Hollister mayoral candidate Gordon Machado spent 12 years on the council in the 1970s and 1980s and was mayor for two years. He believes his experiences several decades ago will translate to today’s issues in the city.
“Obviously, a lot of the same problems are here today. I believe that actually there are two or three major problems that are repeating themselves.”
He said he can’t solve all of the problems by himself, “but I can hit the majority of them that we solved 20, 30 years ago.”
Machado is running for mayor against incumbent Ignacio Velazquez and fellow challenger Keith Snow.
Story continues below this video interview:
https://vimeo.com/291925199
“I’ve been encouraged for a couple years to do it,” he said, adding how he had been reluctant at the beginning, “and I started realizing I have the time now more so than ever.”
He said he’s willing to attack today’s problems.
“The solutions are almost the same today as they were in the past,” he said.
Machado believes there are three primary issues to address here.
“Probably No. 1 is growth or almost side by side with Highway 25. I guess the third one I’m looking at is the fact that we need more manufacturing here, more jobs, and that will reflect on 25 where you can cut down the commute and do it locally,” he said. “So I’ve been looking at industry here, looking at industry in Santa Clara County, mainly because we have to bring up the dollar income to make it advantageous for the person to stay or switch industries here where the people commuting can actually do the same job in our city, our county.”
Machado explained how the state considers Highway 25 a low priority, so local governments have to raise funds in a so-called self-help manner.
“So I think that’s critical,” he said.
He pointed out how he chaired a “balanced” growth initiative many years ago.
“The city just adopted a growth, numerical figure, and I think that’s good,” he said, referring to an annual housing cap in Hollister. “But the main thing is, you have to balance that growth figure with the amenities, and I think that’s what I call balanced growth.”
Those amenities are roads, water and sewer, he said.
“All those other amenities should match the growth rate so you’re not overwhelmed,” he said. “So we’ve got a little bit of catching up to do but I think it’s an avenue that can be obtained.”
As for goals, Machado said his main objective is “the betterment of the city as a whole.” He noted how he’s known many of the county board members and candidates, and worked with them in different areas.
“So I think there’s an overlap there I can hopefully meld together. I’ve already talked to some of the candidates and some of the people on the board. There’s not major, major problems, but there are some problems between the two entities.”
Candidate Info
Gordon Machado
Occupation: Business owner
Political experience: 12 years on the Hollister council, 17 years on the local hospital board, 8 years on the county planning commission
Video interviews with other Hollister mayoral candidates below:
https://vimeo.com/291929523
https://vimeo.com/291921030
