Meet Nancy Barba, Candidate For City Council Of Culver City

CULVER CITY, CA — Nancy Barba is vying for one of three seats up for election on Culver City's City Council.

Voters in the Nov. 5 election will decide between seven candidates running for the three seats.

Learn more about Barba's goals for Culver City:

Education

• B.S., Business Administration, California State University, Long Beach
• Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional Operations and Maintenance
• Certified Green Building Professional
• Certified GreenPoint Advisor

Occupation: energy and decarbonization program director

Family: Husband and elementary-school-age child, two dogs, a goldfish and a large extended family

Age: 46

Have you ever held public office, whether appointive or elective?

I have not previously run for public office. I was appointed to and served on:

• Culver City Finance Advisory Committee
• Culver City Planning Commission (chair)

I have been elected to the following organizational and community leadership roles:

• Sierra Club West LA Group, management group, vice chair
• Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Executive Committee, at-large
• Rancho Higuera Neighborhood Association Board, member
• MOMS Club of Culver City East

What do you think are the top three issues for Culver City voters in this election, and how do you plan to address them?

Address our housing and homelessness crisis:

• We need plentiful housing, and especially much more affordable housing for individuals, couples, families, and households of different compositions and sizes.
• Create more permanent housing facilities like Project Homekey
• Support the construction of extremely low, very low and low-income homes to address years of non-investment
• Ensure smooth and rapid affordable housing development processes in the city Planning Department

Further our climate adaptation via mobility and transportation:

• Increasing mobility options
• Make our streets safer for all modes of transportation–walking, biking, driving, taking public transit
• Build out a robust network of dedicated bus lanes, protected bike lanes, improved pedestrian amenities
• Preserve the "first-last mile" connection to the Culver City E-Line Metro station
• Address mobility needs in densely populated areas like Fox Hills
• Seek funding to transform major corridors like Sepulveda/Jefferson with dedicated bus and bike facilities

Foster a fiscally responsible and care-centered budgeting process:

• Address the current city budget shortfalls with updated, bottom-up, fiscal planning
• Shift to a community-informed process
• Listen to staff recommendations for additional revenue sources, and explore hiring grant writers/a coordinator to provide support across departments
• Advocate for care-centered budgeting to prioritize community well-being over criminalization
• Address over-criminalization and racial profiling by reallocating funds from armed to unarmed responses
• Implement Care First, Jail Last strategies for health and racial justice
• Expand access to the Mobile Crisis Team (MCT) to weekends and evenings

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you'd succeed on the council?

My vision is one of housing creation, job creation, resilient economy and living wages for the Culver City community.

I would be the first Latina to serve Culver City as a council member despite the fact that 18 percent of residents identify as Hispanic. I will serve Culver City as a data-informed, community-focused policy maker with a clear vision of the sustainable place our city can become.

In my career as a climate professional and as an environmental organizer, my approach is informed by a "solutionary" philosophy. I believe our community can recognize and bring to light unsustainable and unjust systems, and that we can develop solutions to the problems we must address to create a healthy and equitable city, and to do the most good and least harm for people and the environment.

I plan to practice data-informed policymaking with a clear vision for the thriving and sustainable place our city can become, and this is what I would bring to our City Council, if elected.

In my professional life, I am a director and results-driven leader at a company working with government and utility clients to deliver building decarbonization, energy efficiency programs and strategic funding guidance to address California's decarbonization goals.

My expertise regarding sustainability is what led to my service as a Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Executive Committee member and West LA Sierra Club Chapter management group member. I also have valuable experience as a member of the city’s Finance Advisory Committee and as a Culver City Planning Commissioner.

What’s the best advice anyone gave you?

It's okay to make mistakes and we learn more from failure than we do from success.

Who is someone that inspires you and why?

I am privileged to be mentored and coached by some of the most inspiring leaders professionally and in my volunteer community work. One person whom I admire is my current supervisor. She has broken many barriers, from owning her own business in a male-dominated field, to paving the way for women and people of color to take on leadership roles. Her compassion, growth mindset, and patience inspire me to be the best leader possible. Her ability to listen, reflect, and change her point of view reminds me that we are always growing and learning, and that we can always do better.

Is there anything else you’d like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I am a mom, wife, professional, and community volunteer who believes in data-driven solutions. I am a climate leader, a housing advocate, and an equity champion dedicated to improving life for all. If elected, I will be the first Latina and seventh woman elected to the Culver City Council in 117 years.

I am a climate practitioner, housing advocate, equity champion, and there are reasons for this. I am a proud Latina from a family of hard-working Mexican immigrants. I grew up in South Central LA, and was bussed to Sherman Oaks as part of the effort to desegregate LAUSD schools. My single mom did her best for me and my three siblings with her income as a seamstress, which she earned working full time, plus nights, and most weekends.

Because of my background, it is no surprise that I am an equity champion. I have consistently spoken up for care-centered budgeting in Culver City since my time serving on the Finance Advisory Committee. Research, literature and policy tells us that funding focused on the care and safety of our community, rather than criminalization, produces the best outcomes.

Please see my campaign website for more info about what makes me a unique candidate.