League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	Santa Clara County, CA November 4, 2014 Election
	Candidates Answer Questions on the Issues Council Member; City of Mountain View

The questions were prepared by the Leagues of Women Voters of Santa Clara County and asked of all candidates for this office.     See below for questions on Experience, Concerns, Balancing interests Click on a name for candidate information.   See also more information about this contest. 1. What experience related to city government would you bring to the City Council? Answer from James R "Jim" Neal: I have attended more Council Meetings in the last 3 years than all the other candidates combined. I am up to date on all the major and even minor topics in the city and will be able to contribute from day 1. I have also spoken at more Council meetings in the last 3 years than all the other candidates combined. I most often speak on the behalf of residents or small businesses that are (or could be), negatively impacted by Council policies. I was the first candidate to talk about the job/housing imbalance, the need for more affordable housing, parking and traffic issues, preserving neighborhoods, and saving The Milk Pail! I addressed all these issues in an article I wrote announcing my candidacy back in January. Answer from Ken Rosenberg: I have been working in leadership roles specific to Mountain View organizations for many many years. Those roles include: - Immediate Past Chair of the Board, Mountain View Chamber of Commerce - Immediate Past Chair, Mountain View Human Relations Commission - Creator, Mountain View Civility Roundtable Discussion Series - Former Chair of the Old Mountain View Neighborhood Association - Former Vice Chair of the Mountain View Downtown Committee - Former Member, Los Altos School District Superintendent Enrollment Taskforce - Director and Executive Committee Member, Peninsula Youth Theatre Board - Graduate, Leadership Mountain View, 2004 - Former Member, Leadership Mountain View Council - Former Member, Old Mountain View Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) - Treasurer, Mountain View Los Altos Soccer Answer from Greg Unangst: I have been actively involved in the community, the region. and the city for the past 10+ years. Since my retirement from Lockheed Martin in 2011, I have become more intensely involved in regional and city public policy issues. Mountain View townhome owner for 16 years 2000 to present: Stanford Community Committee for International Students: Homestay & Hospitality Programs 2005 to present: President + Alpha Villa Homeowners Association 2007 Mountain View Bicycle Survey Volunteer 2008 Member at Large + Mountain View Environmental Sustainability Task Force 2012 to present: Member + Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) Moffett Federal Field 2012 to present: Board of Directors + Friends of Stevens Creek Trail 2012 to present: Member + Citizens Working Group + 4 Cities Trail Alignment Feasibility Study 2013 to present: Chairman + Mountain View Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee 2014 to present: Member + Non-Profit Housing Association, Housing Advocacy Network & Santa Clara County Housing Element Working Group I also bring over 50 years of leadership experience starting with my high school team mates electing me Captain of the wrestling team, in spite of my protestations. My four years at West Point, Army Ranger School, and small unit leadership in Alaska and Vietnam has provided me with a deep understanding of how to lead highly diverse groups. This experience at forming cohesive groups and organizing them to achieve some amazing goals became invaluable later in my 33 year career in the aerospace industry as a program and engineering manager. I will apply this deep experience to finding innovative solutions to Mountain View's complex problems in an atmosphere of respect and consensus building. Answer from Lisa Matichak: I have been actively involved in the City for the past 7 years so I am current on land use, transportation, and development issues. Currently serving 5th year on the City's Environmental Planning Commission (Chair 2013, Vice Chair 2012) Member of City's committee to assess affordable housing proposals (2011) Founding President of the Wagon Wheel Neighborhood Association (1,000 homes in the N. Whisman area) 15 year resident of Mountain View 2. What concerns are of particular importance to the city and how would you address them? Answer from James R "Jim" Neal: Affordable Housing - I would encourage projects that provide affordable, neighborhood compatible housing, while discouraging office projects that create a further jobs/housing imbalance. Preserving Neighborhoods - Ensure that new projects are compatible with the neighborhoods in which they are being built and do not displace residents and/or successful small businesses. The Council created the problem The Milk Pail now faces and it is up tot he Council to resolve it. I will work to ensure that the Milk Pail can stay right where it is! Answer from Lisa Matichak: Many have expressed concern about the following, leading me to the following top priorities: Advocate for neighborhoods and enhance the quality of life for our diverse mix of residents. Mountain View is the heart of Silicon Valley and we need to lead the way when it comes to well-planned neighborhoods that enhance the quality of life for our diverse mix of residents. As we develop the plans for the areas that will experience the most change (San Antonio, East Whisman, El Camino Real, North Bayshore, and Moffett Boulevard) our vision should be specific and must include plans for public transportation, safe bicycle routes, walkability, mix of housing types, local retail, schools, and new development needs to be high quality and in keeping with the character of the existing neighborhoods. Find creative ways to add parks and open space. Parks, open space, and sports facilities are important for a good quality of life especially in an increasingly urban environment. They provide respite from daily life and opportunities for physical health. They also provide gathering places for neighbors to meet neighbors, which builds a sense of community. My goal is to find creative ways to add parks and open space in underserved neighborhoods. Maintain a financially strong City. Mountain View is a well-managed City, especially from a financial perspective. The City has weathered the economic downturns thanks to smart planning and good decision making. My goal is to have a structurally balanced budget, activities that provide the City with stable revenue streams, and living within our means. Answer from Ken Rosenberg: After the 2030 General Plan came out, commercial interests flooded the council with requests to build. As a result, if everything approved were built, we'd have an untenable situation with respect to jobs/housing. As it stands now, there aren't enough housing units to meet demand. I support the various (draft) precise plans to add moderate-density housing in four change areas of Mountain View. Answer from Greg Unangst: Since the beginning of my campaign in June, I have had the same top 3 policy priorities: housing, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, and more parks and open space. The regional lack of housing combined with unprecedented job growth has introduced serious distortions into the fabric of our society here in Mountain View. We all suffer from increased traffic and congestion as more and more commuters travel great distances to get from their homes to their workplace. Employers, both large and small, are finding it increasingly difficult to hire and retain the needed staff. The younger generations, both tech workers and non-tech workers, are finding the area more and more untenable. And we are losing our lower income and middleclass families as our region becomes increasingly more unaffordable. We need to build more housing with the appropriate density near and along transit and near jobs, such as in NBS. Also, large employers need to help support housing, including BMR housing through public - private partnerships that build housing for all levels of their employees and their families near jobs. The City should remove barriers to building Auxiliary Dwelling Units (ADUs) as a way of increasing the housing supply in the city. While Mountain View has made good progress in building bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, it has lagged behind demand. We need to shift our focus from a car centric attitude to a more balanced approach between cars, bikes, pedestrians, the handicapped and transit. We need to greatly increase the safety around our schools so that students and their parents feel secure in walking and biking to school. The efforts in calming traffic around Graham Middle School should serve as an example of how to increase the safety level around schools. As the population of our City grows, the demand for park and open space will increase. We must take every opportunity to grow our park acreage, particularly in under served areas. Even small parks are beneficial. The park at 771 Rengstorff should be expedited to make this beautiful space available to the public as soon as possible. 3. How would you balance the needs of the City as a whole with groups' interests? Answer from Greg Unangst: Interest groups must be listened to and given their due consideration, yet decisions must be made in light of the long term effects on all of Mountain View's diverse population. As a program manager I was constantly balancing the needs of customers (and sometimes different factions within the customer community), staff members, subcontractors, and management, all within the constraints of limited time and resources. Not everyone is completely happy all the time, but the long term objectives of the program must be achieved. In Mountain View the best long term interests of the community as a whole must be considered and decided upon. Mechanisms to improve community input such as what was recently done with the Minimum Wage debate should be utilized more often. Outreach to the residents is critically important to get people educated on the issues at hand so that effective community discussions can take place. But ultimately, discerning what course is in the best interest of the community is sometimes difficult. This is where my pragmatic judgment and long experience can contribute to the future of Mountain View. Answer from James R "Jim" Neal: The needs of the Residents will always come first, then businesses, then the City, and then any special interests (if the project benefits the first three). Answer from Ken Rosenberg: Because council members represent the City as a whole, my belief is that Council Members should do what is in the best interests of the City as whole. That can lead to more significant negative impacts to some. It is important to minimize the negative impacts as much as possible and ensure that the community benefits are as broad as possible and are indeed needed. Answer from Lisa Matichak: There are a broad range of topics that the City Council addresses and each decision needs to be made with great care. Having years of experience in business addressing a broad range of issues as well as years of experience in local government is important when one needs to find a balance between public and private interests. Gathering facts, doing analysis, seeking stakeholder input, and more needs to be thoughtfully done and taken into consideration. There are no formulas - good experience and good judgement are key. Responses to questions asked of each candidate are reproduced as submitted to the League.  Candidates' statements are presented as submitted. The answer to each question should be limited to 400 words. Direct references to opponents are not permitted. The order of the candidates is random and changes daily. Candidates who did not respond are not listed on this page.