Submitted by Berie Grobe
I literally spent my career doing work for elected public officials. In my case, it was as “senior staff” to Boards of Education ranging in size from a five member board to a nine member board. I thus sat in board meetings for probably as many hours of my adult life as I got to spend at home with my family. I worked with many bright and dedicated individuals over the years who were elected to govern the workings of some fine K-12 educational systems. Boards of Education and City Councils are different, but they do have much in common. Both groups have to learn the intricacies of everything from balancing large public sector budgets to, well, the funding of rest room facilities and just about everything in between.
Often, elected officials have certain areas of expertise where they contribute greatly while they leave some of the detail in other areas to their colleagues who may know a bit more. When I first started attending Coronado City Council meetings in 2010, as a citizen then interested in building a new facility at 7th and D Ave. (the up and coming John D. Spreckels Center & Bowling Green), I watched and listened for the first time to Carrie Downey, who was a Council Member at the time. I am not easily or often impressed by elected officials, but I found myself being profoundly impressed by Carrie Downey. At first I thought that it was too good to be true and that the meeting I attended just happened to be one within her expertise. Yet I was puzzled by the fact that her depth of understanding and analysis hit all of the diverse topics of that Council agenda. As I frequented more meetings, I realized that she is truly a unique individual. I can truthfully say that in all my years working with elected officials, there is only one other that has ever impressed me as much as Carrie Downey.
While her track record of outreach to, and input from, the community is well known, I personally want my mayor and city council to have the depth of knowledge and skill to analyze and make decisions. To be able to pick through some of the feedback that truly is just noise and move right on into solutions that make our City the best, is a talent that not everybody has.
I became better acquainted with Carrie Downey when she brought the twenty-four visitors to the Japanese-America Grass Roots Summit to spend an afternoon on the Lawn Bowling Green. The smiles, the laughter, the delight in their eyes and the genuine fun fostered during that event made it so memorable to me even today. When asked about the favorite stops for the visitors in Coronado, Carrie said, “It might have been lawn bowling.” She knew that that event had struck a particular chord. The Coronado Lawn Bowling Club has had Carrie Downey and her family bowling on the Lawn Bowling green on several occasions when many of us have gotten to know her as a person.
I am privileged to live happily on 4th Street and I had the firsthand experience of Carrie walking door to door seeking our input regarding increased visibility, which we would hope would enhance the livability of this notoriously busy street in Coronado.
Finally, when Carrie Downey convinced the Council not to approve the original operations plan for the John D. Spreckels Center & Bowling Green because there was not enough free space for non-profit groups to meet, I was initially concerned and expressed my concern. She got right back to me and explained the history and what she was trying to do, and she was completely right. It taught me to think that if I see Carrie Downey straying from an opinion that I am holding, I need to stop and find out why. There just might be something I have missed. Carrie Anne Downey is perfect to be the next mayor of Coronado.
Berie Grobe, Ph.D.
