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Caprioglio keeps things low-key

Westerlund substitute on Fresno council says he'd rather listen and learn.

Saturday, Dec. 13, 2008

By Denny Boyles / The Fresno Bee

Paul Caprioglio has taken a decidedly low-profile approach to a high-profile temp job -- fill-in Fresno City Council member.
Caprioglio was appointed in May to stand-in for Larry Westerlund, a Navy reservist who had to step aside temporarily from the council when he was called to active duty for a year's tour. Westerlund is due to reclaim his council seat next May.
While Westerlund was quick to speak up during council meetings or to fire off news releases promoting his issues, Caprioglio has been largely silent. He sits quietly on the council dais, listening and saying little before casting his votes.
"People want you to speak so they can profile you. But I'd rather listen. Give me your best information. Make your best case on your issue. That's valuable. You listening to me to doesn't help you solve an issue until I have all your facts," Caprioglio said.
His one headline-making effort at solving a thorny district issue -- moving the Hmong community garden to a new location so a police station could be built on the existing garden site at Belmont and Dewitt avenues -- did not go well. A new garden location remains unresolved.
Still, colleagues and some community members say Caprioglio has been a thoughtful stand-in who has made good decisions on behalf of his district and the city.
Council President Blong Xiong said Caprioglio has been a quick study in City Hall, and an effective leader for his district.
"He's still, like me, learning how to do this job," said Xiong, who was elected in 2006. "It's not an easy task to come in and pick up all the nuances. He's done well, though, and learned a lot."
Though he knows he has only a limited amount of time to serve on the council, Caprioglio doesn't see himself as simply a caretaker. He kept all of Westerlund's staff members in place, and he uses their knowledge of the district to make sure issues that need attention receive it.
On the wall of his City Hall office, Caprioglio keeps a list of priorities for his district, from the city budget to the former Palm Lakes golf course and the Hmong community garden. "I think Palm Lakes, at least part of it, would make a great park for the city. That's something I hope to achieve before my time here is up," Caprioglio said.
One of Caprioglio's first challenges on the council was to help find a new home for the Hmong community garden.
A small group of farmers has used the vacant city-owned land as a garden for years, but plans for a new police substation forced the gardeners and city officials to look for alternative sites.
Caprioglio and his staff took a lead role as the city worked with not only the gardeners themselves, but advocates who tried to speak for the gardeners.
It didn't go perfectly.
As the issue gained attention, new advocates for the gardeners emerged, and Caprioglio said that at times he and other officials had trouble identifying who was really working in the gardeners' best interests. It's an ongoing issue. "It's not an insurmountable problem, though. If people come to the table with solutions instead of just complaining, we can figure this out," Caprioglio said.
Caprioglio's approach riled Summer Vue, a Hmong schoolteacher who got involved in the dispute after reading about the garden. Vue said she felt disrespected by Caprioglio and some of his staff at a news conference about a proposed settlement.
During the event, Vue and a Hmong city staff member exchanged heated words over the accuracy of translations given to the gardeners. Both sides said their translations were correct.