“Democracy is not a spectator sport, use your voice.”

Issues

In order to achieve the below goals, we first need to fix how our county operates:

  • At its best, county government exists to make good things happen. To help residents open businesses, build homes, create jobs, and strengthen our communities. Too many people today experience the county as a barrier instead of a partner. That’s a culture problem as much as a systems problem. We need to shift toward a mindset of “Find a Way to Yes”; ensuring safety, fairness, and compliance, but working actively to help people move forward.

    County government is the foundation everything else stands on. Without a stable, well-run organization, every program and priority becomes harder than it needs to be… and too often, it fails. We’ve seen the Board struggle for years to make progress, not necessarily because the ideas were bad or they weren’t trying hard enough, but because the fundamentals weren’t addressed first. 

    When the foundation is strong, everything else becomes possible. We can create the stability needed to take on the rest of our priorities and actually succeed.

    This is the kind of work I’ve done for 25 years: building operational systems that work. In corporations, small businesses, and local nonprofits, I’ve helped align leadership, clarify accountability, improve transparency, and design processes that deliver results.

    I didn’t start listening and researching when I agreed to run for Supervisor. My years of service on the Mendocino Civil Grand Jury, years of closely following Board of Supervisors meetings, my involvement in the organizations that support our community, and ongoing conversations with residents and county staff have given me a clear understanding of how our county operates… and where it breaks down.

    When county government works well, people feel respected and supported, which is exactly how I want all of us to feel.

  • Every priority depends on a county government that works. Many frustrations residents experience reflect systemic and leadership challenges, not the dedication of frontline staff. That means disciplined systems, responsible finances, and a culture that serves the public.

    We need to restore confidence in how our county operates by focusing on:

    • Building a service-first culture: shifting from “default to no” toward a mindset that finds a safe, lawful way to yes

    • Improving operational discipline: clear authority, standardized processes, and empowered staff who can resolve issues efficiently

    • Restoring financial stability: structural budget balance, accurate forecasting, and responsible long-term planning

    • Increasing transparency and accountability: clearer budgets, better public reporting, accessible leadership, and measurable performance metrics

    • Expanding access and representation: making participation easier for rural communities, tribal communities, Hispanic residents, and others who lack consistent representation

    • Clarifying the proper role of county government: focusing on core responsibilities, partnering where appropriate, and avoiding mission drift that strains limited resources

The next Supervisor for District 3 should care deeply about:

  • Bring economic development support to help our inland rural areas not just survive, but find ways for us to thrive while maintaining our way of life and the amazing natural environment that is core to our identity. We need long term creative and intelligent planning to:

    • Get away from our historical boom/bust-extraction economy

    • Encourage business that brings money into the county, not circulate local money or extract money

    • Encourage local ownership of business and industry

    • Make it easier for small businesses to start and operate

    • Grow the job skills we need with local trade education options (MCOE)

    • Increase local higher education access including 4 year programs, so residents can learn locally, then start businesses locally (Mendocino College and Sonoma State University)

    • Encourage business and industry that have higher pay

    • Support growth in existing areas we already excel

    • Create smart economic growth that respects our culture and values

  • Housing isn’t just a housing issue, it affects every part of county life: workforce stability, our ability to live within our means, healthcare access, small business growth, the ability to attract and hire, and whether families can even stay in Mendocino. When housing is scarce or unaffordable, every other priority becomes harder.

    We need a practical, local, grounded approach that:

    • Brings existing housing stock back into safe, usable circulation

    • Encourages small-scale, locally appropriate growth; ADUs, starter homes, and infill

    • Aligns county processes with common-sense housing production

    • Reduces unnecessary delay and unpredictability in planning and permitting

    • Balances affordability, safety, and neighborhood character

  • Public safety isn’t just enforcement; it’s prevention, infrastructure, and smart coordination.

    • Improving the quality and safety of our roads

    • Continue to pursue broadband access for all, especially the rural and disadvantaged

    • Pushing for solid cell coverage (reality should match their coverage maps)

    • Expanding wildfire and disaster preparedness

    • Improving the food security Infrastructure - Support a structured approach to get quality nutritional food available at affordable prices everywhere in the county for those who are food insecure

    • Mental health: early support and prevention, crisis response that works, local access to care, and clear standards when someone is a danger to themselves or others

    • Basic homelessness services: housing support pathways for those who want to get off the street, prevention services to help those on the verge of going homeless

    • Crime prevention: support as much as possible, default to enforcement when necessary. Crime has no place in our community. We lead with prevention, treatment, early intervention, community-based policing, and a rehabilitative approach for first-time offenses. But when those efforts fail, or when dealing with repeat or violent offenders, we back our Sheriff and District Attorney to act swiftly and decisively to protect the public.

  • This isn’t just a moral issue, it’s an economics and health issue.

    However you frame it, whether you believe the natural world was entrusted to us to care for, or that humanity put itself at the top of the system, the conclusion is the same: we have a responsibility to act as good stewards.

    • Protecting clean air, clean water, and healthy soil as public health infrastructure: These all directly affect asthma rates, cancer risk, drinking water safety, food quality, and long-term healthcare costs.

    • Treating environmental protection as economic policy: the environment is one of our strongest economic assets. It enables us to make money through agriculture, tourism, recreation, fishing, and many other fields.

    • Prevent costly damage with proactive management: Environmental damage always becomes a public expense. When watersheds are degraded, forests are mismanaged, or pollution is ignored, the county (and its residents) ultimately pay the price through emergency response, healthcare costs, infrastructure damage, and lost economic opportunity.

    • Protect what makes Mendocino unique: The beauty of Mendocino County is legendary. Its redwood forests, powerful rivers, jagged coastline, and rolling open oak meadows, aren’t just scenery; they're part of our identity and our well-being. Access to natural beauty reduces stress, improves mental health, strengthens community connection, and gives people a sense of place and belonging. When we protect the land, we protect something less measurable but deeply real: the inspiration, calm, and meaning that make people want to live here, raise families here, and care for this place long-term.

    • Act with humility: Learn from the past. Action isn’t always the best course, we (humans) don’t always know best (and in fact historically have a track record of breaking while trying to fix). intervene where evidence supports it, protect when restraint is wiser.

  • We may not run hospitals, but we can make Mendocino County a place where healthcare providers can survive, recruit staff, and stay, and where residents can count on care when they need it.

    Healthcare access is fundamental to community stability. When rural hospitals struggle, when clinics can’t hire, or when residents must travel hours for care, the entire county feels it: families, employers, and first responders alike.

    We need a practical, rural-focused approach that:

    • Strengthens the stability of our hospitals, clinics, and emergency services

    • Supports workforce recruitment and retention, especially in hard-to-fill specialties

    • Expands access to behavioral health and substance use treatment

    • Uses county policy and permitting authority to reduce barriers to care

    • Advocates aggressively at the state level for rural reimbursement fairness

    • Supports expansion of basic regular local primary and urgent care

    • Ensures available and affordable ambulance/EMT for all areas

    Long term, I believe healthcare should be accessible and affordable for everyone. Universal access to care is the right goal for our country. While counties do not control federal healthcare policy, we can lead locally by strengthening our rural healthcare systems, advocating for fair funding, and ensuring that no resident falls through the cracks while broader reforms are debated.

Want to talk?

I’m happy to. Just send me a note here and I’ll get back with you.

About Eric