Rob's blog

The Utah League of Women Voters (ULWV) is creating a candidate profile section on their web site where candidates for local office up for election this year can post a picture and a response to three questions each were asked:

• What two serious issues do you see as priorities for action in your community?

• What can your community do to work towards solving problems related to the environment such as air quality and water conservation?

• What issues related to growth, such as planning and zoning and traffic congestion, do you see a need to address?

These are excellent questions. They are especially important to West Jordan this year. To make voters familiar with what I am standing for, I am providing my answers to these questions and a link to the league's web site so they can compare with the other candidates who choose to respond to the questions.

1. What two serious issues do you see as priorities for action in your community?

West Jordan is the 4th largest city in the state - and closing in on the 3rd. Yet we face many large city issues with people who are used to being a small town. We need to commit more resources for additional traffic and law enforcement officers to keep crime out of our city and keep our neighborhoods safe; our other serious issue is to maintain citizen control of city government. For years, West Jordan was the favorite of developers who wanted to build small homes on tiny lots or apartments because they city would never say no. Well now, the city council is saying no, and some developers don't like it. Voters in this election MUST determine if they will allow candidates who want MORE growth, FASTER growth, MORE signs, or MORE cars to turn back time, or if they want West Jordan to become the quality, high-standards community it has already started to become.

2. What can your community do to work towards solving problems related to the environment such as air quality and water conservation?

Cars sitting at red lights and commuting out of West Jordan and back every day contributes greatly towards air pollution in the Salt Lake Valley. We have pushed to bring TRAX to our city, are working with UTA on a BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) system, making more walkable communities, working with the Wasatch Front Regional Council on east-west traffic corridor improvements and bringing more high-paying jobs to the city so drivers can drive/commute less or use mass transit to get more cars off the roads. I am also planning on sponsoring a change to the landscape ordinance to eliminate prohibitions for water-wise landscaping in yards and park strips, while encouraging safe stormwater management so we don't put contaminants from our homes and driveways into the water system and end up polluting our rivers and drinking sources.

3. What issues related to growth, such as planning and zoning and traffic congestion, do you see a need to address?

Years of unchecked growth have resulted in a traffic crisis in our city. The more homes that are built (compounded by high density and huge multi-family complexes), the more people we have, the more cars are on the road, the more congestion there is. Growth needs to be slowed to allow infrastructure (roads, schools, etc.) to catch up then keep pace with new development instead of always being reactive. Higher density needs to only be allowed around Transit Oriented Development (public transportation). Any other upzoning or project approvals need to be granted carefully and only as they minimize impact on the existing residents. The city council should not approve every project, density or rezone request that it receives. Each needs to be weighed to first determine what impact it will have on traffic congestion, school crowding and proximity to existing city infrastructure so NEW development pays for itself, not the existing residents.