City Council Candidate: Anne Oliva

Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of six profiles of Millbrae candidates.

Yearning to join the Millbrae city council for many years, Anne Oliva seized the opportunity to enter the race when .

One of her priorities as a city council member would be to attract a large tech-like business to Millbrae to generate revenue.

“We have a little gold mine right here,” Oliva said, referring to the BART station. “It just needs to be shined up and utilized.”

She pointed out that Millbrae, with the only intermodal station west of the Mississippi, hasn’t attracted companies like Youtube in San Bruno or Genentech South San Francisco.

Her other priorities include revitalizing downtown and preserving private property rights. For example, she disagrees with the on sewer laterals, which can cost home owners thousands of dollars.

Regarding the police department, , she is open to all options, whether outsourcing or funding the department permanently.

Although she has no experience in Millbrae politics, Oliva is the president-elect of the San Mateo County Association of Realtors. She is a realtor at Marshall Realty in San Bruno, which Bob Marshall, her father and mayor of San Bruno for 12 years, started in 1959.

“I learned to be a listener from my dad,” Oliva said.

Running a business is very similar to running a city, she said.

“Every day you have to please the people in your business,” she said. “You have to make the right decisions, and you can’t always say yes to everything and you can’t always say no to everything.”

Oliva has lived in Millbrae for 20 years and raised three children. She thinks the Millbrae city council needs a fresh face and point of view. 

To learn more about Anne Oliva, check out her website at www.anneolivaforcouncil.com.