City Council Candidate: Marshall Kamena

We sent an e-mail questionnaire to every candidate running in the local November election. Here's what we received in return from Marshall Kamena, who is running for city council.

Dr. Marshall Kamena, Mayor of Livermore, Nov, 2001-Nov, 2011. City council member from 1976-1985 & mayor in 1979-1980 under old system of selecting mayors from city council ranks. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley with a BS and an OD degree. He still maintains his license to practice Medical Optometry and treat eye diseases. However his former practice is now a corporation called Murrieta Optometry with his son as the principal and doctor in charge. The mayor devotes full time to his position in the city of Livermore.

Wife, Barbara, native of Livermore, a St. Michael School and Livermore High graduate. Retired Art and Spanish teacher in Livermore School District.  Graduated in Art & French with B. A,  and M.A. in Art from University of California, Berkeley.

Two children, both Berkeley graduates,  Dr. Scott Kamena, a Medical Optometrist, and Dr. Todd Kamena, a Dentist.  Both practice on Murrieta Boulevard in Livermore and reside here with their children. Dr. Scott has a daughter, Audrey, 6;  sons, Evan, 3 and Nolan, 10 months. Dr. Todd has one son, David, 2. Scott's wife, Jennifer, is a former Alameda County Prosecutor. Todd's wife, Margaret, is a former 4th grade teacher.

Livermore appointments to interagency boards and commissions: Alameda County Transit Commission, 2005 to present; Alameda County Transportation Improvement Agency, 2002-2010;  Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), 2007-present; Livermore Amador Valley Transportation Authority, 2001-present and former Board Chair; Regional & Hi Speed Rail Policy Group: presiding officer, 2006-present; Member and present Board Chair: Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Dept. Board of Directors JPA, 2001-present;  Member & Past President:  Alameda County Mayor’s Conference:  2001-present;  Livermore-Pleasanton Water Reclamation Agency, 1978-1981;  Livermore iGate & iHub Board of Directors member, 2010-present;  Member & Chairman of the Board of Community Television Channels 28, 29 and 30,  2006-present.  I am also the City of Livermore representative on the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce. He is also a founding director of the Livermore Redevelopment Agency.

Five issues, in order of importance, which inspired me to run for Livermore City Council:

• 1) I wanted to define the limits or boundaries of the City of Livermore and create city centered growth and revitalization of our core area of downtown, not just sprawl to Tracy. Highway 84 needed to be removed from its First Street route to Isabel Blvd. with a new interchange at I-580. I then proposed a Downtown Specific Plan and 3300 homes to complement that plan. It is well underway. Our downtown is busy with activity and we have 900% more businesses in the city.
• 2) I wanted to bring a major regional shopping center to town. A 150+ store regional High-end Factory Outlet center which will ultimately house 1,000,000 (million) square feet of shopping opportunities has broken ground and will be ready for the holidays in 2012.
• 3) We needed more local jobs. I sponsored legislation to bring LLNL and Sandia National Labs into our city through annexation.  In concert with the I-Gate initiative the labs have declassified a large section now known as the LVOC, or Livermore Valley Open Campus. This is now on target to bring 5,000 new jobs, beyond the 2,100 new jobs at the outlet center, with over a Billion dollar impact to the Tri-Valley.
• 4) A 14 screen movie theater and performing arts live theater was an issue. I arranged a land swap in a 3-way transaction series to acquire a place for the movie house, the Station Square Townhouses on Railroad Ave, and the placement of the Bankhead Theater. The 2,000 seat regional theater will be located in the completely new center formerly occupied by the demolished Lucky Store and associated businesses.
• 5) BART to Livermore and a regional Catholic High School shared the fifth issue which inspired me to run for office in Livermore. The BART issue is finally “on-track” with specific right of way acquisition and engineering to get the first phase to approximately Isabel for the initial BART station. I hired Frank Wilson, a former BART general manager, to direct our expansion on I580 to Greenville Road.  He was responsible for the two big expansions for BART while in charge of that agency. He is a national authority on transit planning and expansion.

We still need a 4 star hotel downtown, a rail transfer Station or Hub close to the Labs, a University campus at the LVOC, four lanes for Isabel/highway84, the Stoneridge Drive extension to Jack London Boulevard, the Dublin Boulevard extension to North Canyons Parkway, and more housing and commercial development just east of downtown.

I am a past president of the Livermore Chamber of Commerce and of the Livermore Lions Club. Last year I received the citizen of the year award.  

Kamena writes:
I have the best job in the City as member of the city council and Mayor. It’s exciting and satisfying to spend my full time efforts on your behalf. Our budget is balanced and costs are slashed with necessary Public Safety services maintained. Through partnerships with local, regional and national public officials and business executives I have been Livermore’s leader in the following projects:  extensive award-winning Downtown renewal; the 14 screen movie and the performing arts Theaters; the El Charro I-580 fabulous outlet shopping center with 2100 new jobs; the Urban Growth Boundary; Parks and Master Trails completion, Annexation of Livermore and Sandia National Laboratories; Jack London and Stoneridge Drive extensions to complete the road to hospital; Isabel/I-580 interchange; highway 84 removal from downtown; Charter School Expansion; Wheels “Rapid” BART shuttle buses; East Bay Region-wide emergency radio system for Fire and Police; Heritage Estates senior housing with assisted care options; Freeway auto row businesses;  and the BART to Livermore project along I-580. Most are completed, but many remain that I want to finish.  With my commissions’ seniority and established contacts I will finish those jobs and assist the upcoming Mayor with the Catholic High School, a new downtown 4star Hotel (now under negotiation) and the Business and Technology Center adding 5,000 new jobs to the Tri-Valley.