LWV Questionnaire
What
can the city council do to increase the transparency of the actions and
decisions made on behalf of the citizens of the community?
As city council president, I sit
through meetings with our state auditors and manage public comment at our city
council meetings. Improvement is always possible given the evolution of our
on-line lives. But the preliminary to all such conversations as these is the 1%
property tax cap on residential properties which makes a city budget in a city
like ours, dominated by residential properties and complicated by an impossible
number of tax-exempt properties, nearly impossible to manage. If you would increase
administrative staff to better manage information, what would you cut? Our
small and enthusiastic city staff does a great job. West Lafayette is as
transparent as privacy laws, proprietary requirements, and financial realities
allow.
What
steps can the city council take to address the crisis of opioid addiction in
West Lafayette?
Supporting local law enforcement goes
without saying. The council will also continue to support community based
prevention education through Purdue Extension, student run mobile health
initiatives like BoilerWoRx, and support initiatives sponsored by IUSM-WL
students and the Drug Free Coalition of Tippecanoe County. West Lafayette has
joined with a number of cities, including Lafayette, to sue drug companies over
the opioid crisis. This is a county wide problem. (Naloxone heat https://medicine.iu.edu/blogs/md-student-news/west-lafayette-naloxone/ )
It is a challenge for many students and
other residents of the community to find affordable housing while making many
sacrifices to make ends meet. What steps would you take to alleviate this
issue?
That’s a great question for the University. The one lever on
housing costs available to the city is to increase the supply of student
housing. That we have done. Generally, the demand has been for amenities and
convenience. We will be very interested to see the December 2019 Student Rental
Report. https://www.tippecanoe.in.gov/DocumentCenter/View/21641/2018-Tippecanoe-County-Student-Rental-Report
The good
news: Friendship House is expanding. The bad news: New Chauncey Housing, which
receives federal HOME funds, now works only in Lafayette. Newest housing
wrinkle: The commercialization of “Air BnB’s”. Here is an overview of West
Lafayette low-income housing. https://affordablehousingonline.com/housing-search/Indiana/West-Lafayette. There may be opportunities for
mixed income redevelopment on the riverfront.
What local changes do you support to
reduce the city’s impact on climate change?
Solar
panels will power the new city Wellness/Recreation Center on Kalberer Rd. Methane turbines provide power to the water
reclamation plant. Mayor
John Dennis is one of 359 US mayors to sign on to the Mayor’s Climate
Agreement, pledging to honor and uphold the tenets of the Paris Climate Change
Agreement. In July 2017, the West
Lafayette City Council unanimously supported Resolution NO.
10-17, affirming West Lafayette’s commitment to a greener, more sustainable
future. I am proud to have made the Go Green Commission part of the city’s
official life by ordinance. Any major city environmental initiatives (e.g. banning plastic bags) are
subject to the state legislature’s policy of preemption. Look for a climate
change resolution at the October council meeting.
What can the city council do to address
the issues of children and families living in poverty and homelessness in the
community?
As I am
married to the Executive Director of Food Finders Food Bank, this is an issue
dear to our family. I am proud to say that the city already does address these
issues through an annual allotment of CDBG funds to groups like Food Finders,
Lafayette Urban Ministry, and Lafayette Transitional Housing. The city made a
$10,000 contribution to the Food Finder capital campaign. Understand that 90%
of hunger relief is delivered through federal programs administered by the
states. Remember too that “poor relief” in Indiana is given over to the
townships.
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