Tim Rood Throws his Hat into the Ring
Tim Rood announces he will run for City Council
Dear Piedmonter,
You’ve heard from me in the past about civic issues facing Piedmont – most notably, the $2.5 million in taxpayer funds that the City spent to cover cost overruns on the Piedmont Hills utility undergrounding project, as well as issues related to safety, recreation, long-term facility planning, and open, transparent government.
I’m writing today to share some exciting news: I’m running for City Council.
Having been an active, involved resident of Piedmont for years, I’ve realized more and more that the expertise I have would be helpful on the City Council to protect and enhance Piedmont as a high quality city. As a professional city planner with decades of experience working with communities all over the country, I understand the importance of sound financial planning and a robust public process.
I believe securing the City’s long-term financial viability is key to sustaining the services and quality we enjoy.
Over the coming months, I’ll be talking with a lot of Piedmonters and visiting with community groups. I look forward to sharing ideas about how to keep Piedmont a great place to live.
Please take a few moments to visit my website, www.TimRood2012.com, where you can learn more about my views on city government and to let me know what’s important to you. I want to hear what your concerns are and what you think is working well. You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter.
If you find that your views and mine coincide, if you want to keep Piedmont a great place to live, and if you think I have the qualities to make that happen, I’d be honored if you joined my campaign.
There are many ways to get involved, from simply signing up as a supporter, to requesting a yard sign, hosting a meeting, or making a financial contribution. Just go to www.TimRood2012.com and click on “Get Involved” to get started.
And of course, please forward this email to anyone you know who may be interested.
Thanks,
-Tim
Personal Statement – Tim Rood for City Council
After living in Oakland and San Francisco for twelve years, my wife Muffy and I moved our young family to Piedmont in 2002. We were attracted to Piedmont by the high quality public schools, the convenient location, and the attractive, safe and walkable environment. We have found Piedmont to be a great place to raise our family. Our son Henry and daughter Sylvie have participated in baseball, soccer, tennis and the fine music programs at Wildwood and PMS. The fact that they can walk to school or a friend’s house, and that I can bike or take the bus to my office in downtown Oakland, also helps us meet our environmental goals as a one-car family. We enjoy walking our dog Moby in the Piedmont hills, and playing trumpet in the Piedmont Community Band in the Fourth of July parade is one of the highlights of my summer.
Not long after we moved to Piedmont, I was asked to join the board of the Piedmont Swim Club. As an architect and city planner, I was interested in helping with the long-range planning for the pool. Particularly after I was elected president of the board in 2007, the relationships I built with other board members and organizations deepened my desire to be an even more active member of the Piedmont community. Unfortunately, the Swim Club was unable to come to a long-term agreement with the Council to continue the public-private partnership. I’m glad we now have a public pool and that it’s more affordable than ever for swimmers, but I want to see the City take the necessary steps to maintain the aging facility and ensure adequate funding into the future.
In my professional work as a city planner, I’ve worked with city staff, boards and commissions and citizens in over 35 communities to tackle tough long-range planning issues. For example, I led the multi-disciplinary consultant team that prepared the downtown revitalization plan that Martinez adopted in 2006. There, we found common ground among Smart Growth advocates, preservationists and neighbors fearful of displacement. In Healdsburg, we’ve found consensus on a vision for a redeveloping industrial area, changes to major streets and freeway ramps, and two new full-sized, thoroughly modeled roundabouts at the entrance to town. The open, transparent processes I’ve led allowed citizens to work through these difficult issues together and create plans in which the whole community can take pride.Because my professional work involves frequent appearances before Councils, boards and commissions, and because of the time involved in my volunteer work for the Swim Club and school committees, I initially assumed that Piedmont’s government was in the capable hands of knowledgeable and qualified citizens and focused my energies elsewhere. But I got a wake up call in 2009 and 2010. Like many Piedmonters, I was appalled to find that the City had mismanaged a utility undergrounding project so badly that over $2 million in public funds was required to cover cost overruns. I encouraged everyone I knew to speak out about the need for appropriate risk management and more careful stewardship of public funds. I’m concerned that two years later, the Council still hasn’t taken action to address these issues.
Earlier this year, I was approached about running for Council by a group of Piedmont residents with long histories of involvement in civic affairs. After discussing the fiscal and public process issues facing Piedmont, I grew concerned about the work needed to get City finances on a sustainable footing. Without concerted action by the Council, Piedmont is on a course to greater and greater deficits that threaten essential public services, even as the tax burden on families has continued to grow. This concerns me as a taxpayer, a citizen and a parent.
I’m running for Council because I care about Piedmont as a great place to live and raise a family, and I want to protect our community’s future. I care deeply about public involvement, which along with environmental sustainability is the focus of my professional practice. Having led over a hundred community workshops myself, I have seen the difference that an open, inclusive and transparent public process can make. With all the difficult issues facing Piedmont, I believe that I have the skills and energy to be a leader on the Council and help our community protect our future – together.
Tim Rood, Candidate for City Council
(The above announcements were provided by the candidate. The Piedmont Civic Association does not endorse nor oppose candidates.)
We were delighted to learn that Tim Rood is running for Piedmont City Council. Tim has been very active in the Piedmont community, and has extensive professional experience as a city planner. In addition, Tim advocates the start of multi-year city financial planning and taking financial steps to insure that we can continue to enjoy the city services that make our town a wonderful place to live. This will be especially important as Piedmont addresses important financial issues in the next few years, Tim supports long term planning that fosters responsible city development, planned spending, and community project support. Tim would give consideration to everyone’s views on city issues. With two children in Piedmont schools, Tim also would bring to the Council a voice of younger families. We encourage everyone to learn more about Tim, (at TimRood2012.com) meet and talk with him about city issues, and get involved in his campaign. Kathleen Quenneville & Diane Allen
I am writing to encourage all Piedmont residents to seriously consider supporting Tim Rood for City Council. Tim is a neighbor and a friend and eminently qualified for a position on the Piedmont City Council. He is smart, sensible, and has extensive experience in city planning and fiscal management. He comes from the younger demographic in Piedmont and would be a valuable voice of representation on the Council. Tim also believes, as do I, that the city needs professional project management and oversight on its major construction projects, many of which have already been committed to by the city. It would bring me much peace-of-mind to have Tim, a certified city planner with green-design accreditation, keeping watch as Piedmont moves forward into the future. Take a closer look at Tim – look at his experience and his positions on the issues facing the city, ask him questions, and consider supporting Tim Rood for City Council.
Jonathan Ring
Piedmont
As Piedmont looks towards the future, with the shared goal of maintaining the high standard of living that we all enjoy, we believe that the next elected city council person needs to embody certain attributes to be effective: complete transparency, fiscal responsibility, and an open public process. We believe that Tim Rood is the right person for this job.
As a LEED-certified professional city planner, he is an experienced consensus builder and has led dozens of public workshops on controversial planning issues. Tim believes in full reporting of Council actions and that important public meetings should be televised. Tim advocates open town hall meetings to hear public opinion on issues of concern, and recognizes that the City Charter requires all Council actions to be taken by majority vote. Further, he opposes any expenditure of public funds for private benefits.
Tim is thoughtful, diplomatic, and passionate. His experience and perspective will insure that Piedmont continues to thrive.
Tina and Bill Bocheff
Piedmont
I’m pleased to announce the endorsements of Council member Garrett Keating, former mayors Al Peters and Nancy McEnroe, and a majority of the 9-member 2011 Municipal Tax Review Committee: Chair Michael Rancer and members Stephen Weiner, Tamra C. Hege, Ryan Gilbert, and Eric Lindquist.
I’m extremely pleased to report that I’ve been endorsed by The Piedmonter.
“Rood has been outspoken on numerous issues and active in the community….His presence on the council would be a fresh perspective. …His experience as an urban planner would certainly be valuable in upcoming critical decisions facing the city.”
The full endorsement article is at http://www.contracostatimes.com/piedmonter/ci_19728768.
Why I Support Tim Rood
I’m writing to express my support for Tim Rood for City Council because I believe he is the candidate best qualified to handle the challenges facing Piedmont during the next four years. We are on the verge of beginning what is possibly Piedmont’s biggest-ever construction project – Blair Park – and regardless of whether one is for or against that project, nobody wants us to suffer from the problems that occurred in the undergrounding debacle. It’s been two years since that project ended and cost us millions in cost overruns, but the Council has yet to adopt policies that would minimize the City’s risks from such projects in the future. We need someone on the council who understands the complexities of such large-scale projects and the management of the construction process so that the city can avoid repeating its mistakes, and Tim is just that person. He is a registered architect and an urban planner, which would make him singularly qualified on the councilto provide such critical expertise. In addition, Tim’s professional experience and his ability to find common ground among those with differing viewpoints are qualities that would serve Piedmont well, given the varied issues regularly facing the city council.
Please join me in voting for Tim Rood for City Council.
Melanie O. Robertson, AIA
Carson Endorses Rood for Council
Piedmont, California – January 23, 2012 – Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson has endorsed city planner Tim Rood for Piedmont City Council in the February 7, 2012 election.
Rood met with Supervisor Carson and members of his staff on January 17 to discuss Piedmont issues and ways Piedmont can collaborate with County agencies, such as the Alameda County Transportation Commission and StopWaste.org. Following this meeting, Carson asked to be added to Rood’s list of endorsers.
Sup. Carson has represented Piedmont on the Board of Supervisors since 1993 and regularly appears in Piedmont’s annual Fourth of July parade. The Fifth Supervisorial District includes the cities of Albany, Berkeley, Emeryville and Piedmont, as well as neighborhoods in West and North Oakland.
Rood has been a Piedmont resident since 2002 and has been active in civic affairs through school district committees, the Piedmont Civic Association, the Piedmont Swim Club and the League of Women Voters. A certified city planner and licensed architect, Rood has led multi-disciplinary consulting teams and public outreach processes for multiple cities, including Martinez, San Rafael and Healdsburg, and holds a LEED accreditation in green design. His Oakland-based consulting firm, Community Design + Architecture, was the lead consultant for the award-winning Better Streets Plan adopted by the City and County of San Francisco. Rood and his wife Muffy have two children who attended Wildwood from kindergarten and are now both at Piedmont Middle School. More information is available on his campaign website, http://www.TimRood2012.com.
We endorse Tim Rood for City Council, as we believe a professional urban planner and project manager who is focused on responsible fiscal management will be a valuable addition to our City Council.
The decisions by the City Council must focus on long term impacts, and take a multi-year view of our finances. Tim is committed to this sort of perspective, and to having adequate outside, independent, review of the risks of complex projects. Piedmont cannot afford additional “surprises” such as the over $2 million spent on the overruns for the undergrounding project. Tim Rood’s calm, structured, professional approach to decision making would be a critical addition to Piedmont. A majority of the members of the Municipal Tax Review Committee (a formal committee commissioned by the city of Piedmont) have endorsed Tim, recognizing his expertise on these issues, and dedication to fiscal responsibility.
We support Tim’s positions that we need long term financial stability, that it must be a priority to have savings in our budget, and that we need to take a comprehensive view of our budget.
The addition of Tim to our City Council would add an important and thoughtful voice to the process.
Margaret Reiss and Donald Davis
Piedmont residents for over 20 years
We moved to Piedmont, like most young families, for the schools and to live in a safe neighborhood. Until this election, I have remained distant from politics but, since learning about the major financial issues at stake in the February 7 election for City Council, I feel compelled to actively support Tim Rood.
Tim Rood represents a new generation of Piedmonters. He is not part of the old guard and he understands the need for fiscal responsibility and transparency. These beliefs are very important to me since I can’t afford for my property taxes to go up year after year. I was glad to vote for a significant tax increase to support the schools since I have three children and two attend Wildwood Elementary. But my family has reached its limit in supporting ever higher taxes.
All that I ask is for my neighbors to look at the real financial challenges facing Piedmont. Please visit http://www.timrood2012.com <http://www.timrood2012.com> for additional information on Tim. We need his professional skills and civic commitment on the City Council.
Judy Richardson
Grateful. This is the feeling I share with friends and neighbors about living in our fair city: we’re grateful – especially around election time.
For starters, we can register to vote and cast our ballots in relative ease. We’re not threatened, or denied access because of a lack of identification, we simply greet our neighbors, sign in and vote, or mail in our ballots – our choice.
We’re grateful for the terrific group of candidates running for City Council and School Board. Our candidates offer a depth of professional experience, knowledge of the pertinent issues, and a welcome decorum in this close race. They’re a class act.
And there is one candidate that I’m particularly grateful for running and this is Tim Rood, candidate for Piedmont City Council. A professional architect and city planner, Tim has honed his managerial and diplomacy chops in successfully developing and overseeing municipal revitalization projects and neighborhood planning with respect to safety, environmental, aesthetic and historical considerations. Tim has listened to and collaborated with diverse personalities, attitudes, and cultures that make up city councils and neighborhood coalitions around the Bay Area, including San Rafael, Healdsburg, Oakland and Martinez, as well as cities from Oregon to Minnesota. Often bridging the needs of differing and, at times, contentious positions, Tim’s work day includes considering a host of conflicting, urgent and unattainable needs and then forging a workable solution. Mindful that cities work best when its citizens feel listened to, respected and encouraged to participate, Tim brings to Piedmont broad professional experience in managing, revitalizing and growing a city’s resources. I’m grateful Tim Rood is running for Piedmont City Council.
Lastly, I’m grateful that Piedmont welcomes newcomers of all beliefs, ethnicities, and races. It’s what supports our city’s social fabric. And while there are some folks voicing concern over Tim Rood’s relative newcomer status in serving Piedmont, casting his candidacy in dire suspicion, most voters are eager for some fresh ideas backed up by a substantial skill set. Like most municipalities in California, we face some hard challenges and choices these next years with respect to a loss of revenue, increased financial obligations and an aging infrastructure. We need a candidate with Tim Rood’s professional experience to complement the areas of expertise of our current Council members. I invite you to support Tim Rood for Piedmont City Council.
See you at the polls on February 7!
Sincerely,
Denise Bostrom
My wife and I spoke with Tim weeks ago at our doorstep. We are totally opposed to the Blair Park travesty. He is a soccer dad. He is a responsible Piedmont Citizen. He did not agree with us. He only conveyed that the Piedmont approval process has been tainted and flawed. Piedmont needs to be set on a positive and realistic course.
I believe that the whole atmosphere in Piedmont has been poisoned by the proponents of the Blair Park “project.” It is a complete SHAME to our City.
BUT, we support this Gentleman 100%! Piedmont needs him very much; someone to make us honest and fair.
Margaret and Tom Vinson