Dick Spotswood: Divergent responses of Marin candidates raise interest

The IJ editorial board is in the process of interviewing candidates for local offices in the upcoming election. While I don’t vote on IJ endorsements, I do attend most sessions and join in the questioning. Some of the interviews are revealing.

Contests for two seats on the Marin Municipal Water District Board of Directors are hotly contested. Interviewing candidates in MMWD’s Division 5 was particularly informative. That district includes Tiburon, Belvedere, Corte Madera, Strawberry and parts of Larkspur.

The incumbent is 20-year board veteran, Larry Russell. Challenging him are David Keatley, previously a director of Nevada County’s Sierra Lakes County Water District, and Dawn Matheson, whose ballot designation is “mother/engineer/artist.”

In 2022, two incumbent board members were defeated and a third decided not to seek reelection. The North Bay had then endured multiple dry years when MMWD’s 191,000 central and southern Marin customers faced water rationing and increased rates.

The three new directors, Jed Smith, Ranjiv Khush and Matt Sampson, were elected on the platform of creating reliable long-term water supplies. Voters’ voices were loud and clear.

I recently wrote about local policy dilemmas using MMWD as an example saying, “Most Marin residents want water to flow when they turn on the faucet.” The dilemma is that it costs at least $320 million to build pipelines, pumping stations and expand reservoir capacity.

Russell’s top goal is keeping water rates low. Providing long-term sustainable water, while desirable, is a lower priority. Keatley’s top goal is promptly commencing work to obtain, transport and store long-term water supplies. Matheson, like most consumers, wants reliable water at a low cost. Unfortunately, funding those projects inherently means higher water bills.

The clear policy distinction between Russell and Keatley is refreshing. There’s a fundamental decision to be made which puts Division 5 voters in the driver’s seat.

A seemingly dormant issue arose during IJ editorial board interviews of seven candidates vying to fill three posts on Fairfax’s town council. Will the candidates if elected continue to pursue the notion of eradicating the name of Sir Francis Drake from the Fairfax portion of the ocean-to-bay boulevard?

The topic arose after George Floyd’s Minneapolis murder in 2020. That was a period when political progressives and their “democratic socialist” allies seemed to be on the rise. Remember cries to “defund the police?” Search hard for a candidate, even in progressive Fairfax, that advocates that slogan today.

An incident involving a “slave ship” was part of the argument that made the name Drake unacceptable to progressives. It was the same sentiment that led San Francisco’s since-recalled school board to consider jettisoning Geroge Washington’s name from a high school.

That tide has receded. Many Fairfax council candidates would prefer to let the Drake Boulevard name change slide into the past, especially with a contentious town council election approaching.

The candidates’ answers on dropping Drake was “forget about it,” mostly from the challengers. The three incumbents gave a more measured reply effectively saying, “It’s not a big issue, but if there’s sentiment to do so, we’ll first conduct thorough public outreach.” That’s political speak for, “The name change is dead.”

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In last Sunday’s column I wrote that San Anselmo’s “Measure N effectively repeals most of the Hub City’s council-passed rent control ordinance.” I was wrong but it’s complicated. The council’s rent control applied only to properties with three or more units.

Opponents obtained signatures qualifying a referendum to reject the law. The council agreed that San Anselmo’s version of rent control should be decided on the ballot. Thus, Measure N asks voters if the council’s proposed ordinance should be enacted. As Councilmember Steve Burdo said, “If you’re for rent control, then vote yes.”

Columnist Dick Spotswood of Mill Valley writes on local issues Sundays and Wednesdays. Email him at spotswood@comcast.net.