Feb 19, 2004

District 10 candidate countdown: Nancy Pyle

By Lorraine Gabbert
Staff Writer

Nancy Pyle is throwing her hat in the ring for the third time in her bid for the District 10 seat on the San Jose City Council. Politics is something of a passion for her, and has been since the tender age of 8, when her family talked politics at the dinner table.

“I can’t remember when I wasn’t interested in politics,” Pyle says. “I had an uncle who was in the city manager’s office in Syracuse, New York, and I was always fascinated with what he was doing. I would ask him a million questions about what was going on, and what he did.” In high school, Pyle was a member of the student council, and at college she was a member of the debate team. Attending LeMoyne College helped Pyle to hone her skills as a debater and crystallize her thoughts on daily topics posed to the entire student body. “It’s not an opportunity too many people have today,” she observes.

After graduating, Pyle became a K-8 teacher, first in upstate New York, then in Cupertino and for San Jose Unified, where she was also director of legislative and community affairs. Pyle has been instrumental in starting a student council almost everywhere she has taught because she appreciates the value of exposing students to politics and forming opinions on the issues.

Regarding experience, Pyle notes that she has been involved with the community on a day-to-day basis, working not only as a trustee on a community college board, but also working for nonprofit organizations, and as an educator. “I have worked in the schools, with the parents, and with the children,” she reflects, “I have been very involved and tried to groom myself for this job through the process.”

Reviving the economy is Pyle’s priority. “People are hurting out there,” she comments. “My friend lost his job, and is now consulting, and his wife is a teacher and was laid off as well. What’s happening as a result of our budgetary issues is causing great damage to families like that, and the stress levels are incredibly high.”

She believes that the City Council needs to reach out to Almaden and Blossom Valley businesses and to help create jobs. “We are so inter-connected on a state, county, national, and global level,” she comments. “We have friends in England who say, ‘You know, if you sneeze, we end up with a cold.” Pyle feels that this world-wide interdependency needs to be addressed in creating job markets and products that affect the future, in such fields as biomedical and environmental research, and nanotechnology. She is also interested in forming a partnership with colleges and universities to provide training in these areas. “These learning institutions are going to provide the tools which are needed for these businesses to flourish,” she says. “We need to be aware of business trends to know what type of training will be needed.”

Pyle is also sensitive to the burdens businesses face. “To get going with a business requires an overwhelming amount of paperwork,” she comments. “The process needs to be stripped down to its basic components. Discouraging people from beginning a business makes no sense. I would like to find ways to expedite the process.” Pyle points out that compared with other cities, San Jose is far behind. “I think the city is forgetting that for every minute somebody can’t be in business, because they’re waiting for a permit or permission, costs [everyone] money,” she notes. We have to streamline what we do.” Pyle believes that the technology going into City Hall will expedite the process. “We’ve been trying to do 21st Century business with 20th Century tools,” she states.

Regarding preserving open spaces, Pyle believes in emulating the European model for combining industrial, commercial, and residential areas, so that more open space can be retained. “Coyote Valley will be a true test of our ability to plan, and our last litmus test of how we preserve open space,” she contends. “We have to be extremely judicious with the way we use it. They are going to try to create attractive industrial units combined with attractive commercial establishments, with housing above that. I think the creativity that will go into that planning will portend towards the future.”

Pyle feels that her work and life experiences make her well suited for council issues. “I enjoy working with people,” she says. “I like being a mediator between the public and a governing body. It’s something that has always been in me.” Pyle sees her experience as a board trustee for San Jose/Evergreen Community College District as a great segue to becoming a member of the San Jose City Council. “There are three very successful council persons who have already preceded me: Congressperson Zoe Lofgren, Charlotte Powers, and Ken Yaeger,” she notes. For Pyle, they are also role models. “They have an incredible leadership style and a way about them that engenders trust,” she maintains. “They try to be good intermediaries between the public and the issues that need to be addressed.”

She is interested in a participatory government in which residents can feel listened to and involved. “I’d like every voter to know that they have a voice and can be a part of an advisory council through e-mail,” she affirms. “I see a councilperson as a conduit of the wishes of the district.” As an example, Pyle sites city council member Chuck Reed, who regularly receives input on issues coming up for a vote from the community through e-mail. “Chuck told me that there are times where he’s changed his mind on a vote once he received input from constituents,” she states.

“My goal has always been to make government the best it could be,” Pyle says. “I truly do want to represent the people in District 10, and do the very best job I can. My husband’s been behind me 100 percent. He’s been working hard helping with financing, cooking lunches for walkers, or helping to get the precinct packets ready. He’s been absolutely a rock. He compares it to running a start-up company.”