Jan 15, 2004

Candidates gear up for Jan. 21 forum

By Kymberli W. Brady
Staff Writer

At their monthly meeting Monday night, board members for the Almaden Valley Community Association (AVCA) began putting plans into place for the District 10 Candidates’ Forum, set for Jan. 21 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Water District. Community members will be able to meet with the candidates at 6:45 p.m.

The forum will be moderated by AVCA President Bob Boydston, followed by Virginia Hultz from the League of Women Voters as she explains the three local measures up for vote, including Measure 2: Regional Traffic Relief Plan, Measure A: Juvenile Hall and Probation Department Charter Amendments, and Measure D: Design-Build Procurement Process.

Candidates hoping to replace Pat Dando in the March 2 election for the District 10 City Council race will square off against each other, fielding audience questions on critical issues surrounding business interests, land use, financial climate, energy, and employment among others. All four candidates, including Nancy Pyle, Rich De La Rose, Ronald Siporen and William Garbett, have been invited to participate in the forum.

Nancy Pyle, a 25-year resident of District 10 has served as teacher, administrator and lobbyist for the San Jose Unified School District and looks to “tighten up the lines of communication between city, county, state, and federal government.” This is her third attempt as securing the District 10 seat. Pyle states that although she is an AVCA board member, she is not encumbered by the group and they have not endorsed a candidate.

Rich De La Rosa, born and raised in San Jose, is best known for fighting the city’s planned redevelopment of the Tropicana Shopping Center under Eminent Domain, a 2-1/2 year battle that he claims was the trigger that got him into local politics.

Newcomer Ronald Siporen lives in Almaden and is the director for Almaden Country School. With experience as a banker and small business owner, he looks to focus on financial management and procedures beneficial to improving the economic climate at all levels of government.

Although not expected to attend, William Garbett, a retired electronics technician, is well known at City Hall, appearing at nearly every City Council meeting for the past 30 years to speak out on multiple agenda items. This is his second run for the City Council seat.

Time permitting, additional questions will be taken from audience members at the end of the forum.

Community members are invited to attend and encouraged to bring questions for the candidates in an effort to aid with their decisions as the March 2 election nears. AVCA requests that questions be printed on 3-inch by 5-inch cards, which will be collected prior to the debate. Additional cards will be available at the door.

The AVCA Candidates’ Forum will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 21 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Water District Offices, located at 5750 Almaden Expressway.

For more information on the candidates, visit their Web sites at: http://www.vote4delarosa.com/, http://www.nancypyle.net/, http://www.ronforcitycouncil.com/.