My Views for Bountiful
QUALITY OF LIFE
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Bountiful as the “City of Choice” should be effectively promoted to new potential local business partners and homebuyers who can see and value the quality of life issues that matter most to homeowners: low taxes (lowest taxes in Davis County and the third lowest in the state - top 50 cities), good governance, top-notch city-services, easy access to amenities such as parks and trails, safe streets (4th safest city in Utah), ease of living with regard to shopping and entertainment, access to arts and culture, high civic engagement and community outreach.
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Preserve the integrity and historic significance of the Bountiful downtown district to promote new business development and enhanced, culturally-inclusive opportunities, such as festivals, the arts, music and entertainment.
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Develop a cohesive, City-wide Master Plan, including design and architectural standards, that drives all aspects of City governance relating to development, zoning, sustainability and planning, resulting in Bountiful as the destination of choice for job-generating businesses, home buyers and recreators.
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Creative development within the City-footprint for additional dedicated pedestrian and cycling lanes, pocket parks, green space, outdoor public pool, and publicly accessible respites, as well as enforcement of set-backs and the maintenance and accessibility of existing public thoroughfares, such as sidewalks. These “livability” factors will drive traffic to Bountiful both as visitors to our city who will spend money shopping and dining, but will also attract those who wish to live in our city and will increase property values.
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​Update and complete the Bountiful Trails Master Plan with citizen engagement and input. Over 70% of Bountiful citizens utilized our trail system during 2020, which underscores the importance of “getting this right”.​
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CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT
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Utilize processes that allow the City to be nimble and responsive to the concerns, needs and requests of residents and business partners with respect to public safety issues, zoning changes and requests, approvals and meaningful engagement with potential stakeholders. The City should be accountable to establish and follow timelines for responses to citizen requests/concerns, as well as zoning change requests and approvals to promote trust and transparency between the City, its residents and local businesses.
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Expand City outreach and citizen involvement by development of neighborhood coalitions with rotating chair people that serve as liaisons between the City and the neighborhood – allowing for more formal advocacy of specific neighborhood needs, giving all areas of the City a voice in governance. Audit all city-wide plans to prepare for rapid response to extreme weather events, including fire, wind and water scarcity, utilizing the neighborhood coalition chair people alongside members of the Bountiful Neighborhood Emergency Preparedness Committee.
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PUBLIC SAFETY
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Bountiful is ranked the 4th safest City in the state. The City must continue to invest in the talent and type of policing that builds upon accountability and collaborative, citizen-involved approaches to community policing. Bountiful City is the model for collaborative and community-based policing. We must continue to fund the best talent and support the self-evaluation policing strategies implemented by Chief Ross and now continued under Chief Bieler.
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Support Bountiful’s commitment to adequate and responsible funding and maintenance of equipment and personnel for the South Davis Metro Fire Service – the first responders who provide emergency and rescue response services that keep our loved ones, our homes and our hillsides safe.
CITY SERVICES, INFRASTRUCTURE & SUSTAINABILITY
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Prioritize the maintenance and improvement of Bountiful’s assets, as we make long term plans and investments toward a sustainable, healthy future, including: Bountiful City Light & Power, roads, infrastructure and public spaces including parks and trails, the Bountiful City Dump, the Bountiful Water Treatment plant, the Bountiful Police Department and agencies we participate in with other South Davis Cities, such as the Weber Water Basin, South Davis Recreation, South Davis Metro Fire Department, and CenterPoint Legacy Theatre.
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Develop a city-wide fiber network plan. Bountiful should look at all available options to make the best decision that will benefit the most residents. Partnering with fiber industry leaders, the city should aim to provide the best service at the lowest cost, with the least amount of exposure with regard to potential for tax increases and liability to the City.
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Promote initiatives and partnerships that will result in the conservation, preservation and sustainability of our City’s valuable natural resources, including culinary and secondary water sources and strategic use plans, air quality, increasing reliance on sustainable power-generation sources and contracts, vegetation and public green spaces. Bountiful has a long history of good governance and planning for the future, however, as we move forward, we need to take the long-view and plan accordingly with a vision for a sustainable and affordable city services, which will include more renewable power sources, rigorous stewardship of what Bountiful has established with water, refuse and recycling, and air quality.
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Conduct an energy audit of the City, which will include all city owned assets, properties, in order to find opportunities to reduce waste, reduce energy use, increase opportunities for sustainable development as attrition occurs with lighting, HVAC, transportation fleet, charging stations, going paperless, etc.
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Conduct a city-wide air-quality and emissions audit, and subsequently adopt technology and strategies to reduce the City’s greenhouse emissions and carbon footprint. Require all new development to meet design and engineering requirements that meet environmental standards that will utilize materials and designs that will help the end user, owners or renters spend less on energy costs.
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Engage in the strategic maintenance and improvement of all public roadways, traffic lights/signs, crosswalks and streetlights, with mandatory analysis of inclusive pedestrian/cycling-conducive infrastructure that will improve, expand and encourage usage of the City’s dedicated bike and pedestrian lanes.
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Work with solar power generators/users to create a fair solution to both users and the city as a buyer of excess solar. Support or allow “Community Solar Projects” that allow the adoption of sustainable solar energy by homeowners who can buy a share of a larger solar project, bringing an economy of scale to those who otherwise would not be able to access the benefits of utilizing solar energy at their residence.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY:
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Increase Bountiful’s retail and business tax base, through the active promotion of Bountiful as a positive place to do business, resulting in increased tax revenues, keeping taxes low for residents. The City should prioritize targeted economic development in all zones of the City, especially those that are currently fallow, or underperforming, yet have tax-generating potential.
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Fiscal responsibility and living within our means is a true Bountiful value. We must budget wisely to optimize every tax dollar for the benefit of all Bountiful citizens. Bountiful is a "Pay as you Go" municipality and I support that fiscal legacy.
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Maintenance of Bountiful’s “discretionary” or “rainy-day fund” through responsible, transparent taxation, including “truth in taxation” hearings. Work to maintain low taxes and responsible use of tax dollars. All use of taxpayer dollars must be needs-based justified and tied to specific goals and metrics.
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