This page will continue to be updated - please make sure to keep tabs on it!
THE CIVIC CENTER DISTRICT (CC)- The CC district encompasses City Hall, the library, the Shoppes at Wyndham Village, and the infamous "Crossroads" intersection of Hwy 100 & Loomis. The Crossroads area has been an issue for sometime, particularly since 2004 when a Wal-Mart Supercenter was proposed. Since then, the big box ordinance was passed and the City hired a consultant to crafted up a "plan", naming the district. There has been no creative push to help bring in tax revenue at this intersection and in the meantime the current structures continue to deteriorate.
While a developer came forward in the past with a concept plan similar to what is seen at the Shoppes at Wyndham Village (Target/Pick n Save), there just was not the support at the city level since the other project was already in progress. The project did not get started before the economic downturn and is now stalled. I believe this commercial district can be capitalized on for the betterment of the community, from enhanced roadways and beautification to additional tax revenues that will help offset the burden currently placed on taxpayers. We need to support projects that keep our hard-earned money in Franklin.
The Crossroads, as well as the entire civic center district, deserves to be enhanced and made into a true community (and regional) destination. I will promote attracting corporate development to Franklin, which will increase jobs and a daytime population to serve retailers and restaurants - retailers and restaurants that you have desired to see in Franklin for many years.
In order for such a vision to be
accomplished, there needs to be a leader willing to focus on this area.
Alderman Olson is currently working and promoting the 27th Street
Corridor, which is very far away for the 1st District's shoppers and
would support the wrong school tax district.
We must do better to support sound projects that will benefit the community as a whole.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT - Ever since the library and law enforcement center were constructed, issues relating to new projects that benefit the community as a whole have come to a screeching halt at City Hall. While the politicians have remained silent, organizations consisting of hundreds of Franklin residents have formed to fill-in the void and work on getting such community amenities built. The absence of support from City Hall, though, is painful. Recently the organization that worked for several years to get a cultural arts center constructed shut down, partially due to the lack of support from some at City Hall.
Whenever an idea for a project comes to light, I tend to hear that taxes are the solution for community projects. By doing this, the council essentially dismisses the needs of residents quickly without looking in-depth at alternatives. Higher taxes are not needed to get funds to support such projects. It takes leaders with a vision on the council to work with community nonprofit organizations to help and promote the need to raise funds privately. This would offset concerns related to taxes.
I believe that residents in Franklin should be able to enjoy facilities and amenities that those living in neighboring communities have had for many years. I believe in looking out-of-the-box, looking forward, and putting Franklin First.
PUBLIC SAFETY – With the expansion of housing and other
development comes increased population, traffic and crime. While Franklin has
grown our police and fire staffing have declined. With the loss of jobs comes
increased crime requiring additional public safety needs. I believe that decreasing the staffing at the fire and police departments would be a bad idea, especially with the growth Franklin has experienced in the past few years. More attention needs to be given on enhancing and expanding on the quality of our public safety services. I would advocate other alternative methods of funding are researched and selected. One such example would be to seek out grants that could aid taxpayers in either directly funding police and fire staff, or the components/technology that they could use.
OPEN GOVERNMENT AND WEBCASTING COUNCIL MEETINGS - Since 2007, I have been the author of the website MyFranklinToday.com, where I have provided local news and promoted open government using the latest digital technology. I support the use of digital recordings and taping of city meetings to ensure that the public has timely access to local government information. I support bringing back the Ethics Board. I believe it was a dark spot on our city’s history in 2005 when the council voted to eliminate the Ethics Board.
TIF DISTRICTS - Franklin currently has three TIF districts, with one (Franklin Business Park) set to retire in 2011. In my opinion, TIF districts should only be used in certain circumstances i.e. environmental or blighted areas. When the business park TIF district retires, taxpayers could use the additional $3 million in revenue it to offset some of our current budget “holes”.
FRANKLIN PROPERTY TAXES & CITY SPENDING - In brief, there are three changes that could help lower Franklin property taxes:
- Place more commercial business within the Franklin Public School District
- Cut back on hiring consultants!
- Take a different approach to development
There are many others, but addressing where commercial development is placed has a major impact on the portion of taxes going to the school district. Another continuous issue is the amount of dollars Franklin pays out for consulting; most of the consultant recommendations are never acted upon anyway. Instead of expanding sewer and water into the southeast quadrant of the city, Franklin needs to focus on redevelopment and in-fill of the commercial areas already in place. Attention to these three items alone could cut spending of taxpayer dollars, leaving more room for important community/safety issues. I don’t believe it is fair to ask for more while providing less.
