Erica Stewart (photo courtesy of the city of San Luis Obispo)
A Santa Rosa High School graduate is making history in San Luis Obispo. Erica Stewart, class of 1990, has been sworn in as San Luis Obispo’s first ever black mayor after the previous mayor, Heidi Harmon, stepped down. Stewart moved to San Luis Obispo in the early 1990s to attend school at Cal Poly. She later joined the council after getting elected in 2018. The major issues she hopes to address while mayor, include going climate neutral by 2030, addressing homelessness, pushing for affordable housing, and increasing water conservation. She has stated she’s pretty sure she’ll run for re-election in 2022.