As a realtor broker, long time advocate and participating in the council meetings for the last 17 years I have I have seen bad city policies on a regular basis. Many people ask why there are vacant homes and properties in GT. Some are vacant because they moved out of them for more than six months and the underline zoning is not residential the city will not let you move into your house. Some are vacant or under built because the city requires insanely expensive Public Works upgrades in order for you to build your house making it not financially viable. Commercial vacant lots exist because the Barton Road Policy is more than 25 years old at the dawn of the Internet now causing brick-and-mortar to disappear and people don’t realize we just don’t have the demographics and traffic coming through town for large businesses to come here. My opponent thinks that he can make all these businesses come to town but if population’s not there, they won’t come. Lewis Group wants 740 high density housing, but they’re not under any commitment to build any commercial. They’ve not purchased any of the land from the multiple property owners. If there’s another hold out like the last one not much will happen.
I prefer Quality of Life over Quantity of Life. We should build out Grand Terrace without over building it. I want to preserve a 40 acre green zone down around my farm for other like-minded farmers for the benefit of our health and generations to come. City Hall should be no bigger than absolutely necessary and stop trying to tax and fee us to death. Henderson refuses to cut City Hall but he loves taxes. Go to www.savegt.org and see the video. We can find other ways to raise money. I will continue to push for a cyber fence around the city for safety. Government’s job is to protect We The People not their high salaries. Dump the Greedy Fire District and start or partner our own Fire Dept.
Time to overhaul policies and thinking at city hall.