By Khalida Sarwari
As Howard Miller begins his second term as mayor and sixth year on the Saratoga City Council, he remembers a time, decades ago, when he was a Boy Scout and the only thing that stood between him and a merit badge was a “citizenship in the community” project. He had to contact a council member in his city, a task–ironically–he was not successful at.
Fast forward to 2014. Miller, 52, is now an occasional volunteer for the local Boy Scouts and is so committed to ensuring that no other Boy Scout member misses out on his opportunity to complete his civic project that he makes it a point to be as accessible as possible.
That goes not just for members of the youth organization, but for his constituents as well. Miller’s personal cell phone number can easily be found online, and he takes pride in responding to emails quickly and thoughtfully.
Communication and outreach will be one cornerstone of Miller’s administration in the new year, so much so that he said he plans to spend at least an hour talking about it at the upcoming council retreat in January.
He admits that the city hasn’t always been effective at engaging residents or providing them with reliable information about various projects or issues. So the plan, he said is, “We’re going to do what we do well, but we’re going to make sure everybody knows why and how we’re doing it.”
Whether that notification occurs through an app or email distribution list is unknown. Miller said he’s open to all possibilities and technology tools to improve outreach.
But, just as important, Miller wants to get his colleagues behind the city council dais on the same page. With a brand-new city manager and two new council members, he said 2015 will be a year of rebuilding, or “getting back to basics.”
“This is building their foundation,” said Miller. “This year sets the theme for the next decade in the city.”
Next month, city officials will begin negotiations with the city’s three labor groups. While acknowledging that “being fair and equitable is always a challenge,” Miller said that the negotiation process “shouldn’t be a big deal.”
In fall of 2015, Quarry Park, a project that Miller has been involved with since the beginning of his first term, is expected to open to the public. Construction on the first of phase of the project is expected to start in the spring. Miller said he leads a tour there about once a month and is looking for ways to integrate the program with West Valley College’s park management program.
Also on the forefront for next year are a few development projects, most likely at the Quito Shopping Center, in the Gateway and the Village. Whatever the project, Miller’s goal is to encourage the city to follow a process that is fair both to developers and residents. Parking in the Village will be another important discussion topic, he said.
Next year the Highway 85 project becomes a little more realized, Miller said. This is the time to press for noise abatement, ahead of a transit tax that the county is considering placing before voters in 2016, he said.
“This is a chance for us to get money to improve the quality of life in our city,” Miller said.
Miller was elected to the council in 2008 and appointed mayor in 2010. He was re-elected in 2012 and is serving his final term. He found his way to city politics via an initiative to expand Kevin Moran Park for the local soccer league, which he was coaching at the time. He said he went on to be named the soccer league’s “volunteer of the year” and received more votes in the election than any other candidate in the city’s history. He says when people asked him then what he aspired to do for Saratoga, he’d tell them simply that he wanted to keep the city from getting screwed up.
“That’s always been my goal and will continue to be my goal this year,” he said.
Miller has a background in finance and technology. He has been at Apple for nearly 22 years, where he currently serves as a senior engineering manager. He earned his bachelor’s degree in electronic engineering from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and a master’s in computer science from Stanford University.
He was born in El Sobrante, raised in the East Bay and moved to Saratoga with his family in 1994. He is married to Sandy, an accountant, and they have five children, ranging in age from 14 to 29, and one granddaughter. In his spare time, he said he enjoys woodworking and going camping with his family.
His favorite thing about living in Saratoga? Without hesitation, Miller said it’s the people.
“Saratoga has the most amazing group of people; some of the brightest people in the valley live in the city,” he said. “It’s an amazing place to be.”
Link: It’s Miller time again for second-term mayor of Saratoga
