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In a forum for the November District 4 Supervisor race on Monday, Sept. 23, Lisa Gauthier and Antonio López shared their visions and strategies for tackling matters in San Mateo County such as oversight of elected bodies like the Sheriff’s Office, addressing homelessness, climate change and child care.
The forum, organized and hosted by Thrive Alliance, Leadership Council San Mateo County, and Choose Children, an initiative of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, took place at the North Fair Oaks Community Center, where residents posed questions both in person and virtually. Representatives from Thrive Alliance and Leadership Council SMC jointly moderated the forum.
District 4 includes Redwood City, East Palo Alto, Menlo Park and North Fair Oaks. One of the two candidates will replace Warren Slocum, who has reached the end of his term limit.
Oversight of the sheriff
Prior to the forum, Thrive Alliance received several questions from residents asking about oversight of the Sheriff’s Office and the potential changes the candidates could make to the Civilian Advisory Commission on the Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office has been embroiled in conflict with its unions and the Board of Supervisors over staffing decisions.
Gauthier’s approach emphasized giving the sheriff resources if needed.
“We need to give the sheriff an opportunity to see what she can do,” said Gauthier.
She talked about the challenges her African American son has faced, stressing the importance of ensuring people are held accountable. Uncertain of how many meetings have been held on the matter, Gauthier concluded by noting the need to work as a community if more adjustments and oversight is needed.
According to López, the county should have a civilian oversight body that is granted subpoena power to guarantee accountability.
“God forbid if there are any officer individuals who are doing malpractice, any official in any department, if they are not doing their job, we need to hold folks accountable,” he added.
He expressed his respect for Sheriff Christina Corpus as a Latina sheriff but stressed the need to be mindful of the historical practices within the county and the sheriff’s office, particularly regarding the experiences of Black individuals in San Mateo County.
Hopeful Horizons Ordinance
In January, the Board of Supervisors approved the Hopeful Horizons Ordinance that applies to unincorporated areas of the county and allows authorities to charge homeless people who refuse shelter after receiving two warnings with a misdemeanor.
The forum moderators asked the candidates about their approach for future implementation of the ordinance.
Gauthier proposed a model similar to the wraparound services provided in East Palo Alto, advocating for mental health support, food assistance, job training, and transitional housing as essential components to help individuals secure stable housing.
“Let’s make sure that we’re providing the resources necessary to help individuals become housed,” she said.
López highlighted the worsening homelessness crisis, noting an 18% increase in the homeless population over two years. He emphasized the importance of a collaborative approach among cities, suggesting that simply relocating unhoused individuals is not a viable solution. According to him, a more productive method is for cities to collaborate to share resources like shelters and meals.
“We have to look at homelessness as a safety and public health emergency full stop with the adequate resources,” Lopez said.
Climate change
In response to a question on immediate actions to combat climate change, Gauthier talked about her work as a founding member of One Shoreline, an independent government agency that builds solutions to address climate change.
“I know the importance of understanding and mitigating the risk of sea level rise and flooding in East Palo Alto,” she said.
She referenced the installation of a flood wall in East Palo Alto, a portion of which was completed in 2019, and protected homes from potential flooding and alleviated the burden of flood insurance on residents who are living paycheck to paycheck. Gauthier says this work should be continued. She also called for efforts to restore marshlands and mitigate climate impacts. Additionally, she stressed the importance of transitioning to electric power in a way that is compassionate and affordable for residents.
López wondered how to get low-income residents involved in the climate change battle.
“If you have families that can’t even make a paycheck for next month, how can you get them to think about 2050?” he said. “How do you get them to think bigger and think about sea level rise?”
He then added the need to engage the community, especially youth, in climate change initiatives like increased canopy coverage and urban forestry programs. He asserted that a collective investment in the county’s environmental future is essential, involving all residents — not just elected officials — in order to effectively reduce the carbon footprint.
Child care
During the public question part of the forum, a member of the San Mateo County Family Child Care Organization, which helps provide resources to family child care providers, asked the candidates what strategies they will pursue to build better childcare capacity.
In response, López pointed out that many cities lack the necessary zoning regulations to facilitate the establishment of child care facilities. To tackle this, he proposed providing legal support to nonprofits to amend zoning laws, ensuring that child care options accompany all government-funded activities. He also added there is a need for a more equitable approach to the Measure K funding, designated to fill funding gaps in county services focused on children, families, seniors, housing, homelessness and emergency preparedness.
“With child care, we have experts, we have organizations, we have a mandate from the state, let’s have the county use the resources they have to make it easier to do your job,” he said.
Lisa, on the other hand, said the county needs to support home daycare providers to handle child care more effectively. She advocated for creating more child care spots and simplifying the licensing process for home-based providers. She reiterated that these measures are essential to support quality childcare for working parents.
“I’m a grandmother, so I know firsthand, when working with my daughter and my grandson, what child care looks like,” she said. “My daughter and I have to trade off some days when my grandson is not going to school. I’m fortunate that I can work from home, but not everybody has that.”
She added that more state programs for preschool education should be accessible to families just above the income threshold.
Read more about López and Gauthier.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article misrepresented the total number of nonprofits involved in organizing and hosting the District 4 supervisor forum. The District 4 Candidate forum was a collaborative effort between Thrive Alliance, Leadership Council San Mateo County and Choose Children, an initiative of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. It was moderated jointly by Thrive and Leadership Council SMC.
