What makes you qualified to be on the council?
I’m not, but I have been going to council meetings on a very regular basis.I just wanted a seat at the table.
What makes Cottonwood great?
Cottonwood has a great community. Any time I or anyone else has needed anything, the community has stepped up to provide direct assistance or contacts to get the assistance that is needed. Over the last few months, it has been amazing how everyone has pulled together to get through one chal- lenge after another.
What would be different if you were on the council?
The meetings will become way more entertaining.
How will you help Cottonwood to recover from the coronavirus and resulting economic slump?
It is critical that the city work with small business owners, the chamber, OTA and other organizations to come up with a path that helps everyone thrive. The smaller events designed to increase traffic to retail shops and restaurants has been great so far. Hopefully we can do more of them as well as utilizing park spaces and recreation areas to bring in more people to the area and continue to provide activities for current residents and the surrounding area.
How do you hope to keep Cottonwood affordable to residents?
The reality is the cost of living is going to go up. It costs more to build, buy materials, maintain properties, roads, insure, etc. Council does not have a magic wand to control rent or price fix anything. The city needs to work with local high schools, VTEC and colleges to provide the skills necessary to those entering the work force so they can get jobs that have higher pay scales or the resources, for those that want to, to start a business and build jobs for others in the community.
Candidate Essay:
I have been in Arizona for just over six years now, five of them in Cottonwood. I moved here from Long Island, N.Y. I started off in Phoenix, didn’t realize at 2 a.m. it was still 120 F and that wasn’t going to work for me. I went up to Flagstaff, didn’t want to own a snow shovel so I found a spot half way down the mountain.
Shortly after moving here, I realized I could not find a job for what I was willing to get out of bed for, so I opened 360 Automotive in June of 2016.
I have been active with local business organizations, including the Chamber, Local First, Verde Valley Network Referrals Club, as well as actively participating with the MUHS Auto Program.
As a business owner and a resident, I started watching what was going on at the city level. The place I moved from made it damn near impossible for anyone starting out to make it as a business owner. Way too much red tape and taxes. As I started paying attention on the local level, I saw the decisions being made and voiced my opinion at meetings when it was necessary.
One of the many meetings I attended discussed going to single hauler, on the basis that it would save unnecessary wear and tear on the roads. I came from an area that has had single hauler for as long as I can remember. Our roads still crumbled and they had a significantly bigger budget to work with. There is absolutely no reason to risk eliminating higher paying jobs in an area where high paying jobs are scarce to begin with when the end result isn’t going to fix the issue that many think it will fix.
I have watched the same three roads get repaved over and over out here while roads that actually need to be redone are “added to the list.” Full disclosure, I drive a 10,000 pound Ford dually as my daily driver. Until I hit the lotto and can get that MC12, that’s not going to change. My truck will tear up chip seal all day long, and that is with out me driving like [crazy]. We need to figure out a better solution to road construction, even if it means spending a little more on the road and not repaving as many, but doing it in a way that we can pave it and move on to the next one instead of going back over it again and again.
In participating with the high school program, I got to talk with some of the students. The general perception is that the city doesn’t care about the younger generation. I do not feel that is in any way an accurate representation of how anyone in the city feels. However, we can do more to provide programs and events that are targeted towards teenagers and families with younger children that can be beneficial to all parties involved. At the end of the day, we need the next generation to be successful. Local businesses need staff, and all of us need paying customers. To exclude the younger generation now and drive them out will push our community in the wrong direction.
