The Issues. |
Chanhassen Forever.
Chanhassen will continue to grow and through that process it will inevitably change. Knowing this, we must embrace the future to make Chanhassen an even better place to live, while preserving and celebrating the soul and character that define us. Our city is home to people who were born and raised here, those who left and came back, and young families moving in. I want the promise of Chanhassen Forever to remain available to all of the above, no matter which stage of life we're currently in. Every other position I take on policy and issues is to support this vision.
FinanceChanhassen's cash is the citizen's cash. You supplied most of it and when it's spent it needs to provide value directly to our people. We need to see a strong return on investment for every expenditure. We need to work hard on reducing expenses and promoting new inflows of cash that come from sources other than tax increases on residents.
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TransparencyThe City Council is not an exclusive club where we make it difficult for the public to know how their city is being run. We live in a time of heightened mistrust and misinformation on many sides, but people should be able to trust the government that is closest to them. We must implement more proactive engagement to keep people involved in local decision-making.
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GrowthChanhassen will continue to rise in population. I will only support development strategies that hold to the promise of Chanhassen Forever. To me, this means ensuring a diverse housing stock suited for all stages of life, retaining strong commerce in today's downtown, even as we develop a new commercial area along US 212, and conservation of our natural resources.
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Safe CommunitiesOur long-time relationship with the Carver County Sheriff's Office has been positive and successful, and we should continue to increase the quality of this partnership. Those who serve to keep our community safe have earned our gratitude. There is always room to explore even tighter relationships between local neighborhoods and emergency services, so that we can all play a part in keeping Chanhassen a safe and pleasant place to live.
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IndependenceWhile there are many affiliations our city may have and opportunities in the future, I am ultimately guided by the principle of self-governance and independent decision making. Decisions should be made as close to the local level as possible by bodies that are elected and represent the people of our community. This is why I will strive to limit dependence on external forces when there may be undesirable strings attached, but when state and federal funds are available, we must pursue them to maximize our access to financial resources that don't come from taxes.
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COVID-19 RecoveryThe economy has been undeniably ravaged by the pandemic, and this hurts Chanhassen, our projects and our businesses in a big way. In my day job, I'm working with some of the largest senior care providers in the country to surmount their challenges; their industry will see more than 70% of skilled nursing providers run out of cash within 12 months if the economic situation doesn't start looking better immediately. Likewise, I'm committed to putting my mind to work for Chanhassen to ensure we come out on the other side of this pandemic in a position to thrive.
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