Blake Roberts
Name: Blake Roberts
Public Office Sought: Forest Lake City Council
Email: [email protected]
Campaign Phone: 651-755-6400
Campaign Website: na
Twitter handle:
Facebook Page: blake for forest lake
Candidate Bio
I am a lifelong resident of Forest Lake and 25 year small business owner. My wife ShaVaughan and I have 3 girls that all have attended Forest Lake Area Schools. I am active in the Forest Lake Chamber of Commerce, member and past president of Forest Lake Rotary club, member of the Forest Lake Lions club and past president of the Forest Lake Lake Association.
In addition to owning and operating 3 small businesses, I have been on the city’s Economic Development Authority for 12 years and involved in a number of EDA projects during that time.
My family has lived in Forest Lake for 3rd generations. Our love for this town runs deep and I am excited for the opportunity to make Forest Lake one of the premier city in the region.
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
Create a family and business friendly environment that is pro development.
Ensure responsible spending
Improve city infrastructure, aesthetics and our downtown district.
How would you characterize the business climate in Forest Lake and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
Forest Lake’s business community is strong, but needs larger employers to provide well paying jobs for our residents and increase a larger tax base to help support our schools and other quality of life opportunities for residents of the city.
What role do you think the city should have in attracting and retaining jobs, and what steps would you take to solicit new businesses to, and retain existing businesses in, Forest Lake?
The city needs to continue to work with Forest Lake Chamber of Commerce and Washington County Community Development Agency and the Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers’s Open to Business program to attract, retain and solicit jobs and businesses to the city of Forest Lake.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address the labor shortage?
Working with the organizations previously mentioned can also help with the current labor shortage.
Do you support any specific employment-related proposals in Forest Lake (such as minimum wage, sick time, or mandatory scheduling notice)? If so, what steps would you take to understand the impact of an ordinance on the many types of businesses in Forest Lake and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
I believe those types of policies are not the roll of a city the size of Forest Lake
Public safety and rising crime rates are of serious concern to the business community and residents. What strategies or policies would you propose to address public safety issues facing your community?
We are very fortunate to have an amazing police department in Forest Lake. The role of the city is to make sure the police department has all the resources it needs to fight crime and make public safety a major priority…I will make sure that happens if elected.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address housing issues facing your community?
I don't believe the city needs to put any more policies in place, but believe strongly that we should be open and welcoming to all types of housing projects.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address transportation issues facing your community? Have your strategies or views changed on transportation since we’ve seen shifts in road use, public transportation use, work from home models, etc. due to the pandemic?
Forest Lake is geographically in an awesome location with being just north of the I-35 split with easy access to either St Paul and Minneapolis.
The city needs to continue to work with MNDOT and the county to ensure our roads are able to keep up with the region's growth in population.
The city is in talks with Washington County about the turnback of highway 61 to the county. This will allow the city to have more control of more of Lake Street, which I absolutely believe needs to happen.
My views have not changed since the pandemic, but when ridership warrants, I believe the MTC bus lines should resume as they did pre pandemic.
I would like to see the New Traxx bus routes, that cater to senior citizens, remain as long as ridership warrants.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
My priority for the city budget is to be mindful of residential and commercial property taxes at the same time ensure the city has the funds needed to make sure all functions of city government are met.
What will you do to expand Forest Lake’s tax base?
I would like to see smaller lot sizes in areas of the city that have infrastructure in place to support denser residential growth which will allow more homes to be built and expand the tax base. A more pro development environment with allow for more commercial and residential grow therefore increase the taxbase
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
I will promote that the city continues to work and expand the relationships with local school districts, state and regional post secondary schools and our Chamber of Commerce to help develop and retain a superior workforce.
Are there any services currently provided by the city that you believe should be cut back or eliminated? Are there new opportunities to share services with other entities?
I would not cut back on any services and look for opportunities to share services to better serve the residents of the city, especially if it can cut costs.
What is the role of the City Council in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Forest Lake?
I would advocate that the city support all people that would like to do business in Forest Lake, regardless of race or gender.
What further policies can Forest Lake adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
The city needs to continue to work with the county, state and our chamber of commerce to help the business community continue to recover, but at this time, I don't believe that the city needs any policies to do so.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
Public Office Sought: Forest Lake City Council
Email: [email protected]
Campaign Phone: 651-755-6400
Campaign Website: na
Twitter handle:
Facebook Page: blake for forest lake
Candidate Bio
I am a lifelong resident of Forest Lake and 25 year small business owner. My wife ShaVaughan and I have 3 girls that all have attended Forest Lake Area Schools. I am active in the Forest Lake Chamber of Commerce, member and past president of Forest Lake Rotary club, member of the Forest Lake Lions club and past president of the Forest Lake Lake Association.
In addition to owning and operating 3 small businesses, I have been on the city’s Economic Development Authority for 12 years and involved in a number of EDA projects during that time.
My family has lived in Forest Lake for 3rd generations. Our love for this town runs deep and I am excited for the opportunity to make Forest Lake one of the premier city in the region.
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
Create a family and business friendly environment that is pro development.
Ensure responsible spending
Improve city infrastructure, aesthetics and our downtown district.
How would you characterize the business climate in Forest Lake and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
Forest Lake’s business community is strong, but needs larger employers to provide well paying jobs for our residents and increase a larger tax base to help support our schools and other quality of life opportunities for residents of the city.
What role do you think the city should have in attracting and retaining jobs, and what steps would you take to solicit new businesses to, and retain existing businesses in, Forest Lake?
The city needs to continue to work with Forest Lake Chamber of Commerce and Washington County Community Development Agency and the Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers’s Open to Business program to attract, retain and solicit jobs and businesses to the city of Forest Lake.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address the labor shortage?
Working with the organizations previously mentioned can also help with the current labor shortage.
Do you support any specific employment-related proposals in Forest Lake (such as minimum wage, sick time, or mandatory scheduling notice)? If so, what steps would you take to understand the impact of an ordinance on the many types of businesses in Forest Lake and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
I believe those types of policies are not the roll of a city the size of Forest Lake
Public safety and rising crime rates are of serious concern to the business community and residents. What strategies or policies would you propose to address public safety issues facing your community?
We are very fortunate to have an amazing police department in Forest Lake. The role of the city is to make sure the police department has all the resources it needs to fight crime and make public safety a major priority…I will make sure that happens if elected.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address housing issues facing your community?
I don't believe the city needs to put any more policies in place, but believe strongly that we should be open and welcoming to all types of housing projects.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address transportation issues facing your community? Have your strategies or views changed on transportation since we’ve seen shifts in road use, public transportation use, work from home models, etc. due to the pandemic?
Forest Lake is geographically in an awesome location with being just north of the I-35 split with easy access to either St Paul and Minneapolis.
The city needs to continue to work with MNDOT and the county to ensure our roads are able to keep up with the region's growth in population.
The city is in talks with Washington County about the turnback of highway 61 to the county. This will allow the city to have more control of more of Lake Street, which I absolutely believe needs to happen.
My views have not changed since the pandemic, but when ridership warrants, I believe the MTC bus lines should resume as they did pre pandemic.
I would like to see the New Traxx bus routes, that cater to senior citizens, remain as long as ridership warrants.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
My priority for the city budget is to be mindful of residential and commercial property taxes at the same time ensure the city has the funds needed to make sure all functions of city government are met.
What will you do to expand Forest Lake’s tax base?
I would like to see smaller lot sizes in areas of the city that have infrastructure in place to support denser residential growth which will allow more homes to be built and expand the tax base. A more pro development environment with allow for more commercial and residential grow therefore increase the taxbase
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
I will promote that the city continues to work and expand the relationships with local school districts, state and regional post secondary schools and our Chamber of Commerce to help develop and retain a superior workforce.
Are there any services currently provided by the city that you believe should be cut back or eliminated? Are there new opportunities to share services with other entities?
I would not cut back on any services and look for opportunities to share services to better serve the residents of the city, especially if it can cut costs.
What is the role of the City Council in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Forest Lake?
I would advocate that the city support all people that would like to do business in Forest Lake, regardless of race or gender.
What further policies can Forest Lake adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
The city needs to continue to work with the county, state and our chamber of commerce to help the business community continue to recover, but at this time, I don't believe that the city needs any policies to do so.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?