Maria Salguero
| Candidate Name: | Maria Salguero |
| Position Sought: | Santa Maria City Council – District 1 |
| Website / Social Media: | www.mariaforsantamaria.com Facebook: Maria Salguero For Santa Maria City Council District 1 TikTok: @mariaforsantamaria |
| Why are you running for office? |
| I love Santa Maria, I grew-up here and returned after college and law school to work in the community to make this a better place for our working families. This is my seventh year as a practicing non-profit attorney, representing hardworking families and vulnerable individuals in civil, family, and federal litigation. Being a community attorney has given me a greater appreciation of how government can be more responsive to the needs of our residents. It takes more than talk; it takes hard work to bring people together and solve our community’s issues. It’s more than showing up for meetings, or ribbon cuttings, it’s addressing the hard issues – economic development that produces good high paying jobs – not more fast food/minimum wage jobs; it’s addressing land use and affordable housing for people who live here now; and it’s addressing homelessness and showing our children that there are alternatives to the cycle of youth violence. |
| What makes you qualified for this position? |
| I am strategic, I listen, I care, and I do the hard work that gets results. As a Councilmember, I will think of the issues before me critically and with a social justice lens. I am proactive. All too often council is presented with a limited range of options by staff – none of which really get to the core of the issues. I am not afraid to have difficult discussions of policy in public and set the direction to city staff early. I am connecting with District 1 constituents during my canvassing efforts in their native language and listen to their concerns. As I share my personal and professional trajectory and why I believe these experiences help me better represent their needs and interests as a city council member. The response has been amazing. |
| What are the two hardest issues facing the candidate who wins the office you are running for? |
| Need for true economic development that benefits local residents & making government more responsible to the people it serves. These two issues are tied together, and if we can solve them, we can address this important issues of homelessness, youth crime and violence, and fair pay for our firefighters and other critical employees. |
| How do you plan to address the issue of inflation and its impacts on your constituents if elected? |
| The City needs an economic development strategy that will help create and sustain high paying jobs instead of catering to big box stores and fast-food low paying jobs. We need to look to the jobs of the future – particularly in health care and light manufacturing, and education. |
| What major crime issues do you plan to address if elected and how? |
| We need to address youth on youth violence systemically. We need to have programs and offer health activities for young people through our parks and recreation department and libraries. Our youth need positive role models, people who grew up here, and even if they moved away to pursue higher education, came back to make a difference. I will work with current law enforcement and community organizations to identify issues and possible solutions to youth experiencing violence with the priority of going to find root causes to these issues. Statistically speaking, communities with more resources experience less crime and violence. This is why it is imperative that we invest in education and career opportunities. Also, human trafficking is a growing issue throughout the central coast, both labor trafficking and sex trafficking, and we need greater awareness of both in our city to have the tools to identify and report possible trafficked individuals. |
| How do you plan to address the issue of housing if elected? |
| The City must work with different stakeholders in identifying pre-existing underutilized properties for affordable housing development. However, the housing issue will not be addressed by giving land away to private developers. Currently the Council is considering affording developers millions of dollars in subsidies to build in the center of our city. All of this, when the city is in a financial deficit. I will work to push for the creation of an Inclusionary Housing Ordinance. This type of ordinance allocated a certain percentage of new development to be sold or rented at a restricted affordable price. I would also look at opportunities for first time home buyer programs in which the city might be available to participate. There are ways to offer favorable financing and down-payment assistance for first-time home buyers with the creation of a public /private Housing Trust Fund. I will be creative, strategic, and will ask questions from the start that elevate the community’s interests over for-profit developers. |
| What do you hope to accomplish in your first year in office if elected? |
| I want to make city council more accessible for all Santa Maria residents, including those who speak Spanish and native languages like Mixteco. I will make city council meetings more accessible by ensuring translation services are equitable and just. I want to prioritize working families and small business by prioritizing local economy over big businesses coming to our city. I want to prioritize youth services, and I will work with the County of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo County to address homelessness, as a partner, not just a participant in the planning and delivery of services. The fastest growing population of homeless are senior women. We need to be proactive in bring resources to address homelessness, and help people on the edge not fall into homelessness. |
| What actions do you plan to take to reduce political divide? |
| It is clear to me that this elected position will be owed to all residents in the city and I take that service very seriously. We need to listen to all sides, even those we don’t initially agree with. To the extent we can, we need to look for the common bond. I’m walking door to door talking to my neighbors – Democrats, Republican’s, no party preference, and the response has been incredible. There is less divide at the local level, and I hope to keep it that way. Local Government is “non-partisan” for a reason. There’s a very old saying that there isn’t a “Democratic way or a Republican way to fill a pothole.” Santa Maria voters care about the issues, and they want basic services to be addressed. They want clean parks, a safe place to live, and a future for their children – I want to help make Santa Maria that community. |
