Candidate for
Council Member; City of Concord

Concord is a safe, clean, business friendly, and family oriented city. We need to be forward looking, and implement plans that will build a better financial foundation for our city, restore city services the residents desire, and make the city more financially resilient in the event of future economic downturns.

Therefore our priorities should be to stabilize city finances and maintain vital city services while the budget is constrained. This should be followed by developing plans to restore curtailed city services as the economy improves. Finally we need to expedite business development to add new sources of revenue to meet both the current needs of the city and provide a solid foundation for the future.

Concord's "Economic Vitality Strategy" Update, lists the business sectors that are important for our economic future. Retail needs our constant attention, as it is the prime ingredient for sales tax revenue, revenue not subject to confiscation by the state. Three areas emphasized by economists as having real potential for the future are health care, and the related life sciences, biotechnology, and applied sciences companies.

We currently have various facilities of the John Muir Medical Group in Concord. We should build on their presence to bring other health organizations and the related entities to Concord. The businesses that we seek should be those that are financially strong, have staying power, and that invest for the future. These companies will attract new residents, provide additional jobs, and enhance Concord's reputation as a city with a future you can depend on.

Businesses looking for new locations or desiring to expand and people looking for a place to live have many choices in our area of the county. We need to aggressively compete for both.

All communities have basically the same laws, ordinances, and processes that govern this activity. Concord can be more competitive by expediting the review and approval process. This does not mean short cuts that attempt to bypass or pay lip service to proper procedures. What it does mean is finding ways to improve and accelerate the process and be ever more responsive to those who apply to the city for various projects.

Key to this concept is pre-approvals for the typical uses of a parcel, allowing the city's planning and review processes to focus on the specific applicant and their plans. Concord needs to be known as the city that gets it done now.