My great-grandfather moved to Sonoma County during the Depression and started a little farm off of Fulton Road. My family roots go deep in Sonoma County and Santa Rosa. I have been involved in our schools and community as an elected official, and as an engaged member, having held positions on both the local and regional boards and committees. My early involvement focused on education and striving for continuous support for families and students. I gained experience as an elected school board trustee for eight years, as well as 17 years on the California State PTA Board, serving two years as President of the State PTA. These roles grew my background in finance and policy, and uniquely qualified me for the job of a city council member. As a current city council member, and the most recent former Vice Mayor, I will continue to use the skills that I have developed to serve my community and benefit the City of Santa Rosa. I have the passion and the drive that it takes to be an effective City Council Member. Much like my great-grandfather nearly 100 years ago, I believe in dedication and hard work in order to benefit a greater cause.
I am confident in making tough decisions during challenging times. I am a good listener and a very quick learner. From my time serving on State PTA to my time as vice-mayor, I am very familiar with governance and how to work as a team for the best outcomes. Our community has been dealing with one crisis after another for years: fires, floods, a pandemic, school closures, business closures, mass power outages, etc. I am a problem solver by nature, since serving on the city council we have successfully passed Project Labor Agreements supporting our unions and those working in our trade industry, we have passed rent control for all of our manufactured homes parks to protect senior housing and we are fully staffed with Santa Rosa Police Departments public safety officers and staff. I enjoy working with people and hearing their ideas on how to make things work even better.
My own home was nearly lost in the fires of 2019. Were it not for the incredibly brave and outstanding work of our local fire departments and law enforcement personnel evacuating and protecting our area and community members, the fires would have claimed my home. I have watched my neighborhood recover in the years since, and am so thankful we have such incredible first responders in our city. The last five years have demonstrated how strong our community truly is, as they recover from the fires and the pandemic while rebuilding infrastructure, businesses, and homes.
City Council Service
It has been a great honor to serve on the Santa Rosa City Council these two years. As the current City Councilmember of the City of Santa Rosa, District 3, I am part of a seven-member council that makes decisions for the City on your behalf.
Over the past two years, I have had the opportunity to meet with every department of the city, giving me a better understanding of how all of the puzzle pieces fit. I have met with incredible leaders in our community and community groups to see how we can better work together.
Since I have been on the council, we have tackled many critical issues facing our community. We have added public safety staffing and are far more prepared than in past years. We are working with the schools to support them, and have built up our violence prevention programs and continue to implement those. We continue to work on infrastructure, have made improvements at our wastewater plant, and have added pedestrian safety and bike lanes. Climate Change is a persistent issue that the city is diligently working to address through our climate action plans and committee. We have a work plan that is concrete, yet fluid so that we can adjust as we go forward.
I am honored to serve you as the current council member representing District 3, and I am ready and excited to continue the work we need to do for our community. I will continue to work on your behalf! Please reach out to me with your questions and ideas at diannamacdonald@aol.com.
