Editor's Note: Election day is fast approaching and to give our readers a better look at the candidates who’ve thrown their hats in the campaign ring, Patch will be interviewing each one about what issues are most important to them, who’s their fiercest competition and what experience they bring to the table. Here's the newest installment of Names in the News, featuring Mayoral Candidate Dion Bracco.
What are your hot button issue(s)?
I really believe the tax issue will be first and foremost this coming November. There could be as many as four local tax increases on the ballot, in addition to the tax increases proposed by the Governor. I am adamantly against all of these tax hikes. Tax increases in this economy will only chase jobs and businesses out of Gilroy and damage our outlet retailers and car dealers. Government must be made to live within its means and I think I am the only candidate in the race who will really go to the mat to fight against higher taxes.
Who is your biggest competition?
Don Gage and Peter Arellano are both formidable opponents. Don has been around for a very long time. He is a polished politician, he has the connections and the big money. Peter is playing to the fact that he is the only Latino and the only Democrat in the running, and in a three-way race, anything can happen. I am very concerned, however, that Peter represents a return to the “tax and spend” philosophy of the 1960s that created our current financial crisis, and that won’t do Gilroy any good. I respect Don but the problems and issues he dealt with on the Council a quarter–century ago are very different from what we face now. We do need to go forward, not back.
Find out what's happening in Gilroywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
What experience do you bring to the position of mayor?
Perhaps the best experience is that I am the only business owner (Bracco’s Towing & Transport, Inc.) in the race and that greatly influences the votes I cast and the direction I want to take Gilroy. If we can’t run this city in a fiscally-responsible, business-like manner, we are destined to go the way of Stockton or San Bernardino. I also have seven years experience as a councilmember, three years as the mayor pro tem, and involvement in a variety of community and governmental organizations and bodies like Gilroy Gardens, the South County Youth Task Force, the Gilroy Gang Task Force, the South County Regional Waste Water Authority, Santa Clara County Library District, The Gilroy Compassion Center and many more.
What qualities should the mayor of Gilroy have?
I think a Mayor should have some sound business sense and a commitment to fiscal discipline. He should also be able to bring people together to work for a common goal as well as have an overall, forward-looking vision for the city that can lead the council in the right direction. The mayor may only have one vote out of the seven, but the mayor can set the course and the agenda and he is the head and the face of the city.
Find out what's happening in Gilroywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Why run for mayor?
The mayor sets the agenda and can really define the debate. I think it’s time we have a mayor, along with a council, that is assertive and proactive and sends the message that we are in charge and our staff is accountable to and answers to us. I also believe I represent the only proven fiscally-conservative choice for Gilroy voters.
Why not go for another term on the council?
Well, my term isn’t up until 2014. I really felt at the outset of this campaign that I had a unique vision and perspective to bring to the mayor’s office, especially in this very difficult period of economic and financial distress. I find now that my voice is really the only one in the Mayor’s race taking a hard line against tax increases and it is extremely important that this issue be addressed in the upcoming campaign.
What's something you want voters to know about yourself?
I’m really a no-nonsense, up-from-the-bootstraps type of guy. I raised three children as a single father. I started my business on my own and it was a struggle then and is a struggle still today. I can sympathize with the hundreds of small business owners out there who are fighting just to keep their heads above water in this bad economy: trying to meet payroll, keep their employees working and their customers happy.
I have been instrumental in numerous decisions which have positively impacted Gilroy, including the purchase of Gilroy Gardens, construction of the new library, a new youth center at San Ysidro Park and repairing our sidewalks. Working with the police chief, I have been instrumental in forming the South County Youth Task Force to fight gangs in all of South County, because I understand it is a regional problem. I led the charge against marijuana dispensaries in our community and have actively supported anti-drug efforts in our public schools, personally mentoring young people and encouraging them to not get involved with gangs and drugs.
