Barbara Spector, Steven Leonardis Appointed Los Gatos Mayor, Vice Mayor

Barbara Spector and Steven Leonardis became Los Gatos' mayor and vice mayor Monday evening after being nominated to the posts by their colleagues.

Outgoing Mayor Steve Rice nominated Spector and then she nominated Leonardis for the second-in-command job.

The nominations were unanimously supported by the five-member Council.

"It was five years ago in November of 2007 that the Council first selected me as mayor," Spector said upon accepting the nomination.

At that time, as part of her acceptance speech, Spector recalled she had read a part of a quote that said Los Gatans were lifted by the beauty of the land and the privilege of living in a town considered one of the most desirable places to live in Silicon Valley.

She said Los Gatos' beauty is largely attributed to its natural environment, the surrounding hillsides and the mountain ranges, but it's also a product of decisions that have been made with regard to the town.

"In this coming year we have a lot of decisions to be made," she said. "They will be affecting Los Gatos from north of Winchester [Boulevard] coming south into Santa Cruz Avenue and in the Almond Grove neighborhood. There will be decisions affecting north on the [Los Gatos] Boulevard coming south onto Main Street. These decisions will impact class-A office space and repaving of neighborhood streets."

She continued: "These decisions will impact a specific plan for the North 40 and the potential arts and culture facility here on the town plaza ... this is a lot of work."

After encouraging the audience to enjoy the cake reception that followed the meeting, the upcoming Nov. 30 tree lighting ceremony and Dec. 1 holiday parade, Spector asked for their help to "roll up your sleeves because we have a lot of work to do this coming year to make Los Gatos [whom] I consider one of the loviest towns in the world, even better."

Spector said Leonardis has a tremendous amount of energy and passion for the town.

Leonardis thanked everyone in the community for their support and letters written to Los Gatos Patch and the Los Gatos Weekly-Times supporting his nomination for vice mayor.

He also thanked his colleagues on the Council for their collegiality and said they worked well together. "Being the new person is never easy," he said. "Seems like the first year I was here, it was all about learning the ropes of the job ... the second year, I feel like I've been able to grow into the role of Council member more solidly."

In his third year, he noted, he looked forward to serving in a greater capacity as vice mayor.

Rice was thanked for his four years on the Council and his one year of service as mayor. The appreciation gesture included a slide show of photos from his tenure during the town's 125th Jubilee celebration. He also received a plaque for his service.

The oath of office was administered by Spector's husband, Ira Spector, and Barbara Spector and Leonardis were sworn in a mayor and vice mayor.

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