New Year Kicks Off at City Hall

Kathy Miller, a Petaluma attorney and one of the authors of Measure X, the recreation and parks tax initiative, will be sworn in as a new councilmember at a ceremony at City Hall Monday night.

She replaces Councilwoman Tiffany Renee, whose term ended in December.

Miller is a real estate, corporate and employment attorney and a former Petaluma Planning Commissioner. She is also the founding member of Petaluma Friends of Recreation, which sought to raise money for ball fields, Lucchesi Community Center and other recreational sites through a parcel tax.

The initiative received 61 percent of votes, not enough to pass the two-thirds approval threshold.

Miller describes herself as moderate on development and says Petaluma can preserve its charm while promoting more business in town.

“I think there is a balance between the historic districts and shopping centers that can be achieved,” she told Petaluma Patch prior to her election in November.

Incumbents Mike Healy and Gabe Kearney will also be sworn in to new terns on Monday. Kearney, an emergency preparedness coordinator at Kaiser, was appointed to council in 2011 to fill a vacancy left by former councilman Dave Glass who became mayor. He was also a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in October.

Healy is on his fourth term as Petaluma councilman, after first being elected in 1998. Like Miller, he is also an attorney.

Monday’s council meeting starts at 7pm at City Hall, 11 English St.

Have a question or concern for the newly elected officials? Let us know by posting in the comment below.