Where do Morro Bay mayor, City Council candidates stand on water, wind energy and housing?
In Morro Bay, two candidates are running for mayor while five people are running for two open seats on the City Council this November.
Incumbent Morro Bay Mayor John Headding is facing off against challenger Carla Wixom.
In the Morro Bay City Council race, Casey G. Cordes, David “Dave” Duringer, Cyndee Edwards, Robin “Zara” Landrum and Sarah Smith Robinson are competing for the two open four-year terms.
Duringer did not respond to a request to participate in The Tribune’s 2022 Voter Guide.
Here are the remaining candidates’ responses, organized by candidate and in alphabetical order. Some responses have been edited for length or clarity.
Mayor
John Headding
What is your vision for what Morro Bay should look like in five years? 10 years?
Our city must continue to preserve the unique, small and quaint harbor town nature while concurrently embracing change to continue to improve our economic and financial position. We must establish policies that enable us to significantly improve our city’s finances and increase our financial reserves. Additionally, we must pursue clean energy development, diversification of our economy, more affordable housing units, more funding for street paving, continued protection of our bay and harbor and help for our local businesses grow. My passion is to see Morro Bay remain financially strong, affordable and a safe clean place for all residents to grow and thrive.
What do you believe is the most important issue facing Morro Bay today, and what will you do to address it?
There are numerous important issues but one of the most important is completing our wastewater reclamation facility in order to provide water independence for our community for generations to come. We have almost completed Phase 1 of our project, which will provide a new wastewater treatment plant; completion is expected to occur in January 2023. Secondly, we must complete our water reclamation component of our project in order to provide safe drinking water for Morro Bay and provide for water independence in the future. That project is expected to be completed in mid-2025.
Do you support the proposal to build hundreds of wind turbines off the coast of Morro Bay? Why or why not?
Yes I do. I have been a strong advocate for offshore wind development for more than five years. I have been, and continue to be, a member of the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s task force that has worked to pave the way for the lease auction that will occur for the Morro Bay wind energy area in December of this year. This will be a project that will provide three lease sites that will generate approximately 3 gigawatts of energy that is clean, safe and renewable. One of our city’s major goals is to address climate change, and by providing new sources of renewable energy and decreasing our reliance on carbon-based fuels, this will greatly advance our progress toward this goal.
The United States is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now experiencing an 8.3% inflation rate. How would you support economic development in Morro Bay through these challenges?
The city has been very transparent with regard to an aggressive program of cost reduction in order to maintain a balanced budget throughout COVID-19. We created numerous programs to economically assist our businesses during COVID-19, many of which continue today. Additionally, we are working with our chamber of commerce to increase the number of affordable housing units in our community by identifying opportunity sites and encouraging developers through zoning code changes, a new general plan and local coastal plan and streamlined planning process to advance development.
What infrastructure goals do you have for your time in office?
Completion of our city‘s largest capital project which is our wastewater treatment and water reclamation facility. Continue to work with the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments to complete the Highway 41 improvement project. We have more than doubled our allocation for street paving this fiscal year from approximately $1 million to $2.8 million. We’ve established a major goal to evaluate all capital needs throughout the city to determine the capital financing necessary for future improvements. We have also established a number of capital projects to replace old sewer pipe lines in major areas of the city.
Carla Wixom
What is your vision for what Morro Bay should look like in five years? 10 years?
A safe and healthy community to live in, a successful and robust economy, opportunities for residents to have affordable housing.
What do you believe is the most important issue facing Morro Bay today, and what will you do to address it?
Infrastructure, community safety and fiscal stability. I will work side-by-side with fellow council members, staff and residents to address these issues that are important to our community.
Do you support the proposal to build hundreds of wind turbines off the coast of Morro Bay? Why or why not?
I support renewal energy but have many concerns over the environmental effects these turbines would have on our oceans, changing patterns for migratory animals and the crippling effect it will have on our Central Coast fisheries. This is a new and unknown technology for our coast. Many of the materials are outsourced from other countries and there is a lack of ability to recycle or repurpose the turbines at the end of their lifecycles.
The United States is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now experiencing an 8.3% inflation rate. How would you support economic development in Morro Bay through these challenges?
Shop local! I would like to start with what we have. Meet with existing business partners to find ways for internal organic growth revitalize and connect our business districts. We have a great chamber of commerce who works with community and regional stakeholders to bring activities and business to our community.
What infrastructure goals do you have for your time in office?
Great expansion of our paving plan. I will work with staff and community to ensure we have a long-term maintenance and budget plan in place for our new One Water facility.
City Council
Casey Cordes
What is your vision for what Morro Bay should look like in five years? 10 years?
The Morro Bay of the future has a few key differences: strong investment in key infrastructure both in the downtown/Embarcadero area (sidewalk improvement, bathroom additions) as well as the north side of town which requires significant road surface improvements; better communication between the City Council and the public including improved quality of council meetings livestream, regular email updates regarding upcoming decisions and better communication with local media; and new construction of affordable housing in several of the already-zones properties that are up for sale.
What do you believe is the most important issue facing Morro Bay today, and what will you do to address it?
Now that the water reclamation facility is nearly complete and we will likely have a new source of drinking water in the next two to three years, I think workforce housing is the most critical challenge facing Morro Bay. We have a few ways to tackle this: Re-route advertising funds to attract developers to lots in town already zoned for high-density housing; use city employees’ time to help pursue grants to make these projects more appealing; de-incentivize vacancy, and enforce short-term rental restrictions. According to the California Department of Finance, one in five houses in Morro Bay are vacant.
Do you support the proposal to build hundreds of wind turbines off the coast of Morro Bay? Why or why not?
Yes. This is a project that is critical for the future of our energy security in this state and county. It represents the next step in providing for ourselves and our neighbors in a renewable way. It also represents jobs for the county and potentially for the city. Everyone is scared of the unknown, especially when it comes to the pristine Central Coast’s beauty, but there was a time before our iconic stacks and there will be a time after the new wind power field where we find it iconic to our view.
The United States is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now experiencing an 8.3% inflation rate. How would you support economic development in Morro Bay through these challenges?
Morro Bay has seen a number of new businesses open up since the pandemic hit, mostly led by a younger generation of entrepreneur. The council should convene a listening session to hear the unique challenges the new businesses have faced and hear their proposed solutions to make this city more new business-friendly. One concern I have is retaining the high quality of staff that the city needs to continue functioning. We will have a report soon that outlines our pay scales in comparison to other municipalities and I anticipate we will be very low. Finally, infrastructure improvements in our downtown and Embarcadero districts will improve the public perception of our city, and invite more traffic and more spending.
What infrastructure goals do you have for your time in office?
The council recently received a road surface quality report that outlined the need for almost $22 million in spending just to get our roads back to the “good” quality standard on par with other California cities of our size. As a candidate that thinks about our future in decades, it’s important to fund these kinds of improvements. To do so requires surfacing reports like this to the public in easily digestible formats, reaching out for feedback on how to raise money, and ensuring that we are future-proofing our infrastructure and our budget so that we don’t get caught off-guard by costs like this in the future. It’s also important to me that we address the harbor’s infrastructure by passing measure B-22, thus ensuring a long-term source of capital investment for the most critical part of the city, the Embarcadero. This, however, is not up to the council but instead is a question for the voters.
Cyndee Edwards
What is your vision for what Morro Bay should look like in five years? 10 years?
A quaint, seaside city with all the modern amenities necessary to maintain economic sustainability and growth while preserving its quality of life. A community that’s focused on a holistic viewpoint that gets behind supporting policy making that generates long-term revenue streams without forgoing our character.
What do you believe is the most important issue facing Morro Bay today, and what will you do to address it?
A clear vision of what our city looks like as we develop into the future, having a master plan that includes projects on the table like battery storage, wind farms and development of affordable housing.
Do you support the proposal to build hundreds of wind turbines off the coast of Morro Bay? Why or why not?
The fact is our federal government and state are committed to renewable energy projects. Wind farms are a part of that commitment. If environmental impact, safety and parties directly impacted by these projects have been given the opportunity to be heard and agree to moving forward, then I want to do what’s right for the community I serve.
The United States is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now experiencing an 8.3% inflation rate. How would you support economic development in Morro Bay through these challenges?
Our current city leaders had to make tough decisions at the onset of COVID, taking pay cuts and minimizing while maximizing the staff. Inflation and a probable recession aren’t helpful. We’ve got to find long-term stable revenue streams to supplement the ones we have now. We’ve got to come up with ideas and try them, like paid parking to support the consistent growth of tourism we’re experiencing year-round since COVID.
What infrastructure goals do you have for your time in office?
My immediate goal is to address the biggest asset Morro Bay has: our harbor. There’s been years of lack of funds to maintain it. Voting to implement a parcel tax is a short-term fix, but something like paid parking could offset costs. We’ve got to focus long term. The biggest revenue streams we have are property tax, transient occupancy tax and sales tax. They’re not all stable enough to handle improving our entire city’s streets, sidewalks, intersection issues or our harbor.
Robin ‘Zara’ Landrum
What is your vision for what Morro Bay should look like in five years? 10 years?
Instead of following the cookie cutter model of what San Luis Obispo and other coastal cities have done, I think Morro Bay should forge its own unique path. As one of the last cities in the county to be hit with potential development, I think we should recognize that we have an opportunity to set ourselves apart and to not become Anywhere, USA. I think we should capitalize on the fact that Morro Bay is a cool, quirky little beach town and keep that in mind when approaching any new development proposals.
What do you believe is the most important issue facing Morro Bay today, and what will you do to address it?
We’re currently at a moment where we face many important issues. Some of these include decisions on how to approach growth interests, weighing the risk versus benefit of becoming the home of the largest battery storage facility in the world and how to fund badly neglected maintenance on critical infrastructure. Morro Bay residents feel disenfranchised and ignored. I will work to address and create what is long overdue: an open, transparent and accountable city government.
Do you support the proposal to build hundreds of wind turbines off the coast of Morro Bay? Why or why not?
Wind energy has exciting possibilities in our future. I wonder why Morro Bay is the chosen location however and why we aren’t talking about utilizing Diablo Canyon as a site for both the wind turbines and the battery storage facility? Mayor Headding has said the battery facility will take years and I imagine so will the wind turbines. Perhaps all coinciding with the inevitable closure at some point of Diablo Canyon. The nuclear power plant’s infrastructure is more than capable and already in place, it’s safer as the site is already designated as a hazardous emergency zone and once that plant is offline, I imagine it will still be unsafe for most other uses. It just seems much more suitable. Before anything is done, I strongly believe that there needs to be in-depth both environmental and economic reports done.
The United States is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now experiencing an 8.3% inflation rate. How would you support economic development in Morro Bay through these challenges?
Businesses are critical for Morro Bay’s economic growth. It’s unacceptable the process of opening one takes several months. Some roadblocks businesses face include the city’s limited availability to the public (only open four days a week, 8 a.m. to noon) and its recent move to outsource business licenses to an out-of-area company. Supporting businesses downtown with a public restroom, visitor’s center and safe and clean public areas would be a good start. Businesses in north Morro Bay I’ve talked to complain of lax code enforcement with parking of motor homes in front of businesses. Businesses along Quintana Road have recounted heart-wrenching stories of dire loss and personal stress due to the still ongoing, years-long road construction caused by the water reclamation facility. One commercial property owner, after months of delay, was told she needed a minor use permit and shared that “the zoning code is overly complicated catering to outside investors and served as a mechanism to remove local ownership “
What infrastructure goals do you have for your time in office?
Most important at the moment is the neglect of our roads, curbs and sewer pipes. I find it hypocritical that we’ve spent $160 million to date on a water reclamation facility that the mayor recently admitted would only be used in emergencies and yet we are polluting the ground water with leaking sewer pipes. It doesn’t make sense to me that we are allocating budget funding for a roundabout of questionable need instead of using that money to repair the streets.
Sarah Robinson
What is your vision for what Morro Bay should look like in five years? 10 years?
My hope is to keep Morro Bay a charming beach town for seniors, the workforce and our visitors. People come to Morro Bay to enjoy the relaxed and open feeling of safety. I hope to maintain responsible growth, a thriving ecosystem and a steady growth of economy through the hospitality we give to our visitors and locals alike.
What do you believe is the most important issue facing Morro Bay today, and what will you do to address it?
Water and affordable housing for the workforce and seniors are two very important issues. We have to have enough water to be able to put affordable housing in to those that struggle to find housing for their working families. And seniors need a sense of security that the homes they rent won’t be turned into short-term rentals or rents raised so high they just can’t afford to live here.
Do you support the proposal to build hundreds of wind turbines off the coast of Morro Bay? Why or why not?
I support more alternative, renewable energy sources over toxic non-renewable sources, but I do not support having hundreds of wind turbines off our precious coast where we receive one of the world’s most healthy proteins, our fish. I believe wind turbines could be used elsewhere, like Mojave, Tehachapi or Hollister, places where they are known to be successful locations.
The United States is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and now experiencing an 8.3% inflation rate. How would you support economic development in Morro Bay through these challenges?
I support economic growth in a responsible way. This pandemic has changed how the entire world works and travels. Morro Bay is a tourist destination and always will be. Our city will always see a steady and ever-growing stream of visitors all year ‘round. Especially if we keep it the charming, quaint beach town it’s always been.
What infrastructure goals do you have for your time in office?
I would like to fix the numerous neighborhood streets that have been neglected over the years. I would like to maintain and improve current and possibly future bike paths and walkways for a safe outdoor experience. And I would like to see improvements at our boat launch and repairs on aging buildings and docks on our Embarcadero.
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