Pleasanton Election Focuses On Taxes, Water, Crime & More

PLEASANTON, CA — A lot of candidates are talking about a lot of different issues in Pleasanton this election.

Three seats are open, with two candidates running for each. Mayor Karla Brown is defending her seat against Councilmember Jack Balch. In District 2, Councilmember Valerie Arkin is defending her seat against former Interim Pleasanton Police Department Chief Craig Eicher, and in District 4, Deputy District Attorney and Planning Commission Chair Matt Gaidos is running against tech executive Vivek Mohan.

The 2024 election is centered around a number of pressing issues, including a ballot measure to increase the sales tax, public safety, water supply, economic development, and affordability.

Measure PP, also known as the “Pleasanton Essential Services Protection Measure,” is a controversial ballot measure that proposes placing a half-cent sales tax on items sold in the city, increasing the tax from 10.25% to 10.75 percent. Proponents say the tax increase is necessary to avoid sweeping cuts to address a $10.7 million budget shortfall, which could reach close to $16 million by 2030. Opponents argue that the city needs to cut all possible spending before passing on the bill to voters already strapped from inflation. The city has already made over $2.5 million in cuts.

Proponents include Brown, Arkin, and Gaidos, though Gaidos said he is voting for it reluctantly.

“This is a decision that the voters should decide to keep Pleasanton the wonderful place it is today or give us the mandate to make significant cuts to services and maintenance across the city,” Brown wrote in a Patch questionnaire. “Measure PP will also help to fund our aging infrastructure and equipment such as fire trucks, repairing leaky roofs, replacing aging water and sewer pipes, and keeping our public parks in quality shape.

“If passed, this will help preserve the programs and services that our residents and businesses value in our community,” Arkin wrote.

“Raising my taxes isn’t something that I like to do or I want to do,” Gaidos said in a candidates forum hosted by Pleasanton Weekly, where he said he would be voting in favor of the measure. “But I ask you to compare the amenities … that we have in Pleasanton and what it would mean for us to be able to continue keeping our reserves and make your own informed decision.”

Mohan and Eicher came out strongly against the measure. Balch voted against putting it on the ballot, though he said in a candidates forum that he is unsure how he will vote. All three candidates said the city needed to explore other cost-cutting measures first.

“Our city is at a crossroads, grappling with the financial strain of increased spending without making the hard choices necessary to live within our means,” Balch said in a Patch questionnaire. “This means detailed but understandable information on our fiscal health, fully evaluating the long-term impacts of our decisions for investment in Pleasanton to improve vitality, improve our tax base, and deliver the services and amenities our community desires while looking to what costs we can constrain to manage our bottom line.”

“The City has an aggressive 5 year strategic plan with a lot of new spending associated with it that existing revenue cannot support, resulting in the Council majority to seek a 1⁄2 cent sales tax to offset the new spending,” Eicher wrote. “With inflation in the double digits, government should not be increasing their spending. I will advocate for a balanced budget with no new additional taxes, reduce spending by delaying infrastructure projects that can be completed on a less aggressive timeline.”

“We need to get our fiscal house in order before asking our citizens to give more of their hard-earned money,” Mohan wrote. “Our prosperity and rising home values have increased our tax revenues to where we bring in $220M in annual tax revenue ($150+ mn in General Budget). Cutting out waste, eliminating redundancies and expanding tax revenues from businesses should be our first order of business. A tax increase is the worst solution, and to compound the problem the proposal seems to lack the awareness of the financial pinch everyone is feeling right now with inflation.”

Maintaining a healthy supply of clean, potable, affordable water remains an ongoing topic of debate in Pleasanton. The city recently raised water rates substantially over the course of three years to restore a diminishing Water Enterprise Fund, treat PFAs, and fund future capital improvement projects related to drinking supply. The city also closed down all its wells out of concerns for PFAs, and now gets all its water from the Zone 7 Water Agency for higher prices. All candidates said more research is needed to figure out the best way to get safe, affordable water.

“I’m committed to ensuring Pleasanton’s water supply is secure and sustainable. We must continue to explore alternative water sources with our regional partners while working to address our PFAS challenges we face, either with the new wells on the West side of town, or one of the other contingency plans we have tentatively explored,” said Balch, who voted against the rate increase.

“Closing down 3 wells, each with their own 3 pumps, meant additional pressure was needed to balance the system throughout Pleasanton. Some pipe modifications and upgrades were required, so the city spent $12.8 million improving our water distribution system and balancing the water flow pressure,” said Brown, who voted for the rate increase, and noted her objection to highly processed wastewater as a possibility.

“The city is addressing infrastructure needs with our water system as well. I will continue to keep this as a priority as we progress on these initiatives as clean and safe drinking water is an important responsibility of our city,” said Arkin, who voted in November against rate increases ranging between 44 and 60% spread out over three years.

“I want the city to collaborate closely with stakeholders and regional partners identifying ways to work together to reduce costs and improve outcomes without delay,” said Eicher. “Our elected’s have known about the water issues Pleasanton is experiencing for years and has been slow to address this priority for our community. The residents deserve a well thought out and detailed plan of action to improve our water situation in both the short and long term.”

“I am currently working with experts from Zone 7 to educate myself and leveraging my relationships with other local and national elected officials to try to secure funding to address the future water issues,” said Gaidos.

In a candidate forum, Mohan also said that he agrees that the problem should have been addressed long ago, and criticized the rate hike process for what he said was a lack of transparency.

All candidates said the city needs to fund its police and emergency services, which faced staffing shortages over the past year. Eicher, a former police chief and captain, said that crime is on the uptick, and staffing shortages and inadequate pay are to blame.

“Due to long-standing staffing shortages city is experiencing a reduction of staffing in specialized units (i.e. traffic) and increased emergency response times. Criminal activity has been on the uptick and in many instances, crimes are no longer being documented because they have a low probability of being prosecuted,” he said, a position Mohan also took.

On housing, Balch voiced support for development in East Pleasanton, while Brown is more reticent. Arkin advocated partnering with a nonprofit to build affordable housing, while Eicher advocated housing in District 2, and housing for teachers and first responders.

See here to hear more from each of the candidates, and here to learn about other issues on the Pleasanton ballot. See here to watch all the above candidates in a forum hosted by Pleasanton Weekly.