At least three candidates are preparing to run for the San Bruno City Council in the fall, in sharp contrast to the last election called off for lack of interest.
The expected candidates have come to City Hall in the last two weeks expressing interest in running, but may not file officially until July 18. The terms of Mayor Larry Franzella and City Councilmen Chris Pallas and Ken Ibarra will expire in November, but they are all planning to run again.
Stephen Pieraldi, chief technology officer at Redwood Shores-based Gabriel Venture Partners, said he is running for council.
He has served on the city's Traffic, Safety and Parking Commission for two years, and said the council could use some fresh faces.
Pieraldi, 40, grew up in San Francisco and Belmont and has lived in San Bruno for 13 years. He said he would like to see business development downtown, improvements made to City Park by Crystal Springs Road, and more social integration in the city.
"We're pretty segmented for such a small city," he said.
Pieraldi is married and has a 5-year-old daughter and a 10-year-old son.
Rico Medina, also 40, is running for the City Council after doing 25 years of community service and work with the Parks and Recreation Department.
"It's early but I do have an interest," he said on Tuesday.
Medina started working at the Parks Department in high school, and worked in the office of the city manager and city clerk. He eventually earned a full-time job there organizing youth activities and special events, but left in 2000 to work as human resources manager at Golden State Flooring in South San Francisco.
Responding to alcohol-fueled incidents at city parks, Medina has recently worked on a city resolution to require permits for drinking alcohol there. It is expected to be considered at the City Council's meeting on Tuesday.
He said he wants to bring more businesses to the city and more parking, and also unify the City Council.
Local photographer Scott Buschman is also planning to run for the council.
The 44-year-old is a busy freelancer who grew up in San Francisco before moving to San Bruno 20 years ago.
A former news photographer for the San Mateo County Times, he became involved in politics when Bay Area Rapid Transit threatened to tear down four square blocks of the city's Belle Air neighborhood in 1989.
A resident of Belle Air at the time, he said he started organizing neighbors and writing letters to lawmakers, and he said he facilitated BART to find an alternate path.
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He said he has respectfully challenged the City Council in the past, and said he wanted more time at meetings to voice his opinion.
"I feel like I'm limited with three minutes at the microphone," he said.
Buschman has also been a member of the city's Chamber of Commerce for two years, and has been involved with Operation Clean Sweep - a yearly volunteer effort to pick up litter from the streets.
He visited the city manager's office last week to ask about running for the council.
Unlike the City Council incumbents, San Bruno City Clerk Ed Simon is expected to retire in November after years of service to the city, and eight as mayor.
Looking to fill his shoes is Carol Bonner, an assistant vice president at Wells Fargo Bank in Millbrae. She is so far the only candidate, and ran once before in 1993.
Bonner said she has volunteered extensively, including as an AYSO soccer coach, a gardener at the San Francisco Zoo, and most recently helping run Bingo games at the San Bruno Senior Center.
"It's a very intense crowd, but I want to give back to my community," she said.
Bonner, 58, said she has been getting advice from Councilman Jim Ruane and said she wants to keep the city clerk post apolitical.
"I bring a positive upbeat attitude, and I don't believe the office is a political office, it's a neutral office - I hope I can bring neutrality," she said.
Councilman Chris Pallas, who is 80, has been on the City Council for a quarter century, and he welcomed the challengers on Tuesday.
"I don't mind the new faces. You need an old timer like me to keep the new ones in order," he said.
Pallas also questioned where the new challengers were two years ago.
If the candidates raise more than $1,000 before July 18 they must file forms with the California Fair Practices Commission, otherwise they can submit a 200-word statement of intent after that date.
More information on running for City Council can be found at San Bruno City Hall or online at www.smartvoter.org.
Stephen Baxter can be reached by e-mail at stephen@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 109. What do you think of this story? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com.
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