My top priorities:
Wildfire Prevention and Disaster Preparedness
Climate Mitigation and Resilience
Housing Equity and Affordability
Public Safety
A Livable Ojai -- Economy and Tourism
Fiscal Responsibility and Financial Resilience
Fire readiness
Building fire readiness is crucial to our town’s safety, well-being, and preservation. We can help reduce the damage to our town by taking simple steps now to reduce the risk.
While on Council, I fiercely advocated for fire readiness in Ojai. We accomplished a lot in the past four years.
The two most important things we can do to keep ourselves, our families, friends, neighbors, and animals safe during wildfires and other natural disasters are to thoroughly prepare in advance and listen to first responders when they tell us to evacuate.
CLIMATE ActioN
Ten years ago, scientists were warning us that future generations would experience detrimental global warming if we did not substantially reduce global carbon emissions. We now know that climate change impacts have come upon us more quickly than previously projected. We have seen the effects with wildfires throughout California and severe weather.
The climate crisis is the most pressing issue of our time and requires swift and decisive action by global and national leaders as well as from our local government right here in Ojai. I’m impressed by the great work that has been done by the climate experts who have volunteered to serve on Ojai’s Climate Emergency Mobilization Committee.
While on Council, I worked with fellow councilmembers, our climate committee, city staff, and community members to rapidly draw down our town’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Truly affordable Housing:
Preserving an Ojai where all belonG
Housing costs are rising at a rate higher than income levels. Because of that, some of our neighbors are being priced out of Ojai. I'm not against all development, but if we are to support new building projects, they need to be the best projects possible for the future of Ojai. I support creative solutions to preserve the economic diversity of our community by supporting local organizations that buy apartment buildings and update them while keeping rents low and residents in their homes. We need community-led and sustainable plans. I have voted to support these throughout my time on Council.
None of us want to see our friends and neighbors become displaced. That’s why I voted to contract with Help of Ojai to create an emergency fund to help residents at risk of losing their housing, in accordance with our General Plan. It’s also why I voted for a robust Short-Term Rental ban and Rent Stabilization Ordinance with tenant protections.
In that same vein, diversity, equity, and inclusion are important to me as a member of the LGBTQ community. I championed the CARE policy to prevent federal overreach. I know how to bring people together.
Community-Building and Communication
We are really lucky to live in a breathtaking natural setting where we can easily enjoy nature a short distance from our homes. I believe that we must make well-thought-through decisions about land use and tourism. I have worked to achieve a better balance between tourism and the quality of life of local residents, which is why I championed the Economic Diversification Action Planas an addendum to our General Plan updates.
I also support continued community-building through recreation and community-focused activities to engage our youth. We now have a pilot project with OUSD for usage of a community pool.
As a small business owner, I understand that maintaining a healthy local economy is key to our community’s long-term sustainability.
A Livable Ojai -- Economy and Tourism
Our community flourishes in the spaces we gather and through the infrastructure we rely upon. These aspects include streets, parks, pools, restaurants, and small businesses.
This term, we repaved 22 streets totaling 18 lane miles as part of a plan to have every street paved by 2029, restored the Arcade's signature red tiles, opened community swim at the new aquatic center through our pilot partnership with OUSD, and built the Pickleball Paradise at Soule Park.
We increased funding for local arts organizations and began building a creative economy strategy, because Ojai's artists are part of our economic future.
We also launched an Economic Development Action Plan to diversify our economy beyond tourism and partnered with the Ojai Chamber of Commerce to support local businesses and entrepreneurs. I spearheaded these initiatives because I was tired of seeing local, long-standing businesses being priced out of town. I was also hearing from residents about the challenges of managing tourism, and I wanted to change that.
In the next term, I plan to support finishing the paving plan, securing the pool program for the long term, and turning the diversification plan into well-paying jobs to attract more families into our community.
I serve on the board of the Economic Development Collaborative of Ventura County, and I have been working countywide to build these efforts. Our growth must be managed to preserve the character of Ojai, and growth can happen without big development if we work smart.
Fiscal Responsibility and Financial Resilience
We rely on funds from the TOT for a quarter of our annual budget. That means we would struggle if we have another global pandemic, economic downturn, or natural disaster.
This term, we adopted a balanced budget policy and formal financial management policies that put Ojai's finances on disciplined, transparent footing, and we budget conservatively on purpose. I supported reinstating our Finance and Budget Committee to offer more transparency to city spending. I also approved updating our salary bases to ensure we can keep the good staff members we hire.
We're also tackling the deeper structural risk. That's why our Economic Development Action Plan focuses on diversification and building revenue streams that don't depend on more visitors. Our clean energy investments are fiscal policy, too. Modernizing our building equipment means decades of lower energy costs for city facilities.
We had an entire audit of our Finance department to determine how to have it run more efficiently and effectively. Now, we have digital tracking of our expenses and revenue through upgraded software systems. We have overhauled our Finance Department, hired new accountants, and modernized the facilities.
In my next term, I plan to support maintaining healthy reserves so one bad year never becomes a crisis, turn the diversification plan into real revenue, and keep every budget decision transparent enough that you can follow the money yourself. I also plan to continue to build collaborative relationships to prevent legal battles. I have a unique ability to work with others across differences, and we need that kind of unification to protect our community from internal and external conflict.
What Do you think? Please share!
The role of Ojai City Councilmember is about being your representative in our local government. I have priorities, but my main agenda is to serve YOU, the residents of Ojai. I’d love to hear your thoughts, concerns, and visions for our town.