Meet the candidates: Who’s in the running for Menlo Park City Council District 5 | News

More than a dozen candidates applied to represent Menlo Park’s District 5, filling in for the final two years of Ray Mueller’s term as he leaves the council to join the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors.

The City Council is set to choose the new council member to represent the district, which encompasses Sharon Heights, Sandhill and parts of West Menlo Park, at a special meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 21. There were 13 as of the application deadline at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 20 As of Wednesday morning, three had withdrawn from consideration and their applications removed from the Menlo Park city website.

Catherine Carlton

Catherine Carlton, a former two-term member of the Menlo Park City Council who served from 2012-2020, included a long list of volunteer roles and service on city and regional committees, commissions and boards. She runs an impact hub and advises entrepreneurs for University of Southern California’s Marshall Innovation Incubator and University of Oxford. Her top issues facing the city, both long- and short-term, are housing, traffic and climate change, mentioning the need for green infrastructure, and meeting and exceeding the goals of the city’s 2030 Climate Action Plan.

Sally Cole

Sally Cole lists experience in politics both locally and nationally. She has served as the vice chair of the Menlo Park Heritage Tree Task Force from 2018 to 2019, and as the chair and vice chair of the city’s Complete Streets Commission since 2021. Cole has also served on the President’s Council on Sustainable Development and with EPA Administrator William K. Reilly, the chief financial officer of New York State’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and U.S. Sen. Daniel P. Moynihan of New York. If elected, Cole said she would prioritize housing growth and development, rejuvenating the downtown district, and safe and accessible streets for cyclists and pedestrians. Over the long term, environmental sustainability and the cost of living are priorities for Cole.

Maria Doerr

Maria Doerr is a strategy and management consultant for nonprofits, foundations, and government agencies. Doerr says her immediate priorities are housing, building electrification and engaging a younger generation in civic life. Her long-term priorities are traffic mitigation and transit access, infrastructure improvements and land use changes to better prepare for disasters such as flooding and fire, and creating space for “community connection” in Menlo Park.

Robin Glass

Robin Glass is a Duke University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in public policy who holds a master’s degree from Harvard University in public administration and business administration. Glass’s priorities include affordable housing, sustainable growth and environmental impact, which she said are both her short and long-term priorities for the City Council.

Nicole Kemeny

Nicole Kemeny is an elected member of the San Mateo County Democratic Central Committee, who participates in the endorsement process for local Democratic candidates and in proposing and voting on party goals. Kemeny has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan in Political Science, and a master’s degree in Urban Planning. She also has nonprofit and volunteer experience, particularly in housing affordability and climate action.

Kemeny’s priorities revolve around the issues of growth, housing and transportation, which she also names as one of her long-term priorities along with resource use and a quick, equitable transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, as well as overarching equity.

Diana No

Diana No graduated from Stonybrook University with a degree in radiologic science. No is a directory chair for the Parent Teachers Association of Las Lomitas Elementary School. No’s immediate priorities are crime prevention, more community events and affordable housing. Her long term priorities are downtown improvement, updating park playgrounds and additional child care facilities.

Mark Noble

Mark Noble has been a resident of Menlo Park for more than 23 years, and has a 35-year career in financial services. Noble’s immediate concerns for the city are addressing what he describes as an “elevated crime problem” in Menlo Park, affordable housing and growing traffic downtown. Longer term, Noble said he is focused on maintaining and enhancing the quality of life in Menlo Park, crime prevention and promoting economic development and financial stability through “reasonable” growth.

Thom Phan

Thom Phan is a former active duty U.S. Air Force Officer, as well as an investment banker with experience in corporate finance and development, engineering and sales. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Phan’s immediate focuses if appointed are affordable housing, traffic congestion and transit accessibility, water conservation and renewable energy electrification. Long-term, Phan says that affordable housing is a priority, environmental sustainability and balancing business and residential growth in the city.

Edward Schor

Edward Schor is a physician and former academician, a state public health official in Iowa and an executive at a foundation. Schor has a degree in psychology as well as a medical degree, and has worked in the child welfare system in Baltimore. Schor says that he is an advocate for families. Schor’s immediate priorities are traffic and transportation, addressing the role and influence of large employers on local politics, and the quality of life and public safety. Schor plans to address balancing residential and commercial development with open space and environmental issues, and said he would seek greater diversity in public policy input and would push for more cross-agency decision-making.

Paul Studemeister

Paul Studemeister holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley and a Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario. If appointed, Studemeister said he would focus on safe and equitable roadway access for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers; mitigating problems caused by inflation; and increased police response in the city. He said he would also push for zero-waste policies and would seek to “inflation-proof” the city’s budget and operations.

Studemeister said he would also seek other cost-cutting measures like minimizing litigation risk and reducing the amount of city workers, relying instead on contractors and other outside entities. He also wants to promote health, safety and environmental compliance by both the city as a public agency as well residents.

Noria Zasslow

Noria Zasslow served one term on the Menlo Park Parks and Recreation Committee from 2013 to 2017. Zasslow has lived in Menlo Park for 30 years and volunteered with the Autism Society of America’s Bay Area chapter. Her immediate priorities are safety, zoning and traffic. Long-term, Zasslow says she will focus on finances, the environment and economic development if appointed.

Three applications withdrawn

According to the city, three people who submitted applications have withdrawn themselves from consideration. They are Kristin Hansen, Andrew Slater and Elizabeth Sullivan.

Kristin Hansen

Kristin Hansen has worked in executive roles in multiple tech companies and lectures at Stanford’s business school. She is the executive director of a philanthropic organization that focuses on bridging political division. Hansen’s priorities are easing the tension following Measure V, the controversial ballot initiative that sought to put every rezoning of single-family lots to a citywide vote; addressing cyclist and pedestrian safety; and revitalizing the downtown neighborhood of Menlo Park with a focus on the needs of new residents.

Her long-term goals for the City Council are to focus on housing access and equal educational opportunities for residents; traffic problems related to new developments along El Camino; and public safety, including police and community ties.

Andrew Slater

Andrew Slater has a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California at Berkeley and a master’s degree in urban policy and management with a concentration in politics and advocacy. Slater has been a a public school teacher for 10 years, and said his priorities are affordable housing, equitable education and ensuring success of small businesses. Taking a long-term view, Slater said he wants Menlo Park to build more “accessible” housing for working and middle-class families, and that the budget ought to prioritize those goals in a sustainable way that includes public transportation, schools and open space.

Elizabeth Sullivan

Elizabeth Sullivan started a pop gallery in Menlo Park and a museum-style showing. Sullivan’s priorities are to oversee public employees, bring more arts and culture to Menlo Park and expand the downtown region of Menlo Park. Long term, Sullivan said she wants to reexamine the short- and long-term priorities of the City Council, reviewing the performance of public employees and responding to constituent needs.