Category Archives: Terry Scott

Arts Benicia, Benicia, Benicia City Council, Benicia's Budget Crisis, Terry Scott

Benicia Vice-Mayor Scott credits community for fight to keep Benicia boards funded

Vice-Mayor Terry Scott honored the hours-long outpouring of community support for Benicia’s Arts & Culture Commission and Human Services Board with a special message

Benicia Vice-Mayor Terry Scott celebrated the many Benicians who wrote, called and showed up to support continued funding for the Arts & Culture Commission and Human Services Board. | Uncredited image.

 

Message from Benicia Vice-Mayor Terry Scott, June 7, 2023:

After almost four hours of passionate and insightful community testimony, City Council last night agreed to continue future funding for the Arts and Culture Commission and the Human Services Board.  

The extended community testimony and the City Council’s decision to continue funding the Arts and Culture Commission and the Human Services Board demonstrate the importance of community engagement in local governance.

I believe when individuals passionately express their thoughts and concerns, it helps shape decisions that directly impact the well-being and development of the city. 

The ongoing support and participation of Benicians  in the decision making process will undoubtedly continue to play a crucial role in the future of the city as we move into balancing our community priorities within the scope of our budget crisis.  

Thanks to all who participated. 

Terry Scott 
Vice-Mayor of Benicia

 

[Note from BenIndy Contributor Nathalie Christian: This was a hard battle, fought brilliantly by dedicated community members, and supported by Benicia City Council’s ‘listening leadership.’ Although City staff initially recommended that the ACC and HSB budgets both be reduced to zero for fiscal years ’24/’25, City Council Members ultimately voted to reduce the ACC’s budget by only ~25 percent, and the HSB’s budget was reduced along roughly the same lines. I join Vice-Mayor Scott in thanking everyone who took the time to be heard, and I also thank Benicia’s Mayor Steve Young, Vice-Mayor Scott, and Council Members Kari Birdseye, Tom Campbell and Trevor Macenski for actively encouraging and accepting community feedback as they work to address Benicia’s budget crisis.]

Benicia elections, Kari Birdseye, Terry Scott

Birdseye and Scott take oath of office as members of Benicia’s City Council

New Benicia Councilmembers sworn in

A new era begins as newly elected Councilmember Kari Birdseye and Vice Mayor Terry Scott were sworn in at the council meeting on Dec. 6. Photo: Jennifer Hanley

Benicia Herald, December 16, 2022

BENICIA – At the December 6 City Council meeting, newly elected Councilmembers Terry Scott and Kari Birdseye were sworn in to serve the next four years.

Former Councilmembers Lionel Largaespada and Christina Strawbridge were honored for their service to the City and gave speeches thanking the community, fellow councilmembers and City staff for all of their hard work and collaboration.

The Council is now made up of Mayor Steve Young, Vice Mayor Scott, Tom Campbell, Trevor Macenski and Birdseye.

Benicia City Council on December 6, 2022, (l to r) Campbell, Birdseye, Young, Scott, Macenski. Photo: Jennifer Hanley
Benicia elections, Kari Birdseye, Local measures, Terry Scott

Benicia Election: Solano County certifies final results

Scott and Birdseye elected to Council, Measure K Open Space passes, Measure R Funding for Local Road Repair & Infrastructure fails

By Roger Straw, November 30, 2022

Today, the Solano County Clerk and Registrar of Voters Tim Flanagan certified the final official results of our November 8 General Election. I will detail the Benicia results below. For the full Solano County report check out these official Solano links:
November 8, 2022 General Election

OFFICIAL RESULTS – 11/30/2022 – 1:11 p.m.
Vote by Mail Ballots Issued – 260,409
Vote by Mail Ballots Processed – 112,378
In-Person Ballots Cast – 18,141
Official Election Results – Summary
Official Election Results – Precinct Report
Official Election Results – District Report
Official Results Backup Site

Benicia City Council vote

Benicia voters elected Terry Scott and Kari Birdseye for City Council 4 year terms. Both had run for Council and lost by narrow margins in recent years, but mounted strong and positive campaigns with backing from a wide variety of electeds, community leaders and local groups. For more about our new Councilmembers, see TerryScottForBenicia2022.org and KariBirdseyeForBenicia.com.

The two incumbents, Christina Strawbridge and Lionel Largaespada, ran their own campaigns, but were independently backed by a massive outlay of spending by Valero’s Benicia Refinery and some local labor groups. That PAC interference in our local elections became an issue in the campaign, and may have contributed to the incumbents’ failure to win re-election.

Detailed breakdown of City Council voting:
Scott received 235 more votes than Birdseye, who received 152 more votes than Largaespada, who received 456 votes more than Strawbridge, who received 3,160 votes more than Innes.

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Percentages of total vote:
Scott 24.78%. Birdseye 23.75%. Largaespada 23.09%. Strawbridge 21.10%.  Innes 7.29%.

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Measure K – Overwhelming support
By an 82% to 18% margin, Benicia residents passed Measure K, renewing the City’s Urban Growth Boundary for another 20 years. The area beyond our UGB will now be protected from development for 20 years. This means that the hills north of Lake Herman Road will be protected from development until 2043!
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Measure R – Narrowly defeated
Measure R was the Benicia Local Road Repair & Infrastructure Measure, which would have provided the necessary funding to fix and maintain, our roads, increasing the sales tax on certain purchases made in Benicia by 3/4 of 1 cent. The measure failed by a 49% to 51% margin. Vote by mail voters approved Measure R by a narrow margin, but election day voters were strongly opposed.
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Previous election updates on the BenIndy:
Benicia City Council, Benicia elections, Kari Birdseye, Terry Scott

Benicia Council election: Scott and Birdseye are in

Solano County shows “no outstanding ballots to process” – final result is unofficial, but election is all but complete

By Roger Straw, November 18, 2022

Day by day vote results Nov 8-18
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All ballots counted, handful of exceptions…
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ALL mail-in ballots and provisional ballots have now been counted. The Registrar of Voters can still receive ballots dropped off at other counties, and signature cure letters can be received until November 28th. The Registrar of Voters expects to certify the final result by November 30.

Previous election updates on the BenIndy: