Fall Election Guide: Q & A With Kathy Miller, City Council Candidate

Bio:

Real estate, corporate and employment attorney (private practice), former Petaluma Planning Commissioner (2006-2009), founding member of Petaluma Friends of Recreation, a community group that is behind the parcel tax initiative on this November’s election, former board member of Polly Klaas Foundation.

Age: 48

Why I’m Running:
“One of the biggest issues facing the city is development and as an attorney, I understand how development works. I was on the Planning Commission where we worked on the city’s General Plan...so I have a lot of knowledge when it comes to that.

“I’ve thought about running for a long and feel like I’ve finally reached a point in my life where I feel like I can devote the time, energy and effort to serving on the council. Also, I’m an Eastside resident, which has been historically underrepresented on the council.”

Top Three Issues:
-Budget
-Roads/Streets
-Parks/Spaces for Recreation

On the Joint Campaign With Mike Healy:
“We are running together as a team because we share a lot of the same opinions on city matters and feel like we would be a good team in terms of working together on the council. We’re both moderate Democrats and I think that’s a good fit for the city right now. We are both concerned about the budget, generating more revenue and restoring more services.”

On Raising Revenues:
“As a parent of kids who play soccer and baseball, I’ve spent a lot of time in cities with great recreational facilities and when you go there, you stay at hotels and you go to the restaurants, shopping and the movies...you spend money in their communities. So if we had the ability to host some of these types of tournaments, I think we’d see an increase in tourism.

“The reality is because of the Urban Growth boundary, all of our development at this point will be in-fill. I think it’s important to preserve our charm and I love our downtown area and the parks but I think there is a balance between the historic districts and shopping centers that can be achieved.

“The Target Regency project will help us bring in more sales tax revenue, but we also need to continue to promote Petaluma as a place to do business.”

Want to see more Q&As with candidates running in the municipal election? Check out http://petaluma.patch.com/topics/fall-election-guide