I am listening
and this is what I’m hearing
Priorities for Our Community
Sustainable Growth
I believe that we should be growing revenue and value for Madison residents, not problems. Our community cannot continue to add stress to our police, fire department, infrastructure and schools. Sustainable growth means making certain that we retain and expand public green spaces, while proactively installing traffic lights, proper signage and other safety measures to balance the needs of cars and pedestrians. It means zoning our city for growth that we can afford to accommodate and keeping buffers between subdivisions and businesses. It means balancing our budgets and keeping our good credit rating. We need to ensure that our city remains an excellent place in which to live and work for our children and grandchildren.
An Innovative Education System
It’s no secret that Madison has the best public schools in North Alabama, and as city councilor, I will make sure we stay on top. It’s important for our property values, but mostly, it’s important for our kids. The difficult truth is that Madison has maxed out its credit card and we may not be able to maintain these world-class schools if we don’t take a look at growth. Our schools are already overcrowded and teachers and parents are looking for relief.
In addition to managing growth, we need to continue to re-tool our curriculum to graduate a twenty-first century work force. That means staying focused on math, science, and technology programs so we can build our workforce from within our own city.
I’ve lived in the “best school” districts before and have seen other suburbs step up, people move and property values go down. Limestone County is right next door with beautiful property. We have to stay competitive and continue to offer schools that rise above the rest.
Accountability in Local Government
In order for government and law enforcement to maintain trust with the public, we must be transparent on the policies, processes, and outcomes that affect our communities.
Our police force is tasked with serving and protecting. Sureshbhai Patel and Dana Fletcher are two cases in which Madison police have lost trust from the community. A completely independent review board would help restore some faith in our force. As city councilor, I will fight to make certain that we have policies and procedures in place that hold law enforcement officers accountable for their actions and will advocate for further training that prevents unacceptable incidents from ever occurring in the first place. We should focus on mental health evaluations for PTSD, sensitivity training, mental health databases with special training for 911 calls and community policing complaints should be public record.
Our municipal government needs to improve accountability. Our taxpayer dollars need to be allocated in ways that benefit all of us now and into the future. We need to do quality long-term improvements with our infrastructure, not just quick fixes. As a councilor, I will fight back against no-bid contracts. Opening up local bids for work by casting a wider net may help us to be more cost effective. I will never accept donations from developers.