Four candidates focused on housing and jobs are vying for two seats on Atascadero’s City Council this November.
Incumbent Susan Funk is seeking a third term against Emily Baranek, Mike Avila, and self-described outsider Ian Denchasy. Councilmember Heather Newsom is not seeking reelection.
Mayor Charles Bourbeau is running unopposed for another two-year term.
Funk, first elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022, is running on her experience and said the city needs to continue the work it started during her first two terms.
When she joined the council, Funk said Atascadero faced aging public safety facilities, staffing shortages, and a downtown that became a “dead zone at 5 o’clock at night.” She pointed to the city’s downtown transformation and Measure D-20, approved by voters in 2020 to fund public safety and infrastructure improvements, as examples of progress.
Now, Funk wants more attention on traffic and fire safety, parks, roads, wastewater infrastructure, housing, and jobs.
“We need to really pay attention to attracting housing that young people and seniors can afford,” Funk told New Times, along with “the jobs that will help them pay for that housing.”
Funk has received endorsements from the SLO County Democratic Party and Central Coast Labor Council, as well as former Mayor Tom O’Malley and former county Supervisor Jim Patterson.
Baranek is also focused on growth—but through the lens of more than 20 years working in design, construction, housing, and community development.
A fourth-generation Atascadero resident, Baranek has served for nearly six years on the city’s Design Review Committee and works as a senior construction manager with People’s Self-Help Housing.
“I’m really excited by the opportunity to be on the council and fill that that role … and use my experience in the affordable housing world to help steer the housing element,” Baranek told New Times.
“It has been something I’ve been considering my whole life. I’m a, you know, huge community cheerleader, and this is kind of the next natural step in that progression.”
Her campaign revolves around expanding opportunities, preserving Atascadero’s character, and bringing people together.
According to her campaign website, Baranek wants to encourage housing, support local businesses, and invest in infrastructure while protecting oak trees, open spaces, established neighborhoods, and historic places.
“What we build today shapes what is possible tomorrow,” Baranek said in her campaign statement.
Her campaign website lists endorsements from the SLO County Democratic Party, Atascadero Democratic Club, Central Coast Labor Council, and Shatter PAC, among others.
Avila has lived in Atascadero with his wife, Kellie, for more than 20 years, according to his campaign website. The couple started two businesses, including a roadway safety company that grew to employ more than 100 people. He currently represents District 5 on the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission.
His campaign emphasizes public safety, infrastructure, parks, and economic development. According to his campaign website, Avila wants to streamline permitting, attract businesses and good-paying jobs, strengthen wildfire preparedness, and direct infrastructure funding toward deteriorating roads.
His campaign website lists endorsements from county Supervisor Heather Moreno, former Atascadero Mayor O’Malley, current Atascadero Councilmembers Mark Dariz and Seth Peek, and others.
New Times reached out to Avila but did not receive comment before publication.
Denchasy, meanwhile, wants voters to see him as something different.
“I feel that Atascadero is stuck and that there’s a lot of potential of the city not being realized,” Denchasy told New Times.
Denchasy owns A-Town Humble Pies and lives with his wife in a 460-square-foot off-grid tiny home. He identifies as an independent and calls himself the “outsider candidate.”
His top issue is affordability.
“The No. 1 thing is affordable housing here because we’re not building quick enough and we’re not making the process easy enough for builders to come in and add housing,” he said.
Denchasy also wants more well-paying jobs and opportunities for young people, arguing that too many residents leave because they can’t afford to build their lives in Atascadero.
That affordability push extends to his business. Denchasy hosts weekly lunches where $8 is a suggested contribution, an effort he said grew out of seeing residents struggle with the cost of eating out.
Denchasy said he would refuse an endorsement from either major political party.
“This is local politics,” he said. “You’re supposed to serve everyone, not because a party donated to you.”
Instead, Denchasy said his campaign has raised $1,500 through roughly 150 donors giving $100 or less.
“I want to win with the community support, not, you know, party support,” he said. “I want to win on the people.” ∆
Correction, September 24, 2026 11:40 am: This story was updated to correct the dollar amount of campaign contributions to Ian Denchasy's campaign. Denchasy raised $1,500. New Times incorrectly stated a higher amount and regrets the error.
This article appears in Autumn Arts Annual 2026.
