Silva Leads Walnut Creek Council Candidates in Contributions; Lawson Not Far Behind

Incumbent Cindy Silva leads her three rivals for Walnut Creek City Council in the amount of money her campaign has raised, according to campaign finance statements released Wednesday. 

Silva, the mayor pro tem who is running for re-election, has taken in $26,399 in contributions for the reporting period that ends Sept. 30.  Not far behind is Kristina Lawson, a planning commissioner, with $25,622 -- $4,500 of that amount from a loan she made to herself. 

Justin Wedel, like Lawson a first-time candidate for City Council, has brought in less than half of each of his rivals, $11,295. He, too, made a loan to himself in the amount of $4,000.

Silva began her campaign with $2,676 in cash and has spent about $21,079. She ends this reporting period with a balance of $7,996. 

In all, she received contributions of varying amounts, including those at the $150 limit, from about 240 people and organizations. Some of the names are familiar in local political circles, community organizations and business.  

Those donating to her campaign include: fellow City Council members Bob Simmons and Gary Skrel; and past council members and mayors Charlie Abrams,  Gwen Regalia and Kathy Hicks. Silva also received a donation from Emily Chang, executive director of the Walnut Creek Downtown Business Association; Robert Power, owner of Regional Parking; Ken Anderson, chief executive officer of John Muir Health; and executives at Hall Equities Group, one of the few developers in town with new projects in the pipeline. Hall Equities itself donated $150 to Silva's campaign. Her contributors also include neighbors, teachers and other residents. 

Some of the same names show up on Lawson's list of contributors, who numbered about 150 individuals. For this reporting period, Lawson ended with a cash balance of $1,404. 

Lawson, an attorney with the downtown Walnut Creek firm Miller Starr Regalia, received support from members of her firm.  She also received contributions from Councilman Bob Simmons and former council members and mayors Charlie Abrams and Gwen Regalia. Local business leaders who contributed include Robert Power of Regional Parking, developer Brian Hirahara, executives from the Hall Equities Group, and the owners of Rocco's Pizzeria and Ristorante.   

Assembly member Joan Buchanan also pitched in $150 to Lawson's campaign--as did the Walnut Creek Police Officers Association. 

The association is backing Lawson and Wedel for this race. 

Wedel, who owns a IT and business-management consulting business, has spent $7,104 on his campaign and has a balance of about $4,040. He has received contributions in varying amounts from nearly 70 individuals, including Walnut Creek residents and Bay Area tech workers, and a few associations.

These individuals include former powerhouse politico Robert Schroder, the former mayor of Walnut Creek and Contra Costa County Supervisor who was honored last weekend by having the Iron Horse Trail pedestrian bridge that crosses over Treat Boulevard named after him.  

Then there is Bill Baker, the Republican former state Assembly member and two-term U.S. representative from the 10th Congressional district who lost his seat to Ellen Tauscher in 1996. Baker is a financial advisor, and, as the blog, Halfway to Concord reported, he and Wedel were at a luncheon last Thursday, hosted by the Lamorinda Republican Women's club, discussing GOP strategy for 2010. 

Wedel's other contributors include Selma King, a veteran of anti-growth campaigns in Walnut Creek, including the effort to block the new Neiman Marcus in Broadway Plaza; and Sol Henick, who came in third in the last City Council race in 2006.  Like Lawson, he received a $150 contribution from the Walnut Creek Police Officers Association.