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Livermore is a city that learned key financial lessons from the Great Recession and, as a result, is weathering the coronavirus downturn better than most California municipalities.
Credit the city administration and City Council. One of the key leaders of that financial recovery effort was Councilman Bob Woerner, whom voters should elect mayor in the Nov. 3 election.
Starting this year, the other four council members will be elected by districts, with two seats this year and two in 2022.
This year, in District 4, the southwest part of the city, incumbent Robert Carling has no opposition. In District 3, the southeast part of the city, Brittni Kiick, a photographer and community activist, is the standout choice in a race between two political newcomers.
Despite the economic downturn, the city’s plans call for maintaining municipal services at current levels.
To understand how that’s possible, consider that Livermore had about 550 employees in 2007-2008, when the last recession began. To balance the budget, the City Council eliminated about 100 jobs. But, unlike many other cities, Livermore leaders didn’t try to hire them all back when the economy recovered.
Rather, they found ways to work more efficiently with the staff they had. So the city is budgeted for 478 workers this fiscal year, and no layoffs, furloughs or hiring freezes are expected to be needed.
In addition to city finances, the national discussion of policing and racial justice has emerged as another key campaign issue here. On both issues, Woerner and Kiick stand out.
Mayor — Woerner
Current Mayor John Marchand cannot run this year because he has served eight consecutive years, the maximum allowed under the city’s term limits.
Woerner, a physicist who also has an MBA in finance, recently retired after a career that included working for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and PG&E. Not only was he a leader of the city’s financial recovery, he now co-chairs the city’s newly formed community Working Group on Equity and Inclusion. The goal of the group is to address structural racism and its impact on people of color — not only related to policing but also throughout the city.
Woerner wisely sees this as an opportunity to reimagine how the city polices its residents and how it deals with mentally ill and homeless people. His opponent, Mony Nop, a real estate agent and former Livermore police officer, downplays the need, saying the city has already adopted the eight policies that police reform advocates say are key. The reform group Campaign Zero says the city has not.
District 3 — Kiick
Neither of the candidates in the District 3 race have elective office experience. The difference is that, since deciding to run, one, Kiick, has immersed herself in the details of Livermore city government, while her opponent, Peter Patterson, a pharmaceutical sales rep, clearly has not.
Kiick has been a leading organizer of events such as Livermore Pride and March for Science, an advocate for formation of the Equity and Inclusion working group, and co-creator of a group to help local businesses struggling to survive during the pandemic.
She’s clear that city involvement begins first with having a fiscally stable municipality – or, as she put it, “If we don’t have money to pay for these great ideas, it doesn’t matter.” Wise words that more-experienced politicians should heed.
Since she decided to run for City Council, she has spent time with current council members and city staff learning about city finances, which she now discusses respectably well. But she recognizes she still has a lot to learn.
In contrast, Patterson, in his interview, was lost on the basics, like what members of the City Council are supposed to do and what sort of retirement benefits the city provides its workers. In the last year, he said, he has attended just one virtual council meeting. In short, Patterson is nowhere near ready for the job.
Hands down, Woerner is the best pick for mayor and Kiick is the far superior District 3 candidate for City Council.
