Current-
-Firefighter/Paramedic, IAFF AFL-CIO Local 55
-Gilroy City Council Member, At-Large (2020-2024)
-CADEM Delegate AD29
-Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE) Authority JPA Board Director/Ad-Hoc Legislative Committee Member
-Valley Transit Authority (VTA) Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) Member
-CalTrain Local Policy Maker Group (LPMG) (Alternate) Member
-South County United for Health Leadership Team (Alternate) Member
At-Large Gilroy Council Member Elected in 2020. Currently a 24-year Bay Area Firefighter/Paramedic. My daughter Avery (13) is a 7th grader in Gilroy public schools, and my wife Katie is a Para-Educator for Gilroy Unified School District. Katie grew up in Gilroy, CA and I grew up in Berkeley, CA. After meeting in 2002, getting married and living around the Bay Area, we decided to move back to Gilroy in 2012. We bought our forever home in the Summer of 2015 in the middle of the city. I promise my office will always treat this Council seat as an extension of your voice. As I’ve done in the past, I will continue to bring you the decisions and actions of our City Government through social media, coverage in local press, videos, town halls, tabling at events, press releases, email, and my newsletter. My vision is simple. Have a Livable Gilroy for All. We can achieve that through: Safe Communities, Local Economic Development, Housing for All, and Quality Education
Over the past seven years, as former Chair of the Gilroy Bicycle Pedestrian Commission and current Gilroy City Council Member I've gained the governing experience and built the necessary coalitions within the community and region to have a seat on the Gilroy City Council. Whether it is accomplishments we made in active transportation, safe routes to school, welcoming new businesses that allow us to grow as a community, housing for all, and safe spaces for youth, the role my office plays in the community makes me proud each day.
Year-to-date my office has worked with our State and Federal legislators to secure $5.2 million for project funding that directly benefits our residents, from a bike/ped trail extension on the westside, San Ysidro Park on the eastside, and an enhanced crosswalk for senior housing on the southside. We have sponsored, tabled, hosted a booth, and attended over 100 community events in 2023. Handed out free resources, bike lights, listened to constituents, and provided free bike helmets, including Chalk Fest, La Ofrenda Festival, Registrar of Voters High School Education Events, Free Bike Repair and Bike Days, Community Posadas, and School Family Resource Fairs.
Recognitions-
-Recipient of the 2010 Star of Life Award from Alameda County Emergency Medical Services for being recognized as an individual with exemplary medical skills, whose outstanding actions contribute to the advancement and excellence in the delivery of emergency care to the residents of Alameda County.
-Recipient of the 2019 Healthy Hero Award by Mt Madonna YMCA in Gilroy/Morgan Hill
-Named one of the People to Watch in 2020 by GMH Today Magazine
-Recipient of the 2023 CARAS Cesar Chavez Community Champion Award
-Recognition From Nueva Vida Community 2024
Serving the Community-
I represent you on the Gilroy City Council now. As your City Council Member, I promise my office will always treat this Council seat as an extension of your voice. I will continue to bring the decisions and actions of City Government to you through social media, newspaper columns, town halls, press releases, email, and video. Whatever is easiest for you, there will be a way for you to feel connected.
Past Chair of the Gilroy Bicycle Pedestrian Commission-
I joined the City of Gilroy Bicycle Pedestrian Commission because I saw a lack of leadership in my community when it came to bike and ped. I couldn’t agree more with Bill Gates when he stated, “I like to push the level of risk of doing things that wouldn’t happen without leadership and vision.” Whether its accomplishments we have made in Safe Routes To School, welcoming new businesses that push the comfort level and allow us to grow as a Community, like a Hillside Adventure Park behind Gilroy Gardens, the introduction of e-bikes/e-scooters, or paving the way for our own community to have the ability to develop and maintain a BMX Bike Park in our park system. The role that our Commission plays in the community makes me proud each day. I’ve seen too many missed opportunities. Thank you to the Gilroy City Council, Gilroy Downtown Business Association, and Gilroy Chamber of Commerce that have been open to the ideas that our Commission has come up with. Thank you to my best friend and wife Katie who is truly the one person that centers me in life and I love how we continue to support each other’s ventures. To my daughter Avery whom many of you know because she is usually at all these meetings with me...I bring you to these meetings for two reasons. One is because you are the best reminder to decision makers that we need to always think of the future generations, not just the current, and two, because I hope that it inspires you to always be a leader in your community and realize that you have control of your destiny. We as leaders have the responsibility to turn this City over to you in better shape than we received it.
2024 Accomplishments:
-Continued "Their Ought to Be a Law" program under my office
-Implement AB2234 for building permits to establish timelines after entitlements
-Secondhand Smoking Prevention continues to be implemented through a webpage, forms, handouts, signage, and utility bill insert. Code enforcement is working with 552 properties and as of February 279 properties have come into compliance, with the remaining properties being worked on. Funding provided by Public Health has been identitied too.
2023 Accomplishments:
-Secondhand Smoke Prevention Policies banning all smoking in Multi-Family Residential (2+ Units) and Public Events https://youtu.be/-Y4Whgt6eig
-Continued "Their Ought to Be a Law" program under my office
-Hosted Free Community Bike Ride & Education Event
-Attended CivicWell's annual Policymakers Conference
-Resolution Month of April Arts, Culture, & Creativity Month
-Gilroy City Purchasing Policy Updated to Include Wage Theft
-Hosted Bike to Work Day Station at Gilroy Transit Center
-Continued Bike Person of the Year Award
-8 legislative items added to our City Council work plan for FY24 & FY25
-Tabled at Gilroy Library's Free Bike Repair Day
-I am proud to have worked with State Senator John Laird, SD-17 on identifying the Gateway Senior Apartments Pedestrian Crossing Safety Improvements project and excited to announce that the City of Gilroy will be receiving $350,000 as a part of the recently adopted 2023-2024 State Budget. This project will install a High-Intensity Activated Crosswalk (HAWK), high visibility crosswalk improvements, and curb ramps to provide a safe pedestrian crossing of Monterey Road in front of the Gateway Senior Apartments, and build off the recent successes of community based programs that are a benefit to our residents
-Worked with Gavilan College Board of Trustees and President in providing letter of support for the Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program to provide student housing
-Worked with Gilroy's AFSCME Local 101 and Gilroy Firefighters Local 2805 to ensure a daily increase of 3 to our Public Safety Dispatchers for FY25
-City of Gilroy Housing Element 2023-2031 (Gilroy's 8 Year Housing Plan) Approved
-La Ofrenda Festival | Gilroy's Inaugural Dia de Muertos Festival & Wellness Fair, Festival Lead for our first bike/ped/walk/transit oriented festival with the creation of Cycle, Health, and Transit Plaza. Hosted a booth at the festival to provides resources about city services.
-Wrote a letter of support to the Santa Clara County Board of Education in support of Members and Staff in support for the Gilroy Gateway School to remain open for grades 6-12.
-Wrote dozens of letters of support for community based organizations who are seeking grant funding to help our residents.
-Supported and testified on many important State legislative bills in collaboration with our State elected's- SB423 allows streamlined, ministerial approval process for infill developments in local jurisdictions that have failed to meet their Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) goals or adopt a compliant housing element, provided that the development is located on a site that is both, urban infill and zoned for residential or mixed-use. AB 821 creates a specific written notification process and time limit for jurisdictions to align their zoning code with the land use element of the general plan when there is a live project application. AB1469 makes changes to the Santa Clara Valley Water District Act to allow the agency to do more to assist unsheltered people living along creeks and streams, including providing housing or improved outcomes for unsheltered individuals.
-We have sponsored, tabled, hosted a booth, and attended over 100 community events in 2023. Handed out free resources, bike lights, listened to constituents, and provided free bike helmets, including Chalk Fest, La Ofrenda Festival, Registrar of Voters High School Education Events, Free Bike Repair and Bike Days, Community Posadas, and School Family Resource Fairs.
2022 Accomplishments:
-Continued "Their Ought to Be a Law" program under my office
-Attended CivicWell's annual Policymakers Conference
-Joined a coalition and made history with the first resolution approved by the Gilroy Unified School District Board to support June Pride LGBTQ+ Month
-Brought forward the RV Towing Policy Legislative Work Plan item and the City re-affirmed it's commitment to not further displace our homeless families and individuals who are struggling to not end up in a tent on our streets.
-The Arts are alive in Gilroy. Last year I was contacted by SV Creates (Santa Clara County Arts Council) to build a relationship that wasn’t here prior in Gilroy. From those initial meetings with SV Creates which blossomed into an Arts Círculo held at 6th Street Studios and Art Center and the Neon Exchange. Today we have a monthly Arts Roundtable, with so many doors continuing to open. Blueshield partnered and offered a grant for a mural in our Downtown.
-Resolution Month of May as Affordable Housing Month
-Updated Complete Streets Policy
-Secondhand Smoke Prevention Policies from Santa Clara County Public Health Healthy Cities Initiatives to future agenda
-Zoning Code Amendments carried forward to Zoning Code Updates in 2023
-Added Modular Transitional Housing "County Challenge Grant" to future agenda
-Attended Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalitions annual Bike Summit
-Climate Action Benchmarks REACH Codes (EV Charging, Bike Parking) and Climate Action Benchmarks have made huge strides forward. Later this year we will see these items adopted alongside the State's 2022 CAL Green Building Code.
-Parking Management for all Downtown Districts was approved and will be brought back late next year for implementation.
-MOU established with the Office of Supportive Housing for 8th/Alexander Project
-Supported and testified on many important State legislative bills in collaboration with our State elected's- AB2011 allows for ministerial, by-right approval for affordable housing on commercially-zoned lands; allows such approvals for mixed-income housing along commercial corridors as long as the projects meet specified affordability, labor, and environmental criteria. AB2097 which eliminates parking mandates for homes and commercial buildings around transit. AB2234 Post entitlement timeline requirements when building permits are pulled based on how many units are proposed. AB2221/SB897 Requiring ministerial approval of ADU applications within 60 days, prohibiting local agencies from imposing height and setback standards beyond state-set limits, and requiring local agencies to allow ADUs to be sold separately from the lot’s primary dwelling if specified conditions are met.
-Secondhand Smoke Prevention Policies for Public Event, Multi-Family Housing, Multi-Family Housing Common Areas
-Climate Action Benchmarks Solar Power Purchase and Site Lease Agreement with Jua Capital, LLC
-Continuing to manage my Bike Match program with over 120 bike matches.
-Worked with our Assembly Member Robert Rivas and the Gilroy Library so the community has a chance to meet Dolores and listen to a panel discussion yesterday. This all started as a vision from Gilroy Librarian Elizabeth Muñoz-Rosas and the Dolores Huerta Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service is at the Gilroy Library from Saturday, November 5, 2022 to Monday, January 23, 2023.
-Worked with developer at Royal Way Townhomes to be the second housing development in Gilroy to incorporate TDM Measures and provide pre-loaded Clipper Transit cards to every residence.
-Worked with the community collecting signatures for the Progressive Pride Flag to be flown at City Hall June 2023, approved at City Council December 5, 2022.
-I am proud to have worked with Rep. Zoe Lofgren, CA-19 on identifying two projects for her Community Project Funding Requests FY23 and excited to announce that the City of Gilroy will be receiving $4,500,000 as a part of the Omnibus Federal Spending Bill.These two projects will benefit opposite ends of our community, and build off the recent successes of community based programs that are a benefit to our residents. The government funding package builds on the successes of President Biden and House Democrats and will create jobs, provide aid to families struggling with inflation, and protect healthcare access. This funding for California’s 19th District, coupled with the increases for critical government programs, will help communities in the South Bay and across our nation.
