GOALS
My goals while serving on the City Council for the next four years are to:
Improve Local and Regional Transportation Systems
I support the regional transportation package on the November ballot. It is past time to do something about our regional traffic mess.
If it passes, I want a plan for bringing mass transit to and through Bellevue without adversely disrupting neighborhoods, businesses or the environment.
Whether it passes or not, continued growth puts pressure on our local streets. We need to- reduce back-ups and congestion,
- prevent pass-through traffic in the neighborhoods, and
- encourage alternative transportation, such as local bus or van service and a completed bicycle and pedestrian system.
I intend to continue working on strategies that effectively address traffic and provide solutions that work.
Strengthen Our Quality of Life
Bellevue is an exceptional place to live thanks to the City’s policies and many well managed services and programs. I want to maintain and enhance our quality of life through, among other things:
- Fire and Safety Protection: I have supported full funding of our fire and police departments to give them the manpower, equipment, and facilities needed to provide high quality fire and safety protection for our community. Bellevue is one of only a very few cities nationwide to have both its fire and police departments nationally accredited. Both departments meet high national performance standards. Bellevue has been recognized as the safest city in the Pacific Northwest. I intend to continue providing the necessary funding and facilities needed to maintain this high rating.
- Parks, Trails, and Open Space: I am proud of the parks, trails, and open spaces established while I have been on the City Council. These not only enhance our community, but also contribute to a healthy environment. I have supported acquiring these assets and making them available for public use. My goal is to insure that our park system continues to grow and remains attractive and useable for everyone.
- Human Services: I believe that without a sense of caring there can be no sense of community. There are people in our community, young and old and all ages in between, who need help. Although the City does not provide human services directly, I want to see it provide funding, organizational, and collaborative support for agencies and organizations that do provide those services.
- Environmental Stewardship: Protecting the environment is a high priority. The City has a long history of environmental protection. The City Council, with my support, recently launched an Environmental Stewardship Initiative that commits the City to reviewing its policies and implementing strategies that make the City even more environmentally responsive. I introduced a resolution for the City Council to sign on to the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement that calls upon cities to take steps to reduce their community’s global warming emissions. In my next term I will work to implement actions that will accomplish these goals.
- Housing: Securing affordable housing in Bellevue and the Eastside is a difficult problem. Without it, people have to live further away and travel farther to work, shop, and recreate. This increases wasted time, traffic congestion, and air pollution. I want the City to be more pro-active in dealing with the affordable housing issue and have initiated a study by the City to review a range of strategies that can be implemented in Bellevue.
Preserve Strong Neighborhoods
Population growth has put pressure on neighborhoods by impacting density, traffic patterns, and parks and open space. As the growth continues, I want to preserve neighborhood identity, prevent out-of-character and inappropriate development (such as "mega-houses" that can interfere with the livability of their neighbor’s property), upgrade neighborhood streets and sidewalks, and expand local parks and open space.
Promote Economic Vitality Throughout the City
We have been successful in achieving phenomenal residential and commercial growth in our downtown area. This has benefited all of Bellevue and the Eastside. Many factors contribute to this economic vitality, including policies that encourage businesses to locate here. I want to continue effective planning that ensures economic and residential development can be accommodated and located throughout the City,
Build Collaborative Partnerships
It is clear to me that in order to accomplish anything of significance it is necessary to collaborate effectively with other interested parties. I have worked with neighborhoods to solve neighborhood problems, businesses to address economic issues, and other cities and jurisdictions on many matters of common interest and concern. I want to continue to partner with other jurisdictions and stakeholders to productively address matters such as water supply, courts, jails, fire and safety response, environmental issues, growth, and other important issues.
Ensure Efficient and Responsive Local Government
Citizens should be able to obtain help and assistance from their city, and the city should be responsive to the needs of its citizens. I have promoted the “Service First” policy adopted recently by the City whereby City staff pro-actively work to assist citizens in a prompt and efficient manner. Citizens are also able to access many city services and programs through the internet. I want to expand these programs to ensure all citizens can easily access and use city services.
Maintain Fiscal Responsibility
We can accomplish these goals and maintain city services in a fiscally responsible manner. With my support, the City has maintained one of the lowest property taxes in the state, and has only increased property taxes once in over eight years. At the same time, by adopting strong fiscal policies the City has attained a “AAA” bond rating. I intend to maintain these sound policies, keeping the City financially strong and functioning within its means.