Downtown property owners now have the chance to safeguard their
buildings against earthquakes with city assistance.
Gilroy – Downtown property owners now have the chance to safeguard their buildings against earthquakes with city assistance. Public employees may soon get help from the city to purchase affordable housing. And within a month, homeowners will no longer have to wait weeks to add a porch or pool to their home. Instead, they will be able to get the necessary permits in a single day.
The city’s community development division interacts with residents and business owners in myriad ways. The division includes four dozen employees and spans some of the largest, most work-intensive departments within City Hall – building, engineering, planning, and the fire marshal’s office.
Overseeing it all is Wendie Rooney, the city’s community development director.
The 47-year-old is just two years on the job but already leaving her mark, helping to craft policies to revitalize Gilroy’s long-beleaguered downtown and to lure new businesses to the city’s shopping centers. Her personal philosophy mirrors the city’s policies toward business and development.
“I’ve always believed we should create opportunities rather than regulate,” Rooney said. “If you think about it, building and planning really affect people’s property. You want to make sure you work with them collaboratively.”
That perspective has found its way into numerous city programs, including one that helps downtown building owners study their buildings for earthquake safety. More than half of nearly 30 property owners have taken advantage of the funding opportunity, freeing the city from having to “red-tag” buildings for demolition or forced repairs.
“She uses honey instead of vinegar to make it happen,” City Administrator Jay Baksa said. “She has this knack for getting people to work with us.”
Rooney’s career in planning and development grew from a decision 25 years ago, after she graduated from Long Beach State University in her hometown with a degree in liberal studies and geography.
She had intended to teach literature, but quickly changed tack for fear she would be “pigeon-holed.” Instead, she chose to parlay her passion for geography into a job as a planner.
She hasn’t looked back since.
In the last two decades, Rooney has worked in city planning and management positions in California, Colorado, and Washington. While working in Encintas in the mid-’90s, she managed to squeeze in a master’s degree in city planning from San Diego State University.
“I really enjoyed being a planner but I was frustrated by the fact that I didn’t have influence on policy,” Rooney said. “Traditionally planners are trained to either be political or technical. When I was in school, I quickly learned that you still can influence decisions because you’re bringing technical information that takes into consideration social elements such as affordable housing. I definitely separate the politics from the technical side.”
But while Rooney carefully distinguishes herself from a politician, she often finds herself in the thick of controversial issues.
In recent weeks, she has held a number of outreach meetings for downtown business owners, hoping to allay concerns about a land deal between City Hall and the Garlic Festival Association. Business owners fear the deal will eliminate much-needed parking in the city’s core.
Rooney has redoubled efforts to find options to help business owners weather the loss of parking in the next year as part of upgrades to Monterey Street. Throughout, she keeps her eye on the long-term goal of revitalizing the downtown.
“I hope to see the downtown flourishing,” she said. “It is a very soft spot in my heart.”
The controversy surrounding some of the city’s plans falls short of the political fights that took place in other cities where she has worked. Rooney and her husband Patrick followed their passion for skiing in 2001 to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, where Rooney worked as a planning services director. She said the job proved impossible at times as development-happy political leaders clashed with residents opposed to growth.
In Gilroy, Rooney has found a better marriage between the city’s goals and a sense of personal accomplishment.
“It’s a stable political environment which allows staff to thrive,” she said. “Here we get things done.”
Editor’s note
During Media Day last month, the Leadership Gilroy class of ’05 produced a mock newspaper edition and wrote a story on Wendie Rooney. Sue Thurman, Noemi Reyes, Erin O’Brien, Michelle Gutierrez and Martha Bell, members of that class, contributed to this story. Class members also took the accompanying photograph.
