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Livermore voters will have to choose between the experience of two incumbents and the eagerness of two challengers who want to try new things as residents get set for the Livermore Area Recreation and Park District Board of Directors race this November.
The candidates vying for the pair of four-year seats on the board are incumbents James Boswell and Jan Palajac — the latter of whom said she has plenty of work she wants to do at the board — as well as first-time candidates Matthew Bogdanowicz and Jacob Vital who each have their own ideas to make recreation in Livermore better.
“Although current incumbents might be quick to talk about the work they’re proud of, they often neglect to tell you where they fell short,” Bogdanowicz told Livermore Vine.
Bogdanowicz is a longtime Livermore resident who is married with two children and currently works as a recreation supervisor and operations coordinator in the county.
“Recreational resources are a valuable benefit that helps build a strong sense of community and improves quality of life,” he said.
He said as a person with a master’s degree in recreation and more than 30 years of working experience in and or related to recreation, he believes he is the best person for the job. Some of his priorities include tackling tough issues such as too many park closures, delays in completing certain projects and organizational and financial discrepancies.
“Not only do I have the direct experience and knowledge that will prove beneficial to the LARPD Board, but I have an active interest in the recreational resources from a working class family’s perspective,” Bogdanowicz said. “My background has benefited me with accumulated knowledge and experience in the private, corporate and municipality sectors.”
Fellow first-time candidate Vital is another long time native who in fact is the fourth generation of his family who live in Livermore.
“The community here is very important to me,” he told Livermore Vine.
Vital said he is someone who has helped out with many community events in the past and is so integrated in the city with his family owning two businesses that have been around for 20 years. That’s why when he saw all of the things that needed to be fixed or maintained in the community, he wanted to take action.
“The way that I see it, it is my duty to help foster more growth in the community and ensure that we can continue to have the very unique and important culture that Livermore has,” he said.
Vital’s top priorities if he is elected will be restoring or updating parks, providing and being involved in more after school programs and building more of a cohesion between LARPD, the city and the county. He also wants to ensure that residents’ voices are heard; specifically the voices of parents and organizations like youth sports which he has heard about issues regarding equitable access to parks.
But for incumbent Palajac, experience is everything.
Palajac was a licensed landscape architect for 35 years until she retired in 2017. She spent the last 17 years of her career as a landscape architect for San Jose where she was responsible for the design and construction of parks and urban trails.
Shortly after moving to Livermore in 2016, she decided to put her knowledge to use and ran for the LARPD board because she said she liked her new community so much. She won the nomination and was reelected in 2020.
Palajac, who is currently serving as the vice chair of the board, also served as the president during the pandemic, which she said was a tough time for LARPD.
She said they faced heavy personnel cuts but that as the dust settled from the pandemic, the organization was able to rebuild and restructure in a more streamlined manner. She also said they were able to update policies and address pension liability.
“LARPD is in a much stronger position now than it was prior to the pandemic but we still have a lot to do and that’s the reason I want to run again,” she told Livermore Vine.
If she is reelected, she said her priorities would be continuing to promote a diverse variety of programs, especially for the underserved communities; addressing the deferred maintenance of LARPD’s facilities and finding additional funding sources for the organization’s programs and facilities.
“We need to ensure that LARPD remains a leader in providing the types of recreation, facilities and programs that will help to advance the quality of life in the Livermore area,” she said. “With my experience as a landscape architect, I’m the best candidate to do that.”
Boswell was the only candidate who didn’t respond for comments after multiple attempts. However, according to his website, the incumbent — who won the seat in 2020 — is another longtime resident who has a 17-year history in law enforcement.
His background states that he has knowledge in “finance, managing people, and being a steward of our land which translates directly into the parks and open spaces we use for recreation.”
According to his website, his goals are getting more people involved in programs and expanding “fitness opportunities to children and seniors who have seen their opportunities for exercise at school and at home all but eliminated.”
