Nine vie for 2 seats on Dublin’s City Council
Some of the candidates focus on ‘smart growth’
DUBLIN >> Dublin has had an extraordinary amount of growth in the past decade — so much that it was named California’s fastestgrowing city.
In 2011, Dublin’s population was 46,872. Less than a decade later, the population is 67,333, according to data from the city.
But with that growth comes pressure on city services, and traffic. Those challenges are among the top ones facing whoever is elected in November to fill two open City Council seats.
Some of the nine candidates running for the City Council are pushing for “smart growth” to deal with the aftermath of the city’s population increase, with regulated and thoughtful passage of housing or commercial projects, instead of rubber-stamping whatever comes down the pipeline.
The nine candidates who filed for the two council spots are Sri Muppidi, Sherry ( Xin) Hu, Michael McCorriston, Shawn Costello, Lucrecia “Carolina” Deleon, Dawn Plants, Samir Qureshi, Kashef Qaadri and Razi Hasni.
Muppidi, the youngest candidate at age 24, works at a venture capital firm and said she wants to bring fresh ideas and perspective to the council. She said she wanted to run because she “felt there was so much you can do at the local level” to advocate for public safety and climate change, plus deal with the fallout from the pandemic and wildfires.
She believes in investing in the city’s commercial development by
attracting businesses.
“My big focus is attracting small businesses and start-ups that can set up shop in Dublin,” she said.
The city can help entice them by easing permitting and licensing procedures, she said.
McCorriston, who works in corporate banking, has served on the city’s human services commission and affordable housing commission. He said he was motivated to run after seeing Dublin change over the years and inequities develop.
“You can’t afford to live in our community anymore,” he said.
He also said he’s been listening to Dublin residents “screaming about density and about traffic.”
But what are the solutions? He wants smart development — to focus on transit centers, which will reduce traffic and pollution and help meet regional housing quota numbers.
“Growth is inevitable, because people want to live here. … You need to define
development as a tool,” he said.
Plants, appointed to the city planning commission la st year, retired after working for 30 years in land development and construction contrac t administration. Regarding the growth in Dublin, she said it has been “disrespectful” to approve projects based on outdated environmental impact reports, or reversing previous denials in order to collect developer fees.
“My advantage is I can read that fine print and translate the spin in my
sleep. My main concern is protecting Dublin from bad decisions that will directly affect our quality of life. We pay big money to live here and deserve better,” she said. Former planning commissioner Qureshi said he hopes his candidacy motivates the city’s “diverse ethnic groups and younger generations to take part in the political process. I am running to give back to the community.”
He wants to focus both on commercial and resi
dential development and wants to bring new technology companies to Dublin. Qureshi would like the city to work with companies such as Carl Zeiss and Kaiser Permanente to create a “Med Tech Hub” to attract jobs and bring revenue to the city.
Hu said Dublin needs to clarify its vision for the future.
“We cannot grow Dublin as we have been in the past years,” she said. “Residents want to enjoy the suburban lifestyle here.
“As an architectural engineer and environmentalist, I want the development to be smart and sustainable. We must consider adequate infrastructure support and mitigate all the impacts on the environment. We do not wish to see big-box designs, but designs with style to add beauty to our city.”
D ele on , a bu si ne s s owner, said growth and change in the city are inevitable. But despite some projected loss in revenue from the pandemic, the city’s budget will continue to have a surplus because of previous years of growth, she said.
“Health and safety must
remain a priority; we must continue to provide support to local businesses through our city’s office as well as through our community during this pandemic. I will support fiscal prudence and smart planning strategies that focus on infrastructure solutions and ways to combat traffic congestion,” she said.
Qaadri, an executive at a life sciences research company and former small business owner, said with the decline in city revenue, Dublin needs to focus on supporting current businesses and attracting new ones through economic development.
A s a small business owner, Hasni said he wants to run to bring a voice to small businesses in the city and sees serving on the council as “an opportunity to provide more open and transparent decision-making regarding development and growth.”
Concerning Dublin’s decline in sales tax revenue (close to $2 million), his plan includes assembling an economic recovery task force with local industry leaders, the chamber of commerce and the city’s development team. He also wants to ease small businesses’ burden in complying with local county health orders by relaxing the permit process for outdoor operations.
He also adv o c a t e s the development of special “Economic Stimulus Zones” — areas that would attract businesses by easing the permitting process and providing “additional support as needed to spur growth.”
Costello, who is running for at least the 16th time in the past 32 years, said no matter what he runs for, he wants to make Dublin the best city. As someone who uses a wheelchair, he’s also seeking election to show that disabled people can hold office. He also wants traffic to slow down and the city’s growth to stop.
“We need to cut down or stop all the growth happening in Dublin. It is really getting out of hand; the developers are taking over our city,” he said. “All the new apartments and townhomes are priced for the wealthy and not for persons with disabilities and low income.”