Bob Weaver: taking the logic next step Bob Weaver: taking the logic next step (October 18, 2002)

By Candice Shih

Bob Weaver's decision to run for city council was based on logic -- it's the next step in his civic duty, he said.

Weaver, the current chair of the Environmental Planning Commission and Centennial Planning Commission, has been living in Mountain View since 1980. He said his perspective and his background make him unique in this crowded election.

A Navy veteran, Weaver, 55, served three tours in Vietnam. Upon returning to the U.S., he attended San Jose State University and earned a degree in industrial studies. He has owned his own photography shop since 1984.

"I've used my camera to get into the city," he said. As a photographer and active citizen, Weaver has worked with nonprofits such as the Community Services Agency and the Community School of Music and Arts Ice Cream Social.

He said that as a council member he would have to evaluate the city's budget, and perhaps make cuts. Weaver said he would preserve public safety and infrastructure maintenance, and would look to city employees in deciding where cuts could be made.

Another issue he would respond to is the "major turmoil" the city experienced during former Mayor Mario Ambra's trial. "I would like to lower the firewall that keeps council and city staff separated," he said.

Weaver would advocate a city charter amendment that would clarify appropriate communication between city staff and council, he said. Specifically, he would like to see council have more access to city staff.

Weaver is the only candidate who said he would consider replacing the city manager (which requires five council votes out of seven to do). "Sometimes you need to move things around a bit," he said. "Bring in redecoration."

Weaver would not comment on the city attorney.

Downtown development is a city issue Weaver would address, too. His ideal downtown would be a "walkable high-density urban core" with Mom and Pop-type businesses. He would like to see more everyday full-service businesses which could diversify downtown.

A way to create this vision is to build more high-density housing near downtown and provide zoning incentives and loans to businesses, he said.

And although he would also like to see affordable housing for public safety personnel, Weaver is cautious about "Manhattanizing" Mountain View. He said that housing will always be a problem, and the quality of life of current residents would be compromised if too much housing were created.

Although he acknowledges that this wouldn't happen overnight, he would like to see manufacturers move their facilities to outside Silicon Valley where rents are less expensive.

Weaver, a member of the Mountain View Historical Association and a founder of the Moffett Field Historical Society, is concerned about preservation. He said there's not much left to preserve so it is imperative to preserve what's left "or we would have nothing to pass on to the next generation."

In 1991, Weaver helped start the Middlefield-Whisman Neighborhood Association which is now defunct. He has also served on the Moffett Federal Airfield Community Advisory Committee, NASA Stakeholders Committee, and Adopt-A-Park Ad Hoc Committee.
Favorite book: the dictionary. "I pick it up the most. It has all the answers."