TRANSPARENCY. HONESTY. INTEGRITY
Hi, Poway, I am proud that I present none of my campaign platform as original — it is COLLABORATION of many friends, supporters, and residents — I look forward to meeting you all and working with you to improve Poway.
Poway Mayor & Council Member & Candidate Forums: I am going to schedule & invite forum once monthly for next 18 months before Nov. 2024 election. Let’s get off social media a bit & meet & talk in person. Everyone is invited. Location/date/time TBA.
Get involved!!! VOTE!!! Attend City Council, Traffic Safety, Budget Review, Recreation, and Trails Committee meetings.
Please consider donating to my campaign – eventually using money for campaign signs & mailers (I never see $$ – I have campaign finance tax service managing this for me) – just scan QR code below to donate – maximum donation in Poway is $250 per person
Tony Blain for Poway City Council District 2 Weekly Meet & Greet: (I will post date/time here, Nextdoor, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter— text me at 858-248-1509 if you’re coming)
Regular Poway City Council Meetings are held on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month at 7 PM in the City Council Chambers
UPCOMING MEETINGS: (View Live at http://www.poway.org/meeting , or call (877) 853 – 5247 , or Cox channel 24, Spectrum channel 19, meeting ID: 623 291 9830
Campaign platform / promises …
– Place link to Mayor & City Council voting record (e.g., The Farm) and campaign donations on front page of Poway city web site – both are extremely well hidden multiple clicks inside City web site = TRANSPARENCY
– ALL Mayor & Council voting on all issues should be blind – Mayor always votes last often “against development” AFTER he saw 3 other Council members vote in favor of it
Establish Neighborhood Watch program in 100% of Poway neighborhoods by working with residents & Poway Police NW coordinator
– Start “SHOP POWAY” campaign; Encourage new small businesses to start in Poway; partner with Chamber of Commerce on “SHOP POWAY” campaign
Slow down rapid development, prevent 3-4 story condos & apartment buildings down rest of Poway Rd, add infrastructure to support existing development, reinstitute Poway Planning Committee & Design Review Board consisting of 2 citizens/residents/voters from each of 4 Poway districts to advise Council on future development
– 100% of Poway Committee meetings will be 7:00 pm – holding earlier meetings is another way Vaus & Council prevent voter/ resident participation
– 100% of Council & Committee meetings including Budget, Recreation, Trails, and Traffic Safety meeting will be RECORDED (other cities post on YouTube) and will have CALL IN option – Mayor recently cancelled Call In Council meeting option saying “there is no more COVID” – false narrative – he is preventing full voter/resident across/ participation
– Support Poway fire fighters & police with pay increases & support their nonprofit foundations with community fundraisers
– NO NEW TAXES
– Improve traffic safety along Midland Rd, Poway Rd, and other Poway streets caused by recent increased development; change existing City employee only Traffic Safety Committee to include 2 citizens/residents/voters from each of Poway’s 4 districts
– Update Poway General Plan; last overall update was 32 years ago in 1991; Community Development (land use, open space, etc.) in 2005; Public Facilities in 1991 (education, library, parks); Transportation (traffic safety, bikeways, Midland Rd., etc.) in 2010; Natural Resources (land, water, etc.) in 1995; Public Safety (fire, police, hazards) in 2000; you cannot possibly manage a well run City or protect its citizens without updating its General Plan regularly- not doing so is irresponsible
– Protect Poway’s “City In The Country” by restricting future development into existing green belts & open space; encourage protecting & expanding Poway’s more than 75 miles of trails; encourage expansion of Poway’s Adopt-A-Trail program; make Poway Trail Committee a formal City sponsored committee
– Make Poway Community Service Commission a formal City-sponsored committee to coordinate and increase volunteering in all aspects of Poway
– Remove ALL graffiti in Poway both on public and privately owned land & property through partnerships with land owners and City & volunteer groups
– Build more parks in Poway to support expanded development & population
– Never allow Mayor to change Poway resident/voter City Council presentations from 3 to 2 minutes; allow & encourage City Council members to engage & speak to residents about their concerns during these presentations
– Never allow City Council to appoint any City Council members — always hold a Special Election to allow voters to select their own Council Members
– Require all Council Members to recuse themselves from any development or other vote if they receive campaign donation from that developer or Special Interest Group (e.g., Council Member cannot vote on The Farm or Lifetime Fitness if they received campaign money from them)
– Place Campaign Donation links for Mayor & all City Council members on front page of City of Poway web site instead of hiding it multiple clicks deep in very difficult to find location
– Place 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline on all City of Poway web pages; restart Sheriff Department PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM (PERT) services which were recently discontinued; supplement this resource with Supervisor Anderson’s recently proposed Mobile Crisis Response Teams (MCRT)
– Partner with Poway Unified School District to hold regular fentanyl and other drug abuse safety education for middle & high school students and their parents; ensure all school nurses have narcan available & are instructed how to use it
– Add more items as I walk around my District 2 and you all tell me what’s important to you and your families— I will do what Poway voters/residents ask & want, not what developers & special interests ask
Improving Poway Quality of Life
Working together with Poway leaders and residents to improve quality of life for our family, friends, visitors, employers, and workers
Family
Quality of Life
Service
Dedication
About Me
Family Physician, 33 year military career, UCSD Assistant Professor, married Melanie Cruz, raised 4 boys in Poway, long time Poway youth coach & Boy Scout leader, involved in Poway American Legion, VFW, FRA, very slow ultra runner, cyclist, & swimmer
– Poway Historical Society
– Poway Chamber of Commerce
– Poway Health & Wellness Committee
– Poway Neighborhood Emergency Commission
– Poway Community Service Commission
– Poway Neighborhood Watch Program
– High Valley Civic Association
– Friends of Poway Seniors
– Poway American Legion
– Poway Veterans of Foreign Wars
– Poway Fleet Reserve Association
– Poway Veterans Park Committee
– Poway Veterans Organization (PVO)
– Deputy Sheriffs Association Political Action Coalition
More about me …
I grew up in Whittier near Los Angeles. I was raised by my grandparents (photo below) who lived through Great Depression and only had 8th grade education. My grandfather was an upholsterer, my grandmother was a seamstress, and my dad (and my uncle and cousin) were plumbers – I am the first person in my family to attend college. My grandparents taught me that hard work pays off … they raised four children and owned their own home on $12,500 annual income (I know different times … but inspiring).
I graduated from California High School in Whittier, ran Cross Country and Track & Field, and was Drum Major of the marching band. I attended UCLA undergraduate with a degree in biochemistry, M.D. at New York Medical College, and M.B.A. at George Washington University. There was never any money in my family, so when I got accepted to medical school I called the Army, Navy, and Air Force inquiring about scholarships, and thankfully the USAF gave me a full 4-year scholarship (of course, in exchange for 4 years active duty).
Between UCLA and medical school I did one year of microbiology research at USC School of Medicine and taught one year of high school (Paramount High School) and one year of middle school (Lake Center Middle School) on an emergency teaching credential teaching science and math in Spanish. I took quite a few Spanish classes at UCLA (tried to get Minor in it) and very much enjoyed teaching in Spanish. I was also high school Cross Country and Track & Field coach and middle school Athletic Director.
I have served in the military for 32 years, mostly reserve, about 7-8 years active duty. I signed on the dotted line in 1991 for my USAF health professions scholarship program to pay for medical school. I started doing my internship in Internal Medicine at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, General Medical Officer doing Family Practice at Bolling AFB in Washington, D.C. for three years, then one year as night-time emergency room doctor at Osan Air Base in South Korea.
I then transferred to Inactive Ready Reserve (IRR) to attend University of California San Diego Family Medicine Residency to finish my training. I subsequently worked in a variety of civilian healthcare settings, including Medical Director and Chief Medical Officer in charge of several large clinics, including Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton Family Medicine Clinic Team 2, Mountain Health, San Diego Family Care, California State Prison Los Angeles, and San Bernardino Public Health Department. In these civilian leadership roles I was in charge of both the clinical and financial health of muti-million dollar healthcare organizations.
I rejoined active USAF reserve in 2009 serving at 452 Aeromedical Squadron at March ARB. I transferred to the U.S. Navy in 2015, serving two deployments, one as Director of Medical Services and U.S. Embassy physician for Djibouti, Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Kenya at Expeditionary Medical Facility (EMF) Djibouti in Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, Africa in 2019 and as Senior Medical Officer Branch Health Clinic Albany (part of Naval Hospital Jacksonville) at Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia in 2020 at the beginning of the COVID pandemic (when Albany was the #1 per capita COVID death rate in the U.S.). I have also served as Senior Medical Officer at Joint Trooper Clinic, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Regimental Surgeon, Fourth Marine Logistics Group, Combat Logistics Regiment 45 in Marietta, Georgia (in charge of medical readiness of 4,500 Marines on east coast, Midwest, and Puerto Rico), and Commanding Officer of the largest Navy Reserve unit in San Diego, Voluntary Training Unit (VTU) at Navy Reserve Center, San Diego. I transferred to the California Army Reserve National Guard in January 2023, and currently serve as Brigade Surgeon for the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT), largest Guard unit in California, in charge of medical readiness of 4,500 soldiers.
I am a family physician, live in High Valley with my wife, four sons raised in Poway, two dogs (Golden and Boston), two brand new kittens, box turtle, and Lionhead rabbit. I run, cycle, swim, and do triathlons (all very slowly … usually one of the last 5-10 guys to finish).
I love living in Poway for its serenity, safety, and “City In The Country” atmosphere which I aim to protect. Poway trails and open space are two of its most valuable attributes contributing to quality of life. Poway volunteers are its most valuable human resource. All Poway residents deserve a voice in City development, traffic safety, and future of Poway decisions.
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“Do not say a little in many words but a great deal in few.” – Pythagoras
That is 5 year old me in 1971 and my grandma & grandpa in Michigan & Pontiac after we drove all the way there each summer from Lynwood to visit my grandfather’s farm & brothers in Dowagiac, Michigan
Tony Blain for Poway City Council District 2 