Issues & Plans
The issues — and my plan to fix them
Salinas residents have waited long enough for basic problems to be addressed. We need a City Council that focuses on results, spends taxpayer money responsibly, and holds City Hall accountable.
Roads
The Problem:
Our streets have steadily deteriorated over the past 20 years, and Salinas now faces more than $400 million in needed road repairs. We cannot continue allowing our streets to decline. This is plain incompetence.
My Plan:
Road repair and maintenance must become a real city priority. I will push for a long-term street repair plan that prioritizes the worst roads, increases preventative maintenance and restriping, aggressively pursues state and federal funding, and examines ways the city can perform more road maintenance itself to reduce costs.
Sidewalks
The Problem:
Sidewalks in many Salinas neighborhoods are in terrible condition. Residents have complained about waiting 15 to 20 years for needed repairs. Broken and unsafe sidewalks are a serious safety issue for everyone in Salinas.
My Plan:
We need to stop accepting decades-long waiting lists. I will push for a citywide sidewalk repair program that prioritizes the most dangerous locations, especially areas used by children, seniors, and people with disabilities.
Street Lighting
The Problem:
Our street lights have been neglected for decades and desperately need repair and maintenance. Dark streets and lights that remain out for extended periods create serious safety concerns for children, seniors, pedestrians, and entire neighborhoods.
My Plan:
I will push for faster repairs, better maintenance, and improved lighting in poorly lit neighborhoods. Residents should not have to wait months or years for basic street lighting to be repaired.
Housing
The Problem:
Salinas desperately needs more housing, but unnecessary Planning Department roadblocks, studies, permits, delays, and bureaucracy make it extremely difficult and expensive to build.
California's Regional Housing Needs Allocation identifies a need for Salinas to accommodate 6,674 additional housing units between 2023 and 2031. We have built only a fraction of what is needed and still need thousands of additional homes.
My Plan:
I will work to eliminate unnecessary Planning Department roadblocks and streamline the approval process so we can build more housing—including single-family homes and apartments. We need reasonable standards and responsible development, but we cannot allow unnecessary bureaucracy at City Hall to prevent Salinas from building the housing our families need.
Homelessness
The Problem:
Moving homeless residents from one side of town to the other does not resolve homelessness. It leaves neighborhoods frustrated and people without a stable place to go.
Homelessness requires more than shelter. Some people will not use traditional shelters, and some face serious drug addiction, chemical dependency or mental illness that shelter alone cannot resolve. In my view, a core mistake in Salinas's approach has been treating homelessness primarily as a shelter issue without adequately addressing these deeper needs.
My Plan:
Establish a city-sanctioned camping area on suitable city-owned land, where homeless residents can stay day and night while receiving help to move toward stable housing.
- Enforce existing camping restrictions: Keep public streets, sidewalks and parks clean, safe and accessible, while providing a lawful alternative and following proper notice and procedures.
- Provide designated camping spaces: Give residents a stable place to keep their tents and belongings without being repeatedly displaced.
- Supply basic sanitation: Provide restrooms, showers, drinking water, handwashing stations and regular garbage collection.
- Require security and clear rules: Maintain trained staff, security, quiet hours and rules against violence, theft, drug dealing and dangerous behavior.
- Address underlying needs: Connect residents with addiction treatment, mental-health care and ongoing support based on their individual needs.
- Partner with community organizations: Work with charities, nonprofits and county agencies to provide meals, supplies, health services and housing assistance, with accountable daily management.
- Demand accountability: Publish operating costs and results, including safety conditions and how many people move into stable housing.
Stop the cycle of displacement. A managed camping area should serve as a bridge to stable housing while helping restore our streets, sidewalks and parks for everyone.
Your Tax Dollars
The Problem:
Residents pay substantial taxes, yet too many basic services continue to deteriorate. We need to know where our money is going and whether taxpayers are getting results.
My Plan:
I want to start by auditing the city and the City Manager's Office. We need better priorities, greater transparency, and real accountability for how taxpayer money is spent.
City government must focus first on the basic services residents depend on: safe streets, maintained roads and sidewalks, public safety, street lighting, and clean neighborhoods.
