CARMEL >> A three-way nonpartisan race for the top official in Carmel is between a long-time public servant, a nonprofit leader and a sitting City Council member.

Mayor Dave Potter, Councilman Jeff Baron and relative newcomer to public service Dale Byrne all see difficult issues such as housing, environment and infrastructure as key concerns going into 2025. Adding state-imposed new housing units will be a difficult task to find space for nearly 350 homes in a town that’s just a hair over 1 square mile in size. In alphabetical order:

Jeff Baron

The 60-year-old city councilman said he sees himself as a consolidator, bringing the city council together to finish projects that have languished because of lack of leadership.

“I’d lead by leading, by setting good examples of giving other council members grace so that we can achieve good things for Carmel even if we don’t l agree on each others’ priorities,” Baron told the Herald. “We each want only what’s best for the community.”

Baron, who holds a degree from Harvard University, is retired from a career in software design and consulting. He has been a volunteer at the Carmel Library and he served on the Forest and Beach Commission from 2014 to 2016 before he joined the council.

There are several areas of concern he would want to address if elected mayor, including addresses. Baron wants to see street addresses provided to residents and would “push for a speedy resolution and a binding initiative” to get it done.

He also wants to look at a different way to manage the community’s aging forest. Having followed the Carmel Planning Commission for years, Baron said he would push for a revision of the city’s design guidelines.

And like other candidates, he wants to see the police station rebuilt. Outdoor spaces and the surrounding forest deserve better care, he said.

He lists more than 150 individual supporters of his candidacy, including retiring Monterey County District 5 Supervisor Mary Adams, fellow Councilmember Karen Ferlito, Michael DeLapa, the executive director of LandWatch Monterey County, and Melodie Chrislock, the founding director of Public Water Now..

He said his view of governance revolves around putting the community’s needs first above his own personal views, and to be inclusive of the views of residents who do not necessarily come to council meetings.

Baron has out-raised his opponents in campaign contributions at $19,714, according to a Fair Political Practices Commission filing on Sept. 26. Major contributors include Carmel Stamp and Coin at $1,588, and Ann Golson of Carmel, Daniel Greany of Santa Monica, and Hewitt Pate of Carmel at $1,000 each.Dale Byrne

The 70-year-old Byrne founded Carmel Cares, a volunteer maintenance and improvement-focused nonprofit, which also provides educational outreach, according to its website. The organization partners with the city of Carmel’s Public Works Department and other nonprofit organizations, Byrne said.

Byrne’s platform includes a focus on public safety, which he said often receives insufficient priority. He also wants to address the deteriorating condition of the town’s sidewalks and street safety by acting proactively rather than reactively. Byrne has joined the chorus of candidates and officials calling for a solution to what he called the “end-of-life police station” that has been talked about for 20 years.

Other priorities should he be elected are addressing the costly excessive overtime of police, and continuing efforts to keep cell towers out of residential neighborhoods, he said.

In terms of Carmel’s fiscal picture, Byrne said the town’s operating budget has grown to $32 million annually, plus over $10 million in capital spending. “Even if we added new funding sources this is likely unsustainable,” he said.

Deeper issues of pension liabilities and deferred infrastructure maintenance, cannot be addressed simply through taxation, Byrne said.

Byrne said he and his wife have been coming to Carmel for 22 years, owned a house here for 12 years and have lived here full-time for seven years. Over the past nine years, Byrne said they have built five other homes in Carmel.

“I know how to manage and inspire people, define and manage significant projects and budgets, raise money, and basically get things done,” Byrne told the Herald. “That has not been the case with my opponents over the past six years.”

To date, Byrne has raised roughly $11,500 according to a filed Form 460 campaign statement filed on Sept. 25. Significant donors include R.J. and Daphne Bertero of Carmel at $1,500, Noel Carr of Carmel at $500 and William O’Neil at $300.

Dave Potter

Potter, at 75, is running his last race for Carmel mayor. He has served on a host of commissions and agencies, including a seat on the Monterey County Board of Supervisors and was the longest-serving appointee to the California Coastal Commission.

As a supervisor, Potter was elected to District 5, which represents Carmel, Carmel Valley, Big Sur, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach and parts of the Salinas Valley. He served 20 years as a supervisor.

Currently, he’s on the board directors of the Monterey Bay Division of the League of California Cities, a board member of the Transportation Agency of Monterey County, the Monterey County Mayors’ Association, and chair of the Coast Rail Coordinating Council, working to deliver passenger rail service to the coast of California.

Housing is top of mind, Potter told the Herald. With the state mandating Carmel construct 349 new housing units, the town is facing significant issues it must navigate, and Potter said Carmel needs a mayor who has racked up the level of experience in public service that he has to successfully guide the city through difficult times.

“Now is not a good time to change,” he said. “We are proud to have been one of the few cities in the county to submit our housing element by the deadline to ensure that we keep local control of the housing decisions in our community.

This is one of the most critical issues our city will face and we must continue to seek input from the residents.”

The remodeling of the police station ranks high on Potter’s to-do list as well, as are other differed infrastructure projects.

Potter has lived in Monterey County just shy of 55 years, and has been mayor since 2018, having been reelected by a wide margin in 2020.

Potter has garnered a small army of endorsements that include such high-ranking elected officials as Rep. Jimmy Panetta of Carmel Valley, former Congressman Sam Farr, Monterey County Supervisor Chris Lopez and two former Carmel mayors.

Private endorsements include well-known names in Monterey County such as Bruce Taylor, Sabu Shake, Tonya Antle and David Armanasco.

Potter has raised about $16,700 in contributions this calendar year to date, with major contributors being The Jon and Ann Reynolds Family Trust of Concord at $2,000, and with The Taylor Family Trust of Salinas, Valentina Valentine of Pebble Beach, Alan Perlmutter of Big Sur and Carmel Country Inn each donating $1,000.