(DUBLIN, Calif.) – On September 30, Tri-Valley Weekly hosted a forum at the Shannon Community Center in Dublin, bringing together candidates from across the Tri-Valley. Partnering with Diya TV, Tri-Valley Weekly (a print publication of OpGov.News) live-streamed the forum to allow residents to submit questions for candidates to answer.
The forum was scheduled to feature mayoral and councilmember candidates from Dublin, Pleasanton, San Ramon, and Danville. However, only candidates from Dublin and San Ramon attended the forum.
While OpGov.News previously reported on the Dublin mayoral candidates, this article focuses on the District 2 and District 4 candidates for Dublin City Council. The council candidates included Steve Lorey and Daniel Hor. District 4 candidate Kashef Qaadri could not attend in person but joined digitally.
Photo Credit: Diya TV / City Council candidate Daniel Hor.
During the forum, many questions were raised, including how the City Council should balance spending on transportation, safety, housing, and other priorities. Both candidates said these should not be viewed as isolated topics, arguing instead that the priorities are interconnected and must be considered as a whole.
For example, Lorey said, “we cannot talk about commercial and housing as a separate conversation to commercial development and infrastructure…before we look at any continued growth, we have to look at it as one comprehensive system.”
Hor stated that “developers involved in those projects must fund and mitigate their fair share of infrastructure projects before any of what they are building is occupied.” He also stated that developers must be held accountable for their spending, saying it will “pay for itself” and keep the city sustained.
Photo Credit: Diya TV / City Council candidate Steve Lorey.
Another question concerned the prioritization of city spending. Hor said that his main focus is to support and upgrade Dublin’s existing services. He wants to make sure Dublin does not sacrifice what is already working.
Questions about Dublin’s budget have been raised by several residents at City Council meetings this year, including in June, when 38-year Dublin resident Norm Lewandowski spoke against long-term projects, saying that he “wouldn’t be planning for exorbitant…projects if [he] didn’t have the funds,” comparing the city’s budget to a personal budget.
Qaadri was asked whether the Boulevard Extension should expand or stop in District 4. Qaadri said the project will “alleviate two problems…one around traffic, one around public.” He said that Measure II will move forward, even if it takes time.
Photo Credit: Diya TV / City Council candidate Kashef Qaadri.
Because Jonathan McKinsey was murdered only two days before the forum, panelists were asked how Dublin could enhance its public-safety efforts. The candidates said the incident resulted from an interpersonal dispute, rather than a major issue affecting Dublin as a whole.
Lorey added that Dublin must “continue to grow,” and that the city “need[s] to focus on and make sure that our law enforcement and our first responders grow accordingly.”
The candidates will face voters in the November 3, 2026 election. The forum is available to watch here.
To add to or correct any information in this report, please contact me at stefan.p@lead4earth.org.
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