[…] What we have seen for 24 years is a focus on big development and not enough housing for all people.  You may hear people speak about affordable housing, which are nothing more than empty promises from seasoned elected officials.  Actions speak louder than words and my actions as Mayor will focus on everyone without a reliance on developers who purchase property and make it unaffordable for our citizens to live in.  The future of our City relies on someone who understand conscious planning and development for a more inclusive community.

We have to change the way we think and engage all citizens, regardless of their donation to political campaigns or promise to support candidates.  You can see that I have no endorsements from any other candidates and I have not endorsed anyone.  There is a simple response and that is I believe in democracy.  Voters should make their own decisions when selecting their next leaders.  Tipping the scale in favor of a particular candidate (or two) indicates to me that someone is trying to pack the Council with people who have no independent thinking and will simply do the current Mayor’s bidding.  This is why I have decided against endorsing any particular candidate in this year’s election.

Our city has lost its civil identity.  Berating members of the public through harsh comments and inappropriate language is not how elected officials should be conducting themselves.  We have lost our connection to the community by not providing adequate methods to engage members of council during public meetings.  I want to change this behavior and bring back civility to the Mayor’s office.  Listening to constituents is a key to my platform, regardless of where you live or how much you make in a year.  Having better technology for engaging elected officials is also a priority to my platform.  We must be better stewards of information and show transparency instead of making everyone come to a council meeting. 

And finally, the topic of term limits and separating the mayor from council have both become subjects of conversation throughout time speaking with citizens throughout the city.  We currently have a form of government that does not have term limits for the mayor.  This is problematic since the Mayor has served a total of 24 years and has no plans of ever supporting setting term limits.  I am a supporter of term limits and will make this a priority during my first year in office.  And secondly, as a matter of checks and balances, the Mayor’s role is the Chief Executive Officer and the President of Council.  This gray area needs to be addressed immediately.  Having the CEO and President of Council is the same as having the President of the United States also represent Congress as the Speaker of the House.  There needs to be a separation and having the Mayor not part of Council is truly the best remedy to create the necessary checks and balances between the Administrative and Legislative Branch of City government.