What's at stake:
The hour-long debate is the candidates' first since before the March primary and covered various topics, including the anti-encampment ordinance, public safety, education, and CMEX.
A key issue in Fresno is how the city will address housing challenges, given the rising cost of living, Proposition 33 on the ballot, and the recently adopted anti-encampment ordinance in the U.S. Supreme Court’s Grants Pass ruling.
In District 6, both candidates oppose rent control, support the anti-encampment ordinance but are interested in how the city will allocate resources to those affected, and advocate for resolving the city-county tax-sharing agreement.
Roger Bonakdar, a personal injury attorney, said he advocates for collaboration among the city, county, nonprofits, and religious groups to establish navigation centers for homeless people. He believes this initiative is feasible due to his support from law enforcement.
Nick Richardson, a reserve officer with the United States Marine Corps, said support for homeless people comes in the form of four “T’s,” tough love, triage, temporary housing, and training and treatment. Drawing on his mental health care experience in the Marines, he emphasized the need for support through education, childcare, and legal services.
The Fresno City Council candidates debated their positions on Oct. 14 during a forum for the nonpartisan District 6 seat on the ballot next month. The debate was moderated by Blake Zante, executive director of The Maddy Institute.
The debate was livestreamed on GV Wire’s Facebook page. GV Wire publisher Darius Assemi, who owns Granville Homes, donated $5,500 to the Bonakdar campaign in 2023, campaign finance records show.
On Monday, Richardson said he has dedicated the last 15 years to “becoming a proven leader” and being “the kind of person that you can trust to look you in the eye and tell you the truth,” in relation to his experience in the U.S. Marine Corps.
“Now, leadership is not a job title, and it’s definitely not part time,” said Richardson. “Leadership is standing up to establishment politicians to fight for the little guy.”
He highlighted his experiences as a veteran and emphasized “the risk of losing the only voice on the City Council that advocates for veterans” as part of his commitment to show up and “answer the call.”
Bonakdar pointed to a list of experiences that he believes will help him “bring home the bacon” for District 6, which includes, his endorsements from law enforcement and fire departments, the fact that he’s a father, and, he said, the only candidate on the ballot who has ever paid a property tax bill, points he reiterated in response to nearly every question throughout the debate Monday.
“Everybody who wants to run for office says they’re going to fight for you, but none of them can prove it,” said Bonakdar. “I’ve got 20 years of proof of fighting for Fresno families and small businesses.”
The first question asked what qualifies the Fresno City Council candidates for the District 6 seat, given that both are political newcomers, and how they would be effective as council representatives on a council that may hold different ideological views.
Bonakdar said he’s running for city council for three things — “to make Fresno streets and neighborhoods safer, to bring prosperity to Fresno economically, and to make Fresno reach its potential.” He highlighted his efforts in defending small businesses against City Hall and helping them stay open so families can earn a living.
Richardson said he wants to “take your voice downtown” to represent District 6 and all of Fresno. He emphasizes that “you can look at where a politician or a candidate spends their time, and that’s going to indicate what they really value.”
On Fresno’s rising cost of living, Bonakdar said as a lifelong Fresnan and “the only candidate on the ballot who’s ever pulled a permit to build anything,” he understands “the barriers to housing, one of which is that we’re simply out of land.”
“We have managed to box ourselves in, and there’s little room in District Six for significant development,” said Bonakdar. “To address this, we need to work with the county on a better tax-sharing agreement to enable reasonable home construction.”
Bonakdar said he wants to help build “reasonable homes” that “which helps a small family get their foot in the door, build some equity, [and] have a backyard to play catch in.”
He doesn’t like to use the term “affordable housing,” “because affordable housing assumes these $400,000 apartments that are in areas that most families don’t want to live in.”
Richardson added that support for millennials looking to buy their first homes must include preventing rent control from coming to Fresno.
The Fresno City Council candidates were asked about their stance on Prop 33, which would allow cities to control rents on any type of housing, including single family homes and new apartments for new tenants.
Both candidates gave their positions on rent control, affordable housing, and explained why they both think Prop 33 “is a bad idea.”
Richardson said that Prop 33 is “the government getting in the way of people’s lives.” Bonakdar explained that rent control is something that will drive down the availability of housing and push landlords to not invest in more housing or improve their existing housing.
Both candidates said they support Prop 36, the state ballot initiative that would increase penalties on theft and drug crimes.
On education, Zante inquired about the candidates’ views on Measures H and A, noting that while the city of Fresno doesn’t have direct jurisdiction over education policy, these measures impact the city both directly and indirectly.
Measure H is a bond initiative for Fresno Unified that would increase property taxes to fund school improvements if approved. In contrast, Measure A is a bond for Clovis Unified, which will be on the ballot but will not raise new taxes for Clovis residents in District 6.
Both Bonakdar and Richardson expressed their support for Measure A, while opposing Measure H. They highlighted Clovis Unified’s effective financial management and academic success, contrasting it with what they described as Fresno Unified’s budget mismanagement.
Regarding environmental issues, the candidates were asked how they would address District 6 residents’ concerns about the Fresno County supervisors’ decision in July 2023 to grant a three-year extension on a gravel mining permit to CEMEX. This extension allows CEMEX to continue operations along the San Joaquin River, raising concerns about environmental and residential impacts.
Bonakdar said he has “intimate knowledge of the significance of the CEMEX contract for Fresno and what it means for developing homes for families” and that “we need to approach it with a focus on how it impacts housing.”
Richardson stated that if CEMEX continues to mine the same materials in the same location, meets environmental standards, and passes their impact reports, then “I say they need to stay there, keep making jobs, keep making concrete, and keep making it cheaper for us to build our homes and businesses.” However, he emphasized the need for careful scrutiny if they plan to expand operations beyond those parameters.
Another notable question for both Fresno City Council candidates involved their affiliation with the Republican Party, and Richardson was specifically asked why he lost the Fresno County Republican Party endorsement.
Bonakdar, who recently registered as a Republican after the primary election, switched from No Party Preference. He described this as his “first foray into politics” and stated, “I don’t really think local governance is supposed to be politics. I think it’s supposed to be neighbors representing neighbors,” to explain his previous No Party Preference.
He added that his values align most closely with Republicans because “I believe in things like limited government, low taxes, and, most importantly, as the only father on the ballot, putting families first.”
Richardson, who always identified as a Republican, said he lost the endorsement of the Fresno County Republican Party because of his answers to a questionnaire regarding LGBTQ+ inclusion.
