SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – A recent voice in city council public comment, Dina Ramaha announced her campaign during the Fourth of July parade. Ramaha, who owns Three Pines Coffee and Conscious Mind Therapy, says she wants to “unite everyone and remind them of what connects us” through serving on city council.
Ramaha, who was closely following the applicants for the open seat last year, said, “My prediction that there would be a lot of great candidates came true.” Ramaha had expressed an interest in getting involved with city council previously, and said John Friedrich had inspired her.
“He told me, the antidote to despair is action. Across the city and country, things were heartbreaking and disappointing, but taking action has felt better and made me feel hopeful. It fuels my fire,” said Ramaha.
While Ramaha did not grow up in Tahoe, she said she believes there’s a strength to having diversity in her background and that she wants to bring the best of what she’s learned to her community here. She highlights the importance of listening to others—the top priority of her campaign.
“I’ve been a very active listener, listening, listening, listening about what people care about,” she said. “I want to make the life and well-being of local residents a priority.” It’s why Ramaha is also interested in connecting the role of city council within greater politics.
“I don’t agree that city council has been silent about what’s happening in the world, because it makes people in our city feel unheard and unseen,” said Ramaha, “I want to educate people on how important it is to vote for Congress, Senate and other positions, which trickle down to impact our city. So I want to make a change in our political consciousness.”
Ramaha says that her policies put the safety and well-being of children and residents first. To her, that includes roads, health and affordability. She wants to push the envelope on funding the city through the state and federal funds.
“Childcare, groceries, rent and housing need to be affordable,” said Ramaha. She noted that she would also want to be mindful of vacation home rental (VHR) policies in the future. “I’m a business owner, but I acknowledge we have to be really careful about thinking about our impacts in the future,” she said. “We can’t just think about what’s immediate or we’re stealing from the future to line our pockets now.”
To achieve that, Ramaha says she’s been studying “the language of politics” and developing policy. “I’d like to find a way for us to revisit taxes to make locals be exempt and have tourists contribute. I want to be strategic about implementing things.”
“People pay for services in taxes and they should feel taken care of,” said Ramaha. She advocated for better support for police, fire and public service staff. “They should also feel like their expertise is respected. They work so hard all year round, especially in the summer. I want them to feel appreciated and prioritized.”
Ramaha also said she wants to work on long-term planning in the position, especially related to the environment.
She also spoke to the importance of transparency and accessibility. “At times, the language used by city council is almost like a different language. I want to translate that for our community so a high schooler can understand what’s happening. We don’t want to deter people,” said Ramaha. She expressed interest in holding more town hall meetings and letting people know when a policy would be passed.
Ramaha also acknowledged she had time, space and finances to run, saying that if they paid a livable wage on city council, it could allow more people to run.
“Politics means caring for people,” said Ramaha. “I am really looking forward to connecting the dots between agencies and people, to canvassing and the campaign, and being out in the community. I thrive off of that.”
To read more about Dina Ramaha’s campaign and platform, visit https://dinaramaha.com/.
