Book Table of contents
LESSONS FROM THE HOT SEAT: Making Decisions in a Time of Change, Conflict, and Cooperation
INTRODUCTION
PART ONE: DECISION-MAKING IN A CITY
1. Grass Roots Battle for Open Space: Preserving Land for the Future
2. The Planning Commission: Seeing Changes Through the Years
3. And Now, On with the Show: Building a Performing Arts Center
4. Suburban Growth Battles: Reconciling Visions about the Future
5. Why Don’t You Fix That Darn Road? Balancing Pain Vs. Cost
6. Keep the Trees or Cut Them Down? Dissecting a Difficult Decision
7. Working Across Borders: Preventing Disputes through Negotiations
8. Creating Understanding Across Cultures: Sister City Programs
PART TWO: WORKING WITH REGIONAL PARTNERS
9. One Stop Living: Creating a Transit Village
10. Trains are Coming: Reconciling Visions with Reality
11. The Shooting of Oscar Grant: Handling a Crisis
12. Black Lives Matter Protestors Shut Down BART System: Dealing with Disruption
13. Suburban/Urban Conflicts: the Art of Compromise
14. The Rolling Quads Battle for Access: Accommodating Disabilities
15. Commuter Rail Crippled by Strikes: Finding Imperfect Solutions
16. Moving On
Endnotes
"I want to be in the room where it happens."
When I heard that lyric in the musical “Hamilton,” it encapsulated the driving force behind my desire to enter public service and politics. Motivated by the conviction that government could improve, I became involved myself. I wanted to shape the future “in the room where it happens.”