Issues

As Mayor I will not rest until West Des Moines is the best city in America in which to live, work, play, and raise a family. I will accomplish this by continuing the policies that have contributed to our success. This includes:

Balancing the Budget & Cutting Taxes

I will never forget who I work for nor who foots the bill for government services and I will work hard to pass conservative, balanced budgets each year. And when it is responsible to do so, I will work to cut the tax levy to keep West Des Moines affordable for young families and seniors on fixed incomes.

Providing High-Quality City Services

Our residents expect and deserve high-quality city services. I will work to continue to provide those city services as efficiently and effectively as possible, saving taxpayers money when we can.

Supporting Policies that Stimulate the Economy & Create Jobs

I will work to advance smart, judicious economic development policies to help our businesses grow and create good-paying jobs for our residents.

Partnering with the Private Sector to Enhance Quality of Life

Quality of Life amenities should no longer be supported by just the taxpayers. I will work with our businesses and private citizens who want to give back to the community to form public/private partnerships to continue adding game-changing quality of life amenities that enrich the lives of our residents and help attract young people and families to West Des Moines.

Working to Continually Improve Public Safety & Community Relations

I am a huge supporter of our men and women in uniform who put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe. They do a tremendous job for us, but we can always do better. I will continually work to improve public safety and community relations, through recruitment of a diverse workforce, providing first responders with the technology and equipment they need to do their jobs, adding additional personnel when necessary, and through continual training, including tactical training as well as training on de-escalation and implicit bias.

Ensuring Availability of Affordable Housing

When our kids and grandkids graduate from college, I want them to be able to return to West Des Moines to get a job. When they get that job, I want to make sure they can afford to live in West Des Moines where they grew up. I will continue to work to create out-of-the-box solutions to providing affordable housing options for young people. I will also work to make sure we have affordable housing options for our seniors wishing to sell their homes but wanting to stay in West Des Moines.

Providing Essential Services to our most Vulnerable Citizens

West Des Moines is seen as an affluent community. But we’ve got people working hard every day that struggle to make ends meet. I will work hard to provide a hand up to these folks, making sure they have access to food, clothing, shelter, and transportation to get to their jobs or essential doctors appointments. Sometimes a little help goes a long way.

Working to be Good Stewards of Our Environment

Economics and the Environment aren’t mutual exclusive. We can be both fiscally responsible and environmentally responsible at the same time. As Mayor I will work to be both. I will put forth economic development policies that develop the city in a well-balanced, responsible manner, while making sure to pay attention to and ameliorate any possible environmental issues. I will work to continue stabilizing river and stream banks and protecting against future flooding. I will also work to improve our water quality and to encourage sustainable development and use of alternative energy sources.

Maintaining Existing Infrastructure as the City Ages

While working to develop newer parts of the city, we cannot forget about aging infrastructure in the established areas of the city. I will make sure we are continually working to improve older parts of the city, keeping up our streets and sewers and making other necessary improvements to keep those areas vibrant and desirable places to live.

Ensuring the City is Inclusive and Welcoming to All Residents

We have worked extremely hard to make sure the city is inclusive and welcoming to all who live here, work here or play here. This is extremely important to me. I will work to celebrate our diversity, remove barriers to participation and ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect when dealing with the city. I will not tolerate discrimination of any kind and will work to increase diversity within our city.