See My responses to KirklandViews questions on key issues for our city:
Neighborhood vs. Business Myth
Structural Budget Gap / Sustainable Budget
Balancing the Budget
My background in law and finance has taught me how to balance budgets in tough times, and just as I have helped employers balance their pocketbooks in tough economic times, I will help the city of Kirkland do the same.
Public Safety
I believe that the city’s top priority is maintaining the safety of our citizens. Providing police, fire and public safety is the reason for the city’s foundation. I will work hard to make sure that those keeping us safe have the resources they need to be effective.
Responsible Business Practices
City planning should place businesses where they are best able to serve the residents of Kirkland. My goal as your City Councilwoman will be to create a lively and attractive place for our citizens and visitors to live, shop, work and raise a family.
There needs to be a balance between preserving Kirkland’s heritage and maintaining its natural charm with responsible city planning. This will enable us to keep our city’s beauty and appeal to citizens looking for a vibrant community.
Answers To Public Questions:
Families are feeling the economic crunch. Utility fees keep going up, but the city wants to put an additional utility fee increase on this year’s ballot. Do you agree?
We should compare our level of service to other cities -how many police officers per 1000 of population? Firefighters? City employees? Kirkland operates very efficiently -the city provides a high level of service, with low overhead.
We are currently experiencing an unprecedented economic challenge. Revenues are down, and we can’t depend on an increase in the foreseeable future. We are forecasting a budget deficit, and the city is working on a number of initiatives to close the gap. There are very difficult decisions being made, and jobs will be lost. The council and staff are examining each program, and determining whether they are “core”, “essential” or “discretionary”. More than ever, we need our Council to be financially savvy, creative in problem-solving, consensus building, and ensuring that as a community we come together to solve our common problems.
We must keep funding for public safety our #1 priority. We must also ensure that we don’t defer necessary improvements of infrastructure so that in the long-term our cost is much higher.
Under the “priorities in government” analysis, funding for Programs that many of us love may be eliminated- maintenance of neighborhoods signs, long-term park planning, the summer concert series, economic development co-ordination and many more. This is where giving citizens the choice comes in – do we want to increase the revenue we give the city to work with, or do we want to make do with less. The 2010 budget is predicated on the passage of this private utility tax increase.
By placing this increase on the ballot, the city is giving citizens a choice: pay more, or cut services. This will enable citizens to have a direct say in what level of service continues. I agree that this is an appropriate decision to be made directly by the citizens of Kirkland.
Currently, there is a projected $8 million deficit in 2009. To balance the budget, either the citizens will be asked to pay more or the city must reduce spending. Which do you prefer? Specifically, name some taxes you would increase and name some programs you would cut in order to balance the budget.
In order to balance the budget I would prefer to reduce spending and generate more revenue through sales taxes. Generate more Revenue: Around 30% of the city’s revenue comes from sales taxes, yet many of us do our shopping in Redmond, Bellevue and Woodinville. I would help devise a plan to revitalize the Totem Lake area. I could envision a “University Village” style development from the Totem Lake mall area up to the Evergreen Hospital and medical buildings, with major retail at ground level, offices and affordable housing in the floors above. We should work with a developer to design a beautiful village that would attract “clean” businesses that would serve our citizen’s needs. This would enable us to do more of our shopping in our home town, and attract neighbors to our city to do their spending. We want to create a community where we can live, work, play and raise a family.
Cut Expense:
Creating an economic engine for our community is a long-term solution. In the short-term, we must do what the city is working on right now – cutting expense.
As a Council, we should set the priorities for the City’s resources then ask the staff to implement the policies we set. As a council member, I would work with the City Manager to prioritize- first, public safety (police, fire), then public services (water, sewer, garbage) and so on. Ensuring that the core services are provided is our ultimate responsibility. We should take this “priorities approach” to each activity that the city is involved in. In a time of economic hardship, our city’s staff members understand, as every householder does, that the maximum possible efficiencies must be obtained from the resources available. I would ask each department to identify where efficiency could be improved.
In principle, do you believe that “the ends justify the means?” Please give an example which best illustrates your perspective.
Short Answer: Yes
The purpose of the Council is to govern the City on behalf of its owners, the citizens.
The Councilmember’s job is trusteeship of the resources of the City, and leadership, not just stewardship, (going along). The focus of the Council must be the ENDS to be achieved for the City’s owners.
As a community, we come together and decide – what values do we share, and hold dear? These values are stated in our Vision statement, our priorities and goals. Once established by a community, its Council should actively pursue the desired outcomes, and must take a long term view of the City’s future.
Because individual interests can be harmed by government action, there is a need to elect a diverse group of citizens to the Council that will represent a wide range of interests, reflecting the population that it serves. The Council should create outreach with citizen groups to hear, to learn, and to reach compromise on controversial subjects. Council members must understand their fiduciary responsibility to their constituents. They must conduct their actions within the law, and must act only after careful study, consideration of all points of view, and reference to their stated Vision. The Council must conduct activities openly in public.
The example that illustrates my point of view is acquisition of park lands. At several points in our history, our City leaders had the foresight to set aside valuable land as green space. At the time that those decisions were made, there must have been considerable opposition to this use of public funds. Today, one of the hallmarks of our City is its parks and walking paths. The future depends on the choices we make, the leadership and courage we provide, and the character and integrity we demonstrate through our actions.
Should public money be directed toward charities? If so, how does a government choose the charity?
Short Answer: It depends on the definition of “charity”.
One of the fundamental reasons for the foundation of a city is to pool resources to pay for services that are for the betterment of all – police, fire, safety, the infrastructure required for civilized life. A city’s resources are basically held “in trust” for these purposes, and should never be used to enrich a particular group. I personally support Komen for the Cure, Salud (providing health care for farm workers), and other causes that I believe in. It would be never be appropriate for a Council member to use the influence of his office to recommend the use of public funds to contribute to his personal causes.
A “charity” is defined as “a foundation created to promote the public good”, and under this definition, there could be a “foundation” that the city could support with public funds if it furthered the city’s mission. The City currently commits funds to provide affordable housing in East King County through nonprofit agencies, such as ARCH.. The Comprehensive Plan states that the City should support these agencies and their effort to provide affordable housing to Eastside residents, particularly low-income.
The “pooling” of resources can greatly amplify the effectiveness of the initiative, beyond what either party could achieve alone. The goal should be to leverage assets to achieve their best possible utilization – getting the most out of what you have, and to promote public-private collaboration.
To determine whether a cause should be supported, the Council must refer to the Comprehensive Plan, its stated Mission: “the enhancement of Kirkland as a community for living, working and leisure, with an excellent quality of life which preserves the city’s existing charm and natural amenities”, and the framework prescribed for it to act within, under state law.