BRENTWOOD — With no incumbents on the poll, the stability may shift on the Brentwood Metropolis Council, the place seven newcomers are campaigning for 2 seats within the Nov. 8 election.
In District 2, which incorporates the town’s northeastern areas, enterprise guide Sinziana Todor, Pastor Mark Duke, faculty scholar Brayden Haena and Legal professional/Professional Tem Choose Patinisha Davis Pierson are vying for the seat. District 4, in southeastern Brentwood, will see a race amongst San Francisco police officer Anthony Oerlemans, human sources supervisor Holley Bishop-Lopez and Jacob Singh, the latter of whom didn't reply to this newspaper’s calls and emails.
For individuals who did reply, sensible development, preserving open house and attracting jobs and public security had been amongst some prime priorities for this rising metropolis of 67,000 in East Contra Costa County.
For Todor, sensible development means upholding Brentwood’s Normal Plan – the blueprint for the town – “maintaining and exercising native management throughout the limits of the regulation.” She desires infrastructure in place – colleges, roads, fireplace, emergency, and police providers — earlier than permitting extra growth.
Davis Pierson mentioned sensible development ought to align with the Normal Plan but additionally think about adjustments in state legal guidelines, coverage and the wants of residents.
“I imagine sensible development is achieved by having a transparent understanding of the final plan, understanding of state legal guidelines and insurance policies, being clear, communicative and responsive with residents,” she mentioned.
Bishop-Lopez additionally named sensible development as a prime precedence, noting the roads ought to be widened earlier than growth.
Orelemans agreed. “Have you ever ever pushed on Lone Tree (Manner) throughout commute visitors?” he requested. “It’s horrible. We have to construct up our infrastructure of roads, end Sand Creek all the way in which out to Deer Valley Street. Possibly Hillcrest (Avenue) all the way in which over to Balfour Street and open up different avenues to get into the town of Brentwood, versus simply hoping it’s going to occur eventually.”
However for Haena, “sensible development is precise development.” “What we’re seeing from the present council and from my opponents is a stagnation of development, or just none in any respect.”
Haena mentioned he opposes Measure Q, which might require voter OK for growth of parks and open areas. “Measure Q is foolish,” he mentioned. “They’d somewhat construct nothing in any respect, which can't be finished.”
Bishop-Lopez can be opposed.
“That measure got here on the poll as a result of the council couldn’t do their job and make a decision,” she mentioned. “Horribly written and may basically value taxpayers much more cash with land upkeep…
In distinction, Oerlemans, Davis Pierson and Todor all help Measure Q.
“This measure will convey a layer of safety towards extra intense growth of open house at the moment allowed by state degree housing legal guidelines,” Todor, one of many measure’s signers, mentioned. “Another excuse why I endorse this measure is as a result of it returns native resolution energy again within the fingers of the voters.”
Although Oerlemans would have favored to see the acreage bigger than the minimal one-acre parcel designated within the measure, he nonetheless helps it. “We have to maintain the open house,” he mentioned. “No one in Brentwood desires to stay in a concrete jungle.”
As for encouraging financial growth, Duke, the co-founder of a preschool enterprise, mentioned: “We have to reduce purple tape in any approach we are able to to encourage enterprise to come back to Brentwood.
Davis Pierson mentioned it’s “crucial to convey high-paying jobs” to the town.
“I imagine Brentwood would profit from providing incentives to varied companies, with the incentives various based mostly on the scale of the enterprise,” she mentioned. “I'd search to help bringing various and inclusive companies that might agree to rent a share of Brentwood residents and pay honest wages that bridge the wealth inequality hole.”
Todor sees job creation as a two-prong strategy. “On one hand, we are able to select to supply academic and monetary help for present companies,” she mentioned. “… Brentwood has established and well-respected companies and I wish to see them keep and develop by including extra staff and diversifying the services they provide.”
However Todor sees the Brentwood Boulevard hall as ripe for financial development. She additionally advocates for advertising the brand new Brentwood Innovation Heart as a cutting-edge employment middle “that may open the chance to create a brand new and various enterprise atmosphere.”
Haena mentioned Brentwood is a secure and family-friendly place “the place anybody from throughout the nation can transfer right here to begin a household of their very own or a enterprise and thrive.” He recommended potential tax breaks and metropolis grants to assist new companies succeed.
Oerlemans factors to the Precedence Space 1 in western Brentwood south of Freeway 4 that's being deliberate as one of many metropolis’s main future growth facilities.
“I believe the way in which we entice the individuals like Muir Orthopedics, who’s shopping for the (former Los Medanos Group Faculty) constructing, or the bigger firms going into the PA-1 undertaking is to maintain Brentwood a secure neighborhood. … If we are able to make Brentwood secure, they’re gonna need to be out right here.”
Public security is Oerlemans’ prime precedence. The police officer of 34 years mentioned police want help.
“I believe we have to do a a lot better job supporting our regulation enforcement and in each approach they want, not solely financially, ensuring they’re getting paid accurately, they’ve finished nice tools, however ensuring we do the investigations earlier than we hold these guys out to dry.”
Oerlemans additionally mentioned the neighborhood should push for extra fireplace stations and ensure Brentwood, which has just one station now, will get what it wants to remain secure. He’d additionally prefer to see paramedics included on a number of the fireplace engines. “…It takes so lengthy to get medical providers out right here within the far east finish of the county. It must be picked up, it must be quicker.”
“That’s what I’m saying: security, security, security.”
Haener, Davis Pierson and Bishop-Lopez additionally counted public security as priorities. Although the neighborhood is generally called a secure one, Bishop-Lopez mentioned she desires to ensure it stays so and “there’s all the time room to make issues higher.”
Points across the metropolis’s unhoused inhabitants have induced some concern too although many of the candidates imagine the police are doing effectively working with the homeless and providing referrals to the place they will search assist.
“Brentwood has the suitable processes in place to help unhoused residents and direct them to the suitable sources at county degree,” mentioned Todor, who helped push for city corridor conferences on the difficulty. “Since all monetary sources for the homeless help are allotted at county degree, the county is the suitable entity to handle it and handle it.”
Haena additionally mentioned “the town can solely accomplish that a lot.”
“Once I’m elected, I’m going to work with the town workers, police division, and with the contacts from the state to resolve this problem,” he mentioned. “We don’t want medication, trash, or human waste on the streets of Brentwood.”
Oerlemans mentioned the town wants to assist the small share of people that discover themselves in exhausting instances and on the road. “They need assistance. That’s what we’re right here to do. That’s what our system ought to be set as much as do.”
However he additionally famous that it’s tougher with “the opposite 80% who don’t need assist.” That’s when the county must step in and assist them with no matter therapies they want, he mentioned.
Bishop-Lopez agreed that the town is providing assist, however not everybody desires it. “A whole lot of these points are substance abuse points,” she added.
Davis Pierson mentioned Brentwood can’t resolve the difficulty by itself.
“The problem of homelessness have to be addressed at a county and statewide degree, with metropolis of Brentwood officers having a seat on the desk,” she mentioned. “Homelessness have to be addressed on so many ranges. These embody psychological well being providers, drug providers, social providers, medical consideration, employment and housing…”
Many of the candidates additionally hoped the town would discover extra actions for teenagers, particularly teenagers.
“Actions for younger adults are a giant hole in Brentwood,” Todor mentioned. “We've nice programming for youthful youngsters, adults over 35 and seniors. Something in between teenagers and younger adults are being not noted, with none decisions for educational and leisure applications.”
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One space all of the candidates agreed on was defending the town’s agriculture.
“I'd be dedicated to making sure that the land that has been zoned for agriculture, stays zoned for agriculture,” Davis Pierson mentioned. “I'd help initiatives, corresponding to tax brakes and grants that might help farmers and encourage them to stay within the agricultural trade.”