Mary King to Represent Piedmont on BART Board

Bay City News Service—BART directors voted unanimously Thursday to appoint former Alameda County Supervisor Mary King to temporarily fill a vacancy created when former director Bob Franklin resigned nearly two months ago.

King, who will represent District 3, will only serve on the board until Dec. 7. Voters will choose a permanent successor to Franklin in the Nov. 6 election. King and the other three candidates who were being considered for the temporary position aren't running in that election.

District 3 straddles parts of Alameda and Contra Costa counties and includes Kensington, Piedmont, San Leandro, San Lorenzo and parts of Oakland, Berkeley, Castro Valley and Hayward.

In addition to serving on the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, King ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Oakland several times, and recently served as interim general manager for AC Transit. The other three applicants were Oakland architect Charles Meckel; Theresa Nelson, an Oakland resident who serves on the board of several community groups; and Clarence Fischer, a former city of Oakland employee.

BART Director Joel Keller said King was the best choice because of her overall background and in particular because of experience as AC Transit's interim general manager.

Keller said, "There has been friction between BART and AC Transit over the years, and this appointment will send a message that BART and AC Transit are trying to resolve their differences and are looking to unify transit in the region."

The three candidates who are running for the permanent District 3 seat in the Nov. 6 election are Fred Lopez, Anthony Pegram and Rebecca Saltzman. Franklin resigned from the BART board on June 21 to become a manager at the transit agency.

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