Meet The Dublin Candidate: Richard Thornbury

DUBLIN, CA — Patch reached out to all candidates running for mayor and city council in Dublin, and reprinted their answers to our questionnaire verbatim.

In Dublin, three candidates are running for mayor, including incumbent Sherry Hu. Four candidates are running for Council District 2, in the northeastern part of the city; and two candidates are running for District 4 in the southeast, including incumbent Kashef Qaadri.

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Dublin switched to district-based elections in 2024, and this is the first year that Districts 2 and 4 are electing their own candidates.

Below, read the responses of Richard Thornbury, a biotech researcher running to represent District 2.

What is your educational background?

B.S. Chemistry: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2013 Ph.D. Chemistry: University of California Berkeley, 2018

What is your professional background?

After earning a Ph.D. in organic chemistry, I spent 1 year as a National Institute of Health Postdoctoral Fellow at Princeton University. In 2019, I started my current career in industry as a research chemist at a Bay Area biotech company. I do research in small molecule process development and manufacturing.

Have you ever held public office, whether appointive or elective?

Since 2021, I have served on the Dublin Parks and Community Services Commission (appointed position), an advisory body to the City Council and staff. For the past 2 years, I have served as chair of the commission.

What are the top three issues facing Dublin right now?

Fiscal Sustainability: As Dublin reaches build out, we will face the same structural budget challenges that many local cities have, with a budget deficit forecasted by 2030. I plan to look critically at our budget and prioritize the areas that provide a high quality of life for our residents like public safety and our parks. I will also look for opportunities to diversify our revenues so that we can continue to support these priorities.

Public Safety: I will advocate for continued investment in first responder services, and I will also focus on improving traffic safety for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers in our community.

Housing Affordability: The high cost of housing is one of the greatest challenges we have in the region. By focusing on infill and transit-oriented development opportunities, we can make Dublin more affordable for residents today and future generations while minimizing sprawl and new infrastructure that we need to maintain.

What is one specific action you would prioritize during your first year in office?

A persistent concern I hear from residents is about safety walking and biking around Dublin, particularly for kids. In the first year, I would like to request that the Council re-review the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. With a new school and some new parks opening in the last few years, I think it is timely that we re-evaluate. Many of the projects in our plans are long term in nature, but I would like for us to discuss how we can make our streets and roads safer in the short term as well. Examples include adding more stops signs, better stop sign visibility, and measures to slow down traffic in our neighborhoods.

Dublin continues to add housing and consider new developments. How should the city determine where additional growth belongs, and how should it ensure that transportation, schools and other infrastructure keep pace?

Dublin has almost reached build out, so I think our best opportunities to build housing are in infill development, particularly near our transit connections. By focusing on infill and transit-oriented areas of the city, we can provide the housing our region needs while minimizing the amount of sprawling infrastructure that we need to maintain, which strains our city budget. Additionally, if we focus on development near our BART stations, we can encourage public transportation use, which will help mitigate the traffic impacts of new development. While the city does not directly influence the Dublin Unified School District budget, to support our schools I have endorsed and been a vocal supporter of Measure I, the parcel tax renewal on the ballot this November.

What is your vision for Downtown Dublin, and what concrete action would you take to create a more distinctive, walkable and economically successful city center?

I am a strong supporter of the Downtown Dublin Preferred Vision, which reimagines an under utilized commercial space near the West Dublin BART station as a mixed use development that includes a town square park, retail, a walkable street grid, and more homes in a transit oriented area. I believe all of these elements need to be included in future plans. It would give Dublin a downtown experience that we currently lack and help keep our sales tax dollars in town. By including homes in the plan, we can help address the housing shortage in the Bay Area while providing a neighborhood near our business core to help ensure they are economically sustainable.

How do we best ensure Dublin remains a safe community?

Public safety should be our top priority when budgeting. To ensure Dublin remains a safe community, we need to maintain our investment in first responder services, including police, fire, and ambulance services. We also need to invest in making our streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists. This includes expanding protected bikeways, improving cross-walk visibility, and implementing traffic calming measures in residential areas. Finally, the city should continue to invest in emergency preparedness and education for our residents on how to be prepared for emergencies and natural disasters.

Why do you feel you're a better candidate than your opponents?

For the past 6 years, I have had the honor of serving our city on the Parks and Community Services Commission. I would bring these years of experience collaborating with city staff, fellow commissioners, and residents to the City Council to help solve problems and sustain the high quality of life Dublin offers. As a parent with a young family, I understand the needs of families and the challenges of trying to afford to raise a family in the Bay Area. I look forward to bringing these experiences to the City Council and to serving our city.