Email me: idarose4mv at gmail dot com
Pragmatic, Experienced Leadership,
Ready to Work for our Future.
ENDORSEMENT UPDATE!
I have been endorsed by the Santa Clara County Democratic Party, as well as the Sierra Club, League of Conservation Voters, and 350 Silicon Valley Action for my climate change expertise. I am endorsed for my pragmatic housing values by Mountain View Housing Justice, CADEM Renters Council, and Mountain View Mobile Home Alliance. I have received the Moms Demand Action Gun Sense Distinction, and am also endorsed by Democratic Activist Women for Now (DAWN) and National Political Women’s Caucus Silicon Valley, for my long standing support for equality for all in our community. And my future-forward policies have been endorsed by the Peninsula Young Democrats. Los Altos Town Crier, the only newspaper endorsing in the race, has also endorsed, along with four former Mountain View mayors, as well as our County Supervisor, Joe Simitian.
The next Mountain View Council has many big things to address, including: a revenue shortfall, our new Biodiversity and Urban Forestry plan, our new Parks and Recreation plan, Moffett Boulevard Precise plan, a historical ordinance, and much more. I have the deep subject area expertise and passion for creating our future needed to do this work well.
As the daughter of a single mom, I was shaped by witnessing her perseverance to raise me while running her multiple businesses, our struggles to navigate a society and our own neighborhood that didn’t always accept our unique family, and her stories of being a first generation American, giving her pride in our freedom and values, and the work ethic her parents instilled in her that she passed down to me. I bring that ethic and all the values that came with our struggles with me to all the work I do in my community.
I came to Mountain View over 25 years ago, setting my roots here because I believe in our ambitious, innovative city, with a small town heart, and a diverse, compassionate community, vibrant history, and commitment to solving big issues, values aligning with who I am. I’ve dedicated myself to working with my community to build the future we want, guided by the philosophy that cities can serve everyone, only when they are created by everyone, a belief I have held since I studied city planning at UC Berkeley.
I have worked for years with my community to build a thriving Mountain View that supports our residents, organizations, and businesses. I have been a leader in our government on two city advisory bodies, the Human Relations Commission and the Environmental Sustainability Task Force, for seven years, sat on the board of several nonprofits, including leading safety net organization, CSA, community mental health provider, CHAC, and other organizations focused on environmental sustainability, history, and smart planning, and founded an award winning nonprofit, Appetite for Good, that provided much needed support during the pandemic.
I have built incredible breadth and depth of experience working across our community, understanding all the key issues and all the people and organizations who work together to make this city work. I have worked with virtually all our city staff leaders throughout my many projects. I am known for lifting up and balancing the voices of all people in our community; I’ve done it on advisory bodies, as a City of Mountain View mediator, as a board member, and as a community organizer. And I am known for getting things done. During the pandemic, the nonprofit I created within weeks of shelter in place, Appetite for Good, saving dozens of local restaurants while feeding hundreds and hundreds of our families. On the Environmental Sustainability Task Force, I wrote our top recommendation, to create an innovative Office of Sustainability, to actually achieve our climate goals. I then worked hard to get it implemented. I built a coalition that passed climate and people safe building codes in dozens of Bay Area jurisdictions. I built a new organization to unite thousands of community members to stand up for the protection of immigrants, children, health care, and women’s rights. And I’ve built my own successful business, helping other small businesses succeed, as well as educating youth and adults on leadership and entrepreneurship.
I am running for City Council to continue to lift up the voices of everyone in our community, to unify us to create—together—the city we want with the quality of life we deserve, and to make an even bigger impact on the future of my community. We need to work on our future, to build the city that will serve us in 20 years and bound. I have the experienced leadership we need, with a proven track record of getting big things done, and the new perspective and energy needed to make a big impact in Mountain View.
IdaRose’s Priorities
Building A Sustainable Future
Climate Mitigation, Adaptation, and Sustainability
Carbon neutrality by 2045, with a clear, actionable plan to get there. New ways to incentivize equitable building, vehicle and equipment electrification. Preparation for a hotter, drier future, including greening our city with more parks and building out our tree canopy, and encouraging building design and utilities that support these changes. Supporting sustainability measures such as reducing single use plastics and encouraging active transportation and more public transportation. More bike lanes, and safe routes to schools, and throughout our community. Supporting salt pond restoration and recycled water with our partners.
Meeting our Diverse Housing Needs
Housing creation that meets the needs of all of our residents, including middle income families, and more affordable housing, including for families, seniors, and the workers our city depends on. Support of successful implementation of the City’s housing fund to support housing rehabilitation and community ownership, and other innovative methods for community ownership, through strong partnerships. Strong tenant protections, including mobile home rent control and tenant relocation assistance.
Future-Ready Infrastructure
Modernization of our aging and often inadequate infrastructure is overdue. Increasing the number of parks, and updating existing ones, creating safer streets for all users, including students, pedestrians, and bicyclists, and updating utility infrastructure, including wastewater and electrical equipment, is needed for a safe and sustainable future.
Vision for the Future, Using the Lessons of History
Thoughtful analysis about how we plan for the future, thinking of our impact 25 or more years later. Framing all decisions from the perspective of how future residents of Mountain View will judge and be impacted by our actions. Including all voices in creating this vision.
Economic Vitality Across our Community
Smart and equitable fiscal policy. Equitable fiscal policies in light of budget constraints, and careful budgeting of spending to ensure services and safety are maintained at high levels. Economic development, especially for small businesses, including downtown revitalization and community desired businesses throughout town. Easing of burdens on business creation and growth; modernizing permitting and zoning to enable businesses to start up faster and thrive. Individual economic development, including workforce development and universal basic income.
Inclusive and Engaged Community
As we see growth slow, we have an opportunity to look at where we want our city to be in 25 or more years, and begin the work. I want to engage our entire community in that work, and create a vision plan, incorporating all your voices. Increased transparency of city processes, ease of finding information, and getting support from the City. Increased civic engagement across all voices in the city, including those historically underrepresented, including youth, seniors, working parents, recent immigrants, non-resident business owners, and those who primarily speak a language other than English. Stronger advisory bodies to help with heavy lifts. More support for neighborhood associations and community emergency response teams (CERTs), and support for coordination and collaboration. Better support of volunteers who wish to create projects that enhance the City. Policies that support inclusion, including allowing hybrid meetings, childcare at city meetings, and multi-language support for all our city information and meetings.
Learn More about IdaRose’s Proven Leadership
I know how our city government works, and already work successfully in it. I am a leader on the Human Relations Commission and previously on the Environmental Sustainability Task Force, with over 7 years experience working with city staff, council, and the community, while writing effective new policies, actively engaging our community to gain valuable feedback, and uniting our entire community around issues such as housing and climate change.
I value the role played by organizations that serve our community, including nonprofits, community groups, and faith-based groups, and understand how they coordinate with the city to provide a safety net for our hard working families, immigrants, youth, and seniors. I am on the board of two such organizations, Community Services Agency and CHAC. I am also on the executive committees of Carbon Free Mountain View, Mountain View Historical Association, and Mountain View Coalition for Sustainable Planning. I have founded multiple nonprofits, including pandemic response Appetite for Good, which saved dozens of restaurants while feeding thousands of meals to families.
I understand our business owners, and how important they are to our community. At a time of unprecedented crisis at the start of the pandemic, my nonprofit kept dozens of our beloved restaurants alive. As a business owner who has spent over 15 years helping small businesses succeed, I understand the importance of supporting our community-based businesses, often owned by immigrants, women, and people of color.
I love our neighborhoods and our passionate community members, the building blocks of our community. For me, my community work started in my own neighborhood, Varsity Park, where I created a Halloween event that now delights thousands, bringing people of all ages and backgrounds together. I see community members passionately working on projects about music and public art, parks, historical preservation, biodiversity and native plantings, safe streets, housing, climate action, all improving our city, who deserve to be elevated and supported.
