My Background

I was born and raised in San Francisco.  Being the second oldest of ten brothers and sisters was formative to who I am; being responsible is second nature – I was writing checks at the grocery store when I was ten!

My wife, Melissa Hatheway, and I realized even back then that Petaluma was the best place to raise a family. We moved into our Petaluma home on Super Bowl weekend 1985.  We’ve raised our four children here, enjoying all the good things that family-friendly Petaluma has to offer.

We were drawn to family activities; joining Little League, soccer, scouts, church and school groups.  It’s heartening to acknowledge the many lifelong friends we’ve made by being active in these groups.  We consider ourselves fortunate to live in such a vibrant, friendly, youthful community.

Petaluma Youth Soccer League, President

By 1989, I was coaching and refereeing soccer.  Some clever leaders in the soccer league knew that I would be a committed volunteer and tapped me for a League Board position.  Through the early 2000’s, I led Petaluma Youth Soccer League providing a positive community service for over 2500 kids each year.

Even after my own children were grown, I continued to coach and organize the program.  It’s satisfying to know that you are contributing to a program that provides a positive influence for young people. 

Park Advocate

In the early 2000’s, I met people who, like me, believed that the City’s park and recreation resources were inadequate and deteriorating.  I helped start a group that advocated for improved parks conditions; we appealed to the City Council for resources.  Through this experience, I learned two things – the City has limitations and there’s power in advocacy.

Measure X, Co-Chair

There were others in the community working for recreation improvements.  Activists from the swim community, the newly formed lacrosse leagues, and others agreed the only means forward was through a ballot issue.  I co-chaired Measure X on the ballot in 2012.  That Parks and Recreation Measure received 63% of the vote, just short of the two thirds needed to pass.  However, that public support and the evident need for improved recreation facilities in town, the City has found a way to complete everything on our list!  A great thanks to the citizen team that worked so hard to see the Petaluma Community Sports Complex get built.

Recreation, Music and Parks Commission, Chair

I am chair of the City’s Recreation, Music and Parks Commission to continue to advocate for the needs of our community.  I’ve had opportunities to meet with and encourage the proponents of various citizen-driven projects. Projects have included improvements by Daily Acts at the Library Park, the lease of Cavanaugh Center to Mentor Me, and grant applications to the County Open Space District to fund new parks in Petaluma or grant applications for improvements at Shollenberger Park.  All these projects were citizen driven and needed the support of city government.  This gave me an increased appreciation for the huge impact that our fabulous residents have in making Petaluma a beautiful and vibrant community. As Councilperson, I’ll work to foster more of these public-private partnerships.

Petaluma Youth Commission

I am also fortunate to be a member of the Petaluma Youth Commission.  The stated purpose of the commission is to “be an advocate for the well-being and development of youth through age 21 in the City of Petaluma and in the five areas of their mission: health, safety, recreation, jobs, and community engagement.” Participating in Youth Commission activities has helped me form closer connections to our young people.  I believe that I am helping grow a future generation of Petaluma leaders.

Petaluma Public Arts Committee

For three years, I was a member of the Petaluma Public Arts Committee.  The Committee has oversight on the city requirement that new commercial development install art on their property or contribute to a public fund.  The art seen now at many new developments (Brewsters Garden, Lagunitas, etc.) was reviewed and approved while I was on that Committee.  While I was involved, the Committee entered a process to select a significant installation of Public Art to utilize the accrued funds.  When I first joined the Committee, I was the only non-artist on the Committee.  My background as a civil engineer came in handy. I pushed for a fixed project budget and a fixed project timeline. 

Know Before You Grow

After the meltdown and mortgage crisis of 2008, I became actively interested in housing in Petaluma.  There was growth but people weren’t happy with the results.  It also appeared that people didn’t engage unless the growth was in their backyard.  The public in general had no early influence or engagement in the direction that the development occurred.  I began to educate myself on what makes for “good” growth in a town and to evaluate Petaluma’s process.  I formed Know Before You Grow to help other people understand the process -to get “engaged and educated early.”  These forums, are all citizen-driven. They present new housing topics and explore creative ways of re-thinking the ways that towns typically grow.  As we move forward with the large challenges of housing and transportation facing us, we need a public forum like this to build public consensus on solutions.

The era of sprawl is over, an unsustainable model that has resulted in an infrastructure that the city has no resources to maintain.  New projects will require “infill”, the use of vacant and underutilized properties within the city’s core, along with “transit-oriented development.”  Know Before You Grow is helping our citizens become aware of these new realities and encouraging them to become part of the process that will determine Petaluma’s future.

Municipal Civil Engineer/ Project Manager

In my 30 plus years of engineering, I have built many municipal projects.  I was project manager for the first Recycled Water Treatment Plant in the north bay area.  I was responsible for design, construction and budget for $10 million per year of municipal infrastructure improvements.

City council must communicate with the public - both be open and listening, as well as the chief explainer of the existing Councilperson and council must be transperent in its actions.

Please find additional information at fischerforcouncil.com

I was born in Richmond, CA.  While still in elementary school, my grandparents moved with the Ford Motor Co. to San Jose.  My brother and I, and a male cousin, would visit them for 2 weeks every summer.  We would inevitably end up fighting and wrestling, and my grandmother would exclaim “If you kids don’t stop it, I’m going to ship you all to Petaluma”.  Petaluma was the edge of the flat earth to my family in those days, in part because someone had to drive my great-grandmother, via ferry to Marin, to Petaluma, to buy chicks at the hatcheries, every 6 months. 

With this information as background, my wife and I moved to Sonoma County in 1982 to begin medical careers with Kaiser Permanente in Santa Rosa.  We moved to Petaluma in 1991, just prior to the birth of our daughter Gina.  My effort at this time was focused on being available to and taking excellent care of my patients, and on making Kaiser the best place to get medical care in Sonoma County.  But I was also a member of the Department of Medicine at Santa Rosa Community Hospital, taught residents, and served as Chairman of the Department in 1987.

I left Kaiser in 1988 to study Occupational and Environmental Medicine at UC Davis, and returned to Kaiser San Rafael in this specialty in 1990.  My positions there (and in Petaluma) between 1990 and my retirement in 2009 included Chief of the Department of Occupational Medicine (San Rafael and Petaluma), Physician Lead for Occupational Health and Safety Services and Disability Management (Northern California), and member of the Board of Directors of the Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association (WOEMA).

My political work during the years I practiced was sparse, and included work with the SF group Committee for Health Rights in Central America, and intermittent support of a variety of Single Payer proposals.  When I retired in 2009, I wanted to teach, and also to become more involved in environmental issues, as well as issues of diversity and inequity. 

As for teaching, I have taught Biology and Anatomy and Physiology at Casa Grande high school as a long-term substitute.  I have also served as Assistant Advisor to HOSA (Health Occupation Students of America) students; in this capacity, I have helped them prepare for statewide competitions and advised on health careers.  At UC Davis, I taught undergraduate Introduction to Public Health between 2012 and 2017.  I am still an Assistant Clinical Professor of Public Health Sciences and Internal Medicine at UCD, and teach there approximately 2 days per month.

I also began venturing into politics after retirement.  In 2011, I was appointed by the City Council to a 2-year term on the Petaluma City Youth Commission.  I was again appointed by the Council to represent Petaluma on the Stakeholder’s Advisory Group of Sonoma County Climate Action 2020, and served from 2013-2015.  In 2014, I was nominated by Mayor Glass to fill a City Council vacancy, which was eventually filled by current council member Gabe Kearney.

Over the past 2 years, I have become increasingly active in politics, doing volunteer work on the Bernie Sanders Presidential Campaign, on passage of and access to the End of Life Option Act, on the North Bay Rapid Response Network, on Single-Payer Health Care in California, and on Just Cause Eviction in Petaluma.

I have won occasional academic and medical awards, but I am proudest of those given me by students.  I have twice been named Preceptor of the Year by medical students at the UCD student-run and free Paul Hom Asian Clinic, and I was awarded a Certificate of Honor by the UCD Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS).

Lots of folks ask how I got to medical school with an undergrad degree in engineering.  In the 1960’s, I was able to get through high school and college without ever taking Biology.  Literally the week after receiving my engineering degree, I saw the word “bioengineering” for the first time, and then decided to read a biology textbook before beginning grad school in engineering.  When I started grad school, I asked several prospective mentors if they would be willing to mentor me in a bioengineering PhD project.  They all said “if you want to do that, you should go to medical school”.  Once I got to medical school, it seemed that everyone planned to do research, and I learned that I liked taking care of patients.

See Bernie Sanders and Robert Reich.  

We all do better when we all do better (P Wellstone).

We're all in this together (many).

Professionally, I am a public affairs official for a local government agency. During my career I have served as a spokesperson to local, state and national media. I earned certifications in specialities including managing public information during a disaster and incident command system management in emergency risk communications for natural disasters and public health emergencies. During the fires in 2017, I served as a Public Information Officer for the County’s Emergency Operations Center fire response and recovery efforts.

My background in local and state government gives me a unique insight into how both individuals and the community together can work to make Petaluma stronger — and our government more efficient and transparent.

Currently, I am the Public Information Officer for the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office. My prior work experience includes serving as a senior staff member to Assemblymember Marc Levine and as the Communications Manager for the Sonoma County Department of Health Services. I was also a project associate for a small public affairs firm working for nonprofit and political clients.

I firmly believe in public service and giving back to the community I love.  I earned my B.A. in Political Science from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. For graduate school, I obtained a Master of Public Affairs from the University of San Francisco. My volunteer work in Petaluma and throughout the community includes:

• Planning Commissioner, City of Petaluma
• Board Member, Sonoma County Public Library Foundation (Former Board President)
• Elementary School Reading Tutor, Schools of Hope, United Way of the Wine Country
• Committee Member, Measure Y Oversight Committee (Sonoma County Public Library System)
• Appointed State Delegate, California Democratic Party
• Member (District 2), Sonoma County Democratic Party Central Committee

Local government is where meaningful change can happen and where residents can directly impact their daily routines and lives. When I talk about public health, I mean the air we breathe, the water we drink, the walkability and safety of our community. Having bicycle and pedestrian access, being able to go to a local park, ensuring our children can have preschool and infant/toddler care – all matter to the health of our community. I want to be a champion on these issues to improve our community’s health and well-being.

Working on budget and policy issues is a huge task for any policymaker. However, working with the community, listening to all sides, and engaging in meaningful dialogue helps any elected official be better. My experiences have shown me that a city councilmember can be a passionate voice on issues my friends and neighbors care about, ranging from social justice and equity, workforce housing, transit-oriented development, stronger public health policies, and strengthening environmental policies to protect our community. As a Planning Commissioner, I am working on land use issues and development projects to ensure our General Plan is followed and we are building in a sustainable way, including workforce housing.

Petaluma needs to engage our residents in a more comprehensive fashion. Families are facing tremendous pressures with a lack of workforce housing, worsening traffic, and inadequate transportation options. Fortunately, our unique location and diverse population give Petaluma the flexibility to push for innovative public policies that will support a sustainable future not only for ourselves but also for future generations. The Petaluma I am running to help flourish is a city where families can feel connected, the environment is protected and our children can have access to quality affordable early childcare and education.

Ever since I moved to Petaluma in 1992 I’ve loved living here. I attended Petaluma Junior High and Petaluma High School, then moved on to SRJC, and then San Francisco State. After moving away for some years to attend college and for work I moved back, and with my wife, built our business and life here. My family has also grown; with 2 young children, I feel so fortunate that we live in such an amazing community and want to do all I can to keep it that way.  As a city and community, we have many issues that need to be addressed for the betterment of all.

I’ve lived on both the East and West sides of town so I know what issues each area is faced with and being involved in the community has exposed me to many different groups, businesses, organizations, and non-profits. With that exposure I know there’s not a one size fits all fix to our issues and I don’t align myself to one way of thinking or another; I’m truly an independent that wants what’s best for Petaluma and all who live here.  I hope to earn your support and serve this great city.

A LITTLE MORE ABOUT MY COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND EXPERIENCE:

• President, Petaluma Educational Foundation (17/18) and Board Member (2014-present)
• Council Member and Treasurer – Petaluma Chapter of REALTORS® (2010 – present)
• Transit Advisory Committee Chair – City of Petaluma (17/18)
• Past Board Member, Petaluma Host Lions
• Past Board Member, Petaluma Young Professionals Network (PYPN)
• 2017 North Bay Business Journal Top 40 under 40 Recipient

My name is Robert Conklin and I’ve lived in Petaluma my entire life. I grew up on the West Side and graduated from Petaluma High School.

As an adult, I moved to the East Side and became a homeowner.

I know I can represent all of Petaluma and help bridge our East/West divide.

My wife and I started our family during the Great Recession. We now have two children and commute to work each day.

If elected, I will be a powerful voice for Petaluma’s working families.

We need to ease traffic and improve Petaluma’s roads. The Rainier crosstown connector is long overdue, and I will work to make it a reality.

I believe in affordable housing and smart development that balances growth with the needs of those who already live in our great city. 

I also believe in greater transparency from our local government to engage all of Petaluma in the civic process.

I’m not a politician, I’m a Petaluman. No matter the issue, I believe we can overcome any challenge if we work together toward our common goals.

​I’m asking for your vote, and I thank you for your consideration.

To learn more, please visit my website at conklin4petaluma.com