Janet Borgens Candidate Profile and November Elections Information

This year as reported by the Honorable Mark Church, there is a distinct possibility that San Mateo County will be part of a test that involves an all mail in voting process however that doesn’t mean you have to vote four to six weeks in advance. As noted during Mr. Church‘s presentation at City Council residents will also be able to drop off ballots at a couple of different locations county wide. In fact this may simplify voting for a number of people as all locations will accept ballots from all voting areas in the county. So just to reiterate this may mean that you can vote either by mail up to the day of the election, the preferred method, or at any location county wide.

For this year’s upcoming Redwood City City Council election there are four seats up for election. At this moment, there are five candidates running. I have offered all of them the opportunity to be profiled. My format is I meet in person with the candidate and I discuss a series of questions. I hope to run these profiles every other week until I have run at least one profile with each candidate that is willing to meet with me and then start a second and even third round through to election day Tuesday, November 3rd.

Janet Borgens

Born in San Jose, California, Janet Borgens has lived in Redwood City for the last 46 years. She grew up on the peninsula primarily in East Palo Alto were she attended Brentwood Elemantary School, Garden Oaks Middle School and Ravenswood High School located at what is now IKEA.

She married young and had a son with her first husband a mechanic who was killed on the job when her son was barely two years old. A single parent she had the opportunity to buy The Beauty Wheel a beauty salon located on Woodside Road which she did so that she could have the flexibility to also be an involved parent. As she put it her son grew up and played on the carpet in the Beauty Wheel. Her son, David Turchet now a fire captain in Millbrae attended John Gill Elementary School, McKinley Intermediate and Sequoia High School.

Her second husband who she is still married to was a police officer with the Redwood City police department for twenty seven years before he finally retired. They have three children and four grandchildren together.

She now owns not only the beauty salon on Woodside Road but a salon at the VI senior retirement community in Palo Alto. In addition to her paid work she volunteers for a lot of organizations including being the Chairperson of the Salvation Army Advisory Board, teaching CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) courses and participating in the Measure W oversight community.

Janet first got her start in politics when she got involved in politics at the state level through the Cosmetology Association. When that dissolved she decided she needed to get involved at the local level and was appointed to the Senior Affairs Commission where she volunteered for four years. After the Senior Affairs Commission she helped out on the Housing and Human Concerns Committee. For the last nine years she has been a Planning Commissioner on the Planning Commission.

She told me she originally got into politics because “you can’t make a difference by standing on the sidelines.” In addition she noted that: “being on boards and commissions that is how you learn about your community. Each board and commission has taught me something else.”

When I asked her what she wanted to accomplish if she got elected she struggled to respond but made it clear that she wanted everyone to know that she would listen to everyone and consider everyone’s arguments. I made it clear to her that listening is not enough, although I did say I thought I understood what she was trying to tell me.

For more information on Janet Borgens visit her website at www.janetborgens.com

Coming next: Ian Bain