2020 Seaside Mayor Candidate LandWatch Questionnaire Responses

All candidates are in alphabetical order

Land Use Policy - Affordable Housing

Ian N. Oglesby Jon Wizard
What is your position on affordable housing? Please be specific with regards to policies you support or oppose. I support the building of more housing affordability choices, i.e. houses, condo's, apartments, ADU/JADU 's for all incomes, while not paying more than 33% of income. I will continue to champion and work with low income housing providers to build (smaller sqft) housing for those making less then $75K in yearly income. I am one of our region's affordable housing leaders. Between partnerships with the Monterey Bay Economic Partnership, being one of the founding members of the Monterey Peninsula Housing Coalition, and working for Habitat for Humanity Monterey Bay, I have broad expertise in affordable housing policy and law. I worked directly with Seaside City Manager Craig Malin to obtain a $1 million CalHome award from HCD to assist low- and very low-income homeowners in building ADUs, and I prevented an inclusionary unit from being excluded from the Ascent Project on Broadway after city staff made a rounding error in the State Bonus Density Law calculation.
Do you support modifying city policies or regulations to make it easier and cheaper to build housing? If so, what specific policy changes do you support? Yes, scale fees by square foot not per.unit, defer impact fees until CoO, increase density bonus, rental bonus, and reducing commercial space requirements
similar to Santa Cruz, and of course uses of the city'c affordable housing fund to partner with low income housing providers to build. Most of this have been adopted by Seaside already, except the rental bonus, but it's next. (MBEP white paper)
Yes, and I believe cities should adopt all nine of MBEP's housing policies, especially scaling all fees by square foot instead of by use, enhancing density bonuses, and reducing parking minimums. Additionally, SB 1120 (2020) would allow lot splits in many areas, which would allow for duplexes and gentle density in the relevant residential areas. Housing policy and climate change are inextricably linked, so we have to keep building up instead of out and using the urban environment more productively. There is absolutely no reason why there should be a single residence on a 5,000+ square foot lot.
Do you support requiring developers to actually build inclusionary units instead of paying an "in lieu" fee? Yes, they must build! We need housing not money in a fund! People can't live in a fee; we need developers to actually create the inclusionary homes they're required to build. However, there are some rare instances when inclusionary units don't make much sense. For instance, there are no services or amenities in East Garrison, so requiring inclusionary units there exacerbates the problem of isolating people with fewer resources, since it would be nearly impossible to consistently walk or bike to work from there. However, in Campus Town, Salinas WASP, or other similar developments, there should be no fee in lieu, and the developer must build the inclusionary units.
Do you support requiring that "inclusionary housing" units be made permanently affordable, even upon resale? If not, please explain. Yes! Yes; otherwise, after the period of affordability ends, the city has to continually fight to preserve those units. Additionally, as the affordability period expires, moneyed interests get involved and often outmaneuver a nonprofit developer or housing authority.
Do you support requiring developers of hospitality, commercial and industrial projects that significantly increase demand for already scarce housing resources to also build workforce housing? Yes! The city should do all it can to assist them in building close to work place. I absolutely support this, and if there wasn't majority support for it, commercial linkage fees should the floor of what we require from developers.
What other housing policies do you support or oppose? The ones that make sense for our residents and lowers the cost of housing. As the laws change new policies will need to be reviewed. I supported SB 827 and SB 50 do bring by-right fourplexes to residential zoning (not in coastal zones and not high-fire hazard areas), and I unequivocally support Oregon's HB 2001 that completely eliminates single-family zoning statewide.

Water Supplies

Ian N. Oglesby Jon Wizard
What specific proposals do you support to ensure your community can meet its water demands without increasing the overdraft of the County's groundwater aquifers or violating the SWRCB's Cease and Desist Order regarding taking water from the Carmel River? Expand the Pure Water Monterey Project, and research building a publicly owned regional Desal Plant in a place we all (Marina) can agree to. Seaside should seek credit for the infiltrated water that was produced by the infrastructure improvements on West Broadway, and it should partner with neighboring entities to cap, recycle, and treat the stormwater runoff that exits into the Monterey Bay through the Bay Avenue outfall. These two activities alone would generate thousands of acre feet of water per year.
Do you support expansion of Pure Water Monterey as an alternative to building a desalination plant? Yes! Wholeheartedly. Desal is the exemplar of a boondoggle, and as Dave Stoldt's peer-reviewed analysis shows, PWM's expansion (it's not a backup, it's the superior project!) is sufficient to supply the Peninsula with an environmentally sustainable and affordable water supply until 2049.

Sprawl Reduction

Ian N. Oglesby Jon Wizard
Do you support the creation of "urban growth boundaries" or expansion of the existing boundary as a way to prevent urban sprawl, and to insure that future growth is compact, efficient, and protective of the environment? If not, what measures would you support to prevent urban sprawl? If yes, will you sponsor an urban growth boundary in the upcoming year, and make it one of your top three priorities? Not at this time. I support compact, efficient uses of land that is protective of the environment and will focus on down town infill projects. Yes.

Transportation

Ian N. Oglesby Jon Wizard
Poorly planned, non-infill commercial developments and hotels create more trips and additional vehicle miles traveled on already overcrowded roads and highways. Both residents and visitors pay the price of delay and increased pollution. What specific traffic congestion relief solutions do you support? Carpool, fund more public transportation, increase bike lines and safety, more safe routes to school, improve timely bus services, reduce cost of public transportation, build work force housing near development projects and jobs centers. Build smarter and lean on (ask) those who work in this space for guidance. According to 2018 American Community Survey data, 84% of the City of Monterey's workforce commutes in from elsewhere. In order to reduce Peninsula traffic, more housing needs to be built in Monterey, Pacific Grove, and Carmel. Additionally, we need to disabuse the City of Monterey of the notion that it is the county seat and actively support creating more jobs and opportunities in Seaside and Marina. If people don't have to commute to Monterey, there will be less traffic as they're better able to walk, bike, and ride the bus to work. Last, we need to develop a light rail system that transits all of the Peninsula cities and connects to Salinas. There is no reason why we should be inducing demand for cars when the state burns and the oceans inches further inland every year.
Do you support roundabouts on Highway 68 and other roads? What other transportation policies or practices have you seen that local governments should incorporate? Yes, and I am working on bring two roundabouts to Seaside's portion of Canyon Del Rey. The city is moving toward a road diets going up Broadway Ave. Yes. There should also be a light rail connection or dedicated bus rapid transit lane on Highway 68.

Leadership

Ian N. Oglesby Jon Wizard
If you are elected, what will be your top three priorities? * Increase funding of programs that build heather communities as we re-imagine how to provide community safety and adopt those policies,
* Work with local low income housing providers to build housing for those making less then $75K can afford without being burden,
* Advocate for smart growth/sustainable economic development
My top three priorities are affordable housing, reinvesting our budget into community support and programs, and recovery from the pandemic. I will continue to be a leader on affordable housing as I've demonstrated over the last two years, and I will continue to be an unapologetic and politically brave leader on social justice issues, such as Black Lives Matter, police reform, and anti-poverty issues. With regard to recovery from the pandemic, I will continue advocating for and supporting small business, since there activities support our local tax base and keep our communities employed. Whether its fee holidays, no-cost encroachment permits, permit streamlining, or any other bureaucratic activity, we must support the enterprise that fuels our microeconomic condition.
What land use policies would you champion for the community? Smart growth policies focusing on infill and increased density. Seaside will soon embark on the process of approving the next RHNA cycle and formally adopting our next general plan, the latter of which will include an update to the zoning map. Allowing no less than duplexes by-right, rebalancing the percentage of land within the city that is exclusively reserved for single family zoning, and upzoning commercial corridors like Broadway, Del Monte, and Fremont to allow mid-rise buildings will create the literal and metaphorical foundation for the city to grow into the dense, filled in community smart growth and urbanist-minded people desire. However, this upzoning and the subsequent increase in housing potential must come with clear tenant protections to prevent gentrification and displacement. Examples of these protections include right of first return with staggered rent stabilization for returning tenants, relocation and temporary rental assistance for displaced tenants, and limiting the creation of new homes on redevelopment or lot splits to middle-income housing that is affordable to locals, not speculators or telecommuters with Bay Area salaries.
What accomplishments in your career or public service are you most proud of? Elected Mayor, no higher honor! I envisioned our Campus Town project close to ten years ago! Grinding of the sidewalks and sidewalk repairs, $10M of street repairs, last act of FORA - $6M of bonding for blight removal cost (saving the citizens at least $6M), creating a new city Housing Manager position, learning the things I have about proper land use. I am most proud of the shelter for women and children that I led the council in supporting after having only been in office for three months, for preserving an affordable unit at Ascent that will provide 55 years of affordable housing for several families, for obtaining $1 million of state money to help low- and very low-income homeowners to build ADUs, for eliminating the jail time penalty from the city's fireworks prohibitions and disrupting the carceral pipeline in Seaside, for pushing the city manager to apply for the Great Plates Delivered program and getting hot meals to our vulnerable seniors during the pandemic, for being one of our region's leaders in the BLM movement and police reform, for leading the council to a 4-0 vote on rent freezes between October 2019 and January 1, 2020 when AB 1482 had passed but was not yet enforceable, and for writing the eviction and foreclosure moratorium that prevented displacement during the pandemic.

Background

Ian N. Oglesby Jon Wizard
Occupation Retired Peace Officers Public Relations Manager, Habitat for Humanity Monterey Bay
Years Lived in Area 30 21
Education Some college MA Humanities, CSU Dominguez Hills; MPA, CSU Dominguez Hills (in progress, exp. 06/22); BS Public Relations with Anthropology Minor, SJSU; AS Criminal Justice, Cabrillo College; AS Fire Technology, Allan Hancock College
Experience 18 yrs. county, city, and non-profit service; 10 yrs. Seaside Council Member, 2 yrs. as Mayor, 2 yrs. as Mayor Pro-Tem; 4 yrs. Seaside Planning Commissioner; • Chair, Local Agency Formation Community (LAFCO), 2018 - present

• Chair, Veteran Issues Advisory Committee (VIAC) 2010-2016, 2018 - present
• Chair, Monterey County Mayor's Association 2018 - present
• Chair-Elect, Monterey College of Law, Board member, 2017 - present
• Monterey Bay Community Power, 2018 - present
• Transportation Association of Monterey County (TAMC) & County Rail Committee, 2018- present
• Monterey Peninsula Regional Water Authority, 2012 -2016 (alt.), Treasurer, 2018 - present
• Leadership Council: Coalition of Homeless Services Providers, 2018 - present
• Central Coast Housing Working Group, 2020 - present
• iiED (Institute for Innovation & Economic Development CSU Monterey Bay/College of Business, Advisory Committee, 2017 - present
• Vice-Chair 2018-2020, Ft. Ord Reuse Authority, member 2010-2016
• Monterey Regional Waste Management District, 2010 - 2016, past Vice-Chair
• Monterey County Overall Economic Development Commission, 2002 -2008
• United Way Monterey County (UWMC), 2003 - 2010
• Monterey County Board of Education (MCOE), Trustee Area Six, 2004 - 2008
• Founding Chair, Seaside Blue Ribbon Task Force for the Prevention of Gang Violence
• Past Ca. State, District #12 Commander, VFW 2018/19,
Nearly all of my professional experience has been in public service, with the vast majority of it being in public safety. I have worked as a 9-1-1 dispatcher, firefighter, and police officer, and I also have experience as a youth basketball coach and referee. I'm not employed in the nonprofit sector working for one of the only ownership-focused nonprofit affordable housing developers.

Joseph Smith did not respond.