fresno elections 2008

I'm reminded of the scene in the movie “Cars” when the road is repaved and the little old car tells “Luigi” that his place now looks like a dump and then he begins to fix it up. When we as a city neglect our roads, it lowers pride in the community and it is less likely that people will fix up there homes. Along with fixing up the roads, I would look at State grants to fund giving additional money to police officers and teachers to live in some of the aging and ailing neighborhoods. People would feel safer and they usually begin to fix up their homes. We could also change some of the ordinances in the city that make expanding older homes more restrictive and less likely to happen (ex. Require 400 sq. ft. of covered parking; a lot of the older aging and ailing neighborhoods have 0-1 garages). I would also be open to looking into low interest loans to residents and businesses that live or work in designated areas of the city. This money should be available through redevelopment grants.

I am opposed to legalized gambling in the city. I believe that gambling is a regressive tax upon the poor and the concept of gambling supports the idea of getting something for nothing.

The #1 problem for small rural communities is keeping their young educated workforce. I will work with CSU, Bakersfield in bringing a satellite campus here to Porterville to allow our young men and women an opportunity to get a four year degree right here. I would also look at placing this campus near the new courthouse to help in growing our own police officers, teachers and business leaders. I would work to provide tax incentives for new businesses to relocate to Porterville and work to make Spruce Avenue four lanes as well as Highway 65 four lanes to the Kern County line. This would help in making Porterville more attractive to new businesses. I would also look into creating a position within the city with a low base salary and major incentives for being successful, who would be responsible for writing grants, marketing the city and attending trade shows and other events in an effort to bring businesses and jobs to Porterville. I would also work to improve the infrastructure of Porterville and work to create a city where people would want to live instead of commuting from Visalia and Tulare.

I do support the current approach to quash gangs and the main change I would make is in revitalizing the Neighborhood Watch Program to be a check on illegal activities in our neighborhoods and also build the social capital in our city.

The sale of medical marijuana is against federal law and there are two many legal drug alternatives to justify opening a can of worms that may bring unintended consequences.

I believe that government should be run like a business. With that in mind, I would look at outside funding sources in the form of grants, look at ways to make services more efficient which would lower operating costs and look into cutting non-essential services next. I would look to lower taxes because during difficult times, you are trying to stimulate the local economy in order to encourage spending and growth. My decision making would be based on data and a cost/benefit analysis. The idea is to run our programs in such as to try to make money, not give things away. California has gotten into trouble because they have a spending problem and they tax businesses right out of the state, which takes away from the tax revenue generated.

This is a strong religious community that I believe would support such a motto. I believe that it is important that we remember that the inalienable rights granted to every person in the Constitution was granted by deity and not a government and that is what makes us unique to every other country on earth. Rights that are granted by a government can be taken away, rights granted by deity cannot.

I would build stronger relationships with county officials in order to bring more of the money and attention to many of the problems that are impacting our city. The County of Tulare already gets the short end of the stick as State funds usually go to the Bay area and L.A. The City of Porterville gets the shorter end of the stick because most of the funds go to Tulare and Visalia and this is something that we have to change. I would work to upgrade the websites for the city making them more user friendly and up to date as well as a marketing tool for the city. We need much more effective communication with our residents. I would promote volunteerism and look for ways to provide opportunities for our residents to get involved. Leadership isn’t about what one person can do, but what that one person can get everyone around them to do.