Meet The Pleasanton Candidate: Reena Gupta

PLEASANTON, CA — Patch reached out to all the candidates for mayor and city council in Pleasanton.

Two candidates each are running for mayor, District 1, and District 2.

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We sent out questionnaires and reprinted their answers verbatim. Below, read the responses of Reena Gupta, who's running in District 3.

What is your educational background?

I attended Notre Dame Academy in India from kindergarten through 12th grade. I earned a bachelor's degree in Chemistry, followed by a Master's in Computer Applications. After moving to the U.S., I continued my education through executive programs and certificate courses, including at Vanderbilt University. I am also a graduate of Leadership Pleasanton.

What is your professional background?

'm a local business owner and serial entrepreneur who bootstrapped multiple technology companies and achieved two successful exits. I also founded Mom Relaunch Foundation, helping 250+ women return to the workforce without relying on grants or donations. My work in Pleasanton includes the Economic Vitality Committee, Pleasanton Connects Ambassador, Three Valleys Community Foundation Advisor, PUSD career advisory boards, and teaching AI workforce readiness.

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

I have not held elected public office. However, I served on Pleasanton's Economic Vitality Committee, where I helped develop the city's Economic Development Strategic Plan.

What are the top three issues facing Pleasanton right now?

1. Fiscal sustainability and economic vitality. We need to grow Pleasanton's revenue base through three engines: businesses, property tax through thoughtfully adding homes and welcoming new families, and tourism. That means attracting employers, reducing vacancies, strengthening Downtown, reimagining Stoneridge, and making Pleasanton a destination where visitors stay, dine and spend.

2. Thoughtful growth and infrastructure.Growth must go hand in hand with traffic solutions, roads, clean and affordable water, public safety, parks and infrastructure, while protecting our quality of life.

3. Restoring civic engagement and trust. I keep reminding residents: "you are at the top of the city organizational chart.: Many don't realize the power of their voice. Be informed, ask questions, speak up for what our community needs, and participate before decisions are made. Democracy thrives when residents are informed, engaged and heard.

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

My first-year priority would be a comprehensive economic development and new revenue strategy focused on three areas: **businesses, housing/property tax, and tourism.**

For businesses, I would focus on attracting and retaining employers, reducing commercial vacancies, supporting small businesses, activating Downtown and moving Stoneridge redevelopment forward.

For housing, I would support thoughtful development that welcomes new families, strengthens our property tax base, and is aligned with infrastructure and quality of life.

For tourism, I would build on our events, Downtown, Fairgrounds and other assets to encourage visitors to stay longer, dine, shop and spend locally.

Most importantly, these should not be separate efforts. I would align them into one strategy with measurable goals and accountability, focused on growing Pleasanton's revenue base and long-term fiscal sustainability.

Pleasanton has faced projected multimillion-dollar budget shortfalls. What services would you protect, and what combination of spending reductions or new revenue would you support to stabilize city finances?

My priority would be to protect core services residents rely on: public safety, clean and reliable water, streets and infrastructure, parks, libraries, and essential community services.

Pleasanton has already made difficult reductions and found operational efficiencies to address its budget gap. We should continue looking for efficiencies, eliminating duplication, using technology wisely, and evaluating programs and spending based on measurable results. But we cannot cut our way to long-term fiscal sustainability.

That is why my focus is equally on growing revenue through three areas: businesses, housing/property tax, and tourism. We should attract and retain employers, reduce commercial vacancies, strengthen Downtown and reimagine Stoneridge; thoughtfully add housing that brings new families and strengthens our property tax base; and build Pleasanton as a destination where visitors stay, dine, shop and spend locally.

Fiscal responsibility requires both sides of the equation: controlling costs while building a stronger, more diverse revenue base to sustain the services residents value.

Pleasanton must accommodate substantial new housing growth, including redevelopment around the Stoneridge Shopping Center. Where should new housing be concentrated, and how should the city address affordability, traffic and infrastructure impacts?

Pleasanton must meet its housing obligations, but growth should be thoughtful and preserve the quality of life that makes our city special. I prefer vertical growth over horizontal sprawl where appropriate. We have opportunities to use existing and underutilized land more efficiently, with housing above and restaurants, retail and businesses on the ground floor, creating walkable mixed-use neighborhoods.

Stoneridge is one of our biggest opportunities to do this thoughtfully, combining housing, shopping, dining, public spaces and other amenities rather than simply adding housing in isolation.

Affordability must remain part of the strategy, with housing choices for different ages, incomes and stages of life.

Most importantly, housing cannot be planned separately from infrastructure. Every major development should consider traffic, roads, water, sewer, public safety and other impacts. My goal is thoughtful growth that adds homes and welcomes new families while strengthening our economic base and protecting Pleasanton's quality of life.

Pleasanton businesses have experienced a recent series of burglaries and break-ins. What specific steps should the city take to reduce property crime and support affected businesses?

Public safety and economic vitality go hand in hand. Businesses should feel safe operating and investing in Pleasanton. I would focus on prevention, quick response, technology, and stronger partnerships between our Police Department and business community.

We should use crime data to identify patterns, repeat locations and times, and proactively work with businesses on security assessments, lighting, cameras, alarms and other preventive measures. When burglaries occur in clusters, police, affected businesses and property owners should quickly come together to share information, identify patterns and coordinate solutions.

I would also like to understand how Pleasanton's existing Flock ALPR system is currently being used to address business burglaries, what measurable results it is producing, and how we can maximize its effectiveness for prevention and investigations while maintaining appropriate safeguards.

The goal is not simply to respond after a break-in, but to use every available tool to prevent the next one.

Measure HH would increase Pleasanton's hotel tax from 10% to 12%, generating an estimated $2.3 million annually for general city services. Do you support or oppose the measure, and how should the additional revenue be used if it passes?

Yes, I support Measure HH because it will bring additional revenue to Pleasanton, primarily from overnight visitors.

My priority would be twofold. First, I would use the additional fiscal capacity to restore and strengthen services that directly impact residents, including libraries, parks and recreation, streets, infrastructure and community amenities. Residents are asking for things as basic as shade structures in our parks. New revenue should translate into visible value and improved quality of life.

Second, I would invest strategically in growing tourism itself. We should create and attract more events, conferences, sports and cultural activities that give people reasons to visit Pleasanton, stay overnight, dine Downtown and shop locally. Every additional occupied hotel room generates economic activity and hotel-tax revenue for the City. That creates a positive cycle: invest in making Pleasanton a destination, generate more revenue, and reinvest that capacity into services and amenities residents value.

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

Each candidate brings their own expertise. I bring decades of entrepreneurship and community service, with experience generating revenue, creating jobs, building organizations and activating underutilized opportunities. I also have years of workforce development experience, helping people return to work and prepare for an AI-driven economy.

I am not waiting for an election to serve. I have already collected and carried 100+ resident voices to City Hall, and residents are reaching out with concerns and ideas. I was especially encouraged when our City Manager commented that I was "already doing the work of an elected official."

I bring residents' concerns forward not simply as complaints, but with ideas and potential solutions. My goal is to keep residents informed, engaged and part of the process while bringing an entrepreneurial approach to generating revenue and solving problems.