Per our email earlier in the week, we have asked the candidates for the San Mateo City Council to tell our supporters what they plan on doing to save the San Mateo Ice Rink. Below is our second response - from Thomas Morgan. Mr. Morgan is running for one of the two open 4-year Council seats. We have not edited his response: Thank you and the committee for the opportunity express my position on the recreation in the City of San Mateo and the ice rink. I hope you, the committee, and many ice rink followers will take the time to read the responses I have provided, and consider me for City Council in the upcoming election. I am the only candidate to openly state the ice rink should be reopened. - What specific actions will you take to ensure that there is an operational ice rink in San Mateo? I will seek a win-win solution that will allow for both the ice rink and retail. I think we must pursue multiple initiatives to ensure, success. First, I think we need to establish an ordinance that would assess a financial penalty for leaving the ice rink empty (this will probably need to be applied to all retail, as not to discriminate against SPI, and this can be made temporary or permanent). I feel this will encourage SPI to bring forth a development plan that includes the ice rink. I will push to have the ice rink on the City Council priority listing until the ice rink is reopened. The City Council creates a priority list in early January each year, and most of the items on this list are accomplished within one year. We will need to continue pursuing current and alternative legal solutions. Lastly, there needs to be transparency and better communication with community. I will communicate City efforts to the community regularly and help educate other on the ice rink issue. - Do you believe that SPI is acting in good faith, having closed the rink without having approval on alternatives uses for the property? No, I do not; further the San Mateo Planning Commission has voiced the fact they did not act in good faith. Further, SPI continues not to act in good faith each day the ice rink is closed. Given we are in the internet age and much shopping is done online, I disagree that more retail is needed instead of the ice rink. I think the ice rink makes the shopping center unique, and attracts people to the shopping center, and if the ice rink is removed permanently. I feel it will negatively impact the health and vitality of Bridgepointe Shopping Center and the sales tax base for the City of San Mateo. - Do you believe that there are sufficient recreational opportunities for children and adults given the increase in housing stock? We are told San Mateo has over 200 acres of parks and recreation spaces. However, most of this is made up of the Golf Course and Sugarloaf Mountain. We are a city of more than 100,000 and we continue to grow. However, there has been little emphasis on adding additional recreational space. Further the ice rink is the only indoor recreational amenity in the region. The ice rink provides recreation across all ages and cultures all year round. We need more recreation, including the ice rink, in our community for all residents and visitors, not less. - For potential officeholders - What do you think about the actions of the current Council in attempting to save the rink? What would you do differently? I cannot speak on behalf of the council, but as I have been campaigning across all of San Mateo, many people I have talked with seem to feel more effort could and needs to be made to save the ice rink, and additional communication is needed. I would make reopening the ice rink a priority and provide numerous public outreach opportunities. More importantly I personally value accountability. I would hold myself accountable and mandate SPI, City Staff, and City Council are held accountable by developing work plans and setting hard deadlines in order to find a win-win solution that will allow for the ice rink to be reopened. Thank you, Thomas Morgan Please visit my campaign website http://tmaccountant.wix.com/tmsmcc2015