ELECTION Q&A: Jeffersonville Mayor (Updated with more answers)
Editor’s Note: Submissions appear as the candidates submitted them without editing.Candidates are listed in alphabetical order. If an answer length’s has been edited, it is because the answer extended beyond the predetermined limit. Unabridged answers appear on our Web site www.newsandtribune.com under the Election 2007 link. Except where noted, questionnaires are only being published for contested races.
Tom Galligan
• POLITICAL AFFILIATION: Democrat
• AGE: 61
• EDUCATION HIGHLIGHTS: Providence High School, 1964; Belleramine University, 1964-1966
• CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: Founded Galligan Construction, 1968; Irish Park Construction, 1980 until 1996; Elected Mayor of Jeffersonville 1996; Re-Elected Mayor 2000; Elected Democrat Nominee for Mayor, 2007
• FAMILY NOTES: Divorced, Father of Four (Annette Guepe, Charles Galligan, William Galligan and Jennifer Romans); Grandfather of Six (Torry and Kyle Guepe; Gavin and Cole Galligan; Drew Riech and Kinley Romans)
1) What is your primary reason for seeking this position?
“I was the mayor of Jeffersonville from 1996 until 2004. During that eight year period we were able to grow Jeffersonville's economy, bring in good paying jobs and enhance the quality of life of the people of our great city. Over the past four years growth and development have slowed substantially in Jeffersonville. I am running because you deserve more and together we can return Jeffersonville to its status as a showplace for other communities to emulate. Together, we must renew our commitment to excellence. Jeffersonville deserves leadership dedicated to lowering property taxes without cutting services. We must be responsible and do the right things to protect or citizens and taxpayers to ensure the quality of life that they deserve.”
2) If elected, which issue is your priority to address first and what is your suggested solution?
“The major issue facing all cities and towns in Indiana is property taxes. Homeowner's are faced with a staggering burden and are expected to fund not only city government but county government, schools, welfare and jails. This is expensive and it is unfair to rely solely upon property owners to pay the total cost of these services. One method of lowering property taxes is to attract new businesses and new development. New business adds to the tax base and reduces the amount individuals must pay on their homes. Today, without adding new taxes or cutting services this is the only way to decrease property taxes. During my two terms as mayor property tax rates decreased. This was unprecedented in the history of Jeffersonville. Another method is to decrease services. This is unacceptable. I will run the City efficiently but I will not reduce the number of policemen or firemen who protect our city nor will I cut any essential City services. Finally, there is a progressive approach that requires changes in state law. Our legislature can either completely eliminate property taxes by raising income and sales tax or reduce property taxes by 30% by a smaller increase in income and sales tax. At a minimum, I strongly favor the Indiana Farm Bureau proposal that will decrease your property taxes by 30%. As your next mayor I will strive to reduce your property taxes by attracting new businesses and development, but I will also advocate, lobby and promote the adoption of a new method of funding government.”
3) What specifically distinguishes you from your opponent in this race?
“I was mayor of Jeffersonville for eight years . During that time, with the help of my staff, many businesses came to Jeffersonville and invested millions of dollars. We successfully attracted many new businesses to the Clark Maritime Center, North Port Business Park, Jeffersonville and Keystone Industrial Parks and created thousands of good paying jobs throughout the city. I have the experience to do those things and have done the job successfully. As mayor, I was able to develop the river front making it a center piece for entertainment and family activities. I will bring this same energy and creativity in developing Veteran's Parkway. In addition, I have experience in developing public-private business relationships. My experience as a business person and my experiece as the mayor of Jeffersonville give me a significant advantage in developing Jeffersonville to its greatest potential. I was able to envision the Quartermaster Depot as a thriving public/ private development. We were able to save a historic structure and the resultant Quartermaster Station is by everyones standards a great assset for our City. This experience is central in jump starting development. During my term as mayor we were able to renew our downtown and redevelop our parks. As mayor we embarked on a plan to provide families adequate places to grow their body and their intellect. We built a first class Aquatic Center, partnered Meijer's to build a state of the art baseball facility and collaborated with the Remnant Trust to bring one of the most prestigious collections of original historic documents and works to Jeffersonville. These are the things that make a City great! If elected mayor, we will get things done, again!”
4) Jeffersonville must provide non-capital services (police, fire, sanitation) in the first year of your term and provide capital services (sewers) within three years. How do you plan to make sure this happens while financially maintaining the current levels of other city services?
“I have reviewed the fiscal plan document included in the annexation ordinance and I believe that document addressed both the issues at question adequately. There is no doubt that it will be a greater challenge being mayor over a city of about 40,000 people and a substantially larger geographic area but I believe it can be done successfully. Additional property taxes from the annexed area and additional funding that will be provided by larger shares of state funds are sufficient to allow the city to provide the additional services required. Therefore, I do not believe current levels of other city services will be adversely affected. There will be some advantages to having a larger scale of operations that will benefit both the existing city and the annexed area including more backup personnel in emergency conditions, better training, some better purchasing power, a different governing method and potential access to more outside funding in the future. The fiscal plan which appears to have been studied thoroughly shows that after the initial year of starting up new services the fiscal picture improves for the overall city. The additional sewer services required will provide a challenge. I will prioritize those services to the areas most in need, where there is a genuine health hazard first. The cleaning up of some serious problems in sewer services is important. We will make every effort to deliver the sewer services at reasonable cost as the city currently does. Sewers generally increase property values and I believe that will be the case in the annexed area.”
5) What are key points of your economic development plan for the city and what specific improvements can voters expect to see in the first half of your term?
“Key points for my economic development plan are to aggressively pursue the grant which my administration got approved to upgrade the area where the old sewer treatment plant sits on Ninth St. near the gateway to the city. That grant included a park and ride, landscaping and improving the looks of the gateway. I believe that helps economic development by making retail development around the gateway more attractive. Obviously, I will pursue development of Veterans Parkway. I will hit the ground running and pursue development in that area of the city vigorously. In my last two terms I developed new parks for business and industry including Keystone, Bridge Port and the office park on the old piggyback property. I also helped develop North Port, helped set up River Ridge and brought businesses to the Clark Maritime Centre. I will renew the city’s efforts in adding businesses to these locations. Two years is a short time frame as some projects take that long to develop but I do expect to have development in these areas under way by the end of the first two years and within four years I expect completion of a number of initiatives undertaken in these areas.”
6) What is your position on the timeline and plans for the Ohio River Bridges project?
“My position is the sooner it is done the better. The east end bridge will be an economic boon to Jeffersonville and spur substantial growth for our community. It will bring more prosperity to all of Southern Indiana. It will save transportation dollars for all citizens. Good transportation raises the standard of living for a community and the east end bridge will make transportation for individuals and business more efficient. I fully support and will do all in my power to move the project along. The downtown bridge should also help reduce congestion and make traveling more safe for all of us. The bridges project is long over due.”
READER SUBMITTED QUESTIONS
• Have you ever visited the city's animal shelter? Do you believe there to be a management problem at the J.B. Ogle shelter? How should the city be involved and what can be done to improve the J. B. Ogle animal shelter to the level of its neighbors?
“I have visited the J. B. Ogle Center many times during and after its construction. The J.B. Ogle animal shelter was built in my first term in office mostly without city's tax dollars. The facility was a considerable upgrade over the previous shelter and received many accolades after its construction. Jim Gillenwater who was then the animal shelter director raised many of the funds for the new shelter and deserves credit for its construction. I think it was a considerable improvement over the old facility. The shelter is a county shelter but it is primarily funded and run by the city and this has not produced the best possible results. Better operations can only be achieved by cooperation of all stakeholders including the county, towns, cities, humane society and interested parties. It will require some compromise by everyone involved. No one wants animals put down, that is a terrible choice. Unfortunately it is sometimes inevitable. I believe this should be kept to an absolute minimum and as a last resort. I will make full effective use of the advisory board which was established to help oversee and represent the concerns of all interested parties. I will make the operation of the shelter efficient, promote a spay and neuter program which prevents having an increase in number of unwanted animals, encourage animal adoption. Ultimately, the mayor is responsible for the operations but I want input from the various parties involved with animals and I will insist on accountability from my employees.
• At least one candidate mentioned during the primary how the development along Jeffersonville's side of Veterans Parkway would have taken place by now if under their leadership, and how if they are elected it will happen sooner than it would have under the current administration. How do the candidates propose to spur development along that corridor and what can they do better that is not currently being done?
“During the first year of my first term my administration probably contacted over 100 businesses about locating in Jeffersonville and I think that year we went probably zero for one hundred although one of those companies did come to Jeffersonville a couple of years later. By the second and third years we were getting a lot of yes answers and had brought dozens of businesses to Jeffersonville. We were persistent and when we got a no we went on to the next prospect until we started getting some positive results. It takes persistence, hard work and dedication, which is what I bring to the job. Inevitably it results in success like those at the old piggyback yard and in the industrial and business parks in town that grew and flourished during my two terms. There is no magic to getting the job done but there is hard work, persistence, knowledge of business and contacts that I have developed and building a team that I believe will result in a successful development on Veterans Parkway for Jeffersonville.”
• The annexation area will include many roads, such as Utica-Sellersburg and Charlestown Pike, which have unsafe and extremely rough railroad crossings. Do the candidates feel that Jeffersonville will have it within the budget to improve these roads? And how would they prioritize and approach the rail companies about improving the crossings?
“Roads and streets will be one of my priorities as mayor of Jeff. Funds for roads and streets come from state gasoline taxes and Jeffersonville's allotment of such taxes will be increasing as a result of its additional road mileage in the city. I propose to use those additional funds to improve the city's most unsafe roadways. My attention to these matters is a fact with improved intersections, widened streets and new roads created in my past administrations. I have dealt with the railroad companies in the past successfully and I think this gives me a leg up in knowing how to get things done. As I have said public safety is number one. From my first day in office I will give my attention to improving unsafe roads and railroad crossings. These things are not done quickly when dealing with the railroad companies but with the additional funds available from gas taxes I will dedicate those funds to making roads safer and as quickly as the system allows. Sometimes I am as unhappy with the speed of the bureaucracy as any other citizen but I believe I can get the attention of those in decision making capacities and work with them to improve public safety issues.
• It is widely accepted that the nicest park in Jeffersonville is private (Perrin Park). Given the age of the existing parks and equipment, and the requirement for new parks by the annexation, what is your vision for the Jeff Parks system and how do they propose accomplishing the goal from a funding perspective? Will the funds be available to service residents who will now be in the "remote" sections of the city? What features or services are currently missing that can be added or improved upon?
“Well, Perrin Park is certainly a nice park and we can thank Duley Perrin for his generosity in developing that park but have you been to Bob Hedge Park. It is state of the art and a beautiful park. This park was created by wonderfully devoted Jeffersonville citizens and businesses with a little city help. It is a credit to any city. I know families from other communities who bring their children to this park because they think it is the “best park” in Southern Indiana. It is also an example of what can be done. Government doesn't do everything as some people seem to think it should. People do everything and Bob Hedge Park is a great example. Our goal for the future is to build a park where we can consolidate venues so that people can come and use the park for many different things and for many different reasons whether it be jogging, youth football, soccer or taking your dog for a walk or doing anything that takes some space . We need to have a facility capable of handling all those needs. The good news is that Jeffersonville has the potential to see that these opportunities are developed in the future. The county just simply isn't financially able to develop parks and they do not have a parks department but Jeffersonville has that potential and the will. Park development and renovation is important but it is a multi year project. Planning must begin now and funds set aside for renovating existing and developing future parks. I believe annexation creates a possibility that heretofore did not exist. Parks are funded with general fund dollars, private donations and grants. I would call for public input into this issue before incurring substantial amounts of debt. If it is desired by the citizens I will as I did with developing the aquatic center explore every opportunity for location and development of future parks. This will likely be a public/private endeavor as it has successfully been done at Bob Hedge Park.”
• What can be done to improve the relationship the Mayor's office has historically had with the City Council for the past 12 years? How can the city's leaders better "reach out" to their constituents?
“I believe the question should say past eight years not twelve. During my first term as mayor my relationship with the city council was highly successful. During that term everything was not perfect as balancing of powers will cause some friction no matter how good the circumstances. But in that first term the city council backed almost all of my initiatives and together much was accomplished and the city prospered. During my second term relations were poor. It would have been better had some council members not had agendas like running for mayor or being future department heads for the City. I believe the only ways this can be improved is through communication, doing the job each of us were elected to do and trust. Communications must be open and by that I mean the mayor should listen to his council and the council should listen to the mayor. Compromise will be and needs to be a part of the process. I believe more than anything trust must be developed. Honesty and openness is paramount. I believe this is where I have learned the most in the past four years; no progress is possible without cooperation and trust.
“Reaching out to constituents is the mayor's number one job. He must be in touch. One of the ways I plan to do this is to develop a citizen's advisory cabinet consisting of twelve highly respected citizens who are in touch with various segments of our community and meet with them regularly for their advice and recommendations and to keep me informed. I am also always open to any citizen of our community. This is why I want to be mayor of Jeffersonville to bring as many people into the process of making this city realize its potential. It is only together that this can be accomplished.”
• What can be done to improve the "public face" of Jeffersonville (Especially the 10th Street entrance into the city), and how can it be accomplished? This is relative to things such as curbs and landscaping, improving blighted areas, etc.
“One thing that can be done is to use the grant that our administration obtained in 2003 to develop a park and ride where the old sewage treatment plant now sits. The reconstruction of 9th street with improved lighting, curbs and sidewalks is included in that grant. That grant is still available to the City. Also we need to clean up the right side of 10th street as you come in to the city and do like a lot of European countries who plant bright flowers that bloom all spring and summer. I will also aggressively pursue development of the intersection of 10th and Spring.”
• From the perspective of "selling" Jeffersonville as a "destination" or as a place to establish a home or business, what ideas do these candidates have to attract people to our city?
“Selling Jeffersonville is a large part of what being mayor is about. I had success in doing this because I believe in Jeffersonville. Businesses will tell you the first thing they look for in locating their businesses with jobs to offer is acceptance by the community. Without this a city cannot get to second base. I was amazed at how key members of our community helped us recruit business to Jeffersonville and made these businesses feel welcome. This was a major selling point. From that point it becomes a matter of showing how Jeffersonville can better fill the need of their business than other communities and to this point there are several components: a good workforce, infrastructure, quality of life for employees, educational opportunities and economic incentives are important factors. This is where I have excelled because I am a business person and I understand business people's needs and I can communicate with them and help them have every opportunity for success in this community.
“Business development is an important factor in making Jeffersonville a destination point for those wanting to establish a home. That is good paying jobs attract homeowners, as does quality of life and a reasonable cost of living. The community must be safe and deliver its services effectively. Roads, streets, police and fire protection, proper zoning protections along with all essential services must be so good they are practically unnoticed because when they are missing they will be noticed. While these things require constant monitoring and hard work I believe that I have the experience and record to prove my ability at running a large organization like the city of Jeffersonville.
• Do you support the City of Jeffersonville providing funds to the Haven House shelter, which is currently under financial scrutiny by the Internal Revenue Service?
“I certainly do not favor bailing Haven House out of its debt with the IRS. We must all learn to live within our means even if it is a homeless shelter. Short term fixes like using withheld taxes to pay other bills are not wise or prudent and have devastating long term effects on the mission of the homeless shelter. I respect highly those involved in such humanitarian endeavors but I do not favor providing Jeffersonville City funds to pay their debt to the IRS. Jeffersonville does need to look at its responsibility for dealing with the homeless of our community and make a commitment to deal with the problem much like many other successful communities have.”
R. Monty Snelling
• POLITICAL AFFILIATION: Republican
• AGE: 55
• EDUCATION HIGHLIGHTS: Graduate of Henryville High School; Attended Sullivan Business College; Attended Ivy Tech, received Indiana real estate license; Completed Association of Indiana Counties Diploma Course.
• CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: Elected to the Clark County Council@ Large; Elected Vice President of the Clark County Council, 2006; Pastor of Faith Evangel Church; Voted Man of the year by the Clark County GOP, 2006; Past member of the Jeffersonville Department of Redevelopment; Council appointment to the Jeffersonville Economic Development Commission 2005, 2006, 2007; Council representative to the Southern Indiana Economic Development Commission 2005, 2006, 2007; Have served on several committees' for Clark County Government; Member of the Homebuilders Association of Southern Indiana Inc; Associate member of the Indiana Homebuilders Association; Associate member of the National Homebuilders Association; Authored and passed ordinance to cut Clark County Wheel Tax and Vehicle Surtax in Half in 2005; Authored and passed ordinance to Abolish The Clark County Wheel Tax and Vehicle Surtax beginning January 1, 2008; Was able to work with both Democrats and Republicans on the Council to reduce county government spending by over $3,000,000.00 reducing property tax rates for 2008
• FAMILY NOTES: Married to wife Sherry for 35 years; Son Jeremy his wife Jackie three beautiful grandchildren; Daughter Holly
1) What is your primary reason for seeking this position?
“Being involved in the political arena was never a goal for me. I have always been interested in politics from the standpoint that it was a way to make positive change. I had watched as Jeffersonville had fallen behind our neighbors in many aspects. I have always felt that if you believe that you can make a contribution you should do so. Thru my experiences in the business community along with my religious convictions I felt that public service was an avenue for me. Jeffersonville has never reached the level of achievement that has been possible. Common sense leadership has been lacking for many years. I truly feel that I can bring important assets to the office of Mayor, that will move Jeffersonville forward in a very positive way. I feel that the spirit of cooperation and vision of the possibilities that I have for my fellow citizens compels me to seek this office.”
2) If elected, which issue is your priority to address first and what is your suggested solution?
“Economic development: With the increased business development we are able to expand our tax base giving us additional revenue to offset the expenses that will be incurred with annexation. The success of the annexation is extremely important and must be addressed with economic development. With the increase in income we are able to lesson the burden on all taxpayers. Public safety is another priority that I will address. One of these is serving, what has been estimated at, over 1500 and as high as 2500 outstanding warrants. It is our solemn duty to protect our citizens and insure that justice is served.
We will institute a Pedophile Notification System that will keep the public informed with a current list at all times. This list will be posted on the cities web site and updated as reports come in. We must protect our most precious and vulnerable citizens. If you go to www.snellingformayor.com you will find “The Snelling Playbook” that will give you a more in depth outlook on these subjects. The key to the solution for all our cities issues is cooperation, collaboration with knowledgeable professionals, and the desire to listen to others.”
3) What specifically distinguishes you from your opponent in this race?
“This question is difficult for me. Not that it is hard to answer but that I am uncomfortable being critical of my opponent. I do not want to be
perceived as attacking for political gain. I have often said that I truly dislike the politics of politics. I will attempt to answer this question tactfully but honestly. My opponent has been in office previously and has a considerable reputation. I have been on the Clark County Council for the past three years serving one term as vice president. We have both been in the media and have records to compare. It is well documented of the relationship that my opponent has had working with others. His lack of being able to work with the City Council led to him refusing to attend several months of important meetings. I am a person that will work thru conflicts to reach common ground. I feel you must stand and face all obstacles for the good of the citizens. Another documented difference would be working within a budget. As Mayor my opponent has quite the reputation for ignoring this principle. He is well known for incurring considerable debt and creating lawsuits against the city which have cost the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a councilmember I was able to work in a bi-partisan way with both Democrats and Republicans. In the first year we were able to begin to rein in excessive spending. In the second year we were able to produce the first budget surplus in several years. This budget session we were able to reduce spending by over $3,000,000.00 thus reducing next year's property tax rate. I believe in the team concept. I would rather others receive the accolades. I think I'll stop there."
4) Jeffersonville must provide non-capital services {police, fire, sanitation} in the first year of your term and provide capital services (sewers) within three years. How do you plan to make sure this happens while financially maintaining the current levels of other city services?
“Annexation will be a top priority. Our city leaders have chosen to annex a very large area at one time. As of January 1 the citizens in these annexed areas will become a part of the city thus requiring the same amenities that are supplied to residents now. This will put a definite strain on the cities finances. We must work together as city leaders to plan properly and then implement that plan. This will be very challenging. A graphic example of this would be imagining that someone has taken a huge bite of cake. They must be very careful chewing. They must be very deliberate. If they are able to swallow everything goes smooth. But if they sneeze or cough they are in a mess. This is why I stress cooperation along with teamwork. The first year will be the most difficult. After that the city will have the additional revenue from property tax receipts. As I have stated earlier, growth in economic development along with creative funding will insure future success. We will have to be diligent in both of these areas to protect all taxpayers. Another area we will explore, in the short term, will be inter-local agreements. We will also explore the possibility of public private cooperation to achieve the goals we must attain. Again I must stress that the mayor and the city council along with the board of public works must work together. There must be a game plan agreed upon to protect all taxpayers. This plan must be executed in a deliberate concise manor, not full speed ahead with our eyes wide shut."
5) What are key points of your economic development plan for the city and what specific improvements can voters expect to see in the first half of your team?
“It seems that all discussion is centered around Veterans Parkway. I must fully agree, with the general public, it should have been well on its way to completion. Even though this is private development a lot of incentives have been dedicated by the city. There is no reason that this project has not progressed. I will assure the public that Veterans Parkway will move to the fast track. We must also recognize that Jeffersonville is blessed with several areas for economic development. Our downtown has many untapped resources that we can and will develop. I would again invite you to visit www.snellingformayor.com. Our playbook will help you to understand our goals. Economic Development in Jeffersonville has become stagnant. We live in a time that business recruitment is more competitive than anytime in history. We must be aggressive, tenacious, and creative! We will work in unison with great organizations such One Southern Indiana along with the Indiana Department Economic Development. We will not only market Jeffersonville regionally but also nationally. Our team will be second to none in the area of recruitment and closing the agreements. We will never be satisfied with the status quo. I am an adamant supporter of ending the reliance on property taxes. The perfect way to achieve this is with dramatic economic development. With so much at stake we will move fast and deliberate.”
6) What is your position on the timeline and plans for the Ohio River Bridges project?
“These bridges are twenty years overdo. They have been studied to death. The designs are excellent. The locations are perfect. Indiana has their portion of money for the projects in the bank drawing interest. These bridges will facilitate a tremendous economic opportunity. Whatever it takes to complete this project, I will do it! We will keep the pressure on all responsible parties to get these projects on the fast track.”
READER SUBMITTED QUESTIONS
• Have you ever visited the city's animal shelter? Do you believe there to be a management problem at the J.B. Ogle Animal Shelter? How should the city be involved and what can be done to improve the J.B. Ogle Animal Shelter to the level of its neighbors?
“Yes, I have visited the shelter on occasion. I, with all honesty, cannot say that there is a management problem at the shelter. The times that I have been there it appeared to be running smoothly. I did notice that it seemed in need of more help. This could be addressed with more volunteers. I have been informed of a few problems with some employees. This could possibly be a sign that closer oversight, from the management, is needed. I will promise to look in depth at the daily operations of the shelter if I am elected. If there are changes that are necessary they will be made promptly. I have visited local shelters, upon request from concerned citizens, and have found no distinguishable differences among them. This is to say that the city's shelter's operation is very comparable. There is always room for improvement in any operation. I would rely on animal authorities to advise us. We would then discuss the recommendations and implement those that are necessary. We would work as diligently to make the shelter an adoption facility. We would only put down animals when it is a necessity.”
• At least one candidate mentioned during the primary how the development along Jeffersonville's side of Veterans Parkway would have taken place by now if under their leadership. And how if they are elected it will happen sooner than it would have under the current administration. How do the candidates propose to spur development along that corridor and what can they do better that is not currently being done?
“Let me begin by saying it is very easy to be critical of someone else for political gain. It would be difficult to comment on the current administration. I do not know all of the obstacles that he has faced. What I can tell you is how our administration will achieve success on Veterans Parkway. As I have stated in an earlier question we will have an aggressive and tenacious economic development team. We will work with the developers to recruit tenants for all areas of the Veterans Parkway developments. We will also work in conjunction with groups such as One Southern Indiana. t may be that the scope of the operation may need to be altered. By this I am referring to the types of businesses that are being recruited. It may be that a different approach may be necessary. Even though this is a private development it is vital to our economy. The city has dedicated financial support for these projects and the developers must understand that the taxpayers are tired of delays. Another group that will be extensively involved will be our Business Leader Commission. The combination of aggressive recruitment, experience from the commission, location, and leadership this area will be developed soon and with the utmost quality.”
• The annexation area will include many roads, such as Utica-Sellersburg and Charlestown Pike, that have unsafe and extremely rough railroad crossings. Do the candidates feel that Jeffersonville will have it within the budget to improve these roads? And how would they prioritize and approach the rail companies about improving the crossings?
“When it involves public safety we will address all areas expeditiously. There are many concerns that I have on roads in the newly annexed areas. We will examine all areas and prioritize them accordingly. If it is a safety issue it will take priority. The 2008 budget for Jeffersonville has been ratified and I feel confident that these type of situations have been addressed. We will work within that budget. We will put public safety first. As for dealing with railroad companies this can be difficult. But with reasoning and the proper pressure they will work to insure public safety. We will have a well qualified public's work board that will have the tools necessary to address these types of situations.”
• It is widely accepted that the nicest park in Jeffersonville is private (Perrin Park). Given the age of the existing parks and equipment, and the requirement for new parks by annexation, what is your vision for the Jeff Parks System and how do you propose accomplishing the goal from a funding perspective? Will the funds be available to service residents who will now be in the “remote” sections of the city? What features or services are currently missing that can be added or improved upon.
“Perrin Park is a lovely well appointed park. But have you visited Bob Hedge Park recently? This park is a great example of vision by the Cherry Hill Neighborhood Organization. They had a dream along with a desire to work with public and private funding to see it thru. We now have a revamped public park that is beautiful. I would like to say to everyone involved in this project THANK YOU. We need more public participation on projects such as parks. Our administration will be open and welcome your involvement. If you go to our website, www.snellingformayor.com, we describe some of our ideas on parks. We will achieve these goals by utilizing public private partnerships along with creative financing sources. A modern park system is a vital part of our overall plan for the city. There are many improvements that we could add given the room that would be necessary. They would include walking tracks, tennis courts, water features, handicap equipment to name but a few. Another possibility would be working with sub-division developers to include well appointed neighborhood parks in their plans.”
What can be done to improve the relationship the mayors' office has historically had with the city council for the past 12 years? How can the city's leaders better “reach out” to their constituents?
“In order for Jeffersonville to move forward we must have cooperation between the leadership of the city. There will be times that you will disagree but you don't have to be disagreeable. This problem has been prevalent for a long time. Our administration will be open and up front with everyone. I will be accessible whenever I am needed. I look at government like a major business. You have a CEO a board of directors and a large group of investors. You work together to give your investors their greatest dividend. If anyone has the attitude it's my way or the highway you will forever have these problems. Also trying to slip things by others without openness will destroy respect faster than anything. I feel that you must treat others with respect in order to be respected. Each council member has a district that they serve along with the at-large members that cover the whole city. My first meeting with the council would be to ask each of them to list projects and problems in their districts. We would put them on the table and discuss solutions and work together to solve the issues. Being open, honest and cooperation is essential.”
• What can be done to improve the “public face” of Jeffersonville (especially the 10th St. entrance into the city), and how can it be
accomplished? This is relative to things such as curbs and landscaping, improving blighted areas, etc.
“This has been a concern of mine for along time. They rebuild and widen streets but they never include things such as landscaping and lighting. We not only need to improve and update but we need to make it aesthetically better. The 10th St. corridor must be updated from Spring St. up to Allison Lane. This would include removing power poles, the purchase of blighted buildings and razing them; complete the widening of 10th St. / Hwy62. We will also update street lighting and the planting of trees. This will enhance our ability to revive economic development and beautify our city. It will also give our current business owners the chance to thrive. As I have said many times we will be creative we will think outside of the box we have a plan to accomplish these projects with minimal intrusion on our taxpayers. This is not the only area of Jeffersonville that needs this type of attention. Veterans Parkway is a very good example of the lack of imagination.”
From the perspective of “selling” Jeffersonville as a “destination” or as a place to establish a home or business, what ideas do these candidates have to attract people to our city?
“I have lived in the Jeffersonville area my whole life. I have chosen not to leave because I know what is here. I know the historical relevance of our area. The problem is we have hidden it from everyone a lot of our own citizens don't know what we have. We need to promote Jeffersonville. We need to build on our history as well as bring in unique developments and projects. The Riverfront project is tremendous but I want to expand on it. I want to make it a destination for everyone. We must expand our park system to include more amenities. We need a major park in the newly annexed area to include something for everyone. I have listed a lot on this subject on our website. We have to get more public involvement in this area this city belongs to all of us; let's work together and make it shine. To entice businesses to come to our city we must present them with a complete package. This would include infrastructure, quality schools, advanced parks system, family activities, ect. We must make them understand they need Jeffersonville.”
Do you support the city of Jeffersonville providing funds to the haven House Shelter, which is currently under financial scrutiny by the Internal Revenue Service?
“Homelessness is not just a local issue. It is a major problem that must be dealt with. In the current form I would not support providing city funds to the Haven House. That is not to say that I would deny funding help for the homeless. I believe that there are better ways of dealing with this situation. This is a project that should be dealt with thru private, civic, and public funding. It should be worked out with strict parameters of caring for Clark County citizens. It should be temporary help while they are assisted in long range solutions. I would promote that while they are being assisted that they do community service work. I believe that this would justify investing taxpayer dollars. We would have to have in place a job placement program. It would be required that it be governed by a board of appointees from each body that is donating. I also believe in my opinion it should be managed by an independent entity. This is not a reflection on anyone involved at this time. It would merely be a way to have checks and balances, and keep its operation open to the publics' scrutiny.”
