Three Concord City Council seats are up for grabs in the Nov. 3 election, with two incumbents hoping to stay in their positions and four candidates vying to be the city’s newest councilmember in the third seat.
Concord moved to district-based elections starting in 2018 and voters in Districts 1, 3 and 5 will be deciding on council seats in next month’s races. Longtime City Councilmember Laura Hoffmeister is looking to hold onto her District 1 seat against two challengers, while Mayor Laura Nakamura is seeking to stay as the District 5 councilmember against a lone challenger.
Vice Mayor Dominic Aliano is not running for reelection for the District 3 seat and four candidates are hoping to win enough votes to replace him on the City Council.
District 1
Hoffmeister was first elected to the council in 1997 and has won reelection six more times after that, including twice in 2018 and 2022 after the move to district elections. District 1 covers the northeast part of the city, including a large segment of the former Concord Naval Weapons Station site slated for redevelopment.
Maria Bagley and Patricia Brazil are challenging Hoffmeister for the seat and both mentioned the long-delayed weapons station redevelopment in their candidate statements for why the city needs a change in leadership.
Bagley says her job as finance manager for West County Wastewater District in west Contra Costa County is to “handle budgets, scrutinize spending, monitor payroll, and above all protect the taxpayers’ money.”
She said the naval weapons station “is a project that will last for decades and requires long-range leadership, vision, and financial discipline” and that she will hold the master developer, New York-based Brookfield Properties, “to every promise, demand transparency, and always put the interest of our city first.”
Brazil says in her candidate statement that she’s a retired psychologist whose slogan is “People, Pets, and Community.”
She said as councilmember, she would “have more of an opportunity to demonstrate what I can do for community; whether it is addressing the animals being dumped on the streets, the homeless situation, promoting low- and moderate-income housing, or finding a resolution for the Concord Naval Weapons property.”
Hoffmeister says in her candidate statement that her years on the council have “allowed me to guide Concord through recessions, recovery, and major periods of change and challenges.”
She says she has “worked to keep our city financially stable, protect essential services, support local businesses, and make sure residents receive practical results from City Hall.”
District 3
With Aliano not running for reelection, Dena Acosta Beere, Robyn Kuslits, Douglas Lezameta, and Don Seta are seeking to be the new representative for District 3, which is in the southwestern part of the city and includes the Monument Boulevard corridor and some of its popular shopping centers.
Acosta Beere in her candidate statement describes herself as “a mother of two young children, lifelong volunteer, and active community member” who has served on the county’s Commission for Women and Girls and the Measure X Community Advisory Board to oversee the spending of revenue from a 2020 county sales tax.
“District 3 is the gateway to Concord, and the amount of traffic and commerce throughout our district must be adequately met with quality roads, pedestrian safety measures, and economic development,” she said.
Kuslits describes herself as a “veteran, non-profit leader, law school graduate, and substitute teacher” who will prioritize “protecting every resident regardless of immigration status, defending affordable housing, bringing back just cause rent control, clean parks and public bathrooms, safe streets and sidewalks, and building community.”
Lezameta is the founder and CEO of Empower Minds ABA, an organization that works with children with autism and their families around the county. He said in his candidate statement that he also has been a member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Contra Costa County and the county’s Workforce Development Board.
He cites state Sen. Tim Grayson, Assemblymember Anamarie Avila-Farias, current Concord Councilmember Pablo Benavente, the Concord Police Association officers’ union and the Central Contra Costa County Democratic Club as among his endorsements.
Lezameta said that as a councilmember, he would “focus on neighborhood safety, clean and well-maintained public spaces, responsible budgeting, support for small businesses, and balanced growth that protects Concord’s character while preparing us for the future.”
Seta describes himself in his candidate statement as a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who holds a doctorate degree in finance, a master’s degree in systems management, and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from University of California, Berkeley.
“I believe in keeping our residents safe. We deserve timely emergency response and neighborhoods where people feel secure,” he said. “Our current crisis preparedness is uncertain, and that must change. We also urgently need to improve street safety, especially along the Monument corridor.”
District 5
Nakamura was first elected to the City Council in 2022 and was appointed mayor this year as part of the council’s annual reorganization and rotation for mayoral and vice mayoral duties. She represents District 5 on the eastern end of the city.
A pediatric cardiac sonographer and Concord resident since 1988, Nakamura said that since joining the council, she “stood up for Concord by voting to drop Seeno and get the Concord Naval Weapons Station project back on track with a trusted partner.”
“I support thoughtful growth that protects neighborhoods, balanced housing, renter protections, traffic solutions, bike and pedestrian safety, and a new library,” she said. “My priorities are safe streets and neighborhoods, maintaining our roads and parks and essential services, responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars, and a strong local economy.”
Aeysha Corio is the lone challenger to Nakamura and describes herself as a member of the city’s Planning Commission and a small business owner who is endorsed by current councilmembers Hoffmeister, Aliano and Benavente, among other public officials, unions and organizations like the Central Contra Costa County Democratic Club.
In her candidate statement, Corio said, “As Concord continues to change, we need a leader who understands our needs and makes sure we are represented.”
“We need our own representative who will keep our community safe. We need our own representative who will clean up blight and vacancies. We need our own representative who works well with all stakeholders,” she said. “And we need our own representative who will be our advocate when it comes to fixing potholes, easing traffic congestion, or dealing with the unknown issues we will face in the future.”
