Politics & Government

Gary Mondfrans, Candidate for Pacifica City Council

With elective service and three decades of public safety experience Mondfrans runs for public office in 2012.

General Information

Name : Gary Mondfrans

Age: 61

Place of residence : Pacifica

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Education

College

Attended college : Yes
College : San Francisco State University and College of San Mateo
Degree : B.S. Political Science & Psychology, Minor: Sociology
1-year Law School. AA from College of San Mateo Skyline College - Private Pilot Ground School and Earthquake/Seismic Safety Courses POST - Police Officer Standards and Training/California State Department of Justice EMD - Emergency Medical Disatcher - National Academy of Emergency Dispatching EFD - Emergency Fire Dispatcher - National Academy of Emergency Dispatching

Employment Information

Employers : For the past 31 years I have been in Emergency Services with the City and County of San Francisco originally with the San Francisco Police Department and have recently retired from the San Francisco's Department of Emergency Services in order to devote my time and energy to a business I establish here in Pacifica. Pacific Passions at Barely Worn Consignments was created after I learned at a garage sale last year in the Sharp Park home where I have resided for the past 25 years that many people here in Pacifica are just getting by in this tough economy and needed a place to sell their goods. So with that I signed a lease and made a three year commitment by filing the vacant Bearly Worn Consignment Store at 35 West Manor Drive across from the Post Office with Pacific Passions http://www.PacificPassions.us.

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Political Information

Party affiliation : Lifetime Patriot. Democratic Supporter of the U.S. Constitution
Running for a: Local office
Running for position: Pacifica City Council
Chamber/district: Pacifica
Incumbent: No
Previous elective offices : I was twice elected to the San Bruno City Council and former Mayor of San Bruno.

Party HQ

Address: 35 West Manor Drive #Win-2012, Pacifica

URLs

Website : http://www.PacificPassions.us
YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=az100OjL7i4&feature=html5_ns&list=PLD100BC781D6760F6&playnext=1

Other facts

My background is in government. At an early age I was twice elected to the San Bruno City Council in 1975 and served as the former Mayor of San Bruno. I am familiar with the budget process and would not need a training course on how to study and manage a budget. For the past 31 years I have been in Emergency Services with the City and County of San Francisco originally with the San Francisco Police Department and have recently retired from San Francisco's Department of Emergency Services in order to devote my time and energy to a business I establish here in Pacifica.

As I explained to the outgoing Mayor at our grand opening that it is through my belief that once we EMPOWER OURSELVES, then we can EMPOWER OTHERS. This is precisely the message that the pilot tells you when the plane is about to crash and when the airbags start to fall from the ceiling so you are instructed to put the air bag on yourself first, then you can help the young child or your elderly mother next to you who in turn can help others like a handicapped person in the next aisle. There are many great things being done by agencies like the Pacifica Resource Center and Senior Services and what they do to help one person multiplies many fold as many others are in turn help and empowered. Their activities must continue to be supported and encouraged.

I attended that all day-Sunday Study Session of the Pacifica City Council and presented many considerations for the City to study yet none of these were reported in the Pacifica Tribune nor apparently even studied further by the City Council. When Pacifica considers it's unique geography in a regional perspective many enhancements to City and especially emergency services could be acheived and solutions can be found by exploring how other nearby cities and agencies handled them instead of by constantly re-inventing the wheel or needing to hiring outside consultants and other hired-guns. Pacifica has a wealth of talent if only they were given just more than 3-minutes to speak before the City Council.

As I have served on agencies such as the San Mateo County Criminal Justice Council, with such former greats as District Attorney Keith Sorenson, as an appointee of the San Mateo County Council of Mayors, and on the San Mateo County Operational Area Disaster Council as well as a representative of the Board of Supervisors to ABAG, the Association of Bay Area Government, I can and do appreciate the unique opportunities available to the City of Pacifica where we can begin to think beyond the box that Pacifica's current lack of leadership has placed us.

Pacifica needs to get beyond the divisiveness and single-issue policies which have divided us for too long, the City is in desperate need of new and vital revenue instead of taxes and fees. There are far too many vacant shops and store fronts not only in two of our major shopping center but along what has the potential to become Pacifica's main street. Pacifica needs to attract more of the kinds of businesses that will in turn attract tourist and visitors to Pacifica. Just as Martinez is known as an antiques and collectables center for the East Bay so can Pacifica which is just a few minutes south of San Francisco. Already houses many tourists and visitors are finding us through our existing hotels and the RV Park on Palmetto, which is also the site of the world renown Pacifica Fog Fest, further promotion and outreach through interaction and advertising is the key. I'll bet too few of you have even seen or heard about the advertising supplement which the San Francisco Examiner promoted last week in their "Discover Pacifica" edition. We also can help our neighboring businesses and those who work there by "Shopping Pacifica First".

New development consideration must be sensitive to our environment but should not stagnant it either. Someone who is already familiar with environmental issues as well as having played a part in deveolpment of land use plans and zoning ordinances, as I did through my years of experience in San Bruno, can guide Pacifica through the challenges it faces through rising fuel prices, global warming and rising sea levels.

I foresee that major decisions need to be addressed by the next City Council. First and foremost the City must restore sound financial planning and budget practices while enhancing the city's revenue structure without the need for additional fees and taxes. A City Council which is steadfast in the need to bring in more business to fill our far too many vacant shops and storefronts must work with the business community and those interested in undertaking new enterprises here in Pacifica. Examination of the potential for working with other agencies such as the Coastside County Water Districts for joint utilization of resources and equipment may lead to savings to both suppliers of vital city services and having worked in local government for the past 31 years realize the important of emergency services so that they at the highest standards available.

Palmetto Avenue can become Pacifica's "Main Street" and attact even more of the antiques and collectable businesses which proliferate there through development into an historic lighting district utilizing turn of the (last) century (1880's) style lighting and lamp fixtures similar to the way that the old street cars and cable cars draw tourists and visitors to San Francisco. Core to such development will be use of the former sewage treatment plant consistent with other west Sharp Park business and it's proximity to the Pier. The site is a valuable commodity and alternatives must be explored so that the residents and taxpayers of Pacifica are not short-changed nor overly impacted.

Methods and means must be found to unite the diverse activist communities which have divided Pacifica for too long with what seems to be an endless series of initiative, referendums and recalls. Case in point is the quarry. A series of "open houses" to both air issues and concerns while resolving differences may well be a means of drawing attention to the quarry for a suitable proposal so that Pacifica may then begin to derive revenue and move on to other issues which need attention as well.

The Council must improve traffic flow not only through the Fassler-Valleymar corridor but other major traffic problems such as the horrendous intersections of Manor Drive at Oceania and Palmetto, and Linda Mar Boulevard must be addressed as a special study area to prevent many more accidents from occurring there. Enhanced emergency response into the Valley Mar and Sun Valley/Linda Mar areas must be address and alternative means of ingress and egress for emergency vehicles as well as other means of escape in the event of a tsunami, earthquake or other disaster must be explored other than full dependency on a narrow coastal byway.

The present City Council seems to impede rather than elicit input from the very citizens they are sworn to serve. During my tenure as Mayor of San Bruno and my years of service on the other side of the hill I developed a strong reputation as a supporter of "Open Government" for I truly believe that a City Council is at the core of our democratic institutions. It was through my efforts that San Bruno first began broadcasting of City Council and Planning Commission meetings and I would have never allowed the repeated Brown Act and those other "secret" decision making making meeting to occur while I was on the Council. The price of liberty is indeed eternal vigilance, and quite frankly I am a highly offended by what I see this current Mayor and Council practice against the people of Pacifica who elected them.


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