Crime, Public Safety Focus of Council Candidate Debate

Candidates for the Novato City Council were on their best behavior Thursday night at . After all, the Novato chapters of the Police Managers Association and the Police Officers Association hosted it.

No problems here, officer.

Six of seven candidates occupied seats normally filled by the Novato City Council members, so it was business as usual for incumbents Madeline Kellner and Jeanne MacLeamy and a teaser to challengers Jerome Ghigliotti, Eric Lucan, Leslie Peterson Schwarze and Eleanor Sluis. Manny Fernandez, a no-show, said he doesn't plan on participating at any candidate forums.

As expected the line of questioning Thursday centered on the police department. Two questions diverted from the theme: prioritization of of about $3 million per year over five years and the candidates’ stances on the new city administrative offices that are in the planning stages across Machin Avenue from the police department.

The stickiest issue was about pension reform. Kellner and MacLeamy worked with city staff and other council members to negotiate concessions in the past year that helped Novato reduce its ongoing fiscal deficit, which hovers at about $2.5 million per year. The incumbents mentioned a research effort starting to take place that will analyze all city employee compensation and compare it to other cities. Waiting for the results of that study and then negotiating again is the best move, Kellner and MacLeamy said.

All the candidates supported efforts to make sure the police are compensated as well as possible to retain the best people for the jobs, and several thanked the police for accepting the benefit concessions. Ghigliotti, who has come down hard on Chief of Police Joseph Kreins while speaking at council meetings over the past two years, said police might need to split pension costs with the city rather than having the city pay 7 percent of retirement benefits vs. 2 percent contributed by police personnel.

Lucan, a businessman who has served as a volunteer chaplain for the police, said, “I don’t think pensions are the problem. I believe the economy is the problem.” Sluis mentioned that she wanted to make sure women on the force were being compensated as well as the men.

The candidates agreed, too, that public safety should be a top priority and it would be best if Novato had more officers on the street to address a perceived increase in crime. Kreins has noted several times to the Novato City Council that crime is down overall but that Novato has fewer officers per capita than many other cities its size. The candidates discussed the challenges of funding the department when the economy is soft and the city is receiving fewer property tax dollars.

MacLeamy noted that the recent loss of school resource officers was significant and the city should look into partnering with the school district to revive that on-campus program. Peterson Schwarze suggested it’s time for the Novato City Council and the board should have a joint meeting for the first time in four years to discuss the issue but that it’s the city’s responsibility, not the school district’s, to pay for policing.

Lucan said the city could redirect funds from the city office project or create new sources of revenue from additional taxes or sales/leases of city-owned property. Ghigliotti said a key way to reduce gang-related crimes is to enforce laws more strictly and impound cars being driven by undocumented immigrants arrested for such crimes.

On the topic of city offices, Lucan came out strongly against the complex that is to be built on an existing parking lot at Machin Avenue and Cain Lane, about 100 yards from Novato City Hall. At a put on by the , Lucan leaned in that direction but not as adamant in his opposition against a project unanimously approved by Kellner, MacLeamy and the other current council members.

“It’s not a wise choice when we have a $2.5 million ongoing structural deficit,” Lucan said, noting that the cost of the new building is expected to be $12 million to $15 million. He said existing buildings in Novato could be purchased for much less to house the approximately 60 city employees, leaving leftover funds for other capital improvements.

Sluis also stood by her opposition to the project and Peterson Schwarze said Sacramento decisions about the future of redevelopment agencies makes it too volatile a situation for Novato to march forward with the project. Ghigliotti said he supported the council’s backing of the plan.

On prioritizing Measure F funds, MacLeamy suggested paying down unfunded pension liabilities and other debt. Peterson Schwarze said “working smarter” and diving headlong into the annual budget to eliminate wasteful spending should be a high priority. Putting dormant city-owned properties to use and seeking public-private partnerships was Kellner’s message.

Lucan said new tax revenues should be explored as long as it doesn’t deter new business from coming to Novato. Red light traffic enforcement cameras and downtown parking meters should at least be discussed, he said. Ghigliotti advocated for making sure our residents are legal U.S. citizens, who have a higher rate of paying taxes.

The police-sponsored forum was taped for future viewing on . The airing schedule is to be determined.