Spectrum Magazine

Redwood City Council 2013 Candidate Questionnaire

Name: James (Lee) Han

Redwood City neighborhood you live in: I was born and raised in the Palm Park and Farm Hill neighborhoods, but I currently live in the Centennial neighborhood, in a historic house in the Mezesville district.

Family status: Single. Parents are John, a Redwood City small business owner, and Tania, a former preschool teacher.

Occupation: Business manager.

Key endorsements:

Sabrina Brennan, San Mateo County Harbor District Commissioner; Sally Lieber, former state Assemblywoman; Cindy Asrir, mother and Redwood Shores resident; Carol Cross, retired public school teacher and long-time Redwood City resident; Ron Freeman, electrician and long-time Redwood City resident; Mary Guedon, retired, long-time Redwood City resident; Gloria Maldonado, retired Redwood City School District teacher; Ramona Raybin, Redwood Shores resident; Colt Rymer, disabled Vietnam veteran and Redwood City resident; Jose Rodriguez, long-time Redwood City resident and owner, Sidetrax Bar and Grill.

1. Recently the Redwood City Police Department made an issue about the crime “public safety concerns” at Sequoia Station and their efforts to deal with it. Do we have a police department that is adequately staffed? Should the community be concerned that there are those concerns at such a high visible location?

Sequoia Station is an important transit and retail hub for the entire Peninsula, not just Redwood City. It must be safe and welcoming if we're to sustain new energy and interest in our downtown. Our police department is doing an excellent job with the number of people it has, but our bustling downtown and development boom creates a staffing need. Adding eight more officers to our 92-person police department would ensure that we have the capacity to handle our growing city.

2. Name a quality you possess that no other candidate does:

I believe I am unique in my willingness to articulate the public's concerns, even if it might not be part of the accepted culture to do so. Redwood City is a great city, but I always ask myself how can we make it better. The greatest forward leaps happen when we can openly tackle the issues no one else is willing to address. I have the courage and judgment to voice concerns and bring attention to important, pressing community issues.

3. Give our readers an example of how you would increase revenues for Redwood City’s general operating fund.

An innovative way to increase revenue would be to offer free wi-fi service in the downtown core. Wi-fi installation is a relatively cheap investment, and once installed it can be used as a revenue generating tool by creating a "splash page" for those who connect to the service and charging Redwood City businesses a fee to advertise on the splash page. Visitors to Redwood City using our free wi-fi would see ads for local businesses, and then go shop and dine downtown.

4. What are your thoughts related to Redwood City’s relationship with unincorporated Redwood City?

We must do our best to keep a good relationship with our neighbors in the unincorporated areas of Emerald Hills and North Fair Oaks. I have been hearing concerns in the North Fair Oaks community about undocumented residents being afraid to communicate with the city's law enforcement for fear of being caught up in the county's strict detention program. If the governor vetoes AB 4 (The TRUST Act), we must work closely with the county to allay community fears over detention and deportation.

5. What do you perceive as the three most important issues facing Redwood City?

1. Maintaining service levels. To ensure that public safety and community development needs are addressed effectively as the city grows, we must be pro-active in identifying and addressing staffing needs. 2. Improving transit. We must improve access to parking for our seniors and disabled residents while working to keep extra cars off the road. The new bike share program must be expanded.

3. Making housing available and affordable. It is time to consider a commercial linkage fee ordinance to address our jobs/housing imbalance.