Dave Roberts faces two challengers for supervisor seat

County Supervisor Dave Roberts is facing two opponents during the June 7 primary in his bid for reelection to the District 3 seat.

The district includes Rancho Bernardo, 4S Ranch, Carmel Mountain Ranch, Sabre Springs and Rancho Penasquitos.

All three candidates — Roberts, Sam Abed and Kristin Gaspar — are expected to participate in a debate from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 17 hosted by the North San Diego Business Chamber. It will be held at Petco Corporate Headquarters, 10850 Via Frontera in Rancho Bernardo.

The public may attend the debate for free, but since space is limited to 200, attendees must register by Sunday, May 15 at sdbusinesschamber.com or 858-487-1767.

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Sam Abed, 64, is an Escondido resident who has lived in District 3 for 29 years. He was an engineer for 12 years with IBM and is the founder of Pacific West Consulting.

Abed has been an Escondido councilman since 2004 and Escondido mayor since 2010.

His campaign website is at SamForSupervisor.com. He is a Republican.

When asked why he wants to be a county supervisor, Abed said, “To restore trust and transparency in county government. As mayor of the largest city of the district, I have led Escondido to financial and economic success. I want to bring the same values to county government.”

Abed said the three greatest issues impacting District 3 are public safety, land use and infrastructure. As for attracting and keeping businesses in the county, Abed said, “In Escondido, under my leadership, we attracted 950 new businesses and $1 billion in new investment to the city by streamlining regulations. I will bring the same principles of economic prosperity to the county.”

When asked if he supports the county contributing money toward a new football stadium, Abed said, “No. I believe taxpayers’ money should be used to provide services to our residents.”

Regarding SANDAG’s proposed ½ cent sales tax increase, Abed said that as a SANDAG board member he voted against the measure.

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Kristin Gaspar, 36, is an Encinitas resident who has lived in District 3 for 31 years. She earned her bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from the Walter Cronkite School of Broadcast Journalism.

She has served on the Encinitas City Council since 2010 and is Encinitas’ mayor. She is the chief financial officer and owner of Gaspar Doctors of Physical Therapy.

Her campaign website is at GasparForSupervisor.com. She is a Republican.

When asked why she wants to be a county supervisor, Gaspar said, “We need elected officials adhering to the highest of ethical standards, serving as positive role models in the community. I will restore integrity to the Third District office of supervisor, working hard each day to maintain the public’s trust and abide by the highest standards of honesty and integrity.”

She added, “My experiences make me the most qualified candidate … As a business owner, I understand the importance of supporting our small business community to grow good paying jobs for the region. As mayor, I have focused on balanced budgets, improving fire and police protection, and enhancing our parks, beaches and open spaces. As a mother, I understand the value of investing in our young people.”

Gaspar said the three greatest issues impacting District 3 are public safety, balanced budgets with no new taxes, and maintaining county roads and infrastructure. As for attracting and keeping businesses in the county, Gaspar said, “Small businesses are the backbone of the economy at the national, state and community level, but we have not been doing all we can at any of these levels to help businesses thrive.” She added, “Attracting good paying jobs is the key to a sustainable economy in San Diego. We must work closely with the private sector to ensure a strong and diversified local economy … promote economic growth by balancing environmental protection with long-range planning to develop programs and incentives that create good paying jobs, strengthen our economy and help small businesses grow.”

When asked if she supports the county contributing money toward a new football stadium, Gaspar said San Diego should continue efforts to keep the Chargers, but she cannot yet support the current proposal. “In my view, the new downtown San Diego stadium plan needs careful review of the financial plan and intended design.” She said careful consideration is needed to see how increasing tourism taxes will impact hospitality and tourism.

Regarding SANDAG’s proposed ½ cent sales tax increase, Gaspar said she opposes the measure due to its lack of balance and project guarantees for the entire San Diego region.

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Dave Roberts, 55, is a Solana Beach resident who has lived in District 3 for 21 years. He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science/economics and master’s in public financial management from American University. He attended the University of Virginia’s Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership, Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government for State and Local Leaders, the U.S. Air Force’s Air Command and Staff College and the USAF Squadron Officer School.

Roberts is completing his first four-year term as a county supervisor and is a small businessman. Before being elected to the county board of supervisors, Roberts was mayor, deputy mayor and councilman in Solana Beach.

His campaign website is at DaveRobertsForSupervisor.com. He is a Democrat.

“As your county supervisor, I’ve delivered results fighting to protect our county’s general plan to stop overdevelopment of our neighborhoods and rural lands, worked with the Rancho Bernardo community to save Webb Lake, improved public safety, protected our coastline, enhanced county libraries, improved animal services, funded more youth sports playing fields and strengthened fire protection,” Roberts said when asked why he wants to be re-elected.

“I helped secure the county’s AAA credit rating, implemented affordable solar energy programs creating over 5,000 new jobs, preserved over 1,200 acres of open space, secured millions for Psychiatric Emergency Response Teams, co-launched the Alzheimer’s Initiative and led efforts to keep Palomar Forensic Health Center open,” he added.

Roberts said the three greatest issues impacting District 3 are quality of life protection, job creation and keeping communities safe. As for attracting and keeping businesses in the county, Roberts cited his understanding of the private sector and past experiences, including as chairman of the San Diego Workforce Partnership.

When asked if he supports the county contributing money toward a new football stadium, Roberts said, “I strongly support the Chargers and value what they bring to our region. However … I do not support spending any taxpayer dollars on a new stadium without a countywide vote of the people. Whichever location is selected for a new stadium must utilize public transportation and be integrated into our communities so that it does not change our quality of life or add to traffic congestion.”

Regarding SANDAG’s proposed ½ cent sales tax increase, Roberts said he would not directly comment on the measure. “Any solution must include critical infrastructure improvements, but it also must reduce our carbon footprint as required by federal and state law,” he said. “Any proposal must provide needed improvements that are critical to North County residents.”