3 seats in play for council election

Four candidates are jockeying for three seats on the Tiburon Town Council in the Nov. 8 election.

Most have identified protecting open space such as McKegney Green, state housing mandates and ongoing issues with diversity as chief among town issues.

The candidates are Mayor Jon Welner, Vice Mayor Jack Ryan, Councilmember Alice Fredericks and Isaac Nikfar, a member of the Parks, Open Space and Trails Commission.

The incumbents expressed confidence in the direction of the council.

“As we move forward it will be really important to prioritize our actions and our spending to help our residents reclaim community health,” Ryan said.

“The Town Council is a remarkably collaborative and problem-solving body in Tiburon,” Welner said. “While these reflect my priorities and efforts, really they are team efforts.”

“I will continue to bring continuity to our council, gather a broad perspective from our community members and recognize the potential of new ideas,” Fredericks said.

Nikfar depicted himself as an outsider seeking change.

“I'm the challenger in this race and the reason why I'm running is I believe the Town Council can do more,” he said.

Fredericks said the biggest issue facing the town is preserving open space, meeting goals of the town's climate plan and meeting the housing requirements of required by the state. Fredericks said she hopes to reduce congestion despite work-from-home trends, prioritize conflicting demands for recreational amenities and minimize the impacts on neighborhoods.

“I have every conviction, if we define our goals, work together, we will get there,” she said.

Ryan said the biggest issues facing Tiburon include the management of development, how to spend federal relief money and protecting open space.

Ryan said the community is interested in increased outdoor recreation and those interests should be facilitated through development and protection of parks.

“I'm excited to be considered alongside such an impressive field of candidates. I hope that my approach to government and my relatively unique skillset resonate with voters, so I can deploy them to address our upcoming challenges,” Ryan said.

Welner said the biggest issues facing Tiburon include preserving open space, retaining the vibrancy of downtown, addressing housing issues and fighting climate change. He pointed to past successes such as the opening of the new library, a balanced budget and a focus on climate change.

Nikfar said the biggest issues facing the town include increased traffic, state housing mandates and preserving open space. He said the council is reactionary and pushes off problems.

“If you want real progress on the major issues in Tiburon, it's time for a change at Town Hall,” he said. “My five-year track record as commissioner and chair of parks, open space and trails shows my ability to listen, find solutions to problems and take action.”

In the spring, the town reached a $150,000 settlement with Yema Khalif and Hawi Awash, a Black couple who own the Yema clothing store on Main Street. They alleged that police engaged in racial profiling by asking them for identification after spotting them inside the store at 1 a.m. on a night in August 2020. Police denied a racial motive in the encounter.

The controversy set off protests in town, and officials committed to establishing a police advisory council.

Ryan said he is “proud” of how the city handled the issue because the Khalif family and the police were treated with “empathy.” Welner said he believes the creation of a diversity and inclusion committee contributed to the “positive movement” within the town.

Fredericks said police outreach is a positive effort, but the work should be focused and ongoing to reach potentially marginalized members of the community. Nikfar said the work was “admirable” but said poor historical engagement with business owners might have contributed to the incident.

The city has also frequently received proposals on how to use open space, including on McKegney Green and at decommissioned ponds being purchased by the town.

Welner said the effort is ongoing to reach out to the community on how to use open space in a way that is most beneficial to the city's residents. Nikfar said he is excited to develop a master plan for city parks and open space through his work on a town committee.

Fredericks said the town is waiting for the Parks, Open Space and Trails Commission to come to a consensus about the master plan, and noted how the “built environment ” balances with open space. Ryan said he hopes to conduct “thorough outreach” to the community in order to have a valid survey for what residents want, especially in schools.

Tiburon must also show it can develop a minimum of 639 homes over the next eight years. The town plans to go beyond the target and has suggested a range around 700 new homes.

Nikfar said the level of engagement with the state and people in town over the new housing plan needs to be increased. Fredericks said the town has to “deal with it as a reality for now” and called for greater state and regional funding to provide services.

Ryan said the implementation of services would be “incalculable” under the housing requirements and said the town is “hamstrung” by finding locations. Welner called it a “state policy issue” and noted that the town's appeal of the number was rejected.