CLIMATE and SUSTAINABILITY

Palo Alto is a national and worldwide climate and sustainability leader. I have chaired the Climate and Sustainability Committee for three years and served on it for four. During my tenure,

• Palo Alto earned A-list status every year from the largest global carbon disclosure system, recognizing our top-level achievement in emissions reductions and transparency, reducing emissions by over 50% compared to 1990 
• Earned a gold designation for EV readiness,
• Launched an Advanced Home Electrification Pilot program, and 
• To adapt to sea level rise, constructed the Bay Area's first nature-based "living levee," which absorbs increased sea levels without shunting it to our neighbors, all while increasing native plants and natural habitat for our beloved Baylands.

We have more work to do and I’ll continue to leverage Palo Alto’s innovation culture to accelerate our climate and sustainability progress. 

I will promote action to

• further emissions reduction, including through
  • increasing EV infrastructure for multifamily dwellings and elsewhere
  • stewarding the Advanced Home Electrification Pilot program toward a sustainable program that supports residents in electrifying with heat pump appliances, induction cooktops, and more
• steward our Grid Modernization project to upgrade the city’s aging electricity infrastructure
• enhance biodiversity and our tree canopy

HOUSING

Palo Alto needs more housing and we've improved both our pipeline and our process in recent years. I’ll champion housing that is affordable for families and workers, to enhance and balance our community .

We can get this done by:

• Preserving existing affordable housing, such as the Buena Vista mobile home park that we saved and is currently being rehabilitated with new, safer utility infrastructure. 
• Building housing, including affordable housing for different income levels, by continuing to partner with the county, state, non-profits and philanthropists to achieve the requisite funding. For example, during the past year, 
  
  • Mitchell Park Place opened which includes housing for IDD adults, and Project Homekey which offers transitional housing for unhoused residents
  • We broke ground on all-affordable projects and projects having both market rate and affordable units
• Planning housing to enhance and fit in with what we love about existing homes, services, and neighborhoods
• Improve the process for ADUs which add a diversity of housing to single family neighborhoods.

A FULL SERVICE CITY 

Palo Alto offers resident services that many of our neighboring cities don't.

I’ll continue to champion investment in the unique services that our residents rightly expect and deserve. For example:

• City-owned electric and other utilities; I am Palo Alto's Commissioner on the Northern California Power Agency, which keeps the lights on in our city and provides electricity that is green, resilient and less expensive than PG&E -- I will keep fighting for that; Palo Alto also owns our water, gas, fiber, and waste water utilities. We need to continue to fight for lower utility bills, despite them being lower than our neighbors. 
• Investing in our own Police and Fire departments, instead of using County-run services allows us more customized services, along with greater oversight; we have increased depleted ranks, but more investment is needed
• Parks and open spaces are what Palo Alto is known for and are essential to our quality of life. We have precious open space from the Bayshore to the Foothills and it is our sacred responsibility to protect and preserve it.
• Libraries: I've embraced the moniker "Library Lady" on Council because I always promote investing in these beloved public spaces that promote equity and are embedded in neighborhoods, where all can gather regardless of income, race, ethnicity, etc. They promote learning and support those seeking advancement, free of cost. 

I’ll address budgeting, revenue, and other issues to enable greater support for and access to these community assets.