Meet The Dublin Candidate: Michael McCorriston

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.

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 Michael McCorriston, a councilmember and retired financial professional running for mayor.

What is your educational background?

University of San Diego, MBA; San Jose State University, BS - Finance

What is your professional background?

40+ years in corporate finance, banking, and treasury managing the financial resources of large public companies.

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

Nearly six years on Dublin Council (elected 2020), including appointed mayor (2024) and Vice Mayor (2023). I am also a member of numerous boards and commissions, focused on water resources, transportation, education, finance and investment management, economic development, housing, and land use.

What are the top three issues facing Dublin right now?

The top three issues facing the City of Dublin are 1) Public Safety: Ensuring police and fire have the resources needed for a growing community. 2) Responsible Growth, Housing & Infrastructure: Continuing to provide affordable housing solutions for young families and seniors, while ensuring transportation, schools, parks, utilities, and public services keep pace with development. 3) Fiscal Sustainability: Protecting the City's long-term financial health while maintaining services and infrastructure.

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

1) Public Safety: Increase police presence and implement more crime prevention strategies and fire prevention awareness programs.

• Increase neighborhood patrol visibility and surveillance.
• Promoting public-private partnerships.
• Expand funding for and smart use of technology to enhance safety and response time
• Direct engagement between the community and the city, its safety providers and elected officials.
• Sustained funding for Tools/equipment to address the changing landscape in Dublin

• Sustained funding: education and preparedness programs

Other High Priorities:

2) Infrastructure: improve traffic flows, focus on increasing community meeting places, and community parks.

3) Fiscal sustainability: implement sound financial strategies that ensure fiscal strength for the city.

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 must approach development responsibly. We must make sure infrastructure and services keep pace. Every major project should be evaluated for its impact on traffic, schools, public safety, utilities, parks, and our long-term finances—and growth should be properly planned and appropriately funded.

Dublin should continue to provide creative housing solutions for all residents, and welcome thoughtful development, but growth must be carefully planned and matched with the infrastructure and services needed to support it. Major projects should be evaluated for their impact on traffic, schools, public safety, utilities, parks, and the City’s long-term financial resources. Growth should be directed where infrastructure can support it, and structured so that new development pays its appropriate share of the costs it creates.

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?

Downtown Dublin should be a collaborative project between the city and our residents. Our city must have a control over the planning and development process and not be mandated to go along with something that is forced upon our residents. Certainly, the Downtown project should include small business retail and great restaurants, as well as meeting areas for families. From a design perspective, it must integrate into the surrounding geography and the city's heritage. As a successful destination spot, the concept must be innovative, and the ultimate product must be something that we are all proud of. There must be accessible, functional, unique and the city must incorporate its own identity rather than trying to replicate the downtowns of neighboring cities and towns. This will not be an overnight process. There will be a lot of careful long-term planning involved, which absolutely takes into consideration the ideas, comments, and visions of our residents. This could be an exciting next step for our city.

How do we best ensure Dublin remains a safe community?

WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE

• Ensure our safety providers, both police and firefighters have necessary staffing, tools, and equipment to protect our community and maintain strong response times.
• Improving community partnerships with law enforcement and fire safety

• Direct engagement between the community and the city, its safety providers and elected officials. Listened to their concerns and worked toward resolving the issues.

WHAT I HAVE DONE

• My voting record is strong on supporting budgetary items that provide funding for additional staff and equipment.
• My record is strong when it comes to directly engaging our residents and businesses about their concerns and achieving results.

Addressed Rising Burglaries: Worked directly with affected residents and merchants, bringing stakeholders together to strengthen surveillance and community security.

• Improved E-Bike & Scooter Safety: Introduced a framework for stronger enforcement that helped lead to a new City ordinance.

• Addressed Inmate-Release Concerns from communities surrounding our county jail. Worked with residents, City staff, police, and the Sheriff’s Office to find solutions.
• Helped organize a successful community firearms-safety and storage seminar to protect our children and family members.

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

The foundation of my campaign is putting residents first—listening to them, following up, and getting results.

Dublin’s diversity is one of our greatest strengths, bringing together different perspectives, experiences, and ideas. Our city is also becoming more complex, and we must have a mayor who has commitment to residents and an understanding of the city’s needs and challenges; someone who listens to residents, follows up, and delivers results. I have demonstrated those skills.

We need to build trust, consensus, and strong communication on council. The mayor is the face of the city, so our residents must have a high level of confidence in that person’s leadership skills. In nearly six years on council, including mayor (2024) and vice mayor (2023), I have addressed and delivered results in public safety, housing, and fiscal stewardship. I am committed and results-driven!