Nicholas Mattson is attentive, should be elected mayor of Atascadero

I wholeheartedly endorse Nicholas Mattson for mayor of Atascadero.

Nic embodies the best of local politics: thoughtfully caring, attentive and astute. I’ve seen him lean into conversations, focus forward: fully hearing and understanding. Nic is not a two-dimensional person, he sees and values the complexity of life, and he presents out-of-the-box thinking and problem-solving that we desperately need in Atascadero.

I believe in this town, and Nic is one of our best and brightest.

I’ve personally worked with Nic on creating the Atascadero Community Alliance, which is quite a progressive collection of nonprofits created to calendar share, support each other and learn from one another.

Other times, Nic and I have shared spirited discussions on social media — we haven’t always agreed — but he’s messaged me to say, “Hey, that was great. So much respect to you.” How often does that happen? I just can’t image another mayoral candidate here doing the same.

Having lived in San Luis Obispo County for 20 years, I am proud to call Atascadero my forever home, and I hope you will join me in electing Nicholas Mattson for mayor on Nov. 8.

This story was originally published October 29, 2016 at 5:02 PM with the headline "Nicholas Mattson is attentive, should be elected mayor of Atascadero."