Former Santa Rosa City Councilman John Sawyer filed official papers Friday in a bid to regain a seat on the council.
Sawyer, co-owner of Sawyer's News until the downtown store closed in 2009, served two consecutive terms, from 2004 to 2012. He served as mayor briefly after Bob Blanchard died.
Sawyer, who for the past two years has been working for a local jeweler as a retail consultant and salesman, said he is eager to get back into public office.
"Public service, at whatever level, is very, very rewarding," he said. "I enjoy it and miss it, so that's why I'm doing it."
When his term ended in 2012, Sawyer made a bid for the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, running against former council colleague Susan Gorin. He narrowly lost a hard-fought campaign to represent east Santa Rosa and the Sonoma Valley.
Sawyer said he's been keeping busy serving on several boards, including those of the Historical Society of Santa Rosa, the Santa Rosa Community Health Centers and the Luther Burbank Home and Gardens Association.
His work on the board of directors of the Santa Rosa Community Health Centers has opened his eyes to the growing role of community clinics in the new health care landscape being forged by the Affordable Care Act.
"I'd never been involved in health care at that level. It was fascinating. I realized that the health center concept is the model of the future," said Sawyer, adding that he's a patient at Vista Family Health Center, a Santa Rosa health centers clinic.
Sawyer joins his former colleague, Lee Pierce, in seeking one of three open seats. Pierce served from 2004 to 2008.
Other declared candidates are Mayor Scott Bartley, who is running to retain his current seat; Planning Commissioner Curtis Byrd; former Press Democrat columnist Chris Coursey; and former Police Chief Tom Schwedhelm.
Sawyer said he hopes to be able to work with the six other council members on perennial issues facing Santa Rosa, including improving the economy, creating jobs, water conservation and other infrastructure-related issues.
"These are things that seem to never quite go away," he said.
Another big task for the council, he said, will be consideration of annexation of west Santa Rosa's Roseland neighborhood.
Also, Sawyer said he does not support district elections for the council.
"I've always been a fan of representing the entire city," he said.
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