City Council / Elected Officials
Contact Your City Council
Address:
1950 Parkside Drive, MS/01
Concord, CA 94519
Phone: (925) 671-3158
Fax: (925) 798-0636
citycouncil@ci.concord.ca.us
Note: For correspondence sent to City Council, City Clerk or City Treasurer, please put "Attention" followed by the name of the specific elected official.
Elected Officials
Mayor Daniel C. Helix
Daniel C. Helix was appointed to the City Council in February 2011to fill a vacant position, and was subsequently the top vote-getter in the November 2012 election. Helix was previously elected to the City Council in 1968, was reelected in 1972 and served as Mayor from 1972-74. Most recently he was co-chair of the Community Advisory Committee for the Concord Naval Weapons Station Reuse Project.
Helix is a past president of the Rotary Club of Concord and the former Mt. Diablo Hospital Foundation, now John Muir Health, Concord Campus. He served on the Board of the All Wars Memorial Foundation and is active in numerous philanthropic and military organizations. He served on a U.S. Congressional Commission considering changes in the Department of the Army and Governor Schwarzenegger's Military Base Retention Commission.
Helix earned a bachelor's degree in History from the University of California at Berkeley, and a master's degree in Political Science at the San Francisco State University. Both degrees were conferred magna cum laude. He is a graduate of the Army's Command and General Staff College and the War College. Helix retired as a major general in the U. S. Army in 1989. He completed a 41-year career serving both on active duty and with the Army Reserve.
Helix is a published author of an award-winning novel set in the Korean War era and has several published articles and short stories that have been published in military journals. He lives in Concord with his wife, Mary Lou. They have two children and five grandchildren.
Vice Mayor Tim Grayson
Tim Grayson has been a Concord resident since 2001 and was elected to serve on the Concord City Council in November 2010. He served at Redevelopment Agency Chair in 2011.
Grayson is a Critical Response Chaplain with the Concord Police Department and owner of Grayson Construction since 1999. He is a member of the Citizen Corps Community Emergency Response Team and the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce.
Grayson holds a B.A degree from Christian Life College in Stockton and is the recipient of the Presidential Citizens Award in 2008 and 2009. He and his wife Tammy have two children.
Councilmember Edi E. Birsan
Edi E. Birsan was elected to the City Council in November 2012 after being the runner-up in the 2010 election. He is an active community leader and has served in many positions, from the Director of Community Services for Concord-Diablo Rotary to the President of the Friends of the Library, to volunteer for numerous non-profit organizations.
Birsan came to Concord in 1983 working for a global, inter-modal container leasing company. He started his own company in 1986, which currently focuses on certification/inspection and service in the inter-modal equipment field. He brings a history of running a small business as well as world-class experience in pioneering efforts at containerization of global trade.
Birsan was born and raised in New York City where he earned his B.A. degree in dual majors of History and Political Science from City University-CCNY. He and his wife (they were high school sweethearts) have raised two generations in Concord and have lived in the same house since 1983 in the area off of Monument Blvd.
Councilmember Laura M. Hoffmeister
Laura Hoffmeister, a lifelong Concord resident, was elected to the City Council in 1997 and reelected in 2002, 2006, and 2010. She served as Mayor in 2001, 2005, 2009, and 2011, Vice Mayor in 2000 and 2004 and Chair of the Concord Redevelopment Agency in 1999, 2003, and 2008.
Hoffmeister is active in her support of the various veterans and support organizations including VFW Post 1525 - Clayton Valley; Blue Star Moms and Diablo Valley Veterans. She is a past recipient of Contra Costa Women's Hall of Fame Community Leadership Award.
Prior to election, Hoffmeister served as Chair of the Redevelopment Advisory Committee (RAC), Vice Chair of the Design Review Board, and was an active member of the Economic Development Task Force, Main Street Committee, County Connection Citizen Advisory Committee and the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce.
She formerly served on the boards of the Concord Historical Society, American Association of University Women, and is a graduate of Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce's "Leadership Concord" Academy.
She holds a BS degree in City and Environmental Planning from the University of California, Davis.
Councilmember Ron Leone
Ron Leone, a resident of Concord since 1978, was elected to the City Council in 2010 and served as Mayor in 2012. Leone served 35 years in education as a high school teacher and principal. He was the teacher of the year in the San Ramon Valley Unified School District and teachers' association president. He coached high school baseball, and several championship mock trial and constitutional academic teams.
Leone was raised in the lower socio-economic, Bay View/Hunter's Point District of San Francisco, but worked his way through college earning his BA and teaching credential from San Francisco State and his MA and Administrative credential from St. Mary's college in Moraga.
Prior to his election on the City Council he served as an elected member of the Mt. Diablo Hospital District Board for 16 years; he also served as the Chairman of the Board of the John Muir Hospitals and the City's Planning Commission.
Concord City Treasurer Thomas J. Wentling
A native of Concord, Thomas Wentling has served as City Treasurer since 1986. He had served on the City Council from 1970 to 1974, as Councilmember and Vice Mayor.
Wentling has been active in the Concord business community for over 40 years. He owned and operated a small chain of camera stores located throughout Contra Costa County until he sold the business in early 1997. He has served the community as past president of the Concord Chamber of Commerce and Concord Rotary Club, and as past chairperson of Concord Community Development Committee. During his many years of service to the Diablo Valley region, he has been involved with numerous committees benefiting the community, and has also been active in his field as president of Photo Marketing Association International.
Council Standing Committees
There are currently five standing City Council Committees, each of which is made up of two Councilmembers. The committees meet monthly and make recommendations to the City Council for action on items they have considered.
The Mayor makes new committee assignments following the reorganization of the City Council at the end of the calendar year. Committee members serve one-year terms. Committee agendas are available on the City's Web site. For more information, call (925) 671-3495.
| Committee | Chair/Member | Meeting Time |
|---|---|---|
| Housing & Economic Development | Grayson/Leone | 4th Monday, 5:30 pm, Garden Conference Rom |
| Infrastructure & Franchise | Hoffmeister/Helix | 2nd Thursday, 5:30 pm, Garden Conference Rom |
| Recreation, Cultural Affairs and Community Services | Birsan/Hoffmeister | 4th Thursday, 5:30 pm, City Manager's Conference Room |
| Policy Development & Internal Operations | Helix/Grayson | 2nd Monday, 5:30 pm, Garden Conference Rom |
| Youth and Education | Leone/Birsan | 3rd Monday, 5:30 pm, Garden Conference Rom |
| Ad Hoc Committee | Chair To Be Determined | Member To Be Determined |
|---|---|---|
| Los Medanos Working Group | ||
| Economic Vitality |
| Appointments to External Agencies | Appointee | Alternate |
|---|---|---|
| Association of Bay Area Governments General Assembly | Helix | Grayson |
| Central Contra Costa Transit Authority | Hoffmeister | Leone |
| Central County Literacy Coalition | Birsan | Hoffmeister |
| Citizen Corps Community Emergency Response Team | Grayson | Helix |
| East Bay Division of League of California Cities | Leone | Grayson |
| Transportation Partnership and Cooperation Regional Committee (TRANSPAC) | Leone | Birsan |
The City Council Members are elected officers identified in Government Code Section 87200 and file statements of economic interests with the City Clerk's office. Copies of the statements of economic interests filed by the above elected officers may be obtained by visiting the offices of the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) or the City Clerk. The physical address of the FPPC is 428 J Street, Suite 620, Sacramento, California 95814. The physical address of the City Clerk's office is 1950 Parkside Drive, Concord, CA 94519. The statements of economic interests for some state and local government agency elected officers may be available in electronic format on the FPPC's website at http://www.fppc.ca.gov/. Copies may also be obtained by calling the City Clerk at (925) 671-3495.