Candidate for
Member, City Council; City of Alhambra; District 1

http://www.sunada4alhambra.org

I envision a more unified city...one that considers input from all its citizens...one that is both environmentally and economically sustainable...and one that promotes the health, education and livelihoods of everyone who lives here.

What will I work for?

A better balance between commercial development and retaining the character of our neighborhoods.

A strategic plan to attract more good paying jobs.

A stronger education system from pre-K through adult school. More community open space to promote recreation and interaction among all Alhambrans.

Together we can prosper, and I'm betting on our people to get us there.

On Education: Current city leadership focuses on strengthening our commercial and retail sector to increase tax revenue in the short-term. I want to bring a better balance by focusing on the people. Strengthening our schools to help our students get to their universities of choice is a sound investment in our future. Education funding is, in general, outside the realm of the city council. But there are things that can and should be done by the city to help.

What's amazing is that many of our students, despite being from very modest means, have performed well and are top-rated within the state. I commend students and teachers for that. Now let's build on it. I argue that our children have done more for our property values in the city than all the recent high-density developments combined. In a sense, our property tax revenues are riding on the backs of our kids, teachers, and schools. I hate to think where we would be without them. Again, education funding is outside of council's control, but there are things council members can do to help them. For example, back in 2011 when our school district was struggling with a very limited education budget, there was another funding source that is controlled by the city (federal Community Development Block Grant, or CDBG, funding) that can be used for vocational training programs. And this funding is not restricted if used in conjunction with opportunities generated by eligible job activities. If the city had coordinated CDBG programs for the community earlier, they would have been able to direct this outside funding source toward adult education. I used to take welding classes in Alhambra, and they were a great path toward upward mobility.

As the city's leaders focus on retail developments and high-density condos to feed it, their attention has been drawn away from taking a more active part in boosting our schools. And as the seemingly endless cycle of new and failed businesses come and go, our students have persevered despite a less-than-optimal environment. In a sense, city leadership has been riding on the backs of our students. Think what we can do with a more conscious effort to help them. Now that's something we can build on!

On Open Government: Have you ever felt that decisions on important agenda items at public hearings were already made and without much discussion? A city is not sustainable without community involvement. A major roadblock to engaging the public is a lack of transparency. As it currently stands, background information on important items is not readily available to the public unless they first request it and then pay for it. And this assumes the agenda title is sufficient for our residents to know what its about.

We need to push for all information packages in support of public hearings and other agenda items to be available free of charge on the city's website. And it needs to be in a machine readable format for ease of searching and analysis. Discussions between city council members need to be held in the open at times of the day most conducive to public attendance. Unlike the current council who has the security and flexibility to take time off, most residents have strict working hours and are often working multiple jobs to make ends meet. It's time to focus on the residents.

On the Environment: We need to address environmental issues affecting our residents. Air and noise pollution, traffic, a lack of open-space, and a diversion of city resources from our parks--these are serious issues that threaten our future growth and need to be more actively worked.

Our Water Supply And then there's our water, arguably our most precious resource that, if compromised, can bring the city to its knees. This is why I have worked over the years to protect it. While on the board of directors for the San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District, I worked to get $3.9 million of grant funding and zero interest loans to help build the city's water treatment plant. In 2006, I formed the San Gabriel Valley Oversight Group, a non-profit public benefit corporation, to provide independent technical oversight of the cleanup process of our contaminated groundwater supply. In 1984, the U.S. EPA declared Alhambra's groundwater a Superfund site, a designation reserved for the most contaminated areas in the country. It's astounding that most people in the city are not aware of this. This lack of public engagement is no doubt one reason why little progress has been made to remedy the problem. Our attempts to work with the city to bring attention to this matter were unfortunately ignored. This needs to change.

On Green Space There is a disconnect between the city's plan for success and its residents. The city's current path relies on consumer spending to patronize its newly developed retail establishments which, in turn, would generate sales tax revenue. Unfortunately, with a 42% low income rate for our households (70% of our children live in low income households), our residents are not in a position to support these businesses. The city then attempts to feed the retail sector by building market-rate, high-density housing to bring in shoppers. To entice developers to do so, the city gives away large concessions ranging from cash (grants) to waivers on building density standards. But this then diverts precious resources from our community. Grant funding to develop new open-space, adequate funding for our parks department to handle the increase in usage, city staff to maintain what we have--these are all put by the wayside. This is a spiral to the bottom: residents must live with higher traffic, density, and pressures on open-space without an equitable return. During these times residents need more open space, not less, in order to find a path toward upward mobility.

Our staff does a good job, but are strapped for resources. I will work to bring in more funding to better maintain our parks and increase green space. It's about investing in our people!

On Development: I want a more responsibly developed city that focuses on the community. One that is environmentally responsible, economically responsible, and socially responsible. I believe a city should strive for sustainability of its people's health and well-being. At its core, a city should promote opportunities for social relevance, to establish relationships, to give us all the chance to participate and protect against isolation and disenfranchisement. It should place a high priority on providing an environment that enriches our lives and provides opportunity for upward mobility.

The current city leadership's plan in not working in this direction. In fact, it's working against it. Families of Alhambra are struggling like never before: 42% of our households are earning low incomes that often don't allow them to make ends meet. The percentage of children from low income households is even more astounding. For example, did you know that Alhambra Unified is considered a high-poverty district? At Alhambra High School alone, over 70% of the students qualify for free or reduced-cost meals. These are our people. Ones who have done great things such as recently earning a college degree or serving our country in the military. So what does this have to do with Development? Done properly for the people, it can uplift the entire city. But done irresponsibly, it actually hurts us.

You see, the current path being taken by our city leaders relies on consumer spending to generate revenues. Their objective is to increase sales tax revenue by building and subsidizing retail development at all costs. But the problem is the residents are not in a strong spending position. In a sense, the city is relying on us to be the employers, and we just can't keep them afloat without disposable income. This is an untenable disconnect that does not serve our residents nor our existing small businesses. The city tries to feed the revolving door of retail establishments by building high density condos to bring in consumers. It also heavily subsidizes developers, real-estate investors, and businesses with our community grant funding and substantial waivers to building density, open-space, and parking standards. The city tries to get developers to invest in our community by permitting more units per acre, by allowing them to build out to the street with minimum set-back/community space, by allowing gated communities to evidently attract those who would otherwise feel unsafe. Such developments hurt our community because they isolate and stratify. This isn't true development; it's trending towards what you would find in places with extreme income inequality. This leads to what I call a "spiral to the bottom" where the re-direction of resources away from the people results in an environment that is not enriching and does not promote upwardly mobility. Truly responsible development is done with the community in mind--it's better for the residents and businesses alike.