Fresno faces a dizzying array of problems as it seeks to find a new mayor to lead the city for the next four years. There are several well-qualified candidates seeking to become Fresno's next mayor, but one candidate -- Ashley Swearengin -- stands above the rest when measured against the need.
The task for the next mayor is daunting: Declining revenues, anticipated growth, grinding poverty alongside prosperous neighborhoods, a woeful lack of public amenities, a decaying infrastructure, the burden of past planning failures, the nation's worst air quality. It will take keen vision combined with a well-developed set of organizational and political skills to manage that task.
It's been nearly a dozen years since Fresno got its first "strong mayor," after voters approved a change in city governance in 1993. We still haven't got it quite right. The change didn't create an all-powerful city executive; the City Council still has a great deal of power, particularly over the budget.
Outgoing incumbent Alan Autry and his predecessor, Jim Patterson, often seemed to reach beyond the powers granted them by the voters when the change was made. Council members frequently resented that. The consequence has often been councils and mayors who can barely be civil with one another at times, let alone tackle and solve the city's problems.
One of Swearengin's great strengths is her demonstrated ability to bring people with different interests together, most notably in her work as director of the Regional Jobs Initiative. That's crucial as we move ahead. Without collaboration -- and on a regional basis, not just within the city limits -- Fresno and the Valley will not be able to solve the problems we face.
Contrary to what we often hear, political toughness and an instinct for collaboration are not contradictory. In fact, politics is about collaboration -- the ability to find useful compromises among competing interests.
But collaborative skills alone are not sufficient. We must also have a leader who can bring those collaborative efforts to a useful conclusion. We're persuaded that Swearengin has more than enough of the political pit bull in her to do that part of the job.
There is always a fine line between success and failure in local government. We have elected good leaders who cannot manage very well -- then we get plenty of vision, but the nuts and bolts of city government are neglected. We've also had good managers, who take care of the details but rarely glimpse the larger vision.
We will need that combination of vision and management in the years ahead, as Fresno faces some momentous changes. In Swearengin, we believe the voters of Fresno will find a candidate who can bring those qualities to the office. We urge a vote for Ashley Swearengin for mayor of Fresno in the June 3 primary.
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