Local businesswoman announces bid to represent District 5 on Vallejo City Council

VALLEJO – Local businesswoman Tara Beasley-Stansberry kicked off her campaign for Vallejo City Council on Monday, becoming the first to announced plans to run for the 5th District during the upcoming 2022 election.

“I love my district,” Beasley-Stansberry told JohnGlidden.com this week. “I’m in a place in my personal life where I can fight for my community.”

Beasley-Stansberry, who co-owns Noonies Place with her wife Rhonda, says she wants to see small businesses come back to District 5. Beasley-Stansberry said working to address homelessness and bring additional youth programs to the city are also on her list of top priorities.

“District 5 is where I make my home, this is where I live, and this is where my family lives, and we just want to make it a better tomorrow for you and me,” Beasley-Stansberry said in a May 6 YouTube video announcing her candidacy.

Beasley-Stansberry also noted in her campaign video that litter and vacant abandoned buildings are an issue in the central Vallejo district, which is sandwiched between Sonoma Boulevard and Interstate-80 from Curtola Parkway to Sereno Drive.

She also told JohnGlidden.com that it’s important the Vallejo City Council is composed of an eclectic group of people with different life and work experiences.

Beasley-Stansberry, who has lived in District 5 for more than five years, has served on the city’s Design Review Board, and Vallejo’s Housing Community Development Commission. She is also a vice president and executive board member with the Solano County Black Chamber of Commerce.

Besides District 5, the 2nd and 4th districts will be on the November 2022 ballot. The 2nd district represents the North Vallejo/Mini areas, while the 4th represents Mare Island and the North Waterfront area of the city.

The city transitioned to district elections in July 2019 following a complaint that the city’s at-large election format violated California Voting Rights Act because it fostered a lack of diverse candidates.

Beasley-Stansberry says she supports the decision to have district elections.

“It really allows a representative to focus solely on that specific district,” she said. “Be that voice the community needs.”

Beasley-Stansberry will kick off her campaign with a virtual fireside chat from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday night.

For more information about the campaign, email hello@tara4citycouncil.com or visit www.tara4citycouncil.com.