Saratoga News
News
Candidate hopes that Saratogans will add a Page to city's history
By Shannon Burkey
Ever since he was in college, Chuck Page has been adamant about volunteering and serving his community. Giving back is something he said his parents instilled in him a long time ago, and it has continued into his adult life.
"My parents taught me a long time ago that it's better to give than to receive, and it really started me on a path to giving," Page said.
Since moving to Saratoga in 1998 with his wife and two daughters, the 50-year-old New York native has been actively involved in his community. From coaching his daughters' soccer and softball teams and teaching Sunday school to being a planning commissioner and a board member of the Saratoga Area Senior Coordinating Council, Page has thrown himself into service.
Only six months after moving to Saratoga, he was appointed to the planning commission by the city council. After serving on the commission for two years, he decided to run for the council in 2000 because he didn't like the way many of the planning commission's decisions were based on politics.
"The most important thing to me is that when you come before us, we have the courage to make a decision and get it to you so that you can move forward," Page said. "But the planning commission started to change, and all people wanted to do was delay things, and I don't think that is fair. I started to see this politicizing of the commission that is supposed to be a legislative commission."
Although Page narrowly lost in the 2000 election, he continued to be active in the community, and through his work with the city's seniors and youths, he said he really started to get a sense for other segments of the population.
While his work in the community gave him so much pleasure, he began to see a lot of negativity in the city, and that prompted him to take another shot at the city council.
"I am running now because I am tired of the negativity related to and coming from some of the people that are running. I'm not irrationally optimistic or anything like that, but I am a positive guy and I think if we are going to build a future for this town, then you have to have positive- thinking people going at it," Page said. "If everything is negative and people are constantly saying, 'Don't change this, don't do that,' we will end up an isolated city that will shrivel up and just fade away."
Page said he has become fascinated with local history and has embraced it, but would also like to see Saratoga embrace its future.
"I love Saratoga's history, and we need to cherish it and learn from it. It is a rich and vibrant history, but we don't need to embalm it and we don't need to bury it; we need to grow with it. We need to learn from that history to move us forward into the future so that we will have a rich and vibrant future because that is where we will all be living," Page said.
In looking to the future, Page said he would like to see is a revitalization of the "sleepy" Village. Although he knows there are certain things the Village should never become, he said something should be done to draw more people to the downtown area.
"There is just no way a three-story building is going into downtown Saratoga. I would be in favor of some kind of mixed use but it would be contingent on having the right kind of retail. The right kind of retail to me is some kind of nice store to provide the necessities that could also pull from the greater area," Page said.
If elected, Page also would like to work on bringing the people of Saratoga, who are often divided, together.
"We've got to work together, and we've got to build community. If we were a stronger community with each other and the greater Santa Clara County,we would have a lot more going for us and be able to grow ourselves. We have to find ways to bring our communities together, and that is by making one big community," he said.
Another thing Page would like to work on is better communication between the city and its residents.
"I would like to have town meetings or an open forum and be able to hear people say what they want rather than having three minutes at a council meeting," Page said. "Everything should be considered, then take a realistic future plan and perspective on it. We the people have to do this together."
His positive attitude, his involvement and experience in community and his ability to be true to himself and to those he represents are why Page said that he would be a good addition to the council.
"I think we need to be cognizant of Saratoga as a whole. I am not representing any special interest group--I am representing the city of Saratoga. I think Saratoga needs representation, not somebody with an axe to grind," Page said. "There is no hidden guy here. I am what I am. It's not that I don't care what people think, but I've got to be real to myself and to the people that are around me and to the people that I care about, because if I lose that, I've lost everything."
