MEET RON
38 years in Alhambra. A career solving difficult problems. A commitment to putting residents first.
For more than 38 years, Alhambra has been my home ever since I moved here in 1988 after getting my Ph. D in engineering from Caltech.
My wife, whose family came to Alhambra in 1948, and I raised our children in the same house where we still live today, just behind Story Park. Our kids attended Garfield Elementary and Alhambra High School, and from our backyard, we still enjoy hearing children playing in the park just as ours once did. For many years I had a small farm and had a small fruit stall at our Farmer’s Market! Our boys were in the Scouts. And in band. And our house was the gathering place for the kids and their friends.
I walk our neighborhood every day. Over the years, I’ve watched Alhambra grow and change - new homes and businesses, more traffic, changing neighborhoods, and new challenges for the families who call our city home. It’s a perspective that comes with time spent in the neighborhood, interacting with neighbors, and seeing what works and what does not.
I first got involved in public life when, a few years ago, the City wanted to build condominiums in Story Park! Getting neighbors involved, who had no idea, was my first (and successful) experience in how to provide public input into City decision-making.
Years later, around 2018, as part of a non-partisan, volunteer group of fellow citizens, Grassroots Alhambra, we made sure that elections in Alhambra were held in a way that anyone could run for office without spending a huge amount of money. This was the first time that ordinary citizens, working together, made City Hall work better. We have all benefited from that. But that work is not done.
Decisions made at City Hall aren’t abstract. They affect the traffic on the streets, the homes we live in, the air we breathe, the quality of life we share, and, importantly, the bills we pay. I remember where we’ve been, I understand how we got here, and I care deeply about where we go next. And, I have this perspective by putting in over 20 years of volunteer work as a citizen to make our City work better for all. My experience is real. My track record is real.
I’ve served our community on the Planning Commission and Environmental Sustainability Commission, where I’ve had to look closely at the real choices facing our city. During my time on the Planning Commission, we updated the City’s General Plan, its Housing Element, and the Zoning Code – documents that had not been updated for decades. We considered and ultimately did not approve a large development – not because we disliked its overall purpose – but because the developer wanted to build it on contaminated land and refused to first clean it up. We did not want to put our residents’ health at risk.
And throughout my professional career as an engineer, scientist, and educator, I’ve learned that complex issues rarely have simple answers. Good decisions require experience, careful analysis, an understanding of consequences, and a willingness to listen. As Alhambra faces difficult choices about housing, transportation, development, and our quality of life, I want to help Alhambra move forward thoughtfully - welcoming good ideas, asking tough questions, and always putting residents first.
I’m running for City Council because Alhambra deserves leadership rooted in Alhambra – shaped by decades of living here, raising a family here, serving our city, listening to our neighbors, and understanding what makes our community unique. Our future shouldn’t be shaped by mere slogans and one-size-fits-all ideas designed and imported from somewhere else, but by thoughtful solutions grounded in our needs, our history, our character, and our lived experience of our own community.
Alhambra has given my family a wonderful place to call home for nearly four decades. I want to help make sure the next generation of Alhambra families can say the same.