Janda, Butler and Mattos for Rocklin City Council

In the affluent, low-crime and well-run Placer County city of Rocklin, we recommend two incumbents and one challenger with considerable experience to fill three contested City Council seats.

We might recommend a third incumbent, Ken Broadway, but he already is serving on the council, filling out the remainder of a term that will expire in 2018. The anomaly occurred when the council appointed Broadway last month to serve the final two years of the term of Councilwoman Diana Ruslin, who resigned this past summer.

If Broadway wins one of three council seats on the ballot Nov. 8, he plans to resign from the two-year seat and serve the full four years. That would create an opportunity for the council once again to fill a vacant seat. We believe that decision should be up to the voters.

Broadway has been deeply involved in community activities, having served as a member of the Rocklin Planning Commission and as Parks and Recreation commissioner and a member of the Rocklin Educational Excellence Foundation. He has several endorsements from current and former council members, and no doubt will be a valued addition. But he should serve out his two-year term and run again in 2018.

That complication aside, two incumbents, Greg Janda and Dave Butler, have served their city of 60,000 people well and warrant another term.

Janda, who is mayor, is a small-business owner who hopes to grow Rocklin’s economic base and focus on creating a central downtown core by encouraging private investment for shops and restaurants. He also wants to find ways to reduce the cost of doing business in the city.

Butler, vice mayor, wants to create distinct districts within the city that have consistent architectural styles that help better define Rocklin. He also believes Rocklin should do more to focus on youth and senior services.

A third candidate, Mike Mattos, is the retired executive of Sacramento Regional Transit. He would bring a new voice to the council. He hopes to work to correct problems created when the city approved a mix of commercial business and homes outside of the city’s general plan, and is cautious on growth, believing businesses in Rocklin should be favored over big-box stores. He also advocates extending Sacramento’s light-rail system to Roseville and Rocklin.

Another candidate, Joe Patterson, is executive director of California Gaming Association, which represents card rooms. A former legislative staffer, Patterson would bring certain political skills to the city, and promises to promote government transparency. Michelle Vass also is running.

But in a field of quality candidates, The Bee recommends incumbents Greg Janda and Dave Butler, and challenger Mike Mattos.

This story was originally published October 17, 2016 at 1:53 PM with the headline "Janda, Butler and Mattos for Rocklin City Council."