Andrew Barnes, a retired entrepreneur, is ready and willing to use his time and experience for the community's benefit by serving on the Saratoga City Council.

Barnes' experience is in high-pressure situations—he started off in the U.S. Navy during Vietnam and then became an airline pilot. He then decided to use some of his education in business management and started his own cargo airline company. He sold the first, started another, sold it and then retired. He became a real estate agent, met his wife, Sandy, and then retired again. They have four grown children from previous marriages.

Now Barnes is occupied with the construction of a new home on Old Wood Road, a project that took more than a year to get through the city before ground could be broken. That lengthy process is something he wants to change, he said.

He decided to run for the council about two months prior to the August filing deadline when he watched a council meeting on television and felt dissatisfied by what he saw.

"I just think I could've done a better job," Barnes said. "It really came down to that position of wanting to make a difference."

He didn't specify what exactly he didn't like about the council meeting, but he did say that he isn't a strong supporter of the city's purchase of the North Campus Facility, even though "the city actually got a pretty good deal." Barnes said he wants to make sure the facility doesn't become a "money pit," referring to the improvements needed to make portions of it usable. He also regrets that it was purchased without an actual plan for the property in place.

"I would have preferred to see the money go to improve the community center where it's at right now," he said. "But we've got it now, so we've got to figure out what to do with it."

He'd also like to see the city get more money returned to it from the county—"I think we're getting short-changed," he said—but acknowledged that will be difficult. He supports the introduction of a big-name Realtor into the Village, which would boost the retail sales and thus the city's sales tax revenue, which could then justify the construction of an underground parking garage downtown.

Barnes said he wants to see the city and Chamber work better together and he wants more festivals downtown, as well as more improvements to the Village's appearance, with better sidewalks and other features.

He said the new fire station is a necessity but an appropriate plan and design for it is also necessary. Barnes said he would support a neighborhood viewpoint on an issue above that of anyone else.

For example, he said, while he supported the Measure E bond for improvements to West Valley College, he is not in favor of a stadium at the school. He said he believes that if all the parties had discussed the issue beforehand, a modified bond measure could have been passed that would have met the college's other needs.

"You've got to find the compromise," he said. "You can work together if you find the common ground first."

He would also like to see more police in the neighborhoods, with more patrol cars driving through the city's streets, as well as improvements to Saratoga's schools, particularly outlying Lynbrook and Prospect high schools.

Barnes also said he is relying entirely on himself to finance his campaign. His campaign manager is city finance commissioner Sam Ochi.

Barnes said his management and leadership experience, his broad perspective and his willingness to negotiate make him a good candidate for city council.

"I'm a decision-maker," he said. "I'd like to see Saratoga become a better place to live."

Andrew Barnes

Age: 55

Occupation: Retired, founder of cargo transport company Emery Worldwide and Patriot Airlines, both of which he sold; real estate agent; owner of Saratoga mortgage banking company AB Vision

Education: Received certificate in industrial business management from the College of San Mateo in 1971, attended Emery-Riddle Aeronautical University from 1980 to 1982

Family: Married to Sandy. They have four grown children from previous marriages.