Residents of Ward 7 have their pick of three very different candidates. Incumbent Damon Alexander vows to keep the city moving in a positive direction. Longtime city fixture James Penman vows to bring his decades of experience to truly move the city in a better direction. And there’s college professor and truthteller Treasure Ortiz, who we have always known to tell it like it is.
As we have in the past, we give our endorsement to Treasure Ortiz.
“I will be transparent about what is happening at City Hall, hold myself and my colleagues accountable for our actions and decisions and will continue to engage, educate and empower our community so they can become active participants in their own government,” she promises.
Her agenda is a practical and necessary one for the city of San Bernardino to move in the right direction. She knows what the city needs to do to uplift the community, spur economic development and help all city residents thrive:
“The city needs to address public safety. We are not a safe city and therefore not a desirable location for higher paying industries to want to come and invest in. Next, we need to invest into the community, we have very talented residents, but we don’t have the trade schools, apprenticeship programs or high school programs to get them ready for the better paying jobs. This investment will also help with public safety, people who have good jobs and higher levels of education tend not to commit crimes. Finally, we are known as a pay-to-pay city, as soon as a developer or business owner comes to town, our elected officials are reaching out for political contributions. Even businesses that are willing to come with our safety issues are immediately turned off by the politics.”
With Treasure Ortiz on the council, we’d expect to see real results on her top priorities of public safety, economic development and addressing homelessness.
The city needs bold leadership on the council. Treasure Ortiz is the one to bring that to San Bernardino.
