ditor’s Note: This special feature is a follow-up to a previous Q&A session with Kevin Johnson The Union published April 25, 2008. Read the original Q&A at www.SacUnion.com.

My first meeting with Kevin Johnson last month was an icebreaker, an introduction to his policy ideas. Since then, we have heard plenty on policy, public safety, education and economic development for Sacramento.
I met with Kevin Johnson again this week as a follow up to our first meeting. This time I approached him differently, asking questions that gave insight to his personality, drive, desire to be mayor and intentions for Sacramento.

Katy Grimes: Why are you interested in being mayor?
Kevin Johnson: I was born and raised in Sacramento and am a third generation Oak Park native. I love this city and believe it has tremendous potential. In talking to residents from every precinct, I’ve heard people express a frustration about the direction of the city and the need for change.

I’ve been to 12,000 homes in 35 different neighborhoods and have heard from residents. The problems are significant. Crime has increased significantly in the last 7 years in spite of what Mayor Heather Fargo wants you to believe. Our unemployment levels are the highest in a decade. Projects such as the K Street Mall, the arena and the railyard are at a standstill. The city is facing a $58 million deficit—the highest deficit in city history. We need a different kind of leadership to effectively and decisively move the city out of this situation to become a world-class city that we are all proud to call home.

I bring a different kind of leadership to the city. I have a clear vision for how we can make Sacramento a great American city. Nothing is more exciting to me than the thought of being able to lead the city to the next level.

KG: How did you get yourself positioned to feel confident enough to run for mayor?
KJ: Lots of people think that someone has to have political experience to be an effective mayor. I disagree. I think that a mayor has to have vision, be results oriented, work incredibly hard and bring a community together around a common purpose. They need to be able to get things done. The experiences I’ve had in the NBA and then running St. HOPE have given me the skills and track record I need to be effective as mayor. For example, when I returned to Oak Park, I had a vision for what the community could be. We galvanized people around this plan that few thought was possible. Today, Oak Park is a significantly different neighborhood. Based on this experience, I know that the same progress can be accomplished citywide.

KG: Why are you interested in making a career change now?
KJ: In many ways, running for mayor seems like an obvious next step for me. When playing for the NBA, I saw great cities across the country and always compared them to Sacramento. I felt like my hometown was not a place that lived up to its potential. When I returned to Sacramento, I wanted to make a difference because I was frustrated with the lack of progress that had been made in Oak Park since I had grown up. In running St. HOPE, I was able to orchestrate and lead the change in this community.

In December, I hired a great new executive director for St. HOPE. The organization has grown tremendously and is very stable, so it was a natural time for me to take a step back and reflect on what to do next.

The most significant difference I had to think about in running for mayor was what it would mean to move from operating on the outside; within my own organization where I had a tremendous amount of freedom and autonomy, to working within the political system where I would no doubt be more constrained by the bureaucracy.

Ultimately, though, the decision I had to make was whether I could have the greatest impact on the community within the political realm or outside of it. I decided that serving Sacramento as mayor was where I could make the most difference.

KG: What specific attributes do you possess that will make you effective as mayor?
KJ: I think the characteristics I have that will serve me well as mayor is the fact that I’m goal oriented, results driven, decisive and a consensus builder. Those are the leadership qualities that have led me to where I am today. I have a clear vision for what Sacramento can be, and no one will worker harder to ensure that we reach our potential as a city than me.

KG: What accomplishments are you most proud of?
KJ: The revitalization of Oak Park has been incredibly rewarding for me. The old Woodruff Hotel building was abysmal 5 years ago. There was drug activity and prostitution there. The Guild Theater had three feet of standing water. To see that complex now, with the bookstore, theater, art gallery, barbershop and Starbucks is gratifying.
And of course, there is what we’ve done at Sac High. Five years ago, it was a school on the verge of a state takeover. Academic achievement was at an all-time low and violence was at an all-time high. When we took over Sac High, no one had done a successful turnaround of a large, comprehensive urban high school. It was the biggest challenge I’d taken on. It was all worth it though. The school has the highest API and CAHSEE scores in its history. More than 80 percent of our seniors have been accepted into 4-year colleges (compared to 20-30 percent before we came). Students are learning character and are exposed to amazing opportunities. And now, five other big cities across the U.S. want St. HOPE Schools.

The other night, I was driving through Oak Park. There was a poetry slam being held at Underground Books. 40 Acres Art Gallery had an exhibit opening. There was a dance at the school that night and students were walking to it. The community was alive with positive activity. It was very cool to see.

KG: What qualities have you liked or disliked in previous bosses, coaches and managers?
KJ: The coaches/bosses that I’ve worked with in the past whom I’ve appreciated the most have been those who are clear in their expectations and communications, supportive, proactive problem-solvers and inspirational or unifying in their leadership.

Conversely, those who point fingers, refuse to take responsibility, can’t seem to make decisions or spend too much time mired in processes versus action, have frustrated me.

KG: What would be the advantage to Sacramento if you were elected mayor?
KJ: As mayor, I will bring a different energy to the city. I work very hard and with a sense of urgency and timeliness. I think the excitement that will be generated by the fresh ideas and new perspectives I’ll bring will be palpable.

I will also bring all of the resources to bear that I can to make this city great. When appropriate, I will utilize the relationships, connections and visibility that I have, which will serve the city well and elevate Sacramento to a higher level.

KG: What would other people around you say about your potential?
KJ: That’s a good question. If I had to guess, I’d say that people would comment that I have the potential to be a great mayor because of my big picture vision and drive, and that the biggest obstacle to overcome in reaching my potential is learning to effectively deal with the bureaucracy and what can oftentimes be a maddeningly slow pace of change.

KG: What was the most ethical decision you ever had to make?
KJ: This is a tough one. I make ethical decisions everyday. I’m going to have to say that one memorable time was when I was in college. I was on the road playing basketball once during finals. Some friends of mine gave me a copy of the exam that they’d taken. I decided to talk with the professor, tell him I’d seen the exam, and that he needed to give me different questions. As a young person, it was one of the toughest situations I’d been in and an important lesson to learn.

KG: What are your strengths as you see them? Would your friends agree?
KJ: First, I’m a big picture thinker. I can often envision things that others can’t. Part of the challenge that I love, is getting people to see what I see and get them excited and rallied around the possibilities. I also have a strong work ethic. I have a hard time sitting still and I don’t vacation, because I don’t like not being productive. I think that’s a strength as well. My friends would probably agree. In fact, I think they’d say that because I work too much, they don’t get to see me often enough, so maybe they’d see that as a weakness.

KG: What do you feel separates you from the other candidates?
KJ: To me the differences between Heather Fargo and me are very clear. But the biggest thing is probably the fact that she is satisfied with where we are as a city, and I think so much more can be done. I look at the situation we’re in as a city with crime, education and economic development and I think the rhetoric about “progress” is bewildering. Rising crime, failing schools and high levels of unemployment, bankruptcy and foreclosures do not add up to “progress” for me.

KG: What will change for Sacramento as a result of you being mayor?
KJ: It will not be business as usual with the same players running things. We will stop being the city that’s the halfway point between Tahoe and San Francisco. We’ll have a strong identity. At the end of the day, we’ll be a “destination city,” a city where people want to visit, locate their businesses and move because of the positive dynamic we create. The bottom line is that we’ll have safe streets, excellent schools, jobs, affordable housing and opportunities for all residents, and not just talk about “progress.”

Katy Grimes approached Mayor Heather Fargo’s campaign and requested an interview with the mayor using the same questions she asked of Kevin Johnson in April; the campaign offered no returned phone calls or emails. The invitation remains available; please email .