The five candidates running for Don Gage’s District 1 supervisor
seat list balancing the budget deficit of about $200 million as No.
1 on their to-do lists, with differing
– and some innovative – ideas of how to save money.
The five candidates running for Don Gage’s District 1 supervisor seat list balancing the budget deficit of about $200 million as No. 1 on their to-do lists, with differing – and some innovative – ideas of how to save money.
From privatizing Santa Clara Valley Medical Center to better managing the fire department to upping retirement age for county workers to 60 – all candidates say they can fix the county’s spending.
As they anticipate accepting the role as District 1’s new supervisor either on June 8 if one wins the primary election by a majority vote or when the top two vote getters square off in the November general election, they are all in full-swing of public appearances, candidate forums and editorial board sit-downs.
District 1, which has a population of more than 330,000 and encompasses about 800,000 acres – or 70 percent of the county’s land area – is the county’s largest geographical district. It includes Gilroy, Morgan Hill, San Martin, Los Gatos, Almaden Valley, Santa Teresa and Blossom Valley, as well as the Mt. Hamilton Range and the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Mike Wasserman
Age: 52
Married for 30 years to wife Kim
Two children, son, 21, and daughter, 22
Lives in Los Gatos
The ins and outs of local government are old hat for Los Gatos city councilman Mike Wasserman, who says it’s time to curtail the county’s spending.
“I’m a big believer in prioritizing needs … I would do the same thing,” Wasserman said. “No entity can do everything for everyone.”
He said priority would go to maintaining the services the county and District 1 expect, specifically land use, health and safety.
“I would make state legislature, tell them, Santa Clara County needs to be one of your priorities. The county is one of the biggest in the state and the most important as far as technology, innovation, agriculture,” Wasserman said.
Wasserman has been a local businesses since 1982, from owning a card shop on Santa Cruz Avenue in Los Gatos to property management and data processing businesses up and down the county. He says his experience as a business owner and certified financial planner give him a leg up on competitors, coupled with his ability to manage Los Gatos’ budget.
“During my eight years, I’ve balanced the budget every single year, without raising taxes and without cutting services,” he said. “I would match my experience head to head with anybody else. I’m applying to be a policy maker for the county … not a doctor or an attorney.”
He said he would like to get ahead of the curve, “where we have a reserve for a rainy day.”
Wasserman said while he wouldn’t consider axing public safety jobs, he does want to review salaries for “miscellaneous” employees such as secretaries or others at the county offices – the county’s debt is unsustainable and their salaries should reflect comparable jobs in the private sector.
Forrest Williams
Age: 73
Married for 45 years to his wife
Two adult children, son and daughter; three grandchildren
Lives in Coyote Valley area
Santa Clara Valley Medical Center could function similar to Kaiser Permanente – as a medical insurance provider for sale – and it would be very competitive, candidate Forrest Williams gathers.
“Those dollars that come in will produce jobs,” he said about what he would propose to balance the budget. “The idea is we have to be creative to find revenue.”
Williams, who is a computer science engineer, said much of the $200 million county deficit could be gleaned from Valley Medical, which has an annual budget of $2 billion, with much of the county’s budget contributed to Valley Medical. Why not sit down with employees to see where cuts can be made?
“The employees, they’ve been everything in terms of getting things done,” Williams said. “The ideas just flow … I believe if we get them involved, I believe we can find the $200 million.”
He spent eight years as a San Jose councilmember, eight years on the Santa Clara County planning commission and 12 years as an Oak Grove school board member.
“I have served South County. I have delivered to Morgan Hill. I have delivered to Gilroy. I have delivered to San Martin,” Williams said about his work on the planning commission where he was a part of adding four additional lanes to U.S. 101 from Blossom Hill Road to Cochrane Road. He also has worked on issues such as preserving habitat, increasing Caltrain ridership, and working on the safety of Highway 152 with current Supervisor Don Gage.
When is comes to finding money, Williams thinks, “synergy is a beautiful thing” but he said the county needs to find a solution and make some tough decisions – without any job loss to the sheriff or fire departments.
“If the services I cut, if someone’s life is lost … my philosophy is the priorities are set by the community, my job is to provide the resources for the community’s needs,” he said.
And reducing the high cost of lifetime health benefits to county employees would need a thorough examination before he could make any decisions.
“If we don’t maintain it, we’re going to be like Vallejo,” Williams said about the East Bay city that filed for bankruptcy in 2008. “I don’t want to go there. The key to all of this is what is the best way to do this? We have to all sit at the table and say ‘what is the best way?'”
Tom Kruse
Age: 70
Married for 26 years to wife Karen
Six children and eight grandchildren
Lives in Gilroy
Vintner Tom Kruse says he knows the people of South County well – he should, he’s been in Gilroy making wine since 1971.
“I understand their viewpoint, their independence, their self-reliance,” Kruse said. “In particular, the unincorporated parts of Santa Clara County. Things that the county does influences their lives. Their only government is the county, but they don’t have a voice in county government unless someone like them is elected.”
Kruse’s first task as supervisor would be to make sure the budget is balanced, an obvious No. 1 answer by all five candidates, as his second goal, however, Kruse swerves from the typical response on public safety jobs: County employees need to contribute much more to their medical insurance policies. Now, about $37 is deducted from employees each month – a sharp contrast to any public sector jobs that offers medical benefits, where it can be upwards of $100.
“This can’t go on the way it is,” Kruse said, who also wants to raise retirement eligibility to 60 from 55 years of age to stave off a deeper deficit.
Kruse would like to see better management of the response by fire stations and ambulances to 911 calls – sending both entities to a scene that many times is not fire-fighting related would save on costs and time. Time, Kruse said, that could be spent doing something more productive than sitting at the firehouse waiting for a call. The details for what that would be Kruse hasn’t determined.
For four years, Kruse served on the Santa Clara County Planning Commission alongside San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and also on the San Martin Citizens Advisory Planning Board, and the county architectural and site approval committee.
“I hope to be extremely responsive to the constituency,” Kruse said. “And do a better job about returning phone calls at the county office.”
Solving the budget crisis is Kruse’s mission – one he knows is possible if it’s demanded.
“A lot of people are dancing around this issue,” Kruse said. “You hear really stock phrases like ‘we all have to come to the table and sit down and blah blah’ if people aren’t willing to take cuts in pay, there is a real possibility to go into receivership and then a union contract could be abrogated. I would hope people in the county would be willing to negotiate before that happens.”
Teresa Alvarado
Age: 45
Married to her husband
Two grown step-sons, 26 and 28
Lives in Blossom Valley area
What Teresa Alvarado’s life’s work has been about – green technology and innovation – is playing out in Silicon Valley now as green industries look to be the future economy for the area. She said she hopes to be a champion for a renewed economy.
“While the county is not directly responsible for generating a lot of jobs, we realize that when people don’t have a job they rely on the county,” Alvarado said, noting the rise of domestic violence and homelessness and how prevention is the “underpinning of a healthy community.”
Alvarado, a Leadership Gilroy graduate, has decades of executive experience working at the Pacific Gas and Electric Company and as NASA/Ames Research Center.
“I have spent a lot of time being in South County because I really want to understand the unique needs and issues. I would commit to having myself and my staff attend different meetings,” in South County. Alvarado wants to make sure the county services are available, accessible and maintained, especially as the economy remains devastated.
“It’s a dire situation, but we need to be on the same page and rowing in the same direction,” Alvarado said. Recently, Alvarado, Swanee Edwards, Steve Tate and a few others planted themselves outside a grocery store, asking people to petition to put a measure on the ballot that would restrict the state government from withholding county money that they deserve and need desperately.
The flooding of Little Llagas creek that can wreak havoc on downtown Morgan Hill is an issue of which Alvarado is well-informed.
“We have to ask for federal dollars. This is a vibrant, active urban downtown and to get flooded on a regular basis … this is not a pork project, it’s critical.”
She said her experience dealing with South County and her leadership of nonprofit groups and as an professional give her the credential to supervise District 1.
“I really care about being a voice in South County,” Alvarado said. “It’s one thing to think of (South County) as a unique place, but it’s not an island. I want to be a local champion at the county level.”
Peter Arellano
Age: 59
Married to his wife for 34 years
Two daughters ages 28 and 30
Lives in Gilroy
Dr. Peter Arellano was born and raised in Gilroy. It’s not the only reason why he thinks he should be District 1 supervisors, but he knows the people and the land, and of the five districts three supervisors are from San Jose.
“I say we don’t need another San Jose person in there,” he said. “We need some new blood, something different. Someone that’s going to take care of District 1 and have a separation from San Jose.”
Arellano’s experience as medical doctor for 25 years gives him insight to saving the county money by looking at health care reductions or changes. He also is a current Gilroy councilman, giving him the experience needed to balance a budget.
“I know very well what it takes to deliver that care. The county is being overwhelmed with the unemployed at hospitals and with health insurance (costs), patients are increasing … I know how to provide preventative service to decrease the cost in the long run. And I have experience in making policy.”
His obligation to the people of South County is to stimulate the economy and create jobs – with an effort to speed up the process to get new business permits and building permits that sometimes can take as long as six months.
The needs of well owners and users is also important as the Santa Clara Valley Water District plans to redrawn district boundaries, Arellano will be a voice for those concerned in his hometown.
He references the Little Llagas Creek flood control and increasing the frequency of train service to South County. Arellano cited the VTA board meetings that have relocated to Morgan Hill and Gilroy as evidence that he can get things done.
“There’s no one better prepared to work with people in the district, than someone who lives and works here.”
