San Ramon Observer

Ron Brown, Executive Director of Save Mount Diablo, was recenly named Business Person of the Year by the Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce. We shall ask him about this honor and why he was selected for it as Director of a non-profit organization. Save Mount Diablo buys land around the famous landmark mountain to maintain it as open space for viewing and hiking. Why is this area so special and what are the benefits of keeping it undeveloped?  Save Mount Diablo was very active in opposing San Ramon's extension of its Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) into Tassajara Valley and participated with several other environmental groups to finance the No on Measure W campaign. We shall ask Ron Brown why Save Mount Diablo invested thousands of dollars and employee time to defeat a measure that would not have initiated any major developments in Tassajara Valley.*   * This paragraph was edited at the request of Ron Brown. Mr. Brown felt that some of my earlier wording was unsupported or untrue.

Candace Andersen is Mayor of Danville, but now she is also Contra Costa County Supervisor Elect, Candace Andersen. Yesterday she received over 60% of the vote in Supervisory District 2. I endorsed Mrs. Andersen in my San Ramon Observer blog on the San Ramon Express.. We shall discuss her campaign, the political and personal attacks from one of her opponents, how she dealt with them, and what she plans to do next.  Will she be appointed to finish the term of the late Supervisor Gayle Uilkema? Tune in to find out what's next for Supervisor Elect Andersen.

Chris Pareja is running in the June 5th Primary against Pete Stark and Eric Swalwell. Stark and Swalwell are Democrats. Pareja is a "Decline to state," but his positions on his website lean to the right side of the political spectrum.  We shall ask Pareja why voters should choose him over Stark or Swalwell, why he is running as "Decline to state" and not as a Republican, and what his chances are to be in the Top Two vote getters and make it to the November Election.

Dublin City Councilman, Eric Swalwell, is running against 20-term Congressman, Fortney Pete Stark, in the newly redistricted 15th District.  Can the ant topple the hippo? We shall ask Swalwell what his chances are against Stark and about some of the accusations against him in the Around Dublin blog. Is this just a grandstand attempt at name recognition, or does Swalwell have a chance to thwart Stark's reelection in the June 5th primary and make it into a 2-man race in November.   Tune in and find out.

Rich Halket, President of the Board of the Dublin San Ramon Services District (DSRSD), is my guest this Wednesday morning. Rich will answer tough questions about refinancing the District's debt and why this was such a hot potato two years ago. He'll tell us about Senator DeSaulnier's Bill to separate Zone 7 from Alameda County, the study underway on possible utility consolidation, and why Prop. 218 is bad for water conservation.   Tune in, call in, ask questions, but no personal attacks.

Today we catch up with Mayor Abram Wilson and find out what he's been doing since terming out as Mayor of San Ramon last year. He has a plan for Tassajara Valley that might surprise both his fans and detractors. Tune in, phone in, and find out what's up with Wilson on the San Ramon Observer blogtalkradio show at 11:30 am on April 18, 2012.