THE ISSUES
-Fiscally Accountable Government -Responsible Growth -Quality of Life
RESULTS AS LONG AS HIS LAST NAME
THE ISSUES
-Fiscally Accountable Government -Responsible Growth -Quality of Life
RESULTS AS LONG AS HIS LAST NAME
THE ISSUES
I WANT TO KNOW YOUR CONCERNS
Gilbert is a very well-run town, but no matter how good, things are not everyone will be satisfied all of the time. I've built two businesses, one national and one international. One of the most important lessons I've learned in my career is to do one thing very well, that is, LISTEN AND EXPLAIN "THE WHY" BEHIND PROPOSALS AND DECISIONS.
No one can run a successful business if they fail to listen to their customers and employees. I've been inducted into the Franchisee Satisfaction Hall of Fame (less than 1% of franchisors reach this honor) because I listened to my franchisees.
Many Gilbert citizens told me their voices aren't being heard. I am here to listen and CHANGE THAT. That’s why I set up “Chuck Chats.” Please schedule a call with me.
FISCALLY ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNMENT SPENDING
Town officials must constantly remember that tax revenue comes from citizens and businesses. Tax revenue is the people's money and NOT the government's. Therefore, being good stewards of the money is extremely important. That means transparency.
It is vital that government is transparent with all aspects of spending and includes involving citizens along the way, communicating how much money is being spent and why specific projects are essential to fund.
RESPONSIBILE GROWTH
Responsible Growth means so many different things to so many different people. For some, it means never changing, stopping all new development. For others, itmeans developing areas as long as it isn’t in their own backyards.
I’m not against growth as some of my opponents are. I believe “Responsible Growth” simply means growth comes with responsibility, from both the government and individual. I believe developers must explain how requested code changes will benefit the community and the Town's shareholders, not just their own bottom line.
QUALITY OF LIFE
Quality of life means so many things. It can be traffic for some people and lower taxes for others. Quality of life also includes being heard. Citizens must feel like the Town is theirs. This means we need to find ways to increase civic engagement and respect the input from our citizens.
TRANSPORTATION
Transportation will be addressed with the recent $550 million dollar bond. The Traffic Master Plan was created with the 20-year vision for the Town's multi-modal transportation network. We must be flexible to changes in traffic styles and modes of transportation.
With that said, we must also be open to creative solutions while being realistic about where we live. For example, some bike lanes are great, but we're not a town in the midwest with average temperatures in the 70s.
We need to remember the practicality of all projects.
LOCAL BUSINESS ENGAGEMENT
I started my businesses in Gilbert and have stayed here. My first business grew to over 155 locations in 37 states, and my current company is international. I UNDERSTAND BUSINESS and how to scale, grow and leverage partnerships.
When I'm elected, I'll work with local organizations to support out-of-the-box ideas to encourage local businesses to think differently and collaboratively. Together, through multi-level collaborations, our small, local businesses will continue to thrive in our growing town.
LAND USE
I believe the best way to work with the almost 5,000 vacant acres is to stick to the general plan and challenge rezoning as proposed by some developers.
I would like to see more residential neighborhoods created with multi-use zone uses to incorporate the best of residential and commercial settings in one. This would eliminate some traffic congestion along the way.
I am against the further development of huge apartment complexes, especially in concentrated areas.
HOUSING ATTAINABILITY
Housing attainability is a national crisis as the local government cannot control market forces related to home prices. We hit the perfect storm with COVID, labor issues, work stoppages, and logistics for building supplies.
Home prices will start leveling off, if not decrease, over the next few years as the market stabilizes and interest rates increase.
We have to wait out the market cycle and take advantage of what it may bring.
MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING
We can't put our heads in the sand. We need some apartments to support our labor in the Town. Not too many workers are willing to travel from Phoenix to work in Gilbert.
As noted above, I don't support colossal multi-family apartments; however, I do support smaller unit apartments appropriately distributed across the Town as long as we commit to strict code enforcement in the future.
We need attainable housing options for young individuals and families. Not all young families can afford a half million dollar home early in life.
Thirty-three years ago, I moved into an apartment in Gilbert – the apartment still looks good today! But unfortunately, not many of our neighboring communities can say that.
I would support more condominiums so people have the opportunity to experience the pride of ownership.
We need to seek creative out-of-the-box solutions. That said, we can't vote "NO" to new ideas just because an idea is different.
WATER
We need to continue to be at the table and actively involved with surrounding cities. Once a game plan is established, we have to lead the other cities in its implementation.
This is a very serious issue.
We need to rethink our "green belts" in some of our parks and along roadways.
We also need to consider what kinds of trees and plants are being planted in new developments and make sure we are fully taking advantage of rainwater, grey water, or recycled water policies to stretch our water uses.
TOWN PARKS
It's always great to have town amenities in parks as they increase the quality of life for our citizens. However, we need to truly balance those amenities with costs to the taxpayers.
We can't chase the next new "shiny thing" just because we can.
One of the best parks in Gilbert is Riparian Park and I don't recall seeing any waterslides there.
It's simply called "Balance."
TOWN FISCAL POLICIES
I boot-strapped all my companies without any debt. I know that's not possible in townships; however, I have a saying on one of my signs[, "If it doesn't make sense, it shouldn't get our money."
Council members must stop just saying their fiscal conservatives and start practicing it.
We need to evaluate potential waste of taxpayers’ money and remember it isn't our money; it's the money of hard-working citizens. That's why I believe the Council should have some members with solid business backgrounds.
I will approach financial decisions as a CEO – is there a more cost-effective way to achieve our goals – to get the most out of our stakeholders’ money?