San Luis Obispo County’s 4th District supervisor race has a contender in Old Juan’s Cantina owner Adam Verdin.
The Arroyo Grande resident announced his campaign on July 7. So far, voters in the 4th District—spanning Nipomo, Arroyo Grande, Huasna, Oceano, Halcyon, Edna Valley, California Valley, and unincorporated parts of SLO—will choose between Verdin and incumbent Jimmy Paulding in the 2026 election.
“Owning and operating our small business, and the work we’ve done with the South County Chambers of Commerce, I think it’s just a natural extension of community service,” Verdin said of his decision to run.
He also serves on the boards of 5Cities Homeless Coalition, Jack’s Helping Hand, and Parks California. The chief pilot of an aircraft charter company called MarcAir SLO, Verdin said he stepped away from serving on the SLO County Airport Land Use Commission to make more time for his supervisor campaign.
He’s faced public scrutiny, too. Verdin and his fellow Vitality Advisory Council of Oceano members were often at odds with the opposing and now-defunct Oceano Advisory Council over how they tackled community issues, and last year over allegedly discriminatory bylaws.
In May, Verdin and Paulding championed a new aviation career and technical education pathway at Arroyo Grande High School, made possible by a partnership between the county Department of Airports and the Lucia Mar Unified School District. In a letter to New Times, the Oceano Beach Community Association criticized the claim that the program depends on the Oceano airport and that it benefits the locals.
Going forward, Verdin said the focus of his campaign would be on the issue of affordability.
“We need to be able to build a home so our kids can stay here and thrive here,” he said. “The affordability issue is a macro and a micro issue. As a supervisor, you’re one in five. … As a county supervisor and as a county entity, are we doing all we can to help that?”
He added that he’s in talks with tradespeople, teachers, and health care workers who commute to SLO County for work. A strong workforce can be sustained within the county if housing is treated as an essential economic infrastructure, he said.
Verdin is also in favor of open space preservation.
“Roughly two-thirds of San Luis Obispo County is preserved through agricultural easements, the Williamson Act, state parks, and other protections. And that’s a good thing,” he said. “It’s part of what makes our county beautiful, rural, and unique.”
According to Verdin’s campaign announcement, he’s received endorsements from former 35th District Assemblymember Jordan Cunningham (R-SLO) and former Five Cities Fire Authority Chief Steve Lieberman.
In response to Verdin’s campaign announcement, Paulding told New Times via email that he believes it’s healthy for democracy when voters have a choice in who represents them, adding that he’s proud of his record on both affordability and fiscal responsibility.
“Through our housing task force I’ve worked to make it easier to build housing that working families and seniors can afford—while ensuring housing projects are balanced and thoughtfully planned out,” he said. “Since I was elected, we’ve reduced unsheltered homelessness by 31 percent, helped residents save on their garbage bills by rejoining the Integrated Waste Management Authority, and expanded access to lower electric rates through 3CE.”
This article appears in Jul 10-20, 2025.
Paulding is the face of the local NIMBY movement. I can’t understand how this guy can say he addresses and champions affordability when’s he’s voted against and lied about multiple housing projects.
To call Paulding a nimby because he doesn’t want to build on a nature reserve is pretty ridiculous. We need to build up, not out. Making some single family homes and taking up hundreds of acres is not very bright. The nipomo development won’t change a thing, and the homes aren’t even affordable. Rather, Paulding simply isn’t in the pocket of the developers. It’s not rocket science. But go on and name call while pushing for single family homes. Once the land is gone, it’s gone. Might as well be smarter with the new developments and maximize the housing potential, not minimize it because it is easier for a developer to turn a quick buck.