SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Doug Williams, who’s served on the planning commission and has experience in real estate and insurance, is running for city council after applying for the open seat and previous interest in city council. “I have a lot to offer,” said Williams.

Williams told the Tribune he’s interested in creating first-time home buyer programs as well as re-establishing a fire safety council in the Tahoe Basin. “I have an interest in looking at the budget, looking at safety and roads,” he said.

“I love this community. It’s wonderful and comes together in times of need,” said Williams, who also has served on the board of Christmas Cheer. The organization dealt with issues regarding their nonprofit status, which Williams helped to navigate.

That experience also helped him understand the importance of dealing with food insecurity and other quality of life issues for residents. On the planning commission, Williams helped with bringing the affordable housing project at 3900 Lake Tahoe Boulevard forward.

He also has experience with insurance, which he said would help guide fire insurance, grants and a proactive approach from the city, including expanding Firewise communities in the city.

Williams said he also has experience with marketing, through tourism groups like the Lodging Association. There, as their vice president, he drove the campaign to earmark funds from Measure P for the recreation center.

Unlike other candidates, Williams is less interested in bringing a second economy to Tahoe. “I have an issue with it.” He said during COVID that remote workers impacted the housing market and locals negatively. “Until we can fix our housing issue, we should not try to create another economy. I would like to see us bring more tourism so our workforce won’t have to cut hours—at a smaller scale to steady out our economy.”

With regards to vacation home rentals (VHRs), Williams said, “Until they’re back on the ballot or the courts have decided, VHRs are here. Enforcement 100% will take care of most issues.” He has experience dealing with them on the planning commission and hopes the rest of city council will agree to crack down on illegal VHRs.

He hopes to earmark transient occupancy taxes (TOT) from VHRs for road upkeep. “Every little bit helps.”

Williams says as far as institutional knowledge, he has experience working for the city, which he thinks is important. “I know all the county supervisors and can speak with them on things we may need.”

“City council needs to do better staying in touch with higher-up elected officials like Congress, the Senate, California’s State Legislature, the county and the state,” said Williams. He said he hoped that there would be more collaboration there, potentially on a county fair in Tahoe as well.

He also expressed an interest in the city doing background checks for those serving, and said his background had been investigated multiple times as a broker.

Williams said his attitude was something city council needs. “When a roadblock appears in front of me, rather than giving up, I ask how we can get around it. That’s the thinking needed for accomplishing things and innovating in the community.”

To read more about Doug Williams’ campaign and platform, visit https://williams4sltcouncil.com/.