Craig touts experience and a can-do attitude

"I intend on jumping right into the hard work of setting policy and initiating legislation in partnership with the business community, resident groups, and other Council members to increase Lodi’s economic prosperity, our quality of life, and public safety for all those living in and visiting our city.” - Lisa Craig

Wes Bowers/News-Sentinel Staff Writer

Lodi native Lisa Craig is running for city council.

COURTESY PHOTOGRAPH

Lisa Craig believes in public service.

The candidate for Lodi City Council’s open District 2 seat said she has spent two decades of her working life involved in both local and state government, and that experience makes her a shoe-in on Nov. 8.

“I know how to get things done,” she said. “This gives me the opportunity to work with city government, its staff, and then work in public service to create policies so our constituents and customers can enjoy a better quality of life.”

A Lodi native, Craig left the city in 1988 to attend the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia, and subsequently didn’t return for about 30 years.

It was during her time in Georgia she developed an interest in historical preservation, and after earning a bachelor’s degree, she moved on to the University of Oregon to obtain a master’s degree.

She landed a position right after graduation with the Historic Preservation League of Oregon, where she eventually became its executive director, before moving to Washington, D.C.

There, she led the Mid-Atlantic field office for the National Trust for Historic Preservation and was promoted to Director of Statewide Partnerships, where she worked with nonprofit historic preservation organizations across the country to build the organizational capacity to save historic places.

Before coming back to Lodi, Craig served as Chief of Historic Preservation for the city of Annapolis, Md.

Craig returned to Lodi in 2019 and founded The Craig Group, a historic preservation planning and policy firm specializing in organizational development and resilience planning.

She has also served on the city’s Site Plan and Architectural Review Committee and Planning Commission since returning to town.

Like other candidates running for the District 2 seat, homelessness is one of the many issues Craig will be addressing during the campaign.

She said while walking neighborhoods and speaking to the residents she hopes to begin serving, many have a great deal of sympathy for the unsheltered, but would like the city to do more to solve the problem.

“It’s one thing to have the access center, but it’s another to address the long-term needs of those that benefit from its services,” she said. “Beyond housing, what do they need to move forward, and more importantly, where can they access what they need? There are services in Stockton that aren’t found in our community.”

Another issue Craig sees facing Lodi is the ability to attract and retain both police officers and fire department personnel.

She said the city has the resources to do so, as evident in the 2022-23 annual budget approved in June.

According to the budget, Measure L allows the city to fund 26 police department positions at the cost of nearly $4 million.

“We have the money, because the council approved it in the budget,” she said. “But it’s getting cadets who come out of the academy to not want to go to other departments like Galt or Stockton, or Elk Grove. We’ve got to get them feeling good about joining the Lodi Police Department.”

Craig added that she would like to assist the Lodi Fire Department in acquiring an advanced life support accreditation to better serve the community.

The department is currently accredited in basic life support, which means crews responding to emergencies have only two emergency medical technicians. With ALS accreditation, crews will also have a paramedic on scene when responding.

She would also like to help small businesses in town grow and expand, as well as attract new entrepreneurs. Craig said that comes down to making the city’s economic development department a full-time endeavor.

“We have a part-time position with Astrida (Trupovnieks, the city’s business development manager),” she said. “But we need her to be fully engaged in the business community in order to help them expand or bring new businesses in. We have great opportunity and room for growth, because at the end of the day, sales tax adds to the city’s bottom line.”

If elected, Craig said she would like to see more engagement between city staff, the council and the residents of Lodi, particularly when it comes to responding to concerns or communications.

She said that could be achieved with simple response phone calls or emails acknowledging receipt of a message, or quarterly community meetings with constituents.

Since her return to Lodi, Craig said she has become reacquainted with her hometown. Her entire family lives in Lodi, with the exception of her two adult sons, who both live in Maryland.

She said Lodi is where both her family, and her future is and will be.

Craig is running against three other candidates — Summer Pennino, Hector Galvan and Sandra Vargas — for the seat to be left vacant by outgoing councilman Mark Chandler, who announced earlier this year he would not seek re-election.

To learn more about Craig, visit www.lodiforlisa.com.