TOM BATES, FUHS '56
Mike Johnson, class rep for the class of '58, sent this email message:
Tom Bates was sworn in as Mayor of Berkeley in December 2002 and was re-elected in 2006 and again in 2008.
Click on the "Comments" button to see Tom's history that was included in Mike's message.
posted by Connie @ 3:01 AM
3 Comments
3 Comments:
Offering a Lifetime of Service
He brought a lifetime of public service to the Mayor’s office – including four years as an Alameda County Supervisor and two decades as a California legislator representing Berkeley.
Upon assuming the Mayor's office, Mayor Bates moved quickly to put his experience to work. He reformed City Council operations, initiated special work sessions to solve complex problems, and helped put an end to the contentiousness that had plagued the City Council in years past. With those changes in place, the Mayor worked aggressively to accomplish his core goals.
An Advocate for Youth
One of the Mayor’s top priorities has been to promote youth and education efforts and create a “kid-friendly” city. He launched Project BUILD – a summer reading program that provided nearly 1,000 children with new books and literacy tutors from UC Berkeley. The Mayor also created “Berkeley Champions for Kids” – which raised thousands of dollars and placed over 100 volunteers into after school and other youth programs in its first year of operation. In 2004, Berkeley was named the number one teen healthy city in the state by the California Wellness Foundation.
A Friend to the Environment
Mayor Bates focused tremendous effort and resources on building Berkeley into a national environmental powerhouse. Under his leadership, the City became the first in the nation to share its fleet vehicles with the public as part of a partnership with City CarShare and passed a new law requiring all city buildings be built to green standards. Mayor Bates also worked to build Berkeley’s “green” economy, which now numbers over 200 green businesses. An independent inventory and analysis by ICLEI found that Berkeley had reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 8.9% between 2000 and 2005. Berkeley was also named the third "most sustainable" city in the United States in a peer-reviewed study by a major environmental organization. Recently Mayor Bates helped to pass Berkeley’s award-winning Climate Action Plan with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by the year 2050. Mayor Bates also co-created the innovative renewable energy program, Berkeley FIRST, which overcomes several of the major hurdles of renewable energy adoption and has garnered worldwide attention.
(Read more in next comment.)
Building Partnerships
Creating a positive and more equitable relationship with the University of California was another of Mayor Bates top agenda items. A difficult disagreement over the University’s expansion plans provided the impetus for a historic agreement that will triple the amount of money the campus pays to the City, reduce the impact of traffic and parking, and provide for joint planning of all new UC projects in the downtown. This deal, which the San Francisco Chronicle called a “model” for other town-gown communities, is the single best agreement ever signed between a city and a state university in California.
A Champion of Smart Growth
The Mayor pledged to encourage new market-rate and affordable housing in the downtown and along select transit corridors. In the last five years, the City has approved over 1,500 new units of housing, most of which is in the downtown. Over 30% of this housing is permanently se aside as affordable, including more than 600 units for families with very low incomes. While the Mayor has worked to protect existing neighborhoods, he has supported “smart growth” housing in the downtown and along select transit corridors.
Mayor Bates took office to the news that the City was entering one of the worst budget crises in its history. To address the crisis, Mayor Bates authored the City’s budget crisis recovery plan and worked collaboratively with the Council, City staff, and the community to balance the City’s budget by cutting over $20 million and reducing the workforce by 10% while protecting essential services. The difficult cuts led the City out of red ink. In 2007, the Wall Street credit rating organization Standard and Poor's upgraded the City's credit rating to AA, making Berkeley one of the best rated cities in the country.
(Read more in next comment.)
Tireless Involvement
Mayor Bates also serves on a number of regional bodies, including
immediate past-President of the Alameda County Mayor’s Conference,
member of the Bay Area Air Quality Management Board,
member of the Bay Conservation and Development Commission,
member of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission,
member of the Regional Airport Planning Committee,
and member of the Joint Policy Committee
Mayor Bates’ record in the state legislature includes authoring over 220 bills that became law, despite serving under Republican Governors. Some of his accomplishments include the following:
Bates played a central role in framing California's progressive social service policy. He served as the lead Democrat in the Assembly on welfare, disabled issues, foster care senior services and other social service issues.
Bates consistently received a 100% pro-environment voting score. He authored legislation to create the East Bay Shoreline Park, provided state funding for urban creeks, and required regional transportation plans to include the use of bicycles.
Bates was a champion of accessible higher education. He worked to increase funding and advocate for campus diversity and affirmative action at UC. In addition, he provided financial recovery funding for the Peralta Community College District and the Berkeley school district.
As Assemblyman, Bates worked to bring communities together and expand our economy. He helped found the first Community Bank in the Bay Area and passed legislation to allow Brew Pubs, Limited Equity Housing, and Transit Oriented Development.
After retiring from the Assembly in 1996, Bates continued to serve the public. In addition to teaching at UC Berkeley, he volunteered his efforts to work with school officials and parents to provide healthier food choices for Berkeley students, including organic fruits and vegetables. He was instrumental in the adoption of healthier food policies for the Berkeley and Oakland School Districts.
Tom Bates is a native Californian and a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley ('61). During his time at Cal, Bates was a starting member of the 1959 Cal Rose Bowl team. After graduation, Bates served in West Germany as an officer in the U.S. Army, eventually rising to the rank of Captain in the Army Reserves before retiring from the military in 1964.
He is married to former Mayor of Berkeley and California State Senator Loni Hancock and the family includes four children, Casey, Jon, Mara and Leita and seven grandchildren.
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