Tiger & Lion

[ Excerpt from SBN-P article by Joshua Molina, 10/26/2005 ]

Political opposites share trait: Ambition

Williams, Secord eyeing 2nd District


One is young, energetic and driven. The other is experienced, bold and seasoned.

Das Williams and Dan Secord are in many ways opposites. But they share a characteristic -- ambition -- that is driving them to consider a run for what some consider the most coveted seat in Santa Barbara politics.

Eight months before the 2nd District supervisorial primary, the youngest and oldest members of the Santa Barbara City Council are already engaged in a strategic and tactical game of political jousting in a possible preview of what's ahead: The young tiger versus the old lion for the seat if current Supervisor Susan Rose decides not to run.

... Unlike the shrewd political maneuvering that [currently] exists in the council race, Mr. Williams and Dr. Secord for now are playing a strategic game -- polite, cordial and friendly -- even as they have butted heads in recent weeks over the living wage ordinance before the city of Santa Barbara.

... The city's three-member Finance Committee meetings have been lively and full of surprises. Mr. Williams, elected just two years ago, has brought a new sense of urgency to the meetings.

"I like to react to the energy," Dr. Secord, 68, said of Mr. Williams. "It's kind of like teaching the residents to do surgery. They keep you on your toes. They ask good questions. They don't have a burden of history. They are enthusiastic. It's fun to work with people of different persuasions. Rubbing antlers with young folk is good for one another."

Mr. Williams said he enjoys disagreeing with Dr. Secord because the spats are about the issues and are policy-based.

"Even after one of those bruising Finance Committee meetings, the next day we are in each other's office talking about each other's issues or having a cup of coffee together," Mr. Williams said. "If someone were to make the point that Dr. Secord and I have the same character, I would take that as a compliment. You don't have to guess what kind of people we are because we tell you who we are. And we don't take it personally when we disagree."

The retired physician has long served on the city's Finance Committee, but it wasn't until Mr. Williams, 31, was elected that those meetings turned dynamic.

The back-and-forth exchanges between Mr. Williams and Dr. Secord have spotlighted their distinct styles in approaching the issues. The younger councilman has a legislative style usually reserved for the bigger stage in Sacramento. He's quick to the microphone, always has a clever counterargument for every point he disagrees with and will do his own research to support his positions. He sometimes works behind the scenes to rally support for his issues...

"I like to do it right, not right now," Dr. Secord says. On the living wage issue, he successfully countered Mr. Williams' attempts to speed up the vote on the ordinance...

"What you see is a young man who has got an agenda and has a demonstrable interest in improving the salaries of the working poor," Dr. Secord said.

The councilman said that he doesn't expect Mr. Williams to be "content with being on the council forever."

"Ambition knows no bounds," he said. "My question would then become: 'In what way does the shepherding of a minimum wage ordinance through the council at the highest level in the country prepare you for the next task?'"

At Tuesday's finance committee meeting, the two went at it briefly. When Dr. Secord referred to the living wage as a minimum wage, Mr. Williams corrected him, pointing out that a minimum wage is the floor amount for all workers, while a living wage is a target amount for a small number of workers.

Later, at the full council meeting, the political posturing kicked into high gear. Both Dr. Secord and Mr. Williams gave eloquent speeches about the importance of people working together to achieve common goals, particularly in the area of reducing traffic congestion.

Although the early list of potential candidates for 2nd District supervisor also includes former Goleta school board member Janet Wolf and 1990s Santa Barbara City Council member David Landecker, the existing officeholders have stronger bases and name recognition...

Mr. Williams has built a reputation as the most liberal and progressive member of the City Council, taking environmental stances and calling for the preservation of open space on several occasions. On the council, he has publicly professed his desire to preserve the Las Positas valley -- a neighborhood in the 2nd District targeted for housing.

While he advocates for affordable housing, he said it belongs in the downtown core, close to bus stops and not on existing open space.

Mr. Williams said he knows that passing a living wage isn't an issue that will unite the 2nd District, but that he wants to deliver on a campaign promise.

"What is a bigger issue is that every week, or every other week, the North County supervisors pass or repeal more protections on our environment and quality of life, and that's become an emergency-level problem, because as we saw in the '90s, a pro-growth board can quickly approve many projects and many structural changes to the planning process that will help make this place another Orange County," he said.

Dr. Secord, a member of the California Coastal Commission, the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments and other regional boards, said he would be "fine" running against Mr. Williams, if that transpired.

Mr. Williams said he, too, would welcome a race against Dr. Secord, but only if Ms. Rose doesn't run.

"It would be a very clean contest fought on the issues, not personality," he said, "because he and I have a lot of respect for one another. Between he and I, we have enough personal honor to keep it clean."


Political opposites share trait: Ambition

2nd District seat

[ Excerpt from SBN-P article by Barney McManigal, 10/25/2005 ]

... For a political contest with no declared candidates, next year's race for 2nd District Supervisor is generating some serious buzz.

As incumbent Supervisor Susan Rose waits until after the Nov. 8 election to announce her re-election plans, at least four local politicos have quietly hit the campaign trail, schmoozing at parties and meeting neighbors in case Ms. Rose decides to leave the Board of Supervisors.

So far, former Goleta school board Trustee Janet Wolf, former Santa Barbara City Councilman David Landecker, and sitting Councilmen Dan Secord and Das Williams have hinted they may enter the June 2006 contest for the coveted post.

The mostly suburban seat stretches from the harbor to Goleta and offers an $81,000 annual salary -- one of the highest in the county for elected officials.

Serving as a stepping stone to higher office for many local leaders, the five-member board is technically nonpartisan, but it frequently splits along party lines.

Since January, the panel has been dominated by Republicans Brooks Firestone, Joni Gray and Joe Centeno, three property rights advocates from the North County's 3rd, 4th and 5th districts, who have inflamed environmentalists with their positions on land use and natural resources...

"If I don't run, I certainly care about who follows me and that they share my values," [Rose] said.

But finding her replacement could be tricky. The two-term veteran has had trouble balancing the demands of affordable housing advocates -- who want to build subsidized homes in the unincorporated eastern Goleta Valley -- and neighbors who want to stop them...

"My heart goes out to the people of Goleta and the unincorporated area who will be the target of this trend toward development," said Mr. Williams, a political newcomer who asserted that he has fought hardest on the council to protect neighborhoods...

Mr. Earle praised Mr. Williams as "intelligent" and "engaging" but suggested his political affiliations may create hurdles in the neighborhood. Although Mr. Williams has fought development during his two years on the Santa Barbara City Council, the populist and activist has close ties with affordable housing proponents.

"There's an impression in the Goleta Valley that he's glued at the hip with the housing advocates," Mr. Earle said.

Mr. Williams defended his support for groups such as the Santa Barbara County Action Network and PUEBLO -- which advocate for low-income residents -- even as he pledged to fight for Noleta neighborhoods.

He said he could bring the often discordant groups together.

"I would consider it my role to have SBCAN, PUEBLO and (the coalition) at the same table," said Mr. Williams, who described Noleta adversaries as North County developers, not housing advocates.

"If we are rent by divisions, then we might as well let North County development interests destroy us and destroy our communities, because that's what is going to happen."

... All of the potential candidates except Dr. Secord said they would make their decisions following Ms. Rose's announcement, planned for a week or two after the Nov. 8 mayoral and City Council races.

If the winner in the June election fails to capture 51 percent of the vote, the top two contenders will face each other in a November runoff...

Quartet creating buzz over 2nd District seat

No Vote on LW before 11/8

[ Excerpt from SBN-P article by Joshua Molina, 10/21/2005 ]

... In a setback for its advocates, a living wage ordinance will not go to the Santa Barbara City Council for a vote before the Nov. 8 election.

The three-member Finance Committee met Thursday and approved an outline for examining the fiscal effects of the ordinance. City staff will now take about three weeks to answer questions about potential financial impacts to the city and contractors who bid for city jobs.

Advocates for a living wage had hoped the matter would go to the full council before the Nov. 8 election to force the three members running for re-election to vote on the issue.

City Councilman Das Williams, a living wage supporter whose term is not up, said it was also his goal to have the full council vote on the matter by the election.

"I think it is a shame," Mr. Williams said. "I am disappointed. From my perspective, everybody has known what the wage level has been for about seven weeks -- since it was decided by the ordinance committee. I don't feel like very much work has been done in the meantime.

"Election or no, the living wage's time has come. Santa Barbarans want to do something about poverty."

The city staff plans to examine the financial effects of a living wage ordinance that would require companies receiving $15,000 or more in service contracts with the city to pay a wage of $14, $12 or $11 per hour, depending on what benefits are offered. That's a scaled-back version of the original proposal by the advocates and approved by the Ordinance Committee this summer...

The analysis will also look at living wage ordinances in other cities, enforcement of the ordinance and a series of other details...

City Council will not vote on living wage before Nov. 8

Chamber Opposes Living Wage

[ Excerpt from SBN-P article by Joshua Molina, 10/19/2005 ]

Chamber opposes living wage

... Political scuffling over a possible Santa Barbara living wage ordinance took a new turn Tuesday as the head of the Chamber of Commerce spoke against the proposal.

Steve Cushman, executive director of the Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce, told the three-member Finance Committee that the living wage ordinance will hurt businesses... He said he was encouraged to attend the meeting at City Hall by council members Brian Barnwell, Iya Falcone and Dan Secord, opponents of the original living wage proposal, and several chamber businesses...

The latest proposed ordinance calls for companies that have service contracts with the city for at least $15,000 to pay a wage of $14, $12 and $11 per hour. That's a scaled-back version of the original proposal by the advocates, approved by the Ordinance Committee this summer...

Councilman Das Williams, a member of the Finance Committee, repeatedly expressed his frustration with the lack of fiscal analysis provided... "We have been doing a very good job of running down the clock. I still want to talk about a living wage..."

Some suspect that council members running for re-election don't want to vote on the matter until after the Nov. 8 ballot.

... Mr. Augustino suggested that Mr. Barnwell was unfairly influencing the discussion.

"I know that the Brown Act requires that he does not speak, but there have been a number of facial expressions and body language that indicates his feeling on a number of issues," Mr. Augustino said.

Daraka Larimore-Hall, a spokesman for Santa Barbara for a Living Wage, the coalition pushing the proposal, said members of the coalition are upset with the delay and the positions of some of the council members.

"Brian Barnwell's position is confused and ill-advised and not based on any real data," Mr. Larimore-Hall said. "We certainly hoped for a lot better from Iya Falcone given that she chaired the ordinance committee. Why isn't she working to keep things on track? The same goes for Brian (Barnwell), who is now publicly an opponent of the living wage for completely spurious reasons."

Chamber opposes living wage

Velvet Jones' sign

[ Excerpt from SBN-P, article by Joshua Molina, 10/19/2005 ]

City Council nixes Velvet Jones' sign

... In no uncertain terms, the council said that the sign is ugly and doesn't belong on State Street. The vote was 6-0, with Councilman Dan Secord absent.

The city doesn't allow marquees with interchangeable letters except for theater marquees, business directories, church and museum signs, gas price signs and restaurant menus...

"I love punk rock," said Councilman Das Williams. "But punk rock and burlesque does not a theater make."

...

City Council nixes Velvet Jones' sign

Fight Over Living Wage

[ Excerpt from SBN-P, 10/11/2005, by Joshua Molina ]

... The high-stakes battle over the living wage ordinance intensified Monday as Santa Barbara Councilman Das Williams pushed for the proposal to go to the full City Council before the Nov. 8 election.

At a Finance Committee meeting packed with activists and six members of the City Council, Mr. Williams, a longtime supporter of living wage ordinances, quarreled with colleague Dan Secord, an adamant opponent of such laws, on why the matter was moving so slowly and whether there was a deliberate attempt to avoid council action before the election.

"It seems to me that this whole process is extremely slow," said a frustrated Mr. Williams. "I am really not certain why it is taking so long to get an analysis of the costs."

The meeting, which was held in a back room of City Hall and was not televised, was also highlighted by Dr. Secord snapping at living wage organizer Lisa Tarin Pompa twice, causing Mr. Williams to step in and defend her and the public's right to speak at the meetings.

When Ms. Pompa suggested to the committee that the council earlier in the year promised the living wage would go before the council for a vote before the election, Dr. Secord cut her off: "We didn't make that promise and you know it."

The statement from the retired physician prompted Mr. Williams to step in, telling Dr. Secord, "it is totally inappropriate for you to interrupt during public comment."

On the surface, what is at issue is a proposed living wage ordinance that would require companies that have service contracts of $15,000 or more with the city to pay their employers a so-called living wage.

But underneath it all, multiple interests are playing a political chess game either to stall or hasten the vote on the proposed living wage...

Throughout the meeting, Mr. Williams kept trying to clarify the living wage proposal and suggested that opponents were trying to purposely muddle the issue to confuse voters into thinking it would cost more than it will.

As it stands now, the living wage would not apply to city employees... The inclusion of hourly employees fueled part of the sparring between Mr. Williams and Dr. Secord.

... over the summer, Ms. Falcone and Mr. Barnwell, who serve on the city's three-member Ordinance Committee, voted for a scaled-back version [of the ordinance], dropping the numbers to $14, $12 and $11. Ms. Schneider voted no. The wages drop depending on whether health benefits and days off are included in the employment package.

Councilman Williams was further disappointed that after he had pushed last week for a special Monday meeting, Dr. Secord, chairman of the committee, held the meeting for only one hour. After running out of time, Mr. Williams managed to convince Councilman Roger Horton to vote with him to schedule a three-hour meeting sometime in the next nine working days to discuss the living wage. He wants the matter to go before the full council ideally on Oct. 25...

Fight over living wage heats up before election

Pushing the LW Vote

[ Excerpt from the SBN-P, 10/10/2005 ]

... The high-stakes battle over Santa Barbara's controversial living wage ordinance intensified today as Councilman Das Williams pushed for the seven-member council to take up the matter before the Nov. 8 election, amid resistance from Councilman Dan Secord.

On the surface, it would appear the issue is simply whether companies that have service contracts of $15,000 or more with the city should be forced to pay their employees a "living wage."

Underneath it all is a shrewd game of politics, pitting those who want to force a vote prior to the competitive council race -- in which three seats are up for grabs -- against those who would rather let the new council decide...

Williams pushes vote on living wage>

Fund for SB

[ Excerpt from "On The Town," 10/9/2005, by Lorraine D. Wilson, SBN-P ]

The 25th anniversary of The Fund for Santa Barbara was a look back at where the nonprofit organization started and the progress it has made over the years.

The Fund has awarded grants to more than 600 organizations doing grass-roots community work in Santa Barbara. For emerging nonprofits, the fund also, in addition to the grant, provides technical assistance and advice, including help with nonprofit management, fundraising, community organizing and effective media involvement. Money is not all we offer because, without the resources, the groups are not as effective, explained Geoff Greene, executive director...

Lots of local political support included U.S. Rep. Lois Capps, popular with the audience, Assemblyman Pedro Nava, county supervisors Salud Carbajal and Susan Rose, Mayor Marty Blum, and Santa Barbara city council members Roger Horton, Helene Schneider, Das Williams and Iya Falcone.

The theme (used each year) of "Bread and Roses" harks back to 1912 when 25,000 textile workers, mostly immigrant women, left the mills in Massachusetts to strike for decent wages (Bread) and dignity (Roses), a movement that helped bring about change in working conditions.

ON THE TOWN: Lorraine D. Wilson

Living Wage Oct. Vote 2

[ Excerpt from SBN-P article, 10/5/2005, by Joshua Molina: ]

Activists hammered City Hall on Tuesday, calling on the City Council to vote on a living wage ordinance before voters go to the polls Nov. 8.

"Some people may be trying to delay it because of their election concerns," said Santa Barbara Councilman Das Williams. "We promised it in late September and we are now in October, and we should fulfill our promise as much as logistically possible."

Mr. Williams called for a special meeting of the city's three-member finance committee on Monday to press forward on the living wage with the goal of getting the measure to the full council for a vote on Oct. 25 at the latest.

Councilman Roger Horton said he is in no rush to get the matter before the council. The other incumbent running for re-election, Councilwoman Iya Falcone, does not support the $15.40 an hour without benefits proposed by the living wage activists. She has agreed publicly to $14 an hour... over the summer, Ms. Falcone and Councilman Brian Barnwell, who serve on the city's three-member ordinance committee, voted for a scaled-back version of the ordinance, dropping the numbers to $14, $12 and $11.

The latest version of the ordinance also exempts nonprofit organizations that have service contracts with the city -- a move the activists believe could lead to businesses creating shell nonprofits to bid on city contracts.

Some members of the coalition believe there is an effort to delay the decision until after the election for political reasons.

"We have been fighting this fight for five years," said Daraka Larimore-Hall, pointing to efforts to pass a living wage dating to 2001...

The committee, made up of Mr. Williams, Mr. Horton and Councilman Dan Secord, was scheduled to set up a timeline for discussing the financial implications of the living wage. Mr. Williams called for a speedy review, but his colleagues were less insistent.

"I will need however long it takes to get things together and understand it before I can proceed," Mr. Horton said after the meeting. "My desire is to get it right, not get it quick. I hope people understand that is my position. I am a guy who tries to make the best decisions for the city and the community."

Later at the City Council meeting, Dr. Secord made similar comments. He said the matter is a serious issue and there is a lot of data to examine. Ms. Falcone was absent, attending a conference in San Francisco...

Living wage supporter Harley Augustino said the city should not let the matter languish.

"It was laid out with the assumption that this was going back to the council by the middle of October," Mr. Augustino said. "Please, no election posturing and move this on."

Advocates pressure City Hall on wage

Living Wage Oct. Vote 1

[ Excerpt from SBN-P, 10/4/2005: ]

Living wage advocates tell council 'Keep your word'


Backers of a "living wage ordinance" in Santa Barbara took their cause to City Hall for a lunchtime media event today.

"It's time to pass a fair and enforceable living wage ordinance," said the Rev. Mark Asman, one of several clergy involved in the Santa Barbara for a Living Wage coalition...

Joining the group was Councilman Das Williams, a member of the city Finance Committee, which was meeting at 1 p.m. today to establish a timeline for looking at how the living wage would affect the city's coffers. Mr. Williams said he'd push for prompt consideration.


Living wage advocates tell council 'Keep your word'

Living Wage Oct. Vote

[ Excerpt from SBN-P, 10/4/2005: ]

SANTA BARBARA -- Representatives from the Santa Barbara for a Living Wage coalition want the City Council to vote on an ordinance on Oct. 18 rather than waiting until after the Nov. 8 election.

The city's three-member finance committee, made up of Das Williams, Roger Horton and Dan Secord, is scheduled to set up a timeline for analyzing the fiscal effects of the proposed ordinance today...

But advocates for the living wage want the matter to go before the council in October, as promised by the council when it approved the concept of a living wage ordinance back in July.

Daraka Larimore-Hall, a spokesman for the group supporting the ordinance, said any effort to delay the vote raises serious questions about the motivations of the council.

"It can't be coincidental that there are people who are worried about re-election and know that this is a hot-button issue," Mr. Larimore-Hall said...


[ SBN-P Full Text:
In Brief ]

Otters Off Our Coast

[ Excerpt from SBN-P Editorial, 10/2/2005 by Travis Armstrong: ]

TRAVIS ARMSTRONG: The value of otters off our coast


Perhaps Santa Barbara City Council's greenest member can pull it off.

It will take Das Williams' energy to get the city government to throw out a shameful resolution that basically says California sea otters have no business in the waters off Santa Barbara.

The resolution has been on the books since 1999. It was one of those anti-environmental stands the city staff tries to push through with hopes that the public doesn't notice.

Recall earlier this year when Mr. Williams and Councilwoman Helene Schneider got the council to support federal critical habitat protections for steelhead trout in the upper Santa Ynez River. The staff's original letter recommended against the designation.

Or recall in 2004 when the Harbor Department issued an unbalanced report against a state bill to end destructive commercial bottom trawling off our coast...

With the sea otter, this means sea urchin fishermen in the past have been able to exert too much influence over City Hall. Mr. Williams, though, has taken up the otters' cause.

And just in time, Defenders of Wildlife has issued a study finding that expanding the sea otter population south of Point Conception would lead to "significant benefits to Santa Barbara and Ventura counties from an increase in tourism, recreation-related incomes and jobs."

More sea otters off Santa Barbara, for example, would result in between 56 and 256 direct jobs in our area.

The numbers are impressive and are good enough to counter the cries from urchin hunters that otters have no place here because they cause economic harm. In a broader sense, though, the numbers ought not matter whatsoever.

California sea otters, once hunted to near extinction, belong off of Santa Barbara. They have an intrinsic value that you can't put a dollar amount on. Their worth goes beyond tourism or human amusement...


CITY HALL RUMBLINGS

With word spreading that Councilman Williams may run for 2nd District county supervisor in 2006, it's time to begin asking what would happen with his vacated council seat if he wins. Will the fourth place finisher in the Nov. 8 council election get the nod? (There are three seats up for grabs in the race).

Politically ambitious Mr. Williams would be wise to go for the county job in 2006 or 2010, before he terms out of his council position.

If Mr. Williams can reach out to Noletans, he'd have a clear shot at defeating Supervisor Susan Rose, a former recall target scrambling to make amends with constituents her office has alienated over the last two years.

City Hall folks already are speculating about a possible showdown in the 2009 mayoral race between Councilwomen Iya Falcone and Helene Schneider, two pols Mr. Williams would have a hard time defeating for mayor.

[ SBN-P full text:
TRAVIS ARMSTRONG: The value of otters off our coast ]