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Pentin launches campaign for City Council seat
Endorses Thorne for mayor at crowded breakfast fundraiser

by Jeb Bing

Pleasanton businessman and city Planning Commission Chairman Jerry Pentin launched his campaign Wednesday for election to the City Council in the Nov. 6 municipal election.

So far, Pentin is the only candidate in an election when two council seats will be filled. Both council members Cindy McGovern and Matt Sullivan complete eight years on the council this year and must step down.

Two other council members, Cheryl Cook-Kallio and Jerry Thorne, are seeking election to the mayor's post, aiming to succeed Mayor Jennifer Hosterman, who must also step down this year due to term limits. No one has indicated an interest in vying for the council positions, which means that there would be another council seat to fill, probably in a special election next spring.

More than 75 supporters turned out for Pentin's campaign breakfast fundraiser at the Alameda County Fairgrounds pavilion, where real estate investor Brad Hirst introduced Pentin, his wife Josine, and their daughter Joi.

Josine is an engineer who manages projects on the Knowledge Base Team at Juniper Networks. Joi, a championship golfer while a student at Amador Valley High School, will graduate from UC Berkeley next year. A championship player there, too, she will leave shortly for an international women's golf tournament in Scotland.

Pentin is serving is fourth year on the Pleasanton Planning Commission, is vice chairman of the city's Bicycle Pedestrian Trails Committee and is a member of the Downtown Hospitality Guidelines task force. He owns Spring Street Studios, a video production company that produces corporate videos, including one at the Wednesday breakfast that he will use on Facebook and other campaign promotions.

"This election is critical to Pleasanton," Pentin said Wednesday. "We will have three new members on the City Council that can mean a lot of change, change that I hope is good for Pleasanton."

He vowed to work to keep the city out of courtrooms on legal issues that have cost millions of dollars, and to work to keep state government off the city's back so that the council can determine the best way to govern the city.

He also pointed to Jerry Thorne, who was in the audience, and urged his supporters and the community to elect him mayor on Nov. 6.

Noting Tuesday's votes in Wisconsin and San Jose that dealt with pension reform issues, Pentin said he thinks recent actions by the council to rein in health and pension benefits for municipal employees were steps in the right direction.

"I believe that what our job is now is to protect the future, to work with city workforce representatives, and as each budget comes up, work towards the proper participation for pension funding," Pentin said.

Pentin's volunteer work includes numerous community activities. He served as president of Pleasanton North Rotary; co-founded a Pleasanton-based charity of cyclists titled "Cycling for a Cause" that raises thousands of dollars for Pleasanton high school civic activities; assisted in the renovation of Kaleidoscope for disabled children in Dublin; and has helped many charities such as Bridge of Opportunity, an organization supporting foster children and at-risk children with college scholarships.