HIDDEN VALLEY LAKE– It was a pleasantly cool morning to meet John Hess on the terrace behind the Greenview Restaurant in Hidden Valley Lake. He’s had a busy weekend of walking District 1 in Clearlake and attending the Lake County Democrats’ Barbecue. The barbecue featured US Congressman Mike Thompson and California Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire (District 02) who have both endorsed him. He has had a distinguished career working in the U.S. House and Senate on both sides of the aisle and has served for eight years on the Lake County Planning Commission, but this is his first venture in electoral politics for himself.
“For District 1 and for the county, I think the number one issue … (is) housing. We were in a deficit even before the Valley Fire … and we haven’t caught up. And when I say housing, … I mean affordable, workforce and market rate. Lake county really needs to have a good mix of that in order to grow and succeed. …As a planning commissioner, you get an early glimpse of… what kind of development interest there is in Lake County because it passes through us and the building department.”
“So housing is number one, not only because we’re going need it, we’re looking at a coming decade of growth, in my opinion, and I think Caltrans agrees given the amount of work they’re doing all around the county. We need it just to accommodate the growth that’s going to come.”
“So, it’s a delicate balance. But I think it’s all driven by housing and then the infrastructure that goes along with that, roads, amenities, etcetera. Housing and roads are probably the two things I hear about most.”
“I met with the Communication Workers of America … the ones laying cable here and in Nevada. And it’s really … a scientific process almost, … splicing those fiber optic wires because it has to be 2,500 degrees and you have to fuse them just right. And the CWA makes the argument that there’s a lot of their workers here in Northern California and in Lake County, and that if you hire locally and train people locally, you not only send a good positive signal to the community, but … there’s a certain pride of place.”
“…The broadband build out is so important because, with that kind of development and accessibility and technology, kids are going be able to get jobs, well-paying jobs at an earlier age and hopefully stay in the county rather than, finish high school and leave and never come back, as is often the case. We really need that next generation of leadership in county government at the local level, just in terms of business leadership as well. That’s the future, and there has to be enough to encourage people to stay, raise their family and do their business here.”
“I’m a vocal supporter of the Guenoc project. I have been since it first came through the Planning Commission. The original EIR was some 3,500 pages long … but I looked at most of those pages, and, there was the interruption while the judge asked the Maha group to improve the fire suppression component …., but that was the only part of the EIR that he suggested needed more work. They’ve come back with that revised EIR now…. Maha stuck with it and isn’t going anywhere, in my opinion. I think it’s an enormous benefit to the county to develop something like that. I understand the concerns about water and … the workforce (housing), but starting with Phase One in construction, the operating engineers, the teamsters, the electricians, they are eager as hell and want there to be requirements about local hires and paying prevailing wages because they see the potential and they see 10 years of work there, not to mention what the finished product will do in terms of providing employment and training. So, I don’t really see how we can lose as long as Maha’s commitment stays as strong as it is. I don’t see that changing.”
“I bring a really diverse set of skills and experience to the table that is absolutely relevant to the job of being a county supervisor. I was trained how to work in government. And, the nature of government when it works best is getting things done for your constituents and constituent services. I truly believe that my career has consisted of that kind of community service. … I think public service is a worthy pursuit even in this divided polarized world we are living in now, and it’s not something to be shy about.”
