Interview with Chula Vista mayoral candidate Mary Salas

On why she came back to local politics, relations with Mexico and possibly being the first latina mayor.

CHULA VISTA.- Citizens from all over California are going to the polls today and start trimming the number of candidates that will go on to the main November election; from Governor of California, to city council, the primary elections will leave mostly two candidates for many government posts, and hoping to be one of those candidates that goes on to the November elections is Mary Salas, who could be the first latina Mayor of Chula Vista (believe it or not).

Salas is a proud multiple-generation native of Chula Vista. Having been born and raised here, she first entered politics in 1991 when she joined the local Civil Service Commission and then appointed to the Planning Commission in 1993, where she remained until 1996. That year she ran for and became the first latina and woman in the Chula Vista City Council. There she stayed until 2004, (she won reelection easily in 2000), deciding to serve as Director of the Sweetwater Authority/South Bay Irrigation District for two years before moving on up the government level ladder in 2006, when she was elected to the California State Assembly, serving on several important committees until 2012.

The coordinated Democratic campaign headquarters for Salas and City Council candidates for Chula Vista.
The coordinated Democratic campaign headquarters for Salas and City Council candidates for Chula Vista.

And that is where our interview began. She decided to come back in 2012 to Chula Vista, an odd move for a politician that already had "advanced" to the state level and out of her city. She was elected to Seat 4 and once again joined its City Council, after eight years of having first left.

Why did she come back to serve in Chula Vista?

"Local politics have always been my first love. And you are more effective on the local level than you are at the state level", as the results of your work are immediately evident, she says. "And that's really gratifying", like seeing a park being built after helping secure it, or the master plan communities and to her, that is the essence of public service. That doesn't mean she somehow regrets her work in Sacramento, on the contrary she says, she is very proud of her work in the Veterans Affairs Committee.

There were also many decisions taken by the city during the time she was gone from local government she does not agree with, including reductions in city workers, which might have helped in making city government more efficient but also went to far, affecting park, street and overall city maintenance, as well as other important community services. "There's only so much a city can cut before it meets that critical tipping point where citizens feel the effect of those downsides," she says, and as mayor will seek to return many needed city government capabilities in order to give basic services, especially now that the economy is improving, without forgetting the need to "not be tempted by overspending and to build up our reserve funding again."

Chula Vista and its safety, diversity.

Last year, Chula Vista ranked among America's top 10 safest cities, and I asked Mary what she thinks contributes to that? Its police programs, wealth, culture, or all of the above?

"The people who live in Chula Vista have a lot to do with it, they're very law abiding citizens," she proudly states, but also believes it also has a lot to do with its community based policing they have, "proactive" and, being honest, "just plain luck." One of the things that drive up murder rates in many communities is mass shootings or other random acts that simply hasn't happened in Chula Vista, although it is important for the them to always be prepared and invest in public safety. And at the same time, she wants to help encourage young people to participate more in government, and "harness that intelligence that I see moving here."

With more than half of the population being latino (mostly Mexican-american), why does she think the city has yet to see a latino Mayor? "I think its changing demographics" mostly, as it hasn't always been latino, like when she was growing up, and only until recently has the city become such a diverse community. With that in mind though, she will try to focus that new "energy" on creating policies that encourage small business growth and foster that culture of entrepreneurship, adding that she wants to build a Mayoral Business Advisory Group for that effort. And again, she emphasizes the need to simply get the message out to citizens that "city hall is open to them."

Relationship with Mexico

Chula Vista needs Tijuana and Baja, and the current administration hasn't focused on that, says Ms. Salas, who promises to work on improving the relationship with Mexico once she is mayor. "We are economically interdependent on each other" she comments, adding that during her years in the 90s at the City Council, a study showed that more than 30 percent of Chula Vista's business sales tax revenue came from purchases carried out by Mexican nationals spending in the city, revenue that has since been lost or diminished throughout the years, due to mostly long wait times at the border, but also shows just how much the city needs Mexico. She also points to opportunities like the large numbers of Mexican nationals who now live in the city and are opening businesses but also want to retain ties to Mexico, which is why she hope to "build those relationships for our mutual benefit." She also touts her early work with building strong business ties between Baja and the San Diego region at the California Department of Mexican-American Affairs.

"When I become mayor [the office] will afford me the opportunities to build those relationships again," says Salas, promising to visit south of the border often.

Opinions on the national Veterans Affair controversy

Having also made it her mission to work on Veterans Affairs during her time in the State Assembly, I asked her for her opinion on the current controversy surrounding the national VA system. "I think it's systematic. And the reason being is that bureaucracies are so hard to move. They are so rigid and hard to turn the ship," meaning that it will be difficult for the system to cope with the large amounts of veterans incoming from two recent wars and retirees from previous ones (an issue talked about nationally also), and proposes other solutions, like allowing them to access private clinics through their insurance.

She es specifically interested in solving veteran homelessness, a problem she worked in the Assembly and encourages people to vote for Prop 41, which will make it easier for them to have access to affordable houses for rent, unlike the previous policies focused on making them buy homes.

We close the interview with her thoughts on tonights election results. She's optimistic with the coalition she's been able to build around her, in the education sector and business community. "And people know me in Chula Vista, they know the work that I've done, and I think they'll be quite confident in voting for me. And I think It'll be an awesome experience to be the first latina mayor!"

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jose.sanchez@sandiegored.com

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