Q&A with Atascadero Mayor Candidate Heather Moreno
Editor’s note: This is the 1st and only spotlight for Atascadero mayoral candidates: Moreno is running unopposed.
Q&A with Atascadero Mayor Candidate Heather Moreno
Where are you from, what is your background?
I’m a Californian, born and raised. My husband and I moved to Atascadero in 2004 out of a desire for a better quality of life. Boy did we find it!
I have an undergraduate degree in accounting from California State University Fullerton, am a licensed certified public accountant, and have a graduate degree from Fuller Theological Seminary. I’ve been a council member for six years, served on the planning commission for two and a half, and own a small business.
Why are you running for Mayor?
I love Atascadero and this is the best way I know how to serve. During my six years on council, I’ve worked with the Economic Vitality Corporation of SLO County and been an active member of the Chamber of Commerce, advocating the business potential in Atascadero. These relationships with business and community leaders county-wide have contributed to the investment we are now seeing in our community. I will continue to build on these relationships to encourage additional investment in Atascadero bringing greater diversity to our local economy, removing obstacles and developing incentives for businesses to call Atascadero home.
How would you describe the job description of Mayor?
The mayor sets the tone and is the face of the city, leads council meetings and directs appointments to county boards and city committees. Together and with much public input, the council sets policy and direction for the city.
What do you want to change?
I will build on the strong economic progress we’ve made in Atascadero in order to bring in more revenue and address our housing/jobs imbalance.
Can you comment on your ideas to solve any of these issues: Homelessness, affordable housing, water conservation, etc?
These are significant issues that require a much longer conversation:
- Affordable housing: Atascadero leads the county in the number of multi-family housing units that fit the category of “Workforce Housing” or “Housing Affordable by design.” Right now, we are building the workforce housing for the entire county and that needs to shift. The biggest need in Atascadero is working towards a balanced community that provides local jobs close to housing, housing that is affordable by design (small but with quality features). At present, Atascadero’s jobs-housing balance is disproportionate with housing dominating the landscape and commercial/jobs being limited. I will continue to partner with business leaders to leverage the progress we’ve made and further capitalize on our assets to attract more business to Atascadero.
- Homelessness: Atascadero is home to ECHO, a 50-bed transitional shelter, that does a phenomenal job with support from the community and city to return those who desire to be housed back to homes. The much larger percentage of individuals that people often mean when they talk of homeless is those who are suffering from addiction and mental illness, and those who choose to be homeless. For addiction and mental health issues, our public safety officers work with individuals and offer much-needed assistance. If they are unwilling to accept the help, our hands are largely tied. As with individuals who choose homelessness as a lifestyle, it burdens our public services and can present a problem to businesses and homeowner. Business owners and residents are encouraged to report illegal activity so that we can respond. The more touches law enforcement has with someone, the more likely they may be to either get help or discontinue the activity. The state is leaving cities with fewer options to deal with this situation. Sacramento seems to believe that housing will solve it all, but I think that’s short-sighted. Those with illness, addiction, and a chosen lifestyle present significant challenges to cities, businesses, and residents and we need to continue working with law enforcement and our county partners to find and implement robust solutions.
- Water: Atascadero has a mutual water company with a very healthy basin (deemed a low priority basin by the Department of Water). The GSA is developing a Groundwater Sustainability Plan and our water users have been conservationists since before it was popular to be one!
How do you plan to involve residents in the decision-making process in our city?
Residents are involved through the public process of open and transparent meetings where they are invited to contribute, ask questions, share concerns and ideas. This also happens throughout the year at community meetings held by the city to specifically get resident input.
How do you represent the whole community?
I don’t know how else I would represent the community other than the “whole” community. Whether I share different viewpoints with someone is unimportant; the public process is integral to our community thriving. The public is the reason I do this work –residents and business owners matter most in the equation.
If elected what 3 steps would you take to put our city on a firmer financial footing?
We currently have more than 40-percent of general fund reserves – we are on a very firm financial footing. To maintain that strength, I will focus on increasing revenues through attracting business to Atascadero (as detailed previously). On council, I’ve advocated for improving efficiencies and we’ve done that by reducing the time/resources needed for a number of functions. I will continue in that vein to ensure good stewardship of taxpayer money.
What are the most important issues to you facing Atascadero?
- The housing/jobs/commercial imbalance (as detailed above). We need to bring in more revenue, and I will work with stakeholders to increase business/jobs in our community. As an example of this, last fall I brought together a group of partners county-wide to assess the viability of, and develop a plan for, a co-working space in Atascadero. Out of that came the first co-working space in north county that has attracted a variety of business people, some who were previously driving down the grade and even multiple Bay Area tech companies who chose to locate small teams of their staff in Atascadero.
- Important to not just revenue but quality of life, is a thriving downtown. Atascadero’s downtown is on an upward trajectory with more restaurants and shops opening up, providing a unique experience for residents and visitors. The momentum is there and we need to keep it up! The downtown association is organizing and pooling resources to promote the area and the city continues to provide support and host events to bring people in.
- Another key issue is CALPERS. If the board decides to change assumptions again, the unfunded liability would grow overnight. Currently, our CALPERS liability is fully budgeted and we are on firm financial ground. If that changes we need to look at what tools are available to reduce the liability.
What have you learned from the past experiences in your life that you will use to succeed in the future?
Listen, be kind, speak the truth.
