Liz Kniss named mayor as council shows united front
The Palo Alto City Council began the new year by displaying a concerted effort to unify.
At its reorganization meeting Monday night, the council unanimously chose Liz Kniss as this year’s mayor. Like outgoing mayor Greg Scharff, she’s part of the five-member council faction considered development friendly, yet also received the votes of her slowgrowth colleagues.
Eric Filseth, one of the slow-growth members, was unanimously selected as the new vice mayor, replacing Kniss in that role.
Councilman Cory Wolbach nominated Filseth for vice mayor even though he often disagrees with him. He said Filseth will run fair meetings when the mayor isn’t available.
“Sometimes, this has been a contentious place and we all talk about wanting to move past that, wanting to see the council working better together,” Wolbach said. “If I’m going to expect that of others, I think it’s important to me to do this.”
Although the council also unanimously picked its mayor and vice mayor last year, Scharff and Kniss share the same goals and tend to vote alike. Kniss and Filseth haven’t, at least not on development matters.
Residents who spoke in support of Kniss called her an advocate of housing for all income levels, noting she was instrumental in securing funding for Buena Vista Mobile Home Park and has more than three decades of experience in local and regional politics.
Scharff said Kniss has more experience than all other council members combined.
“She runs a meeting better than I do,” he said. “I know that we’re in good hands with you, Liz.”
Councilman Tom DuBois was the only person in the room who expressed concern about Kniss as mayor, saying he has received calls from residents regarding a complaint filed against Kniss after the 2016 election. The state Fair Political Practices Commission in March launched an investigation regarding possible rules violations involving contributions and campaign reporting.
“I do support Liz for mayor but I think on completion of investigation, if violations are found, we should reconsider … but right now, you’re innocent until proven guilty,” DuBois said.
Kniss replied that it’s easy to make allegations to the state commission because they can be lodged anonymously. She added that three other council members were referred to the commission for possible violations and “almost every return to the FPPC will have some errors in it.” Councilman Greg Tanaka was fined last year for campaign reporting violations during the 2016 election.
The council will hold an annual retreat at the end of the month to outline goals for the year. Kniss said its focus this year will be housing, traffic issues and a healthy community.
“We are way behind on providing housing,” Kniss said, adding that she may form a housing committee to help get more creative with housing initiatives. “One thing we need is more senior housing.”
Kniss said she looks forward to working with Filseth, and the community can expect “a big difference” on the dais this year.
“Eric and I have not always been on the same page … but we are very compatible with our ability to discuss items together,” she said. “I think you’ll see a big difference as we go through the year in how we’re able to discuss and accommodate each other. We have such divisiveness at the national level, wouldn’t it be terrific if we actually at the local level could come together?”
Kniss said she will retire from politics when her council term ends in 2020. This is Kniss’ third term as mayor.
Her public service dates back to 1985, when she was elected to a four-year term on the Palo Alto Unified School District Board of Education. From 1989 to 2000, she served on the City Council, followed by 12 years as a Santa Clara County supervisor. She was re-elected to the council in 2013.