New Faces Join CV MAC
This week’s Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Committee (MAC) saw two new faces on the dais: Xochiyotl (Xochi) K. Martinez and Raymond (Ray) E. Davis III.
Martinez and Davis applied for the open positions, were reviewed, and were appointed by Alameda County Supervisor Nate Miley in early July. Both members have four-year regular board positions that expire in August 2028. Monday’s meeting was their first time sitting among fellow MAC members.
Martinez replaces Ken Carbone, a 20-year veteran of the CV MAC and other area service positions. Carbone stepped down from the MAC Board in May 2024 to focus on his graphics business and pursue various entrepreneurial opportunities around Castro Valley.
Martinez has been a Castro Valley resident and homeowner since 2015. Born and raised in the South Bay, she is the daughter of a Bracero farmworker and is a first-generation graduate from UC Santa Cruz and UC Davis. Currently, she works with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and is involved in project management of CERCLA (Superfund) sites. On the side, she runs a small mobile notary business. Xochi is a mother to three grown sons, two of who serve in active-duty military—USMC and USAF.
“I’m here to serve, and Castro Valley residents can always reach out to me with questions, comments, or concerns,” Martinez told the Forum. “I hope we can start making some positive changes with myself and the other new council person in place.”
Davis replaces Al Padro, who resigned from the MAC in March 2024. Padro was the vice-chairman of the Board when he stepped back to focus on his personal life.
Ray Davis is a retired Public Works Director with over 45 years of professional engineering experience in Public Works, Transportation, and Traffic Engineering in both the public and private sectors. Since his retirement, Ray has provided professional engineering services to small cities in the area and is an expert witness in traffic and transportation-related lawsuits. He tells the Forum his hobbies include fused glass art, vintage and classic cars, wine, pickleball, and travel.
Bill Mulgrew still chairs the CV MAC alongside vice-chair Chuck Moore and councilmembers Tojo Thomas, Shannon Killebrew, and Ilya Prokopoff.
The MAC meets on land-use issues at 6 p.m. on the 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month and holds general purpose meetings at 6 p.m. on most 3rd Mondays. Meetings are held at the Castro Valley Library and streamed on Zoom. For agendas, documents, and other information, visit acgov.org/bc/cvmac.