SLO LIFE FebMar 2020

District 5 Incumbent
DEBBIE ARNOLD
When I moved here in 1973 to attend Cal Poly, I fell in love with both
my husband Steve, and the farming and ranching values that had been
a part of the Arnold family way of life for more than five generations. I
bring to this job my passion for this county, as well as my personal and
professional experience.
While raising two children, I owned and operated Small Wonders
Preschool in Atascadero. Over those seventeen years I got to know
countless local families and watch as many of my former students grew
up and started families and businesses of their own.
I later had the privilege of advocating for these local families as I worked
as a Legislative Assistant at the County Supervisor’s office and later as
a District Representative for the State Assembly and the State Senate.
During these years, I worked with a broad range of community groups
and interests, bringing people together to solve problems. I have always
believed that there is nothing more powerful than an informed public,
and toward that end I have worked hard to promote better public access
to information about proposed policies that will impact local residents.
That is why our friends and neighbors, as well as many trusted
local leaders like San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson,
Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham, Atascadero Mayor Heather
Moreno, and County Assessor Tom Bordonaro are supporting my
campaign for supervisor.
As your supervisor, it has been my honor to serve our community and
deliver on the promises that I have made. I have held my colleagues
accountable while supporting policies to create jobs, keep our
neighborhoods safe, and protect our way of life.
I am a dedicated wife, mother, and grandmother, a family rancher, and
proud small business owner. I will never back down when it comes to the
safety and success of our region’s hard-working families.
I will continue to be our champion on the issues that matter most. I will
fight to keep San Luis Obispo County an affordable place to live, work to
combat homelessness, protect our water supply, and ensure tax dollars are
being used efficiently.
I look forward to the opportunity to continue serving our community as
county supervisor.
District 5 Challenger
ELLEN BERAUD
My name is Ellen Beraud (pronounced bay-ROW). As a longtime
resident of Atascadero, I care deeply about the San Luis Obispo County
community. Since moving here twenty years ago, I have raised a family,
founded and operated a small business, and served as an Atascadero
City Councilmember and Mayor. I love this community—from the
rural pastures and oak trees, to the family-run businesses and small town
charm—San Luis Obispo County is truly a special place to call home.
We are facing some of our biggest challenges ever—threats to our
economy, our environment, and our way of life. I want to see San Luis
Obispo County address these challenges and be a leader in our state once
again, but we need bold leadership to get us there.
Our county is currently one of the least affordable places to live in the
nation. Housing is unattainable for our young families (including my
own children, who have been forced out of the area), and it is even
impacting our local business community. We need leaders who will not
only prioritize addressing our housing affordability crisis, but will partner
with the community to make childcare and other key services for families
more accessible.
With homelessness on the rise, our county needs to take real action
on this issue. The new center at 40 Prado is only the beginning, as we
still have hundreds of unhoused people sleeping on our streets every
night. Programs like 50 Now could be significantly expanded, but
only if we prioritized more funding for them, which I will advocate
for as supervisor.
With Diablo Canyon closing soon, our county must begin preparing for
our economic future. In addition to advocating for our region’s interests
throughout the decommissioning and PG&E’s bankruptcy process, we
should be exploring local renewable energy projects to help offset the
loss of head of household jobs. At the same time, we must protect our
vital agrotourism economy by smartly managing our water supply and
safeguarding our coastline from risky offshore oil projects. Our Board of
Supervisors should be our number one advocate on these issues, but that
is currently not the case.
I am running for 5th District County Supervisor because I have a passion
for public service and giving back to my community. We need to bring
smart, honest leadership back to our county government, and restore the
priorities of the people of this community. I hope you will join me in this
effort, and I invite you to learn more about our campaign. SLO LIFE
FEB/MAR 2020 | SLO LIFE MAGAZINE | 53