Concord City Council candidate questions: Hope Johnson
The Concord Clayton Pioneer newspaper presented a list of questions to the candidates running for Concord City Council in the 2020 election for District 2. To read other candidate answers, click here. For our story on all the candidates running in this race, click here.
Hope Johnson
Age: 54.
Current occupation: Senior paralegal.
How long have you lived in Concord? I grew up in Concord in what is now part of District 2 and currently have lived here for seven years.
Personal information: I live in North Concord in the home where I grew up, with my two cats Emmy and Curtis. I enjoy kickboxing, sci-fi movies and literature, 90 percent dark chocolate, music from Mozart to Metallica and collecting art.
Why do you want to serve on the Concord City Council? Over the last four years, a progressive movement has been building across the country – led largely by young people who want to build a secure future for themselves. In my 2016 campaign for council, I advocated for many of the ideas the current progressive movement wants to embrace. I want to serve on the council to bring this progressive voice to the discussion to help reset public policy to priorities that improve quality of life for and provide equity to working class people and underserved communities.
I am not advocating to pull people to a radical left. Public policy has been skewed toward the wealthy and privileged for so long that we have started to view that position as the middle. The current heightened awareness of the issues I was trying to address four years ago to bring equity to all communities is only the first step. We must now change the decision-makers to ones with the political will to challenge the old positions and vote accordingly.
Empower people: For a long time now, the Concord City Council has blocked progressive ideas for solving issues – especially issues affecting the most vulnerable residents of Concord. I want to empower the people of District 2 and offer them an opportunity to participate in public policy and decisions affecting their lives.
Advocacy: I grew up in what is now Concord’s District 2 and have advocated at City Hall for years for our area to have its own voice in its own development. This is the first time we get to elect our own representative in District 2, where, historically, council members have allowed big money special interests to suppress our voice. Big money special interests don’t want me to have a real vote for the people of District 2, but I hope my known advocacy for our area has earned the trust of the people.
Balance issues: I will focus on issues the Concord council has failed to negotiate for the people, some that are badly needed during the current global health emergency. Specifically, funding more care for communities; legislating tenants’ rights; advocating for working-class families, seniors, LGBTQIA+ and youth; bring living wage jobs; investing in solutions for equitable public safety; investing in affordable housing and public transit; and pursuing responsible development downtown and at the Naval Weapons Station, including creating equitable green space and thorough toxic substance cleanup.
What experience or training do you have that qualifies you to make decisions for the city? I completed all of my grade school education in North Concord, graduating from Mt. Diablo High School. I am very familiar with Concord’s history and success and failures with development. I hold a bachelor’s in psychology from UCLA. I have more than 20 years of experience working as a paralegal/legal analyst, so I am very detail-oriented and experienced with the substantive review of complex materials. I have demonstrated an ability to understand council’s review of matters through my public and written comments over the last six years. For 10 years, I lived in San Francisco and was involved in local politics – including covering government meetings and political campaigns via an opinion column for a well-read news blog. I was chair of San Francisco’s Sunshine Ordinance Task Force. I am very familiar with the workings of local government and the responsibilities of elected officials.
What engagement have you had in civic affairs? Do you regularly attend City Council meetings? My legal analysis experience is needed on the council to enhance discussion through a better level of understanding of subject materials, leading to avoiding failure to act using the excuse of potential lawsuits. We need to restore ethics and trust in government, and my willingness to serve as chair of San Francisco’s Sunshine Task Force proves I will hold elected colleagues and city staff accountable. I have a long history of attending City Council and committee meetings. I understand the nature of the job and the amount of time required to do it, and I am always informed and prepared to participate when I arrive. Members of the public, council, Planning Commission and city staff are familiar with my substantive engagement at City Hall.
I have applied for positions on commissions and boards; however, the council has refused to provide North Concord with adequate representation among appointed positions. Very few residents from Districts 2 and 3 are appointed. It has become clear our only option to be included in negotiations is through electing a representative.
My experience with development of former military bases makes me uniquely qualified to deal with oversight of the development of the Naval Weapons Station.
What do you see as the three most important issues immediately facing Concord and how do you plan to address those issues? Concord budget: Correct the budget by rethinking outdated budgeting allocation, including auditing the large amount of general funds given to the police department, in order to determine a better way to invest equitably in all departments and service-based organizations that will improve the quality of life for all communities.
Affordable housing and economic development: The pandemic is going to worsen accessibility to secure housing, displacing individuals from their communities and children from their schools, and it’s going to take away traditional jobs needed for the economic development of Concord. No one person alone knows the solution. I would bring together local business leaders, community organizers, affordable housing developers, and experts in racial equity to strategize revitalization efforts and ways to fund those efforts, such as public banks.
Downtown and Naval Weapons Station development: I will pursue responsible development at the Naval Weapons Station, using Concord’s second chance to ethically select a trustworthy developer that works with unions. I will attain environmental justice by pushing the council to ensure the Navy cleans up toxic substances and requires fair distribution of benefits and burdens, including equitable green space. I will push to preserve the character of downtown by investing in its historical buildings and restoring ignored indigenous landmarks and culture.
What are your priorities in making public policy? Determine what is the best course of action to maintain and improve all of Concord, including regularly required maintenance. Discuss solutions that balance investment equitably through all departments and service-based organizations to improve quality of life for all communities. Sustainable and consistent decisions across issues that do not contradict each other. People over profits.
How much would you say the city’s budget deficit is? How would you close the gap? Last month, city staff reported the General Fund deficit would be approximately $8.5 million starting fiscal year 2021-’22 and grow to approximately $45 million by fiscal year 2027-’28. Several factors could increase these estimates, including the length of time emergency health orders disrupt the standard and ordinary business of Concord and the amount by which CalPERS pension costs grow due to the disrupted economy. In addition to looking for alternative sources of revenue and federal funds, Concord needs to make best use of the money it has now. We must rethink outdated budgeting allocations based on the most effective response to the needs of the city, including allocating some to community social services that could lift the burden of quality of life issues now relegated to the police. Once funds are more appropriately allocated, Concord may find the deficit grows by less as solutions are found to problems rather than throwing money at the symptoms.
A measure on the November ballot would extend Concord’s Measure Q until ended by voters – raising it to a one cent rate instead of the current half cent. What is your position? Because of the global economic crisis brought on by the health emergency, I would support extending Measure Q as its current rate half-cent rate with a sunset date requiring it to be renewed through a ballot measure. I do not support the current measure that doubles the Measure Q tax and makes it permanent. Sales taxes are regressive and hit people with low and fixed incomes harder than others. Much of this tax will go toward payment of escalating pensions, which the council voted to allow after the measure was previously extended. In addition, the council estimates the tax as it appears on the ballot will bring in up to $27 million per year. This estimate provides a false sense of security. It is based on 2018 data, which is obviously now an overestimation with emergency health orders limiting sales. The council needs to consider pairing sales tax with a tax that requires wealthier income earners to pay their fair share to improve the economy from which they are benefiting.
What does “defunding the police” mean to you? The police budget is 57 percent of the city’s General Fund budget. Would you change this allocation? How? Defunding the police means to examine the amount of money allocated to the police department that might be put to better use by social services rather than the criminal justice system. A person in a mental health crisis could be better assisted by trained medical or social service providers than armed police officers. Drug addiction might be more effectively treated through community addiction services rather than arresting individuals multiple times. The term also refers to demilitarizing our local police force. We do not need the police to have military-style weapons and camouflage uniforms to interact with the community, which is not “the enemy.” It also refers to ending the war on drugs – especially cannabis, which is often used as an excuse to target people of color despite its use being common across all racial lines.
The Concord City Council needs to start by auditing the large amount of general funds given to the police department, in order to determine a better way to invest equitably in all departments and service-based organizations that will improve the quality of life for all communities. The police department’s priority should be responding to violent crime. It would be both morally and fiscally responsible to reassign calls on issues such as mental health and homelessness to social services instead of police. Concord needs to implement civil oversight of our police, an action that could also help with establishing priorities.
Should the city dedicate land for homeless encampments? If so, how much land and where? Housing for those without shelter is needed during the pandemic. People can’t shelter in place if they have nowhere to go. Concord will need to examine its own and the county’s housing options, including the current trend toward the use and/or purchase of hotel rooms.
Do you support just cause clauses to prevent evictions? Do you support a rent freeze? If so, for how long? If not, why? I support permanent just cause clauses and rent stabilization measures, including a rent freeze.
What role should the city play in closing the housing gap? The pandemic is going to worsen accessibility to secure housing, displacing individuals from their communities and children from their schools, and it’s going to take away traditional jobs needed for the economic development of Concord. No one person alone knows the solution. I would bring together local business leaders, community organizers, affordable housing developers, and experts in racial equity to strategize revitalization efforts and ways to fund those efforts, such as public banks.
We should also explore building the same number of units but in smaller project sizes to avoid having so many investors in one huge project that the cost to benefit ratio causes investors to abandon the project before housing is built. Otherwise, developers do not build to supply and demand. Once they stop reaching a certain profit, they do not continue building less expensive units; instead they stop building altogether until housing prices rise again.
What is your vision for the Concord Naval Weapons Station? The northern waterfront? I will pursue responsible development at the Naval Weapons Station, using Concord’s second chance to ethically select a trustworthy developer that works with unions. I will attain environmental justice by pushing the council to ensure the Navy cleans up toxic substances and requires fair distribution of benefits and burdens, including equitable green space. The northern waterfront, owned by the Army, is one of the most toxic locations on the base. Many more studies will need to be done to determine best use.
What would you do to differentiate Concord from surrounding communities in attracting new business and retaining current businesses? I would like to see Concord take more of a leadership role to demonstrate it is open to trying out innovative new projects. I would also like to see the council try to coordinate with other agencies such as BART to move headquarters to Concord to be an example of how that is a good idea. Concord could also try to invest in public transit to make it attractive and reliable, with the goal of being the first suburban community to have the most residents using it.