DAS: What We Need

[ The following is a Letter to the Editor of the SBN-P, printed on 5/9/2006, by Bob Saffold of "Noleta." ]


Some 40 years ago, Santa Barbara had a city councilman from the second ward named Len Kopeikin. Len was a manager at GE Tempo, a downtown think tank -- a very full-time job. As councilman he acted as if it was his full-time job.

Len was a rare bird. You could practically hear the rest of the council groan when he came in with his usual bundle of papers to press his ward's concerns.

In his second term, he was named assistant secretary of defense. He and his family moved to Virginia. Later, he became a vice president of Boeing. We only had him for six or seven years, but his term was one of the most productive the city's known.

That was a long time ago. I've waited for someone like him to re-appear. Now, however, I live in Noleta, in the 2nd supervisorial district. And the county's situation is pretty desperate.

I've heard all of the candidates. Joe Guzzardi comes across as a very knowledgeable negotiator, and a dedicated candidate. But Das Williams comes closest to Len Kopeikin. He's knowledgeable, bright and, best of all, aggressive -- a trait the 2nd District desperately needs.

Of all the candidates, Mr. Williams has been able to juggle the demands of the council and become savvy about the 2nd District's needs. His leadership in rejecting the ill-advised land use on upper State Street is a good example. Another is his championship of tailoring LAFCO's sphere of influence recommendation.

Because of his efforts, the nearly 2,000 residents of four 2nd District mobile home parks will continue to have rent control. As many of these people are elderly, loss of rent control would have been disastrous.

Das Williams will represent the 2nd District well. He's just what Santa Barbara needs.

Santa Barbara News-Press