Candidate for
Director; Scotts Valley Fire Protection District; 4 Year Term

I have been involved in governmental regulatory activities since 1986, graduating from a homeowners association board through the SV city planning commission to the city council. After a term on the council, I returned to the planning commission where I have been a pivotal member for the past six years. My philosophy is most simply understood as letting a proponent do what they want provided that there is no adverse impact on others. If there is an adverse impact on others, there are often compromise approaches that allow the proponent to attain their goals while reducing any adverse impacts on others to an insubstantial level. Over the years, I have developed reasonable skill at finding these compromises and assisting adversarial parties to see the benefits of compromise. Still, there are those situations where allowing a proponent to pursue the rights endowed to them under our complex system of laws may leave others displeased. Each of those situations are unique and require individual consideration. I have no pat answer to the reality that our lives often intersect and conflict occurs. But I always study the matter to the fullest extent possible and look for solutions, inside and outside the box, that do the most good and the least harm.

The work of a fire protection district is complex - limiting exposure to fire risks, responding to fires, medical emergencies, or hazardous material events, and educating the public as to what they can do to protect themselves. Our terrain, weather, and transportation infrastructure pose significant challenges. We must work with limited funding sources (our designated share of property taxes) over which we have virtually no control, while competing for staff with nearby counties and other districts typically with larger budgets. Questions regarding the appropriate size and structure (number of chiefs and captains vs. firefighters) are difficult to resolve, leading to seemingly never-ending talks about either consolidation with other districts or separating from an existing larger district.

I bring to this office a determination to make sound decisions based on obtaining quality information from any and every source that is available. I am sufficiently skeptical to ask questions of anyone, regardless of title or reputation, that makes affirmations contrary to good sense or accepted practice. Conversely, I am sufficiently progressive to question current wisdom and past practice when it seems ineffective in the face of today's challenges. I am willing to debate any matter, with any party, with my only condition being that we understand just what it is we are debating and what it is we hope to accomplish by the debate. A better understanding of the dispute is the minimum criteria; a better decision for the community is the ultimate objective.