Two members of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space board of directors who represent Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View have been reappointed to their positions this election season.
Yoriko Kishimoto will serve another four-year term as the director of Ward 2, which represents parts of Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View. Karen Holman will represent Ward 5, encompassing part of Mountain View.
Los Altos-based Midpen comprises seven wards, spanning much of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.
Both candidates ran unopposed, according to Midpen Public Affairs Specialist Ryan McCauley. He added that only contested races will appear on the November general election ballot.
Members of the organization’s board of directors serve four-year terms, with staggered elections for the positions every two years. To run, candidates must be 18 or older, registered to vote in their ward and gather 50 signatures in support of their candidacy.
The board of directors oversees budgets and projects taking place in the more than 70,000 acres of preserved land. Some of the current projects include work in the Purisima Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve in San Mateo County, wildland fire resiliency and wildlife crossings over Highway 17.
The project would allow large mammals, including mountain lions and deer, to cross the highway safely, according to Kishimoto. Midpen will be working with the Valley Transportation Authority and the California Department of Transportation to complete the project.
“Each project is becoming more and more complex and requires more and more partnerships,” Kishimoto said. “I was happy that I was able to use the contacts that I’ve developed over my years in public service to hopefully bring the project to realization.”
Kishimoto also said that she looks forward to making progress on Measure AA, a 30-year, $300 million bond approved by voters in 2014. The measure aims to improve and restore lands and open them to the public.
“A lot of progress has been made, but a lot more work has to be done,” Kishimoto said. “It’s not an easy job, but the results are something that I know our public is going to love.”
Director Holman did not respond to the Town Crier’s request for comment.
Despite these wards’ elections missing from this year’s ballot, Midpen is looking to continue to cultivate more public interest in their mission and work.
“As a public agency, these are really your lands,” McCauley said. “These are lands controlled by the public, protected by the public, for the public to enjoy, so the more we get people understanding who we are and what we offer, the better.”
For more information on Midpen, see openspace.org.
