My freshman year on the San Marcos City Council has been a whirlwind of meetings, studying, meetings, public events and, did I mention, meetings. But, in this first year I have had many great experiences, met wonderful people, learned a wealth of information, and now have the great honor of being a contributor for San Elijo Life. If you are like me you count on and look forward to the updates and information sent out daily from San Elijo Life.
Before I begin writing about different city happenings, I thought I would share some of my background and what led me to the San Marcos City Council.
I grew up in Carlsbad and attended Point Loma Nazarene University. In 1997 I moved to San Marcos and, along with my husband and daughter, currently live in San Elijo Hills. Prior to being elected to council I served on the San Marcos Economic Development Corporation, the City’s Budget Review Committee, and was a Planning Commissioner. In 2008 I was the spokesperson for the San Marcos Association of Residents and Taxpayers (SMART), a political action committee that worked to defeat the potentially devastating Proposition O measure on the November 2008 ballot.
I have a strong desire to preserve what makes San Marcos unique while balancing the growth and development a city needs to grow and be prosperous. Maintaining a balanced budget, sustaining reserves, and providing quality services and resources are my highest priorities.
Along with working on council and taking care of my family I spend time volunteering for The Boys and Girls Club of San Marcos and will be co-chairing their annual dinner and auction for the third year in a row. My family and I are active members of our church and throughout the year we serve and attend many community events and projects.
I look forward to sharing information about our city along with some of my thoughts and opinions. If you have any topics that you would like to suggest, please let us know. Community members always seem to come up with great questions that can range anywhere from legislative, administrative, traffic, development, fire and safety. But, my favorites always begin with “I have been wondering…”. One such question I have heard several times is “what are those small cameras, mounted on the lights, at intersections for?”. I have been tempted to confirm people’s suspicions and reply “it is true, Big Brother is watching” but, I stop short of doing so, not wanting to add to the conspiracy theories. The truth is the cameras you see are sending real-time pictures to our state-of-the-art Traffic Demand Center. Having the ability to see live images of key intersections enables our traffic engineers to address any traffic flow problems, such as an accident or weather. The images are not stored or saved, like cameras at stop lights. The live information is used only to keep people moving as efficiently as possible.
It is a privilege and honor to serve the people who call San Marcos home and I am grateful to have an additional way to communicate with my neighbors…Thank you San Elijo Life!
Sincerely,
Kristal Jabara
Council Member
City of San Marcos
Interesting to get this background.