This race is about Austin’s future. I envision an Austin that works for everyone that lives here. That means a community where everyone has an opportunity for a home, a good job, and sense of security. It is an Austin that maintains the character of our neighborhoods and enhances the vitality of the local businesses that make us unique. A city that works for all of us provides an equitable share of basic services and parks no matter what part of town we live in, or how much money we make. It is a city that treats our environment with respect and uses our natural resources wisely so we do not compromise the future of our children and grandchildren.

We need a city government with a fundamental understanding that it works for everyone that lives in Austin. We must promote transparency and embrace the passion and expertise offered through productive public participation. We must respect divergent perspectives as we work toward policies that truly reflect our community’s values.

• Protect the Vitality and Character of Our Neighborhoods
• Create Affordable Housing so All of Austin's Families Have Safe Homes
• Preserve and Enhance Austin's Environment
• Support Our Local Economy - Invest in Businesses Making Austin Strong Today
• Take a Better Approach to Tackling Congestion
• Develop a Comprehensive Growth Management Policy to Shape our Future
• Align the City’s Financial Management with our Community’s Values
• Foster Public Participation, Open Government and Accessibility
• Partner with Other Governmental Entities to Leverage Potential of Collaboration

Protect the Vitality and Character of Our Neighborhoods

Neighborhoods are the building blocks of our community. As President of the Austin Neighborhoods Council, I worked successfully with residents from all parts of our city, standing with and for those working to preserve their quality of life. My positions and initiates include:

• Preserve neighborhood character by protecting the residential core from inappropriate development and upholding compatibility standards. Ensure that the new City Neighborhood Ombudsman staff effectively meets the needs of the community.
• Respect existing neighborhood plans, the neighborhood plan amendment process and neighborhood VMU recommendations. Develop a clearly articulated Council policy on neighborhood planning which identifies the required objectives, outcomes, implementation, and accountability for the neighborhood planning process.
• Safeguard our past with Historic Preservation. Create and fund a Historic Preservation Plan for the City. Support efforts to create Local Historic Districts. Ensure that protocols and procedures are in place for building permits in historically significant cases.
• Improve code enforcement by increasing inspection requirements and permitting fees for those with repeat violations.
• Leverage technology to improve the development process, to assist residents, property owners, builders and developers including making email an option for city notification.
• Increase funding and reprioritize traffic calming funds to reduce high speed cut through traffic.

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Create Affordable Housing so All of Austin's Families Have Safe Homes

As a member of the Policy Committee of Austin's affordable housing non-profit, HousingWorks, I understand that safe decent housing is the basic foundation for our families and community. My positions and initiatives include:

• Support the development of a comprehensive plan to preserve existing affordable housing.
• Enact the East Austin Homestead Preservation Act, which uses increased tax revenues from property in the area to preserve and create affordable homes.
• Meet the 25% affordable housing goal for Transit Oriented Development around rail stops.
• Strengthen City staff support for developers using Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits to build affordable housing.
• Develop new public and private financing tools such as land trusts to spur development of affordable housing.
• Provide financial consulting to help families struggling with mortgage problems and to develop the financial skills to become new homeowners.
• Ensure that the Health Care District is taking advantage of all possible property tax exemptions and partner with the Tax Assessors Office to promote full use of the exemptions in our low and middle income neighborhoods

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Preserve and Enhance Austin's Environment

I swam in Barton Springs with my children the first week I moved here in 1981, and I’ve cherished it ever since. I have worked in coalition with several environmental groups to ensure our priorities for protection are revered. We must preserve Austin's environment all across our city for our children and future generations. My positions and initiatives include:

• Create a sustainable fund to support long-term protection for Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer and conserve land in the Drinking Water Protection Zone.
• Advocate for land use controls at the Legislature to help urban counties manage growth.
• Strengthen water conservation measures and incentives to move our region toward sustainability.
• Aggressively pursue waste reduction and recycling efforts through a zero-waste plan, building opportunities for new recycling-based industry jobs.
• Support the City's Climate Protection Plan and ensure that an inclusive stakeholder group develops future energy efficiency standards.
• Actively work for a solar and wind powered renewable future and oppose buying any additional capacity at the South Texas Nuclear Project.
• Respect the shoreline of Lady Bird Lake and oppose variances to the Waterfront Overlay.

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Support Our Local Economy - Invest in Businesses Making Austin Strong Today

Small local businesses and our creative community are the heart of our economy. They create new jobs and enhance the vibrant and unique spirit that helps to define what we love about Austin. My positions and initiatives include:

• Make Austin a national center for innovation and entrepreneurs by strongly supporting research, development and manufacturing of renewable energy technology.
• Advocate for Austin's creative industries such as music, arts, design and others to create jobs, build community and enhance cultural vibrancy.
• Ensure that the new City Small Business Ombudsman works with the entire community to help businesses comply with city regulations, and to identify City obstacles to business growth.
• Level the economic playing field by stopping financial incentives to national retailers competing with local businesses.
• Support the new regional effort to create affordable health coverage for small businesses.
• Step up City support for the Austin Independent Business Alliance and Independent Business Investment Zones (IBIZ) to build a stronger local economy.

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Take A Better Approach to Tackling Congestion

Failed planning has led to terrible congestion, higher transportation costs, and lower quality of life. Despite approving almost $3 billion dollars for toll roads since 2005, congestion and related financial and environmental problems have grown. We need a new approach to relieve congestion that focuses on high impact immediate solutions, prioritizing road upkeep, and balancing funding between new roads and public transportation. With gas prices expected to reach $4.00 a gallon by summer, the costs are too high not to take action. My positions and initiatives include:

• Focus an effort on near term congestion relief solutions: work with large employers to establish four-day work weeks, staggered work hours, and telecommuting. Create specialized traffic police to handle peak hour congestion hot spots, and keep wreckers ready to reduce accident clearing times. Minimize road closures by coordinating development and utility projects.
• Balance funding between roads and public transportation, considering both buses and rail, and emphasize road upkeep before building new roads.
• Bring the community into the CAMPO decision-making process, through better public information and participation. Develop real options for projects with honest cost benefit analysis so the public has the information to base decisions.
• Remake neighborhood streets so they work for everyone, whether young or old.
• Support pedestrian-friendly sidewalks and safe bikeways across the city.
• Encourage applications for “Safe Routes to Schools” grants, with strong City support for community developed proposals.

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Develop a Comprehensive Growth Management Policy to Shape Our Future

The City of Austin lacks a viable, comprehensive growth management policy to achieve our goal for a vibrant city of the future where all can enjoy a high quality of life. The planning that we engage in now is done in silos: the pieces that should work together operate in isolation. The 1979 Austin Tomorrow Plan has many elements that are still relevant today and can provide a starting point. As President of the Austin Neighborhoods Council, I led the membership in developing a roadmap to formulate a growth management policy. I will provide the leadership to undertake this effort with the community, including the following:

• Engage in a community-based process with a diverse set of stakeholders and reach public consensus on goals of the policy.
• Include as elements of the plan, infrastructure, parks, housing, social services, public safety, environmental protections, and transportation.
• Base the plan upon information and analyses of current and projected future needs for all elements.
• Collaborate with Austin Independent School District, Travis County and other jurisdictions.
• Prepare an implementation strategy, including development of policies to follow the plan at the departmental level, and regular updates.
• Monitor adherence to the plan by all decision-making bodies and staff.

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Align the City’s Financial Management with our Community’s Values

We must spend our taxpayer dollars in the most effective way. These investments must reflect the values that we hold and must foster a healthy and thriving community. My positions and initiatives include:

• Increase funding for health and human services. Look to the expertise and collaboration in the Community Action Network to focus on priority programs that prevent costly problems rather than spending inordinate amounts in the long run on trying to cure the consequences of neglect.
• Transform the Town Lake Animal Shelter into a no-kill shelter. We must cut the current euthanasia rate of 54%, increase capacity for adoptions, and improve on the rate of returning lost animals to their owners.
• Invest our resources wisely by using subsides only when they incentivize business or development that fits our community’s goals and would not be developing in Austin in the open market. Ensure that subsidies are not detrimental to our existing businesses. Tie any incentive agreement to well-defined performance measures that are reported publicly on a regular basis.
• Analyze previous economic development projects to understand the number of jobs that have been created and where the workers filling the jobs came from.
• Perform a rigorous review of funding strategies in the upcoming public safety contract negotiations to ensure that we have appropriately balanced our priorities.
• Monitor bond expenditures to ensure equitable allocation and scheduling of authorized projects.

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Foster Public Participation, Open Government and Accessibility

Throughout my years of community involvement in Austin, I have continually advocated for a fair and inclusive process that brings all stakeholders to the table. As a community leader, I have embraced the passion and expertise of citizens, and I will continue to do so as a Council Member. My positions and initiatives include:

• Ensure that full information is available to the public, with adequate time for review prior to public hearings or discussions.
• Proactively seek out public input from interested stakeholders.
• Understand all sides of an issue; maintain openness to hearing from all constituents.
• Ensure that all interests are represented when formulating initiatives.
• Hold drop-in office hours, including evening hours to accommodate meetings with those who cannot take off during day time work hours.
• Participate in meetings of a variety of organizations to stay connected to the varied interests in the community.

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Partner with Other Governmental Entities to Leverage Potential of Collaboration

Through my community efforts, I have worked with representatives of many layers of government that have jurisdiction over Austin. From a citizen’s point of view, we just want things to work and experience frustration when the appropriate parties are not interacting in way that is most productive. There is great potential for a better Austin by leveraging partnerships, building trusted relationships, and working toward common goals. A few ideas on how we, the City and City Council members can be working together:

• Austin Independent School District: Land use planning and fostering the health of schools in the central city; shared facilities; social service programs.
• Travis County: Landfill and zero waste planning; combined APD and Sheriff Department disaster exercises.
• State Delegation from Austin and other Urban Areas: Working toward authority for county authority for land use controls and stricter regulations in TCEQ.
• University of Texas: Partnering in the planning and development of the Brackenridge Tract as a piece of the community at large, considering the importance of the Muni Golf Course and the potential for making the Field Lab a world class Climate Change Learning Center.
• Austin Community College: Long term planning for educational programs that fit our goals for areas of job growth; shared facilities.
• Capital Area Council of Governments (CAPCOG): Developing regional solutions to zero waste; emergency response planning and management.

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