           

           

 Environmental Responsibility
 

• Preserve our unique and fragile urban landscapes, open space, ocean and coastline: We moved here for Laguna’s beauty.  We have an obligation to future generations to protect and care for it, not allow it to be trashed or depleted like our tidepools, waterways, and treescapes. 

• Repair and enhance our infrastructures: Fix our sewer lines so there aren’t any more 3M- gallon raw sewage spills on our beaches and streets. Our city parks and landscapes need a lot more care. We also need to create native plant landscapes as these use less water and are more fire resistant.

• Responsible development:  Support development that is compatible with the unique architectural character of our town’s buildings and neighborhoods, such as we saw with the renovation of the Rivian Theatre.

• Switch to renewable energy whenever possible: We are moving to electrifying our City fleet vehicles and adding more charging stations and solar microgrids per my initiatives.  We need to allow residents the right to choose renewable electrical energy over fossil fuels. I’ll be working to give residents this option so we can make Laguna a greener city.

 

I operate from the principle that I was elected to serve residents. I realize others operate from a principle of serving the business community, the City and its needs over those of residents. 

 

Don’t residents deserve someone on Council who will not only listen to their issues, but will act on them?