> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Who is Berkeley City Council candidate Aidan Hill? - URL: https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2026/09/25/elections/berkeley-city-council-candidate-aidan-hill/ - Published: 2026-09-25T23:30:47.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-25T23:30:46.000Z - Description: "Berkeley deserves a councilmember ready for climate hazards, earthquakes and Southside's land-use and open-space needs." - Author: Guest Contributor - Tags: Elections, City Council, Community, #articles **Name:** Aidan Hill **Age:** 33 **Occupation:** Medical case manager **What office are you are running for?** Berkeley City Council, District 7 **What is the main reason you are running?** Berkeley deserves a councilmember ready for climate hazards, earthquakes and Southside's land-use and open-space needs, who turns needs into action. I completed Alameda County CERT training, organized at People's Park and moved public-safety recommendations on the Homeless Commission. I am a community first responder, here to protect and serve. I know Southside and have spent years protecting its history and strengthening community response. My public record shows how I will govern through 2030. **Why are you qualified?** My qualifications come from service during emergencies and work with neighbors. During COVID-19, I helped expand free food access at People's Park from five to seven days a week and organized three of those meal days for the encampment and neighborhood. As a medical health worker, I provide case management across health care, housing and benefits. I advanced sanctuary-encampment and housing recommendations on the Homeless Commission. I work with Southside small businesses and Telegraph street vendors on the conditions that determine whether they can operate. I connect policy to daily life. **What sets you apart from other candidates?** What sets me apart is a public record and a standard: take land-use concerns seriously, use public office to facilitate dialogue instead of override it, and stand by your words. I led Homeless Commission motions on shelter and public health. I would not have extended a $14.36 million reservation for supportive housing at People's Park after UC closed the site and residents sought public review. My opponent voted for the extension. Public support should not reward institutions that override a community. I judge my opponent by the same standard. I do not trust that record with public funds. **How and when did you end up in Berkeley?** I first came to Cal at 12, holding my sister's hand as she became the first in our family to attend university. I later followed the path she opened for me as a Golden Bear. I remember Telegraph's incense, Mezzo sandwiches and crowds. I chose Cal's spring transfer offer over three other UCs, arriving on MLK Day 2016\. Debt and housing instability interrupted school; I returned and made it home. People's Park, gardens and Sproul Plaza taught me Berkeley's legacy lives through direct action. **What are the three biggest challenges for Berkeley in the next five years?** Berkeley's three biggest challenges are housing costs and displacement, loss of usable public space, and public-safety systems that do not reliably prevent or respond to harm. Crime remained down through July 2026, but new 911 dispatchers faced 70%-80% attrition and County crisis-team availability and response times varied. Berkeley should preserve homes and public space while making dispatch, street safety, fire and medical response, and City-UC emergency coordination measurable. Residents should be able to stay housed, reach a safe public place and get timely help in an emergency. **How would you begin to address them?** My approach is public deadlines and named responsibility. On housing, I would ask the Housing Department to connect eviction notices to assistance and review occupied-building sales for preservation, then report households helped and homes preserved. For public space, the City Manager should inventory Southside civic space and use the City-UC process to record access, maintenance and funding commitments. For safety, the City should publish 911 staffing, answer and transfer times; measure Priority Dispatch implementation; enforce accessible construction detours and Vision Zero delivery dates; protect fire, medical and CERT capacity; and establish City-UC alert, evacuation and after-action protocols. Crisis-response reporting should show what 988, County CATT and police provide. **What is one new idea you'd like to bring to Berkeley?** Berkeley deserves a fare-free, accessible civic shuttle. As a Southside resident, I know access is physical, not just procedural. Berkeley should pilot a one-year loop linking Southside to City Hall, BART and public services, then expand into commercial corridors based on ridership data. Emery Go-Round provides a working model. The City can contract service to fill gaps, not duplicate AC Transit, using pilot funds, transportation grants and voluntary business and institutional support. **How will you be accessible to constituents?** I will be accessible in person, before decisions and after votes. I have lived and organized in Southside for years, and I know residents should not need insider knowledge to learn what is being decided. That means evening office hours in Southside on a public calendar, plain-language notice before major Council decisions, and casework that names the responsible office, next step and follow-up date. Residents should see what was resolved and what remains open. **Are you using public financing?** Yes **How much money do you expect to spend on your campaign?** $20,000 **A final thought?** I represent people living below twice the poverty line while Berkeley's top 5% of households average about $900,000 a year. People's Park means more than memory: land use, food security, recreation, restrooms, water and accessible space for people without yards. Students are people, not sardines. More than 15,000 District 7 residents need a neighborhood park. That is basic city planning. **Campaign website:** [aidanhill.vote](https://aidanhill.vote/?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) | [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/aidanvote?ref=berkeleyscanner.com) | [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/AidanVote/) *See complete* [*election*](https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/topic/elections/) *coverage on The Berkeley Scanner.* ## Sign up for The Berkeley Scanner Authoritative public safety and politics news coverage in Berkeley, CA Subscribe Email sent! Check your inbox to complete your signup. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.