Ben Glickman, a California Department of Justice attorney and 13-year El Dorado Hills resident, is seeking one of three open seats on the El Dorado Hills Community Services District (EDHCSD) Board of Directors on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Glickman told Village Life his priorities are parks, financial accountability and a board that listens to residents. He has attended EDHCSD meetings and spoken at the podium for about seven years.

"Rather than just complain from the sidelines, I raised my hand to help," Glickman said. "I joined committees and working groups, learned how the district works and tried to be part of the solution."

His district involvement includes the CSD's Ethos Committee, its master plan focus group, the youth sports working group and the Central EDH working group focused on the Old Executive Golf Course property. Since 2023, he has served on the LLAD Citizens Advisory Committee, where he is vice chair. He has also served as president of the Taz Swim Team board since 2021.

LLAD financing

At an Oct. 1 League of Women Voters forum at the Norm Rowett Pavilion, Glickman called the district's landscaping and lighting assessment districts, known as LLADs, a "developer-created patchwork of financing mechanisms" where each neighborhood is treated differently, Village Life reported. He said fixing them requires sitting down with neighborhoods, assessing properties and needs, and figuring out who pays for what.

About 50 residents attended the forum. All four candidates agreed the district's finances need untangling.

Cityhood

Glickman took a measured stance on El Dorado Hills' renewed push to incorporate as a city. At the same Oct. 1 forum, he said he favors local control and keeping more tax dollars in El Dorado Hills but wants to understand the full effects before committing.

The EDHCSD board voted 4-0 on Sept. 10 to approve a negative declaration for the proposed incorporation, Yahoo News reported, completing the district's initial application to the El Dorado Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO). El Dorado Hills Citizens for Cityhood and the CSD split the $67,000 cost of the environmental study. In 2005, 56.3% of El Dorado Hills voters rejected an earlier incorporation effort.

The race

Three seats are open because Directors Michael Martinelli and Heidi Hannaman opted not to seek new terms. Incumbent Stephen Ferry is running for re-election alongside newcomers Glickman, Steve Gutierrez and Joshua Ziese. A fifth candidate, former EDHCSD general manager Wayne Lowery, suspended his campaign, Village Life reported.

Voters will choose three directors to four-year terms on Tuesday, Nov. 3.