Mayor Alice Patino reflects on her years as Santa Maria's first female mayor, and plans to continue that legacy

Editor’s note: This is the first in a two-part series highlighting Santa Maria’s three mayoral candidates. 

Santa Maria Mayor Alice Patino’s upbringing taught her how to roll with the punches.

click to enlarge Mayor Alice Patino reflects on her years as Santa Maria's first female mayor, and plans to continue that legacy
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CITY OF SANTA MARIA
ANOTHER RUN : Incumbent Alice Patino will face off against Will Smith and Alberto Ugalde for the mayorship in November.

With her father stationed at Camp Cooke (now Vandenberg Air Force Base), Patino said her childhood was full of the archetypal moving around that comes with being a military family. But her mother’s family roots in the city—having come to Santa Maria from Mexico in 1928—always brought Patino back. 

From Germany to Japan to Alaska, “We traveled all over the world,” Patino said. “But every time we came back, home was Santa Maria.”

After returning to the Central Coast just in time to graduate from Santa Maria High School—she completed most of her secondary education in Anchorage—Patino attended Allan Hancock College and then San Jose State, before finding her way back to Santa Maria.

Before her foray into politics, Patino was a teacher in the Santa Maria-Bonita School District. She eventually won a seat on the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District school board, and later served on the city’s Code Compliance Board. 

“I was always involved in the community,” she said.

But Patino had her eyes set on something bigger: the race for Santa Maria City Council in 1999.

At that point, it had been nearly 70 years since a woman had sat on the Santa Maria City Council. Sadie West, a real estate agent, won a seat in 1930, just a decade after gaining the right to vote. But after West, the city’s room where it happens had only been occupied by men—until Patino decided to run.

“I’m not saying it was necessarily sexist, but it was just the timing,” Patino said. 

The seat didn’t come easy, though: Patino actually came in third.

“The person that was mayor moved up to [county] supervisor, and they had to make an appointment,” she said. “That was bloody—I had to be at that meeting and hear people tell me I didn’t deserve it.”

Despite the naysayers, Patino was appointed to the City Council and went on to prove her popularity in 2002 when she was elected to the position. After more than a decade of council service, Patino made history in 2012 when she was elected as the city’s first female mayor. 

Eight years later, Patino now finds herself in good company.

“We’ve had women come and go,” she said. “Now we have a majority on the council.”

Up for reelection against opponents Will Smith and Alberto Ugalde in perhaps one of the most pivotal political years in the nation’s history, Patino said she’s ready to tackle issues like public safety, COVID-19 recovery, and housing.

In the wake of George Floyd’s death and the unrest that followed, city councils everywhere continue to grapple with the conversations surrounding police reform. 

Patino said that “there’s always room for improvement” in public safety.

“People really want public safety here in Santa Maria,” she said. “[In 2014] the Office of Independent Review did an audit on our police department because there was a couple of us on the council who felt that our officers needed more training or wondered whether we were doing the best, up-to-date stuff.”

She emphasized the importance of the police having strong relationships with residents, “this sort of community-based policing.”

Another pillar of Patino’s reelection campaign is housing, she said.

“We have several families living in a house, and that’s not healthy, nor is it good for the kids,” Patino said. “As a young kid, I remember we did that during the war because there wasn’t any housing around here, so families were living together—but it wasn’t like this for years and years and years.”

And of course, the elephant in the room in 2020 is how elected officials plan to guide their communities toward recovery from COVID-19. 

Patino said it’s a balancing act.

“You may think you want to focus on certain things, but then you’ve got COVID,” she said. “So you still focus on those things, while keeping in mind that you still have to address the COVID issues.”

With all the change 2020 has brought, Patino hopes one thing in Santa Maria stays the same: the people.  

“I think what makes the people in Santa Maria so great is that they are really invested in this community,” she said. “It’s not perfect, but boy, it sure beats a lot of other places to live.” 

Highlight

• The Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Department is hosting a new recreational programming series during October called Fall into Fun. The program is designed for teens in seventh through 12th grades and is free of charge. The series starts on Oct. 2 with a bubble soccer challenge. All events will take place at the Abel Maldonado Community Youth Center at 600 S. McClelland St. Online pre-registration is required at cityofsantamaria.org/register. According to the city, “CDC guidelines will be followed, and face masks are required to participate in the programs.” 

Staff Writer Malea Martin wrote this week’s Spotlight. Send tips to [email protected]

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