Council Candidate Calls Himself Voice of Reason

Council candidate calls himself voice of reason 'By Katy Sweeny -- Staff reporter. Lake County Record Bee
http://www.record-bee.com/ci_16130299?source=most_viewed


Updated: 09/20/2010 11:01:52 PM PDT
LAKEPORT -- Tom Engstrom said he thinks he would be a good addition to the Lakeport City Council because of his city government experience and because he doesn't have an "ax to grind against anybody."


"I think I could be a voice of reason on the City Council, someone who would listen to what people say," he said. Engstrom and six other candidates are running for two positions opening on the Lakeport City Council in the Nov. 2 election. Engstrom, 62, earned a bachelor's degree from University of San Francisco in public administration and graduated from the FBI National Academy on police management.

He moved to Lakeport in 1994 to become the Lakeport chief of police. He retired in 2005 after 37 years in law enforcement. Engstrom was then appointed as the executive director of Mendo-Lake Alternative Services, which is a nonprofit that administers the community service program for the courts.

He and his wife, Cindy, have seven children. Their three youngest children graduated from Clear Lake High School. Aside from serving as chief of police in Lakeport and three other small cities, Engstrom was on the school board in Newman.

Pam Hinman said she's Engstrom's neighbor and has known him since he moved to Lakeport.

"I think he would make a wonderful councilman," she said. Hinman thinks Engstrom is fair and a generally nice person, she said. As police chief, he had to make a lot of hard decisions, which Hinman thinks would help him. "He's fair to both sides," she said. "I think he's a good mediator and negotiator."


Engstrom said he's running for office because he wants to give back to the community. "Coming to Lakeport is the best thing that's happened to our family," he said. He said his No. 1 priority would be the budget.

"We all have to live within our means as a family and individually," Engstrom said. "I think the city has to do the same thing."

Engstrom said during his years working with city government, he hasn't seen the economy this bad. "The City Council has to make some really tough choices and decisions what their priorities are." He wants to see a five-year plan to fix the streets. Engstrom said he always had an open door as police chief and would do the same as a councilman.

Karan Mackey said although she's a Lakeport business owner and doesn't want to endorse anyone, she thinks Engstrom would be an excellent councilman based on his background knowledge.

"He has a good sense of city operations," Mackey said. "And he has a good sense of community." Mike Svehla said he worked with Engstrom as a Lakeport school administrator and supports his bid for City Council.

"By nature Tom is a real person," Svehla said. "He's always interested in other people and never fails to ask how you and your family are doing."

Engstrom said any decision he would make on police officer retirement benefits wouldn't affect him, as his retirement is already set at 2 percent at 50. He said with the information he has, he would have voted to honor the contract with police and he thinks they might take legal action against the city.

"I'm in favor of honoring agreements with employees because I think that's the right thing to do," he said. He said if the money isn't available, he couldn't vote to increase police officer retirement benefits. Engstrom also wants to improve city staff morale. "It doesn't have anything to do with money or benefits," he said. "It has to do with respect. I think a lot of employees right now feel like second-class citizens. They just want to be treated with courtesy and respect. There are a lot of ways we can do that."



Contact Katy Sweeny at kdsweeny@gmail.com or call her directly at 263-5636, ext. 37.

Key Issues for 2010-2014

If elected in November, here are some of the issues that I will be focusing on.

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About Me

I’m Tom Engstrom and I’m a candidate for the Lakeport City Council.


I’ve been a small business owner, police officer, school teacher and CEO. I have a BA in Public Administration from the University of San Francisco and I’m a graduate of the FBI National Management Academy in Quantico, Virginia.

I moved to Lakeport in 1994 and served 11 years as Chief of Police. After a 37 year career in law enforcement I retired in this beautiful community. As Chief, I spent 25 years serving 4 small communities; providing safety, security, and accountability. As a manager I focused on transparent policy, honesty and open communication.

My wife, Cindy, and I have built and operated 2 successful small businesses. We owned a retail clothing store and did in-home child daycare. I also taught elementary school in Newman, CA, where I developed a deep and lasting respect for how hard teachers work. It was the most demanding, yet most rewarding job I’ve ever had.

I currently serve as the Executive Director of Mendo-Lake Alternative Service, INC. As a non-profit agency, MLAS administers the community service program for the Courts in Lake and Mendocino Counties. Our 3 locations serve over 3,000 people a year. I also volunteer assisting local people with job searches; in this capacity I’ve had 75 successful placements to date.

Cindy and I have 7 children. Our youngest 3 sons and 2 grandchildren all graduated from Clear Lake High School. We now have 21 grandchildren and 1 great grandchild, 3 of whom are enrolled in Lakeport Schools.

I have extensive experience in budgeting, grant writing and personnel issues. I pledge that I will use my training, knowledge, common sense, and experience to serve the citizens of Lakeport with honor and integrity to the best of my ability.

Please join with me as we strive to keep Lakeport alive and vibrant. I would greatly appreciate your vote on November 2nd.

Tom Engstrom 2010 - Lakeport City Council

Welcome to my Blog!

As I embark on this new adventure, I hope you will continue to check-in often. I want to provide a forum for you to express your thoughts and concerns. So please share your voice via email, Facebook, or my Blog. I promise to give your suggestions my full consideration.

Let me first start by thanking my wife, Cindy and the entire Engstrom family for their love and support as I begin my campaign for City Council. It gives me so much strength to know that all 38 of my children and grandchildren are in my corner. A special thank you goes to those responsible for creating this Blog. As you will soon see, Ive been blessed with a very talented and creative team.

Moving to Lakeport in 1994 was the best thing that could have happened for my family. The overall quality of life here is far beyond anything we could have imagined. I love this community. This beautiful area, with its clean air, lake, great schools and wonderful people, helped us realize that Lakeport is truly our home. To the great people of Lakeport, I can never repay you for the love and friendship that you have extended to my family.

Many of you have given so much to this community and you've inspired me to follow your example. Thats why I'm running for City Council. I want to give back to the community that has given me so much.

President Woodrow Wilson said, No man has ever risen to the stature of spiritual manhood, until he has found that it is finer to serve somebody else, than it is to serve himself.

If elected, I promise to remember that I am here first and foremost to serve you, the citizens of Lakeport to the best of my ability.

Welcome to my BLOG!

My name is Tom Engstrom and I am running for Lakeport, CA City Council.

To all my friends and supporters, stay tuned for campaign updates, events, pics and news.