Rohnert Park voters head to polls to select two candidates for city council seats

Voters in Rohnert Park in November can pick either a three-time mayor, two veteran planning commissioners or a political newcomer to fill two open seats on their City Council.

Sonoma County’s third-largest city finds itself at a turning point, finally initiating development of a long-desired central downtown at the 32-acre site of the former State Farm Insurance campus south of Rohnert Park Expressway, while also contending with growing housing needs and improving police and fire services. The population is approaching 42,000 people.

The pack of Democrats includes incumbent Councilwoman Pam Stafford, 69, who seeks a fourth term in the position; Gerard Giudice, 56, and Susan Hollingsworth Adams, 60, both looking to elevate from longtime appointments to elected positions; and nonprofit founder Jackie Elward, 39, who’s attempting to break through in her first run for office.

A second seat is open after Councilman Amy Ahanotu, 60, who served as mayor in 2015, decided not to run again, citing increasing commitments with his job at the Redwood Credit Union in Rohnert Park. He was recently promoted to vice president of the branch.

Stafford, who owns an aerobics instruction business and spent this year as mayor, first took a council seat in 2006. Aside from a dozen years on council, she emphasized her overall experience speaking and familiarizing herself with residents after living in Rohnert Park for more than four decades.

“I’m very immersed in Rohnert Park in terms of day-to-day, every day,” said Stafford, acknowledging being mayor is more ceremonial but comes with extra responsibilities. “I’m very visible in the community, partly because of what I do, and I think what I bring is that I get along with people. That helps on a council to have people who get along with others.”

Making deep, and at times, painful cuts in 2009 and 2010 to stabilize the city’s budget and eventually establishing reserves for critical needs is what Stafford said she’s proudest of during her tenure. She thinks it’s changed the way Rohnert Park does business and hopes to continue guiding the city as it approaches its sixth decade in existence.

Adams has witnessed firsthand the majority of Rohnert Park’s transformation from a small farm town during that period, moving as a young child with her family to the city in 1961 - the year before incorporation. After graduating from Rancho Cotate High School, she spent years away for college and a stint living in Novato, but has resided in the city where she has helped run her family’s wholesale insurance firm.

“I’ve spent the balance of my life in Rohnert Park, and really enjoyed serving on the planning commission and shaping the direction of the city,” Adams said. “I’m running to continue that opportunity to advocate for an even better quality of life for Rohnert Park residents.”

In her pursuit of seeing a vibrant downtown come to fruition and applying her financial services background to help keep the city budget in the black, Adams has the backing of Stafford, as well as the outgoing Ahanotu. Stafford and Adams go back some years to days promoting various school bonds, and the mayor said in Ahanotu’s absence that Adams would be “an asset” to council.

Two members of council, Jake Mackenzie and Gina Belforte, have endorsed candidate and longtime restaurateur Gerard Giudice, part owner of Sally Tomatoes in the Sonoma Mountain Village. Giudice, an 18-year resident, has sat on the city’s planning commission for eight of them, in addition to working with the local rotary club and serving on the board of the area nonprofit Social Advocates for Youth.

Developing a downtown is “the singular most important issue” for the city, Giudice said. That needs to include appropriate housing to for seniors, the local workforce and Sonoma State University students, as well as fully incorporate the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit system as a “key foundational piece.” He also said he’d make addressing increasing homelessness in the community and its relation to restoring Rohnert Park’s creek network top priorities.

“The time is at hand to be proactive with regards to this issue,” Giudice said of homelessness. “Many homeless persons live in the creeks and the residents do not feel safe there. We need to make sure (the creeks) are clean and … the paths are operable and presentable, and, most importantly, that they are safe.”

Elward, a native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been a resident of Sonoma County for a decade, including the last 4½ years in Rohnert Park. For the past few years, she’s overseen a small nonprofit for at-risk boys in the war-torn nation, while working as a recess supervisor at the Santa Rosa French-American Charter School, where her children have been enrolled.

She’s been a fast riser and, along with Giudice, garnered the support of the Sonoma County Democratic Party. Elward wants to work to find solutions for balancing real estate developers’ profits with the ability of the city’s working families and seniors to afford homes. If elected, she wants to explore separating the fire and police units of Rohnert Park’s Department of Public Safety to improve its response times and overall effectiveness.

“I see all these things happening and I want to bring change,” Elward said. “If I could bring change in one of the toughest countries on earth, I know I’m capable of doing the job here. I think I am the new voice of Rohnert Park. All I can say is I’m ready.”

You can reach Staff Writer Kevin Fixler at 707-521-5336 or kevin.fixler@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @kfixler.