Becoming Involved | Raj Salwan

 

About Raj Salwan

Raj Salwan is a City Councilmember, successful small business owner, husband and proud father. He has given back to the community by serving on boards and volunteering for organizations dedicated to helping seniors, children, workers and employers.

Councilmember Salwan has focused his time on the City Council to recruit new businesses to Fremont and ensure that existing businesses grow their companies here. He has worked to use the City’s economic tools, such as tax exemptions, to keep Fremont an attractive city for employers.

Councilmember Salwan has also successfully worked to fully fund our police and fire departments, so they have the resources they need to keep our neighborhoods safe. He believes in strengthening the partnership better the City and the police and fire departments to ensure residents are getting the best service and show that Fremont has a zero tolerance for crime.

He has also prioritized expanding services for seniors and deepening the City’s involvement in our schools by collaborating with teachers and administrators.

Following his love for animals, Councilmember Salwan has developed his professional career as a leader in veterinary medicine. He owns and runs AllCare Veterinary Hospital, works as a Veterinarian with TriCity Veterinary Hospital, and is a longtime member of the California Veterinary Medical Association and American Animal Hospital Association.

Councilmember Salwan’s long track record of community service includes serving as Fremont Planning Commissioner, Chairperson for the Tri-Cities Democratic Forum, Chairperson of the Chamber of Commerce, Chairperson of the Fremont Human Relations Commission, Board of Directors for Adobe Services and Kidango, an organization that helps disadvantaged children, associate member of the Fremont Education Foundation and Citizen Watchdog Committee member at the Alameda County Transportation Commission.

Councilmember Salwan grew up in Fremont. He is a product of Fremont public schools having attended elementary, junior high and high school here. He attended University of California, Irvine and studied Biological Sciences, and a received a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (Summa Cum Laude) from Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine.

Councilmember Salwan is raising his three children, who also attend Fremont public schools, here with his wife. He is also a published columnist and avid reader.

 

Interview Transcript:

Alan
Welcome back. I’m here today with Raj Salwan. Raj is the former chairman of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce, and has recently stepped on and put his first term on the Fremont city council, and also has for years his family’s run a successful business here in the Fremont community. Raj, welcome to today’s show.

Raj
Thank you for having me. It’s a pleasure to be here.

Alan
So let’s give me your background and how you came up to where you are today?

Raj
Well, I grew up here in Fremont attending our great public schools. You know, it kind of worked with my family. As a youngster, I used to volunteer with my dad and I used to work, you know, so you and a veteran clinic, and I would come home from Central Junior High and, you know, then we would work and then we would study. And so we kind of got that good camaraderie where we’re able to work together as a family. It built our bond it kind of united with us. And so, so it was great to grow up in that, to have that strong work ethic and, you know, the ability to get things done.

Alan
You know, you’re Are you a veterinarian yourself?

Raj
Yeah, I’m a veterinarian. So my dad’s a vet, I’m also a veterinarian, I been veterinarian for about 15 years. So I kind of grew up in the profession. I was one of those kids that used to write stories about, you know, veterinarians and animals and different breeds and so forth. So it was a it was a big craze, for me a big passion to work with animals.

Alan
And you own a the American Animal Hospital there in Fremont Boulevard. Yes. So that’s a that’s quite an impressive building. When did you put that in?

Raj
That was in 2004. So we say have a location on that Peralta. And then we moved it to this newer location, which, you know, we kind of wanted to be more moderate, and have the latest facilities have specialized, you know, areas for the different things that we do. And so it was kind of a dream, you know, wanted to make it happen. And so required a lot of time effort. And I’m just happy that we’re able to get that done.

Alan
How many years has your family in total been doing business in Fremont?

Raj
About 30 years?

Alan
Now, Raj, you, after running as you’re being part of a successful family business decide to become more involved in the community? What, what moved you that direction?

Raj
Well, you know, I think my family always kind of was involved in the community, you know, always wanted to give back. So that kind of started at an early age for me. I was I always consider myself a businessman, you know, that was my first and foremost, you know, and in a veterinarian, the community side, I didn’t know I would be in this stage, where I’m at. And they kind of started with Mayor Bob Wasserman, who said, Hey, Roger, you know, you’d be great on the Human Relations Commission. At that time, I didn’t even know what the human relations commission was or what they did. And I was like, okay, all right. If the mayor thinks enough for me to volunteer, I will do that. And once I got in, and I found out about the various nonprofits and some of the needs in our community, it kind of sucked me in. And so I, you know, try to be a good Commissioner, I tried to listen to the various constituents and try to make decisions that would help everyone and more importantly, the city. So that kind of helped me get my start. And then I got more and more involved in various community forums. Then I became the chairperson. And then at some point, Mayor Wasserman approached me again and said, Hey, how about planning commission, you will be great. I like the way you work, you’re easy to work with. You know, I think we need a young energetic guy like yourself. And also my business background was also something that he saw that he felt we need more people in business that are involved in these sorts of commissions. So that kind of got me started. And then when it was Pelling commissioned, and that was a whole new ballgame. It was a little bit more political, required a lot of homework, a lot of studying, and making those tough decisions. And so I enjoy that I like taking on responsibility, and made me feel good. I haven’t been, I’m having a lot of fun.

Alan
So, all in all, how would you how would you define success in your life?

Raj
Well, you know, I think success is individual. You know, there’s different kinds of success or success in your career in your family. For me, success would be to have a purpose in my life, to have meaning to have mattered to, you know, the community to have made a difference. Those are kind of the values that I sort of identify with. So at the end of the day, if I’m successful in what I’m doing, if I’m able to do good work and get things done for the residents of Fremont, that would be my greatest satisfaction.

Alan
I’m visiting here today with Raj Salwan. Raj currently serves on the Fremont City Council. And prior to that he was a chairman of The Fremont Chamber of Commerce. And together with helping to run a business in the Fremont community for the past 30 years, Raj, we need to take a quick break. And we’ll be right back of these messages. And I’d like to get some more about the happenings in Fremont today and your path on leadership.

Alan
Welcome back. I’m here today with Raj Salwan. Raj is currently serving on the Fremont City Council. And prior to that he served as the chair of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce and has also been involved in running a successful family business in the Fremont community. I’ll right before the break, we were talking about your path into leadership. And you mentioned something about your easy to work with. You know, in today’s world, you got a lot of leaders and different factions, different types of how would you define leadership in your life?

Raj
You know, a lot of people believe that leadership’s are naturally born. But there are some skills that you can acquire. So leadership for me means that you’re able to, you know, be the loner, you know, to make those tough decisions, to be willing to do what is right, regardless of consequences. And to be able to take a position and, you know, be in the forefront rather than being reactive, or me too. And so I think leadership has a lot to do with just being an independent thinker, and, you know, trying to collaborate and work well with others, like you mentioned, and how to work as a team.

Alan
You know, you’ve had that experience of stepping beyond the business world, and into that community chair, the Fremont chamber, city council, you know, is there a technique or a skill that you’ve acquired to getting people to go along with your ideas?

Raj
Yes, well, I think listening is a great asset. So I listen. And I always try to figure out what is it? What is their desire? Why are they saying this, and you know, it’s never about you, it’s always about they have a certain belief system, or certain feeling. So I try to tap in what I’m trying to do with what they desire, outcome, so that we don’t get into the, you know, me versus you or things like that. So I try to work in a teamwork, atmosphere, and I try to make them feel valued. And I listened to their input yet, at the same time inserting areas we can agree on. So I always try to focus on what are the things we agree on? And how can we collaborate on those?

Alan
So Raj, was there a turning point in your life in which in terms of you encouraging you to develop your leadership potential?

Raj
I can’t identify any particular point. For me, it was more of an evolution, you know, I kind of was in the situation to show leadership I had, I had to do what, you know, to show that I can get things done or be effective. And so pretty much it was something that I kind of evolved into, there was no set turning point it was if I had a look back, it was probably like a story. You know, my, my father had nothing, you know, we started from scratch, it was a tough time for us. It helped unite our family created that teamwork. You know, we have that respect, you know, that my fault what my father did, to, you know, do well in this country. And, and then just working with the community, and then just building with all the different things that I’ve done. It kind of brought me here. So it wasn’t planned that way, I was going to be in a business person of veterinarian, family, man, but just the circumstances and situations put me in this and right now, I think I am happy what I’m doing. I feel like I’m, again, having an impact, I think, my influences circle of influences there where I can have greater impact than I ever was able to before. And I’m able to get things done that I wasn’t never had the opportunity.

Alan
It’s not easy when you’re working with so many people to try and get it right all the time.

Raj
It’s not. And part of that is you know, the civic engagement. We have to listen to everyone. And at the end of the day, we have to do what is best for Fremont, you know, so I always wear my Fremont hat. And I try to balance everything you know, so that minimize the harms, and see how we can arrive at a win win win if possible, and if not, then have a reason why, you know, we have made the tough decisions.

Alan
I’m visiting here today with Raj Salwan one he’s currently serving as a freelance city council person A real advocate of business he, prior to coming on the council have served as chairman of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce and also has a legacy of 30 years in the community running a very successful family that neronian clinic. Raj, we need to take a quick break. And when we come back, I want to talk about how you find balance in your life, okay.

Alan
Welcome back and visiting here today with Raj Salwan. Raj is a current freelance city council member and has also served as the chairman of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce, and also is successful in running a family business here in Fremont for the past 30 years, together with the business that his dad found it. So, you know, Roger, I want to talk about, you know, here you had it, you know, in a stable job, a stable business, Animal Hospital has been, you know, up and running for some period of time, and you got a beautiful facility there on pretty much Boulevard. While you’re doing this, you certainly venture out into the community and go through this public service. But how do you find balance in your life?

Raj
So I’m married, I have three wonderful kids, you know, who also attend our local public schools. So, you know, this challenge is a challenge for me, you know, I’m very passionate, you know, so when I first started, I, you know, took my dad’s practice to the next level. So I work hard. And again, we, you know, try to build that teamwork that we had with my family. So I tried to get teamwork with my kids and my family and try to let them know, you know, what it is that I’m trying to do. And the more they understand it, the more they you know, we work as a team. But finding the balance is always a tough one. I’m either, you know, too much one way or the other. So it’s a constant. You know, evolution. So right now, I’m a good at a good medium, I have a good family time, work time and counsel time, so So I’m getting better, you know, something that you get better all the time. And I feel, at this point, I’m in a good spot.

Alan
When everything’s said and done, well, how would you like your obituary to read when, when you’re finally, through life? What do you want people to remember you for?

Raj
Well, I think what I would like to see, you know, I believe more in action, I think Talk is cheap, frankly, I mean, you know, people can give lip service and so forth. And so for me, you know, if I can accomplish things, you know, you know, Raj was a man who got things done, you know, or he was able to achieve this vision. So I’m more of a implementer. So, you know, I made a difference that I was successful in improving the life of others, to have impact in our local community, and to be able to give back, you know, more than what was given to him. So, so that’s kind of what the values that I kind of would like to carry on.

Alan
You know, you’re working really hard in in the business community kind of unify Fremont businesses?

Raj
One of the things that during the chamber that I kind of brought on was the collaboration with the Economic Development Department, that was kind of a new initiative. And so a lot of times the chamber and the city, we’re in opposite perspectives. And so there’s a lot of things that we had in common that we agreed on, you know, we wanted to have more local businesses, we wanted to expand the quality of the retail and restaurants. So I kind of joined forces with the Economic Development Department to kind of bring us closer together. And, and that was something that we achieved on that, and allowed me to get to know a lot of the businesses, the big businesses, as well as small businesses. And my main goal is to have a vibrant local culture, you know, where local businesses are valued and supported. And also, were able to bring those big, high tech, you know, the Tesla’s and the Googles, and some of those, so I think we need a good mix, we need to have the big businesses as well as the good local, you know, like yourself, you know, your local story, you know, you live here, you work here, you’ve done so much good. And there’s a great multiplier effect, you’re giving back, you’re given jobs. So those are the kinds of things that I would like to continue to work with. And I think that being a business person, you know, you take a lot of risk. And so I think I bring a unique perspective there. You know, I don’t think that’s readily available. You know, for example, I had to go before the planning commission two times, you know, and you know, at the time as business person why why is it takes a long you know, what, what is going on, and, you know, there was there’s costs with Land, you know, you have to pay, you know, mortgage and different things. So it helps me keep grounded that look, we want to get the best vision. But we also got to make it easy for the guys. So that’s easy to implement that. So for me, if there was a way for me to fast track it, I would have paid more so that I could get it done faster or have it reviewed. Also, having inspectors, you know, inspect on the buildings, you know, a little bit of courtesy, or having that Ambassador role will be ideal. So I’ve gone through it on the other side. So that kind of helps me, when I talk to our city staff and the city manager say, hey, you know, let’s, let’s improve the customer service aspect of things. We’re not just code enforcement, we’re also the ambassadors for the city, because we could do great things on the city council, the city manager could be great. But somebody, you know, who’s going out in inspection and the way he interacts with someone could turn them off. And it gives them a message that we’re not business friendly. So I think part of it is just changing that culture and, you know, improving that business friendliness, that we value businesses that we want businesses to grow. And and I think that this counsel for the majority does believe in that and and our city manager is big on economic development. So I think we’re in good times things are going to really go well. And I’m glad to be in this situation to be of service.

Alan
Where do you want to be in five years?

Raj
Reelected to City Council, hopefully, okay, and have our downtown taken off, you know, the initial two or three properties ready to go. Have our Warm Springs BART station doing really well thriving, having great campuses around that area, a good job focus employment center. Personally, I would like to, again, have made some impact have been an effective council member, a team player, somebody who works well with others works with my fellow council members, and improves the quality of life for everyone in Fremont, you know, I really believe in that quality of life. And we do that all the time as veterinarians how to improve and a pets quality life. And I tried to ask myself, how can we improve the quality of life for everyone that lives here. And so that requires a lot of commitment, dedication, expanding our economic development, so that we have more revenues that we can put back into services and programs. And beyond that, I don’t have anything defined, I’m still going through the process. The person I am today, I wasn’t a year ago. And what I was a year ago was and five years ago, so it’s a constant evolution. I’ve been blessed, you know, I feel like I have a passion, I’m doing good work. And I just want to keep focused on that and keep doing what I’m doing. I don’t have a big plan or anything, you know, I feel if I can be a good father, a good role model and someone who can be effective, I will be more than satisfied.

Alan
So Roger, if someone wants to get hold of you to, to give input about the community, or just to reach out, reach out and visit with you? How would they do that?

Raj
They could email me at rsalwan@fremont.gov. And email me that goes directly to me, and I’ll be happy to talk to everyone. My cell phone also is 510-676-4710. I love hearing from people I always try to, you know, do what I can to help them. You know, talk to the city staff and see if there’s a solution. And if we can’t solve something today, maybe in the future, we can work on that. So I love to hear from people.

Alan
Visiting here today with Rod Shaw, one current member of the Fremont City Council Raj, thank you for being on today’s show.

Raj
Thank you so much and great work you’re doing here. I really appreciate it.

Alan
Thank you. We’ll be right back after these messages.

 

 

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This transcript was generated by software and may not accurately reflect exactly what was said.

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