San Ramon, CA Mayor H. Abram Wilson addressed the Realtors Marketing Associatation this morning.

The mayor pointed out that San Ramon, CA has a balnaced budget and a 45% reserve. He and the City Council run the city as a business and do not look to the citizens of our community as a bottomless source of additional dollars.

Mayor Wilson commented on the upcoming (July 1) conversion of the local police force to all San Ramon city employees. This should save the city about $500K a year even after adding six additional officers. There were 148 applicants to fill 58 officer positions and the city feels they took the cream of the crop.

The new badge designed for the police force has the number 1 on it to represent the citizens of San Ramon. The Mayor emphasized that he, the City Council and the police force are servants of the community and that the citizens come first.

The city is considering subsidized housing for police officers out in the Dougherty Valley as a means to establish more of a “police as neighbors” presence in that area.

Speaking of the Dougherty Valley, Mayor Wilson said that he opposes any light rail into the area.

San Ramon rents grounds from the local schools for $1 a year. The city maintains the grounds and after 3pm, when school is out, the parks and playgrounds are open for public use. It’s one of the reasons that San Ramon made the 100 Best Cities for Youth list.

Mayor Wilson spent a good part of his time presenting the status of the new City Center plans to the attendees. The Realtors Marketing Association represents real estate professionals in San Ramon, Danville, and Alamo, CA. This group is very interested in the topics presented by the Mayor and we thank him for taking the time.