What are the most pressing needs of the city, and how would you address them?
The most pressing needs of the city are to protect Lawrence's most basic and vital assets: our clean air, our water supply, our downtown, our neighborhoods, our diversity, our parks and open spaces, our surrounding farmland, our historic buildings.
To protect our air I would work with the state legislature to regulate automobile emissions, and promote the production of renewable energy in Kansas. I would also search for incentives to reduce our city's use of electricity, thereby reducing the burning of coal and the emissions of heat trapping gases. A tree ordinance would also offer enhanced air protection to the city.
To protect our water I would craft municipal incentives for the reduction of water use. I would also explore opportunities for affordable grey water use.
To protect the downtown I would invest in the downtown and all neighborhoods-old and new-to keep them viable, attractive and livable. I would do the same for our parks and natural areas. H2020 provides framework for protection of these as well.
Providing a permanent home with infrastructure to the Downtown Lawrence Farmers' Market would encourage healthful, regional, "niche" farming which would, in turn, help protect surrounding farmland.
Our city must focus on the fundamentals. They include improving and maintaining our physical infrastructure (streets, water and wastewater facilities), storm water control and planning for our future growth and installation of new infrastructure in a way that fairly distributes the cost; fairly among those who will benefit from the growth. We must grow in a way that is sustainable, affordable and maintains the quality of life that distinguishes Lawrence from its neighbors.
The city needs to attract new businesses, and encourage existing businesses to expand, by clarifying the permitting and approval process, creating a welcoming and nurturing business environment and embracing new business opportunities. Lawrence also needs to strengthen its retail sector to help minimize the sales tax lost by citizens choosing to shop in nearby communities.
Residential property accounts for almost 69 percent of Lawrence's assessed valuation.
The current percentage is both unacceptable and unsustainable. The solution to the current dilemma is to rebalance the current reliance on the homeowner with new business and industrial taxpayers who can shoulder their fair share of this tax burden.
There are three pressing needs: visionary leadership, economic development and expansion of the tax base. Visionary leadership requires that elected officials demonstrate the courage to make decisions and lead the city. This kind of leadership is often lacking, I promise to provide it. Elected officials, at any level, cannot fear leading and decision-making. I will make decisions, provide leadership, and admit when I am wrong on an issue. Second, economic development. I will work to bring jobs that bring living wages the current commission claims they are in favor of. Real economic development requires investment, risk-taking and partnership - all within our reach as a city. We can expand our tax base without raising taxes through growth and development. I know it is a risk in our current political climate to admit it, but creative growth and development can enhance the quality of all who live and work in our city. A city study revealed that 40% of every dollar is spent outside of Lawrence. If we could get half of that back, we would improve our tax base. One dollar spent in Lawrence turns over 7 times, every dollar spent out of town never comes back.
1. Managed growth-- Change our development policies to do more detailed planning ahead of growth, and adopt impact fees to ensure that new growth pays for itself.
2. Job creation-- Work with Douglas County to purchase Farmland site for a new business park/employment center, support the efforts of the local Bioscience Authority to help turn KU research into good local jobs, continue to encourage job creation by existing local businesses.
3. Build and maintain strong neighborhoods-- Ensure neighborhood participation in zoning and planning decisions, and adopt a Traditional Neighborhood Design code to allow creation of new walkable neighborhoods with a sense of place.
4. Affordable housing-- Adopt an inclusionary zoning ordinance to incentivize inclusion of affordable units in new developments, rehabilitate existing housing stock in older neighborhoods, support the efforts of the recently created Community Land and Housing Trusts to create a stock of permanently affordable housing.
5. Also, continue to provide good city services, ensure the health of downtown, be a leader resource conservation and environmental responsibility, and make sure that our tax structure is fair and doen't place too great of a burden on any of our citizens.
¢ Attract good employers and jobs in the community The city should decide how to market itself to outside employers and continue to develop strategies to grow employment with existing employers.
¢ Improve city government Improve the city planning system to make it consistent and efficient and improve the transparency of the city budget process.
¢ Diversify the tax base The city needs to grow the commercial/industrial tax base that currently is not contributing an acceptable proportion of property taxes thereby reducing the tax burden on the residential homeowners.
Is now the right time for City Hall to build a $30 million library?
This is a challenging issue. First, the library is in need of expansion of resources and updating of the mechanical systems (HVAC). Some of the equipment is original equipment and just cannot keep up with the needs. Systems are just inadequate. There are a lot more BTUs being generated now than in 1972, for example more computers in use now, than in 1972. Hence, updating has to be done and, as in most cases, delay will cost more money in the future. Simply adding more space will likely exacerbate the situation. The situation must be addressed, nonetheless, and there are options. How would we pay for it? The public should be asked to decide on either a bond issue or an increase in sales tax of 1/10th of 1 cent. Is now the right time, the community has to make that decision because it is the community that will be asked to pay for it. Delaying the project will not bring the price down.
I think so, but that decision will be made by the voters of the city of Lawrence. We have outgrown our current library space, and our level of support for our public library is far below that of other Kansas cities. I would like to see us move forward in a way that meets our library needs for the next generation, provides needed parking and meeting space, and helps ensure the long-term vitality of downtown. I think that when we build a public building we need to do it right, so that it remains a great public asset for many generations, as did our predecessors who built the Douglas County Courthouse.
Unfortunately, the city budget is not in position to fund a new library at this time. Not only would the $30 million expenditure require an increase in the mill levy, it is still unclear how much of an increase to the $2,950,000 annual operating expense would be required with a much larger library space. That being said, a great library is important to our future and therefore we should develop a plan of how we can reach that goal in the coming years.
Only the voting public has the final answer to that question. A strong and viable library is an important community asset. It is critical that our taxpayers are provided with a complete financial analysis of the impact a new library would have on their tax bills. However, we must also recognize that it is not enough to know the price of a project, but equally important to know its value to the community. All good places to live and raise a family must make informed community decisions about how to prioritize spending their collective resources to create and maintain a quality community which values a spirit of working, learning and living together.
The library is on its knees for lack of space and resources. Our community suffers from this lack of basic, community, educational service. I want to search for immediate relief as well as longer term solutions.
Based on the current economic environment in Lawrence, it appears that without some third party injection of capital into the project, the ability to pay for a new library may be beyond our means at this time. We must focus our current resources on repairing and maintaining our existing infrastructure while evaluating the library needs of our community and budgeting for any expansion in the future.
How should the city attract more jobs to Lawrence?
Start by putting out the message that Lawrence is open for business. We have a reputation outside of Lawrence that must be addressed to bring jobs to Lawrence. In partnership with the Chamber of Commerce and our County Government, we need to be more competitive, and that means spending some capital. Local government has to partner with various entities, we need industrial land (not for smoke stakes), and we need space. We need to start with meeting infrastructure needs, such as, we must address our sewage needs and North Lawrence needs a better drainage system. We must also focus on strengthening existing businesses because 80% of our job growth potential is in business retention.
In addition, the City Commission must be open to new ideas. By that I mean we need to take risks. For example, the Bio-Science industry - they speak a different language, and the (bio sciences) industries need a more collaborative efforts. Bio scientists speak the language of campus, traditional businesses speak of space. We must communicate the value the Bio-Science project. Bio-Science is riskier - we have to be open to taking the risk. And when they succeed we better have the space for them to grow - because they will need it.
Downtown - we need to enhance and strengthen downtown. Protect the downtown in terms of the essence of downtown. I will work to keep downtown thriving, and quaint, and vibrant, and attractive. Downtown needs a conference space. Our city turns down revenue in the form of conferences because we cannot accommodate them.
We can attract technical training to expand our workforce potential. We can partner with Johnson County Community College, or KAW Valley Technical School. Doing this can attract business to our city.
We can and should expand and grow commercial and industrial land, not smoke stacks, but office parks. If we do this, retail business growth will follow. Local government must remove the hindrances to growth.
We have to capitalize on KU existence. Lawrence is the envy of the state of Kansas. Aside from moving the KU/MU game out of the state for the next two years, most of the time, if something is good for KU, then it can be great for Lawrence. A healthy town and gown relationship creates a thriving local economy..
A city study revealed that 40% of every dollar is spent outside of Lawrence. If we could get have of that back, we would improve our tax base. $1 spent in Lawrence turns over 7 times, a $1 spent out of town never comes back.
Lawrence must endeavor to create more employment opportunities locally. We must create a more welcoming businesses environment and leverage all of the wonderful resources available in our community to do so. We also must (i) Evaluate the current permitting and zoning process and identify pitfalls; (ii) Create a sense of urgency within the city to attract and work with potential and existing businesses; (iii)Utilize the limitless resources provided by the University of Kansas and Haskell Indian Nations to create an accessible and affordable workforce.
By nurturing those businesses and industries that are owned by people who are invested in the health of Lawrence, gives these businesses a better chance of growing and expanding with more job offerings.
By creating an Eco Industrial Park to attract the kinds of businesses and industries that will showcase Lawrence as an environmentally conscientious city. The CIVANO INDUSTRIAL ECO-PARK in Tucson, Arizona is an example.
The city also needs to do more to link university research with business opportunities.
Property owners need to continue taking responsibility for the safety of their patrons beyond the letter of the law. The city needs to use the tools at its disposal to resolve the issue rather than pursuing more registrations and special use permits that will not contribute to improvement in the problem.
I think the Lawrence Douglas County Bioscience Authority has a great potential to help turn KU research into good local jobs, and I think the city and county need to move forward with acquiring the old Farmland plant as a site for a business park/employment center. I support the city and the Chamber of Commerce's efforts to support the growth of existing local businesses, because the research I have seen indicates that most good, permanent jobs in a community are created by existing businesses.
Our recent efforts to attract and retain good paying jobs in Lawrence have been disappointing. While recognizing that attracting new jobs is a competitive enterprise, we must also stand back and analyze what we have done that works and what has not been effective. The city will hire an economic development planner this year. Increased coordination of the community's economic development work through this position is the goal. We are working with KU, the Kansas Biosciences Authority and the Douglas Co. Biosciences Authority to encourage expansion of existing bioscience activity and marketing Lawrence as a destination for scientific research; this has the potential for incubating, growing and marketing not only scientific advancement, but also quality commercial property that helps pay for needed city services.
How would you address concerns about the safety of downtown Lawrence?
I believe that the best solution to any type of crime or compliance issue is law enforcement. If there is a perceived or actual pattern of non-conformance or non-compliance, it is the duty of the city to step up the inspection of businesses or establishments that are considered a risk. A vigilant police presence in an area that is deemed a concern will dramatically decrease the likelihood future violations.
Bring concerned citizens, city staff and law enforcement to the table to find acceptable safety solutions with promise for practical implementation. Safety is, perhaps, the most basic of all city services, and we need to provide adequate policing to assure downtown remains safe and attractive.
A step in the right direction has been taken. I believe the City Manager's response of contacting the state Alcoholic Beverage Control division and asking for some guidance is an appropriate step. Our city leadership must ensure the safety of downtown patrons without hindering local businesses. This requires the cooperative efforts of City Hall and downtown business. No one wants the current climate to continue. Obviously, a reputation for lack of safety, even the mere perception of such, cannot be good. I support the city commission's action of directing the city manager to contact the state.
Property owners need to continue taking responsibility for the safety of their patrons beyond the letter of the law. The city needs to use the tools at its disposal to resolve the issue rather than pursuing more registrations and special use permits that will not contribute to improvement in the problem.
I support our current approach of working with the State Alcoholic Beverage Control to see what they can do to help us control problem establishments. If that is not successful, we should look at either 1) an assembly licensing ordinance or 2) requiring a special use permit for drinking establishments. Either way, we need to implement this in a way that imposes no new requirements or costs on the vast majority of businesses that aren't causing any problems, but allows us to quickly place necessary restrictions on establishments that are causing problems.
I question the underlying assumption in the question. Downtown Lawrence is a safe place. It is a vibrant, active area that is our civic square. Professional offices, local and national retailers, great entertainment venues and an authentic historic downtown are its hallmarks. However, like many places, it is not perfect. Increased police patrols during certain times of the day, more attention to graffiti removal, cleaner sidewalks and better city ordinances, with consistent enforcement, directed at those venues which have a history of attracting unsafe or criminal behavior, are some ways to improve Downtown.
Which type of development would you say Lawrence needs most at this time? Residential, retail, or industrial?
The goal of economic development should be to create jobs that pay good wages and in turn create demand for housing and retail expansion. Unless we focus on those activities which will promote and attract a strong job base, we will not be able to create and sustain strong residential or retail growth. More choices of houses to buy or places to shop do not mean we will have more money to spend; we must get our priorities straight! Job growth and expansion should be our first priority. Housing and retail demand will follow. The city can and does play a strong role in making Lawrence an attractive employment center. The city tax levy is very competitive with our neighboring cities to the east and west. Our sales tax is competitive and we offer an unparalleled host of cultural and educational amenities in the community. Promoting these positives should be our immediate focus; while we can and will do better, first we must stand up and say, "Lawrence is a fantastic city!"
Commercial and industrial (not the smoke stack kind). Why? Because residential growth and retail growth will follow commercial and industrial growth.
Industrial development is the most critical need in Lawrence at this time. The vacancy rate of industrial space will fall below 5% in 2007. The city needs to add a business park for new companies considering Lawrence as a destination, and to help companies already here that need additional space for expansion. We have a chronic shortage that could threaten the loss of employers that are in need of more industrial and warehouse space.
Lawrence needs to attract and sustain industrial development. The term industrial is defined as any development other than residential or commercial. The presence of the University of Kansas and Haskell Indian Nations University provides limitless intellectual resources for high-tech companies, bio-tech companies and entrepreneurial endeavors. By increasing this type of growth, we can retain some of the student population that calls Lawrence home. We also need to provide industrial development opportunities for those companies providing employment to citizens that do not attend college or university. By increasing industrial development and opportunities, we will automatically stimulate the need for new retail and commercial development which will also provide new employment opportunities for the residents of Lawrence.
Our current tax base is too heavily balanced toward residential property, so we need to continue to encourage job creation and industrial investment. As long as Lawrence is a desirable place to live-- and I am committed to making sure that it is-- people will continue to want to move here, and trying to unreasonably limit residential growth will only drive up the cost of housing and make it unaffordable for many people to live here. We need to manage new residential growth to make sure that we create safe, walkable neighborhoods with easy access to enough new retail space to accommodate our growth in population.
Industrial - with little or no waste stream, with access to rail transport, located on public transit, and with wages and benefits sufficient to keep a single mother of two smartly above the poverty line. Industries would also include service industries.
