I asked her the same question I asked Bill, does the City or the School District have a more negative image. Carol didn't answer directly but said she looks at it in an analytical way. "We have to go out to the citizens more," she said referring to the neighborhood Town Hall Meetings the City Council has been holding. In fact she sponsored robo-calls to notify nearby residents about the meetings.
I told Carol that one of our blog regulars, Ms. Bunny, found the robo-calls very annoying. Carol said that was nice to know, but she added that others have thanked her for them.
I asked her how she felt about the way the environmentalists were treated at the Public Hearings on the General Plan 2030. She said she wasn't in charge of those meetings. "When I'm in charge, you listen to the person and treat them in a respectful way." She mentioned that she has talked to Ron Brown of Save Mount Diablo and initiated reviving the Open Space Committee. "We want everyone to come and share," she said. Those meetings will be open to the public.
I asked her whether she thought the Councilmembers should have term limits. Rowley is against them. "It's good to have people with long term history," she said. She enumerated recent changes in City Staff, "We have a balanced budget, a brand new City Manager, and City Attorney. I would bring stability," she said.
Former Mayor Curt Kinney feels the same way. I asked him who he thought should be Mayor and he said Carol because "She has the experience." Kinney thinks Bill Clarkson is a nice guy but feels it's necessary to have Council experience to be Mayor.
Why did I ask Kinney this? Because he pulled papers on Tuesday. I phoned him on Wednesday to find out if he's planning to run for Council or Mayor. It's City Council. I asked why he's running now. Could it be because Abram Wilson submitted his papers to run?
Kinney ran against Wilson in the City's first Mayoral election in 2003. In fact Kinney was Wilson's only opponent for Mayor. I asked Kinney why he's running against Abram, and Kinney said it's because Abram isn't a true conservative and cited Herb Moniz's high salary as one reason he feels that way.
I asked Kinney how he felt about the other potential candidates for City Council, Scott Perkins and Phil O'Loane. Kinney said Perkins "takes the wrong side," but didn't elaborate which side is wrong. Kinney didn't remember Phil O'Loane. I reminded him that O'Loane ran for Ron Raab's two year term in 2001. Kinney remembered Phil from that.
So the election is shaping up. Carol told me she will file her papers for Mayor on Friday. August 12th is the last day she and Scott Perkins can file. If Carol, doesn't file for City Council by Friday, the filing period will be extended to August 17th. The filing period for Mayor will not be extended because Abram termed out and cannot file as the incumbent.
City Clerk, Pat Edwards, urges anyone interested in running for City Council to pick up the papers by Friday, because the Clerk's Office will be closed over the weekend. This will give prospective candidates extra time to complete the paperwork.
