Candidates Take Their Messages to Fremont Voters

With just over six weeks to go until the Nov. 6 election, candidates for Fremont mayor and city council seats are stepping up their efforts to get their messages out to voters.

The contest has attracted 11 candidates who all showed up Friday evening for a candidate forum held in the Fremont City Council Chambers.

Vying for the mayor’s seat are Aziz Akbari, Steve Cho, Bill Harrison, Anu Natarajan, and Linda Susoev. Running for two open seats on the city council are Vinnie Bacon, Suzanne “Sue” Chan, John Dutra, Rick Jones, Rakesh Sharma, and Mark L. Wadley.

The forum was sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Fremont, Newark, and Union City and Co- sponsored by the Fremont American Association of University Women. It attracted a crowd of about 100 people who submitted questions for each candidate.

Among the topics candidates responded to were:

• How to help solve regional problems and issues
• The development of a new Youth Center in Fremont
• The vision of a downtown area in Fremont and how to attract visitors to the area
• Does Fremont have sufficient resources to support the development of more residential housing?
• How Fremont can reduce greenhouse gasses and measure the results
• Combining police services with Newark and Union City

Natarajan, who is now vice-mayor, told the crowd that it’s important to tackle regional issues in a proactive way. “We need to look at the way we deliver services,” she said, citing transit, land use and affordable housing as examples.

The vice-mayor also noted that her membership in various regional organizations, including the Silicon Valley Leadership Forum, gives her a broad view of issues facing Fremont and neighboring communities and would help her as mayor in when negotiating regional issues.

As for developing a new youth center, most candidates agreed it’s a good idea – but not now because of funding issues. “We just don’t have the money,” Akbari said. He added that the project could be built later if funds become available.  

While the city council approved an ambitious downtown plan at its Sept. 18 meeting, a lot still has to be done to flesh out the project. Harrison, who is a current council member, said that “pushing out Capitol Avenue to connect to Fremont Boulevard” would give the project a spine. He added that he’d like to see the 110-acre project include quality housing and businesses, and later be anchored by a cultural arts center that would draw people to the area.

Jones, a retired police officer who is running for a council seat, said he’d like to see the area, which is sandwiched between Paseo Padre Parkway and Fremont Boulevard and bordered by Mowry Avenue and Walnut Avenue, include an international row of restaurants to reflect the cultural diversity of Fremont.

Meanwhile, Sharma, who also is seeking his first term on the council, disagrees with the large-scale downtown plans because of the high cost. He suggested instead that smaller pedestrian-friendly downtowns could be built from an expansion of The Block, a new shopping area near the Pacific Commons shopping area on Auto Mall Parkway, and around the new BART station slated to be built in the Warm Springs district.

Bacon, who also is seeking a seat on the council, said he would prefer to focus on retail development in each of the city’s historic districts. Wadley, however, prefers the central Fremont location but would like to see a hotel added to the mix to make the area a destination spot.

Limited resources also are an issue for mayoral candidate Steve Cho, who proposes balanced growth. He said he would not support new residential development without a guarantee that city resources and infrastructures would be able to support it.

Most candidates agreed that greenhouse gasses in the city should be reduced. Susoev, who has unsuccessfully run for mayor several times since 1989, told the crowd that it would be a good idea for buildings to include windows in their ceilings to reduce energy used for lighting and heating.

As for combining police services with neighboring cities, it’s a tough sell for most candidates. Council incumbent Chan said she wouldn’t support the idea because it’s not economical. Dutra, seeking to join the council agreed, saying that it won’t work because it won’t save that much money. “There’s not enough of an economic kickback,” he said.

The last day to register to vote in the Nov. 6 election is Oct. 22. Visit the Alameda County Registrar of Voters for details on how to register.

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