With a full slate of candidates, The Weekly wanted to give voters insight into each candidate’s position on a slew of issues we believe matter most to Santa Clarans. 

Consequently, we asked them seven questions, giving them the flexibility to answer as many as they wanted. We limited their responses to 1,000 words (allowing a bit of flexibility for how disparate word processors count words). Their responses appear verbatim. 

The Silicon Valley Voice will roll out each candidate’s answers in the days leading up to the election.

How do you think the city handled the Super Bowl and the FIFA World Cup this year? If you were on the city council, what would you have done differently? How would you balance the desire to have more events like these at Levi’s Stadium with neighborhood impacts?

I was incredibly proud to see Santa Clara host the Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup matches. We showcased our city to the world and demonstrated what Santa Clara can accomplish. Throughout these events, the safety of everyone was my top priority, and our outstanding public safety teams handled their responsibilities beautifully.

Just as important, I wanted our residents to share in the excitement. We hosted watch parties, night markets, and, especially, Day on the Field—an event I had advocated for years. Seeing it finally happen was incredibly rewarding. Some of these events were so successful that we are working to make them ongoing traditions. We also worked to minimize the impact of stadium events on the neighborhoods surrounding the stadium.

Over the past ten years, the city has added lots of housing but has floundered with respect to public amenities and infrastructure (the swim center is in disrepair, the convention center is falling apart and the BMX Park is slated to move, just to name a few). What more should the city be doing to prevent the loss of — or add more — public amenities and find a better balance between housing and public amenities, without asking residents to approve another $400 million bond measure?

I was frustrated that Santa Clara had to ask residents to approve an infrastructure bond. Previous City Councils did not adequately plan for the maintenance and replacement of critical facilities. The condition of the International Swim Center is a glaring example.

Now, we are taking a more responsible approach. We are using infrastructure funds carefully and looking for ways to make every dollar go further. Please vote YES on Measure C this November so the City can use additional contracting tools to maximize the value of these investments.

Working with our new City Manager, this City Council has balanced the budget and, for the first time in recent history, is setting money aside for future capital needs. We have also established a parks fee on new development to help ensure that growth contributes to the facilities our residents need.

And we are continuing to look for solutions for our community. 

According to Silicon Valley At Home, while Santa Clara does well to meet its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) numbers for Low Income and Above Moderate Income households, it struggles to create housing for low-income households. What should the city do to create PERMANENT spaces for the poorest Santa Clara residents?

Housing affordability and housing options in Santa Clara have long been a concern of mine. It is important to understand that the City does not build housing; we approve plans and projects, while the State has taken away much of our local control over development. Some residential projects being built in Santa Clara are also County projects.

I recently learned more about housing cooperatives, or co-ops, which have been successfully used in some East Coast communities. I am exploring whether this model could work here in Silicon Valley. Depending on how they are structured, co-ops could provide another housing option for people at a variety of income levels.

We should be willing to explore creative solutions rather than simply accepting the status quo.

Silicon Valley Power has increased rates six times since January 2022 as the utility continues to expand. Would you like to see this expansion continue? With more data centers than ever, do you think SVP’s trajectory is in the best interest of residents?

Santa Clara is fortunate to have Silicon Valley Power, which provides exceptionally competitive rates and outstanding reliability. Our electricity costs are roughly half those of PG&E, and our system has reliability of more than 99%.

That reliable, affordable electricity is one reason data centers want to locate here. Data centers are required to pay for their own substations and related infrastructure, which also strengthens the overall electrical system.

The increases in residential electricity costs have been driven largely by the cost of upgrading our aging residential infrastructure and producing more clean energy.

At the same time, we must carefully manage the impact of data centers on our community. I am calling for a full accounting of their water use, and I believe a moratorium on new data centers is needed while we evaluate their impacts on electricity, water, infrastructure and our neighborhoods.

Name some issues on which you would have voted differently from your predecessor and some that you would have voted the same. Explain why.

The condition of the Santa Clara International Swim Center was a major concern. An official report documented its deteriorated condition and deemed it unsafe, requiring its closure.

The City Council proposed spending approximately $2 million to retile the pool in hopes of reopening it. I argued against that approach because the water recirculation system was inadequate to reliably maintain required water quality standards. I was overruled by a 6–1 vote.

When the company attempted to retile the pool, the concrete began crumbling, making the project impossible. Ultimately, the Council agreed that the facility needed to be completely rebuilt—which is what I had argued from the beginning.

Leadership means doing what you believe is right for taxpayers and residents, even when you are the only vote on the losing side.

How do you plan to balance neighborhood-specific advocacy with citywide budget and policy tradeoffs? 

Neighborhoods deserve to be heard—and sometimes they are absolutely right. When residents brought nighttime street racing to our attention, we acted. Because it was not a major roadway, we were able to install traffic-calming speed humps. The neighbors are still thanking us.

But a responsible government also means recognizing that not every request is possible or reasonable. Governing is about balancing competing needs and making decisions in the best interest of the entire community.

The City’s responsibility is to provide the essential systems that benefit everyone: police, fire, water, sewer, parks and recreation, roads, traffic signals—and, uniquely in Santa Clara, electricity. These are the core services that make modern daily life possible in our great city.  

What would you do to ensure that the Related project does not see another several years of delay?

The Related Project, north of the stadium where the golf course previously existed, was approved two years before I was elected. I made it a priority to quickly understand the project and its details.

However, much has changed over the past decade. The pandemic permanently changed how people shop and work. Supply-chain disruptions and constantly changing tariffs have dramatically increased construction costs.

The City Council approved a change to the agreement, converting one portion of the project from office to light industrial use in an effort to help move the development forward.

The entire project is on City-owned land, but construction will be financed with private money. Therefore, the City cannot simply force the developer to begin construction. Once the development is completed, however, the City will receive rent for the use of its land.

I believe Santa Clara deserves leadership that is willing to listen, stand up for what is right, manage taxpayer resources responsibly, and look for innovative solutions to difficult problems.

I am proud of what we have accomplished, and I will continue working to make Santa Clara an even better place to live, work and raise a family.

karenhardy4mayor26@gmail.com  www.karenhardy.net. 

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Gary Ferraris