Is Clovis Ready for a Populist City Council Member?

Is Clovis Ready for a Populist City Council Member?
By Mike Rhodes

If you have lived in Fresno for very long, you have probably heard the saying, "Clovis is a way of life." Most of us know that part of that reality is the new housing developments sprouting up like mushrooms and the challenges to the environment that this uncontrolled growth has created. Clovis, now with a population of more than 80,000, is dominated by politicians always looking for new ways to undermine the poor, deregulate restrictions on big business, and lower wages for the working class.

What would happen if the people of Clovis woke from their slumber and elected the city’s first progressive city council member this spring? Peace and Freedom Party candidate John Crockford, who is best described as a progressive populist, would like to find out. Crockford is in a three-way race for two City Council seats. The election will be held on March 8, 2005. To find out what John’s positions are on the issues and why he thinks he has a good chance of winning this race, I drove to Old Town Clovis and had a cup of coffee with him.

"Growth is an important issue in this community," Crockford said. "There was a lot of dissatisfaction when the City Council voted to approve the new Wal-Mart Supercenter over on Herndon and Clovis. They did that over the objection of the planning commission." Crockford sees an alliance of small business people in the downtown area, organized labor, and community activists coming together to redefine growth in Clovis. With both of his opponents supporting the Wal-Mart proposal, Crockford thinks a majority of voters will support him because they want jobs that pay a living wage and benefits.

Crockford believes that growth and development will be a decisive issue in the upcoming election. He says, "If you look at the pattern of development, it looks like a checkerboard." He is talking about the residential housing boom that is taking place northeast of Clovis. The problem, according to Crockford, is that developers are leapfrogging farther and farther from town and services, like public transportation, are becoming more difficult for the city to provide.

Transportation is one of his primary concerns. Crockford does not own a car and relies almost entirely on the public transportation system. That system, Crockford says, is woefully inadequate. In order to get to Fresno, the Clovis Transit system has contracted with Fresno and pays them $110,000 a year to connect the two cities. That service basically links the two cities through a hub at the Sierra Vista Mall and another route that goes down Shaw Avenue. That is fine if you are a student or want to shop at the mall, but does not meet the transit needs of working people in Clovis who need to commute to a job in Fresno by public transportation. Crockford finds it interesting that the system seems set up to bring Fresno shoppers to Sierra Vista mall but is not convenient for commuters. Crockford says that "the bus only runs when the mall is open, which is not necessarily the best time for working people who are trying to get back and forth to work." There is no public transportation to the new developments being built far from the city center.

Affordable housing is an important issue for Crockford. He says that even though Nathan Masig, one of his opponents, works in a business that is supposed to provide affordable housing, there are no new projects in the works. "There are a couple of affordable housing projects that are just about finished, but nothing in the pipe after that. These projects have about a three-year timeline and there are no new projects under way," Crockford said. "All of the affordable housing being built in Clovis is infill . . . and primarily in one of two poor areas of town." If elected, Crockford would make affordable housing a requirement for new housing developments. Crockford said that "diversity is a good thing and should be encouraged by the City Council."

Crockford’s priorities, if he is elected, will be to improve public transportation, provide affordable housing, and raise the salaries of city employees. According to Crockford, "Clovis city employees are paid less than their counterparts in Fresno." The cost of living in Clovis is virtually the same as it is in Fresno, but salaries are lower. Crockford says he would work to improve the salary and benefits of Clovis city workers.

Homelessness, an issue that is connected with affordable housing, is a problem in Clovis. While Crockford says that Clovis seems to have a more enlightened approach to the problem than Fresno, things are far from perfect. The good news is that Clovis has not passed ordinances against panhandlers, has no plans for an open-air drunk tank, is not storing the homeless in tool sheds, and is not running ads on TV and radio telling people not to give money to the poor (all of which Fresno does). The bad news is that there are no homeless shelters in Clovis and services to help the homeless are hard to find. Crockford would like to do more to provide basic services for this marginalized and politically powerless group.

Crockford has been a member of the Peace and Freedom Party for only a couple of months. Previously, he was in the Green Party where he was a member of the county council, which is the party’s local leadership body. He says he left the Green Party because he wanted to be in a party that he feels closer to politically. To find out more about the Peace and Freedom Party, see <www.peaceandfreedom.org/>.

In a community known for its conservative politics, there is one Democrat on the City Council. Both of Crockford’s opponents are Republicans. Crockford has hired Manuel Toledo to be his campaign manager and coordinate precinct walking activities. Dale Julin, a former KSEE 24 reporter and anchor, will manage the media campaign.

By building an alliance with the poor, small business owners, and everyone to the left of the Republican Party, Crockford hopes for an upset victory that will shake up the local power structure. To find out more about his campaign, go to <www.crockford.org/home/>.