Candidate Forum: Before You Go Vote
Foster City Chamber Council Candidate Forum Recording Now Available!
Dear Foster City Community,
We are excited to announce that the recording of the Foster City Chamber Council Candidate Forum is now available on our YouTube channel. To view the recording, click on the following link: https://youtu.be/QnE-S9kGO1U.
In addition to the recording, we have included the additional questions that were not asked during the forum, and their responses below for your convenience.
We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who attended the forum. We are thrilled to share that over 75 community members attended! Your participation and engagement made this event a great success. All the questions asked during the forum were submitted by our community members. We appreciate your involvement and the thoughtful questions you provided.
Thank you once again for your support and participation. We look forward to your continued engagement in our community events.
*Please note that this transcript was auto-generated by YouTube and does not display the names of the speakers. We have provided the transcript for those who prefer to read along while watching the video.
Become an Informed Voter
The Foster City Chamber of Commerce holds candidate forums to educate and inform voters. The Foster City Chamber does not endorse candidates but provides the opportunity for voters to make informed decisions.
The Council Candidate Forum will be held on September 19th at Central Peninsula Church from 6-8 PM in Foster City. Seating is limited, and registration is required in advance for entry. The event will be recorded for later viewing with link sent to all registred.
Public questions submitted for the candidates will be accepted for consideration through September 17th.
Schedule for the Candidate Forum
- Introduction and Welcome by Crystal Tilton, Executive Director of the Foster City Chamber
- Introduction of the moderator - Ephraim Cheever, Owner of The Training Center
- Opening remarks from candidates - 2 minutes each
- City Council candidates forum - 90 minutes
- Closing remarks - 1 minute each
Meet the candidates for the 2024 City Council Election. In no particular order.
Three city council seats - full 4 year terms.
Meet Patrick J Sullivan
Current Foster City Mayor, City Councilman, and community activist Patrick J. Sullivan has announced that he is running for Foster City Council re-election in the upcoming 2024 City Council election. Widely known for his work ethic, energy, and temperament, Mr. Sullivan is passionate about the Foster City community.
Throughout his City Council tenure, Mr. Sullivan has maintained a perfect attendance record and actively engaged in community discussions. Through his commitment to Foster City, he has helped facilitate key milestones, including the timely and under-budget Levee Project completion and the recruitment of a new City Manager, Public Works Director, and Parks and Recreation Director. In addition, during Mr. Sullivan's City Council tenure, Foster City successfully maintained its staff and public services throughout COVID-19 and secured a million-dollar grant from former Congresswoman Jackie Speier for a pump for the Foster City lagoon.
Mr. Sullivan persistently collaborates with staff to identify self-sustaining economic development opportunities in Foster City. As Mr. Sullivan stated, “We need to create economic development. A city can no longer be dependent on sales tax, property tax, transient occupancy tax. Alternately, we must commence economic development which helps to fund our city government. That way we can maintain the reputation of being the crown jewel of the Peninsula.”
He served ten years on the Parks and Recreation Committee, including as Chair, and has also been a member of the Chamber of Commerce and the Lion's Club, where he served as President. Furthermore, Mr. Sullivan belongs to numerous public organizations, including the Youth Advisory Committee, Bicycle & Pedestrian Committee, the Congestion Management Committee, and AirPort Land Use Committee. He is a 2021 San Mateo County Leadership Program graduate and has dedicated time to teaching students with special needs.
Meet Phoebe S. Venkat
I’m a champion for Foster City’s values of being sustainable, smart, and inclusive. My husband Shawn, son Shai, and I are proud to call Foster City our home since we moved here in 2014.
I bring a lot to the table, including my expertise in community building, communications, and collaboration on behalf of global companies across several industries. As a first-generation Chinese American, and the first person in my working-class family to graduate from college, I’m grounded in the values of strength, resilience, and community.
Other ways I serve our local communities:
As a Foster City Planning Commissioner, I have a track record of supporting equitable outcomes using qualitative and quantitative data to drive my decision making.
As a survivor of domestic violence, my work as a board member of CORA (Community Overcoming Relationship Abuse) is especially meaningful. I serve as the board’s Treasurer and Finance Committee head.
I enjoy volunteering with Foster City Village, a non-profit organization that helps local seniors age in place with dignity and care. I especially enjoy hearing people’s stories, and helping them with tech support so they stay connected to their loved ones, friends, and community.
I’m proud to be a founding and executive board member of the San Mateo County Asian American Pacific Islander Alliance, an organization that empowers AAPI people to be civically and politically engaged.
Meet Richa Awasthi
Richa Awasthi has been a dedicated resident of Foster City for more than 20 years. She has actively contributed to her community through various roles, including volunteering in schools, serving on city committees, and as a councilmember.
As Mayor and Councilmember, Richa has worked diligently to enhance the quality of life for Foster City residents. Her notable achievements include overseeing the Levee improvements project, the largest infrastructure project in the City’s history, which was completed on time and under budget. She has also focused on supporting small businesses, schools, and seniors, with priorities in public safety, infrastructure, traffic solutions, cooperation with school boards, and improving parks. Under her leadership, the city consistently delivered balanced budgets.
Richa has represented Foster City on several local committees and boards, including the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), City/County Association of Governments (C/CAG), League of California Cities, Emergency Services Council, Peninsula Clean Energy Authority, Peninsula Traffic Congestion Relief Alliance (Commute.org), and South Bayside Waste Management Authority (SBWMA). She also served as a Board Member at the Joint Powers Authority Fire Board for the San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department and as an Ex-officio Board Member of the San Mateo Foster City Education Foundation.
Professionally, Richa has a 20+ year career in banking and finance, worked for some of the world’s leading banks.
Richa’s priorities are fiscal responsibility, inclusive representation, and a safe, sustainable enviroment in which all residents of Foster City can thrive.
About Suzanne "Suzy" Niederhofer
A native of Foster City, Suzy is the daughter of a Fire Protection Engineer and teacher/homemaker who moved their 3 children to Foster City in 1965 before Suzy was born. Suzy attended Audubon Elementary School, Bowditch Middle School and Notre Dame Belmont High School. Suzy began dancing at 3 years old at the Hillbarn Theatre and took countless dance classes at the Foster City Recreation Center. Suzy can honestly say she has seen Foster City grow from mounds of crushed seashell to developments like Edgewater shopping center with a movie theatre and beautiful restaurant on the water.
Suzy received her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Finance from California State University Sacramento and her MBA from California State University San Jose. She began working for the City of Mountain View in 1989 as an Intern in the Finance Department and served 12 years as the Assistant Finance and Administrative Services Director, managing the Budget, Investments, Revenue, and Accounting Sections of the Department before retiring in 2021.
Suzy and her husband, Jamie Cavagnaro, met in Mountain View where Jamie was born and raised. In 2003 they decided to move to Suzy’s hometown Foster City to raise their two children, and quickly became involved in youth sports and the community.
A snapshot of Suzy’s community involvement:
- Foster City Little League Treasurer for 7 years
- Coach and volunteer for AYSO
- Team treasurer Peninsula Youth Soccer Club for 3 years
- 14 years volunteering with her husband in his work as a member of the Rotary Club of Foster City
Suzy has deep roots in Foster City and wants to see it continue to thrive with our beautiful parks, recreation, outstanding schools, and strong sense of community. She believes it is important for the City to be fiscally sound with a solid balanced operating budget. She believes it is important for the City’s leaders to collaboratively set clear policy and direction to staff to accomplish goals and complete projects timely.
About Shankar Kenkre
I earned my master's degree in computer science from the University of Mumbai and successfully ran an IT consulting firm for 25 years. My family and I have proudly called Foster City home for 33 years, where we raised our wonderful daughter.
Until around 2016, my focus was primarily on raising my family and building my career, and I wasn't fully aware of the happenings at City Hall. However, a series of events during that period caught my attention. Over the next two years, I observed a councilman misbehaving and disrespecting residents. When that council member led the effort in late 2018 to deny the mayoral rotation to then-Vice Mayor Catherine Mahanpour, I joined forces with fellow residents to form a recall movement.
We successfully recalled the council member after working tirelessly for over a year.
Since then, I have remained actively engaged with the city council. I have attended or watched every meeting and have kept residents informed about council proceedings through social media, emails, and texts. I’ve made it a priority to alert residents of important agenda items in advance and have acted as a community watchdog. Transparency has always been my top priority and will continue to be.