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ISSUES / PLATFORM

COMMUNICATIONS & TRANSPARENCY

Since taking office in November of 2018, I have worked to enhance communication and outreach with citizens about various happenings, developments, and opportunities within the city.  I started a monthly newsletter and, as of June 2023, have sent out 55 individual newsletters to residents. I haven’t missed a monthly newsletter since I joined the city council because I firmly believe you deserve to have insight into the happenings at City Hall, a window into my thinking on important issues, and that I regularly report back on how I have voted and why. I also frequently update my city council social media with updates and reminders of city council meetings, local events, and timely alerts to various situations.  Often the decisions of the City Council might seem fairly mundane such as purchasing new equipment for the Parks Department or ordering power poles. However, I think even these seemingly less than thrilling budget actions should be communicated to the citizens of Bountiful so you can better understand that your tax dollars are prudently spent. If good communication avenues are in place, more exciting plans for new parks or deep discussions about zoning density in the areas where it makes the most sense will have a natural place and outlet within our community. Some of the challenges before us regarding growth will require adaptation and change, which is never easy when it comes as a surprise. Communication is the key to ensuring the actions by City leaders to shape our future aren’t a surprise to citizens but are embraced and welcomed as well-planned next steps to achieving community goals.

TEAM BOUNTIFUL

I feel strongly about Team Bountiful and my role as part of the city council. I am proud of the collaborative way this council has worked together over the past two years. We have different backgrounds, day jobs, personal interests/hobbies, and family dynamics. However, we’ve brought all those differences and perspectives together, which I believe serves Bountiful incredibly well. I grew up in Bountiful playing team sports from early youth soccer all the way through playing basketball and volleyball in college. Local government is a team sport, and I think it functions best when those serving have a team mentality. It hasn’t been my experience that people truly accomplish much on their own, but that most things take a team effort and require standing on the shoulders of those that came before you. On issue after issue, I have worked with my colleagues— researching, dialoguing, finding solutions, and often compromises— to advance the well-being of our community. We have built great new parks and created an awesome trails plan for the community. We have balanced city budgets to meet community needs. We have handled community responses to fires, windstorms, a Pandemic, and braced for floods. We have acted as thoughtful stewards to unique Bountiful assets like the landfill and Power Department, allowing our residents to access these important utility services at a much lower cost than surrounding cities.  We have sought to preserve the special sauce that is Bountiful while seeking to harness for our benefit the vibrancy that growth naturally brings if properly planned for. It is the “we” that matters deeply to me, because I have rarely found success or satisfaction when operating all alone. I do well when we do well. This isn’t the only part of my life where I believe in teams; I also build and lead teams and coalitions to accomplish my aims in my day-job. That isn’t to say that the mayor or my city council colleagues always agree with me on the best course of action or that we are a rubber stamp for staff recommendations. Sometimes I deeply disagree with my colleagues at the outset of an issue, but  we continue to find respectful paths forward because we all believe the work we are doing demands and deserves thoughtful consideration of alternate points of view, multiple paths to good works, and keeping the whole of Bountiful first and foremost in our minds.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Bountiful’s Main Street is the envy of many surrounding cities as Main Streets across the country have struggled and faded away. Yet keeping a vibrant Main Street requires investment and attention. The investments in the new Bountiful Town Square, the addition of public art installations, and fiscal support for local events are all part of the continued effort by the city to preserve and enhance the economic and cultural heart of Bountiful. The robust economic activity might open the possibility for the city to engage in re-development along US 89 to take advantage of transportation options or pursue efforts to improve vibrancy on Main Street. Which ideas and plans make sense for Bountiful will require listening, consensus building, and leadership via our General Plan update, which is currently underway. Due to my past work experience and volunteer activities, I have developed all of those skills. I am familiar with various public policy issues that lend themselves to helping answer these growth questions. In addition, I maintain excellent personal and professional relationships with several organizations like the Utah League of Cities & Towns, members of the Utah Legislature, Governor Cox, Executive branch agencies, and many different business and charitable organizations whose resources, input, and assistance could be harnessed to our benefit. I have worked with many different groups and business coalitions on projects from land use appeals to water law to tax incentives to find consensus solutions that work for all parties. I believe this broad and informed background, along with a willingness to learn and listen, will help position Bountiful to tackle a host of policy issues that are before us now, and in the future, concerning our economic and population growth potential.

TRAILS AND PARKS

Our proximity to the foothills and canyons combined with four seasons of weather means there are all kinds of ways to experience Bountiful outdoors and enjoy an active lifestyle. Growing up in Bountiful, I often hiked to Elephant Rock, rode 4-wheelers at the Bountiful B, and went sledding at Mueller Park Jr. High. My love of the outdoors continues with family mountain bike rides on the Mueller Park trail, and dog walks all over the city. I constantly hear from residents that also love the outdoors and have kids that are playing everything from pickleball to lacrosse to baseball about the struggle to find field or court space.  Having trails and parks is the icing on the cake of a great place to live. I support continued efforts to secure park and field options for various uses in addition to completing and funding the construction of Washington Park and the Bountiful Trails Master Plan. I am excited by and have been a proud proponent of the trails projects underway in Mueller Park Canyon, North Canyon, Holbrook Canyon, Ward Canyon, and Hidden Lake trailhead. 

FISCAL POLICY

My overriding fiscal philosophy is conservative. I have often been charged with overseeing a budget or expenses in past leadership opportunities and current day-job responsibilities. I have always maintained the responsibility to be a good steward of the funds in my care and act transparently regarding those funds. It is a high honor to be entrusted with spending tax dollars that citizens have given to be used prudently and judiciously for our common benefit. I am a fan of growing economic opportunities so that there are ultimately more taxpayers to carry the burden, and therefore, each individual taxpayer can carry less. Those that served before me handed into our keeping a city with a robust balance sheet, significant assets, budget reserves, and a strong sense of community. My deepest desire is to have served in such a way that those who serve after me will feel that they, too, were handed a gem to protect and not a mess to be fixed.

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