Joe Hernandez
Name: Joe Hernandez
Public Office Sought: Woodbury Mayor
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 651-504-2563
Website: www.joeforwoodbury.com
Twitter: @joeforwoodbury
Facebook Page: Joseph Hernandez
Candidate Bio
I am a researcher in 3M's Corporate Research Process Laboratory. My research expands internal measurement capabilities for process control. I’m also an Adjunct Professor at Dunwoody College of Technology where I teach courses in Statistical Quality Control. I earned my PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University with research focused on experimental measurement of microscale, two-phase flow.
My volunteer efforts focus on personal and family development, placing families first. I have a wide variety of leadership, volunteer and policy crafting experience that translates to a well-rounded Mayor. I have held multiple leadership positions in non-profit organizations created to help and encourage early childhood education; this includes the Great Start Collaborative, ECFE, and BHK Child Development. I am currently the Vice President of the early childhood family education (ECFE) parent advisory council and I coach in-house youth baseball with the WAA (Woodbury Athletic Association). I am married and a father of six children, 5 attend public school in district 833. Finally, I know how to work with a diverse group of people with a wide variety of personal beliefs and temperaments. The ability to compromise and a set of core beliefs will guide me during times that require tough decisions.
Business climate
1. How would you characterize the business climate in Woodbury?
The business climate in Woodbury is generally strong, but is too heavily focused on retail and storefront development. The recent expansion of medical services is a step in the right direction towards long term, industrial stability. Woodbury’s current Comprehensive Plan for 2040 [1] is not business friendly; only 33 additional acres are zoned for non-retail businesses over the next 20 years. This is a reduction in zoning for businesses by 311 acres relative to the 2030 [2] plan.
Some businesses are struggling to find workers at the lower end of the wage spectrum, especially those that rely on entry level, or service based employees. It has become increasingly difficult to find qualified employees in response to the recent retail expansion. Part of this problem, is traced to the lack of transportation infrastructure and affordable housing in Woodbury. This limits the potential employment pool because employees paid at the lower end of the wage spectrum likely cannot afford to live in Woodbury, requiring increased commuting and resource pressure on potential employees. This imbalance deters future business growth.
2. What role do you think the City should have in attracting and retaining jobs, and how would your administration actively solicit new businesses to, and retain existing businesses in, Woodbury?
The City of Woodbury should actively seek to create an economic landscape where additional jobs are created, current jobs are retained and upward mobility can occur. This starts by increasing the area zoned for “Places to Work”, creating a tax incentive for businesses to hire local residents, and encouraging students to return to Woodbury at earlier stages of their career.
Places to Work: I would devote significant resources to attracting new companies and businesses to Woodbury with an emphasis on high paying jobs. I would add a business developer to the staff whose primary responsibility would be to identify and plan for business expansion within the city. This position would include identifying new businesses, but also helping existing businesses expand or move to new locations within the city. The support structure might come in the form of a small business or industrial incubator that allows startups to take a risk without traditional early stage capital burden.
Hiring Local and retaining youth: Encouragement to hire local residents would likely be in the form of a property tax rebate. Local businesses would see a reduction in tax if a qualifying resident is employed.
I also want to encourage students to return to Woodbury while they are in school or after they have graduated, but there are too few internship opportunities or entry level jobs. I’d like to create a classroom, to school, to employment pipeline, and have businesses opt-in to the program. There is ample room for business growth in Woodbury, with a highly educated workforce, and I believe we should take advantage of this positive climate and open our doors to new businesses. Currently, the proposed 2040 Plan does not actively seek new business and places a moratorium on new “Places to Work”
3. Will you commit to hiring a business advocate as a member of your senior staff, to concentrate on business retention and expansion; new business recruitment; and business impact of proposed regulations on the business climate in Woodbury?
Yes. The city needs to recruit new business and retain existing business and that won’t happen without additional advocacy. Woodbury has an opportunity to expand the zoning of non-retail businesses instead of placing a moratorium on increased business zoning over the next 20 years as the 2040 Comprehensive Plan seeks to enact. Additionally, the 2040 Comprehensive Plan further encumbers redevelopment and expansion, “the intensity levels of future commercial/industrial areas will include impervious coverage of 65 to 70 percent based on the requirements of the City Code.” This is essentially a “Green Tax” to ensure aquifers are replenished because the City doesn’t have an adequate plan for water infrastructure. For example, the City of Woodbury currently dumps surplus water into the Mississippi River instead of short term surface storage; this overflow route was completed as part of the "Central Draw Project [3]." Business development should not be inhibited because existing water resources are not properly managed.
4. Do you support an increase to the minimum wage in Woodbury? If so, what specific steps would you take to understand the impact of an increase on the many types of businesses in Woodbury and do you support proposals to mitigate the effects on businesses like a tip credit, a youth wage, a training wage, and/or a phase-in?
If the minimum wage were increased in Woodbury, I would support tax breaks for any affected business, with the stipulation that they must hire locally, within the east metro. This approach has two advantages; it isolates uncertainty for currently successful businesses and it provides upward mobility for existing residents.
I support mitigation efforts; the existing [4] youth and training thresholds are acceptable. Additionally, I would like to see the transition from a tips system for the service industry to a standard hourly rate. The minimum wage, whatever value it is set at, should be clear and concise so that businesses can make informed financial decisions. Minimum wage increases have lagged in recent years, and I support an increase to the minimum wage to a well-defined standard of living. The Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT estimates that a living wage in Washington County is $11.96 [5] currently, which is an increase over the current $9.65 and $7.87 thresholds currently in place.
5. Do you support any other specific employment-related proposals in Woodbury (such as mandatory sick time or scheduling notice)? If so, what specific steps would you take to understand the impact of an increase on the many types of businesses in Woodbury and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
I do not support actions at the local level for dictating terms or benefits of employment for private business but it is important for a business to acknowledge the human nature of their employees; getting sick is part of life. I don’t want a city managed sick/vacation time requirement that may result in unintended consequences for employees and business community.
The more important challenge is managing a work/life balance for all employees. The city, citizens, employers and employees should have a partnership that strives to increase the quality of life for every person in Woodbury.
Public safety
6. What is your strategy to address public safety concerns?
Woodbury has a low crime rate and is generally viewed as being a safe community. I want to continue to do what works, and I believe our Public Safety division is working. One area of concern, Woodbury’s fire loss rate is higher than other comparable cities; the underlying cause for this should be investigated and understood.
I would seek to understand concerns which are raised. I think it’s worth paying for public safety rather than trying to cut corners to save a few dollars. A safe community is a prerequisite for a strong community.
Budget
7. What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
My biggest priority is to stabilize transportation infrastructure costs. The city had been paying for road maintenance through a fee assessed to real estate developers. The MN Supreme Court recently found this payment structure to be illegal [6]. Woodbury will need to find a new revenue source to pay for these maintenance costs that are now unfunded. A balance is needed between new revenue generated from businesses and homeowners.
The city must also improve its management of water resources. I expect and intend for much of this cost to be covered by state level funding. If the state manages the resource efficiently, the city may see a reduction in future expenditures associated with water resources. I would like to use any budget surplus to provide property tax relief or providing additional recreational services.
8. How do you view the relationship between commercial and residential property taxes?
Commercially zoned land produces three times the tax revenue as an equivalently sized residential zone. I can’t tell you what the ideal ratio is, but there is some notion of balance which I don’t believe currently exists. In an ideal world, property taxes on both types of land use would pay for services the government provides to each property type. This concept may be true for residential property taxes, with 25% of the taxes paid by Woodbury residents going to the city budget. By contrast, commercial Real Estate developers, which account for a substantial portion of commercial business in Woodbury, were until very recently, subsidizing road improvement and maintenance costs for residential areas. A developer recently sued the city of Woodbury and the Minnesota Supreme Court determined that the assessed fees for road infrastructure were illegal. It is completely wrong for the city to have misused the funds earmarked for public infrastructure.
9. What will you do to expand Woodbury’s tax base?
I want to expand the amount of land zoned for business. First, the 2040 plan needs to be defeated. The 2030 plan called for an increase in the “Places to Work” (business) zoning in Woodbury by roughly 311 acres, the 2040 plan essentially eliminates that increase. We need to revert back to the 2030 plan, at a minimum. Next, I want to make Woodbury the Technology Epicenter of the East Metro. Part of this effort will include establishing a technology and manufacturing incubator program to enable new businesses the resources they need to prove their business model.
We have a highly educated resident base that generally commutes outside of the city for employment. I want to bring high tech jobs and manufacturing to Woodbury. This will lead to new tax revenue and increase the liquidity of the employment market; this is good for both businesses and residents. There are positive second order affects to business expansion. For example, more high paying jobs will decrease the transportation congestion at the interstate connections as fewer residents travel outside of the city for work. Shorter commutes provide a higher quality of life, with more time being available for leisure.
Workforce development
10. How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
First, there isn’t a post-secondary school in Woodbury; the closest is Century College or Metro State University. This limits accessibility for high school students who currently have to commute from Woodbury to St. Paul to take advantage of existing programs like PSEO (Post-Secondary Enrollment Option). The city has enough resources to make post-secondary education more accessible. The city, in concert with the school district, can and should make this easier; there are many mechanisms that would achieve this, but providing some sort of busing service or subsidizing college level courses in Woodbury seem like easy solutions.
Secondly, there are many adults who may benefit from continuing education or job re-training if they are switching careers. The City of Woodbury has the resources to form partnerships with local school districts and businesses to offer better job-retraining and continuing education options. The city has a number of resources within its borders which are available for additional community education during off or idle times. These are resources that already exist; we just need to make better use of them. I would like to work more closely with the school districts and local businesses to make better use of existing facilities and curriculum to ensure Woodbury’s workforce remains highly educated.
11. What do you see as the mayor’s role with regard to public schools in Woodbury?
Woodbury has three of the best high schools in the state; Woodbury High, East Ridge High and the Math and Science Academy. These schools are largely successful because our residents value education and willingness to pay for it through referendums. A portion of school funding in Washington County is supplied by an industrial tax. Unfortunately, this tax does not benefit most schools in Woodbury. There is only one such industrial zone in Woodbury, in the northeast corner, and it happens to be the only area assigned to the Stillwater School District 834. South Washington County School District 833, which is almost entirely located in Woodbury, does not benefit from this industrial tax base. I would advocate for a new industrial zone to be created within School District 833’s boundaries to ensure that Woodbury money benefits a larger portion of residents.
While the mayor’s office has no direct oversight over public schools within Woodbury, the Mayor can advocate for policy, like zoning, which affects public school funding. I would absolutely advocate for more commercial and industrial zoning. I would also like to see the Woodbury City Council and the various different school boards work more collaboratively.
Other
12. What is the biggest challenge facing the city and how would you address it?
The biggest problem affecting the city is infrastructure; there are too few methods of transportation and there are deficiencies with how the city manages water resources.
Most households in Woodbury are required to own a car in order to go anywhere. This leads to single passenger vehicles that add to the congestion, this will only get worse as the population grows. In order to reduce congestion, I support expanding public transit, but the current proposals are inadequate alone. I believe our best chance of alleviating the transportation issue is to reduce the number of people that are forced to commute from Woodbury to their place of work, in a car, during peak traffic times. By centralizing new industry within Woodbury, fewer residents will be required to drive and that will contribute to alleviating congestion. Supporting additional transportation to the surrounding suburbs will decrease congestion. The current "spoke" model only services a portion of commuters. Employees that travel on the 494/694 interstate are required to commute or spend long hours on public transportation. Improving the quality of life of every resident is a major focus of my campaign.
The city needs to build a municipal water filtration system [7,8] and connect every residential dwelling to city water where economically feasible. The city should also explore connecting to nearby water systems such as the St. Paul Regional Water systems. The major contaminants are PFOAs and PFOCs (also referred to as PFCs or polyflurocarbons) originating from industrial waste disposal and Radium which is present in the geology of our local aquifers.
13. What would be your top three priorities if elected?
14. What do you think should be the city’s top transportation related priority?
I support the expansion of public transit, but it needs to make sense and benefit commuters, local business access and general population mobility. The current proposal creates a Bus Rapid Transit Line, the Gold Line, which largely travels along interstate 94 from St. Paul to Woodbury. This project is in the development phase for the next two years, and will start operation in 2024 if approved. The estimated ridership would be 8000 people per day in 2040. The Gold Line may ease the burden of population growth, but it won’t fully address the transportation issue we’re encountering now or in the future. I view the Gold Line as mitigation to the current problem, not a full solution.
A solution to transportation congestion in Woodbury relies on several complex systems working in concert with each other. The number of high paying local jobs must be increased, which will decrease commuter congestion. An increase in affordable housing will decrease the number of people commuting from other areas to work in the vast retail marketplace in Woodbury. In short, I believe our transportation problem is exacerbated by the city’s general affluence, which is a strength of the residents of Woodbury. The city needs to address the view that only a small percentage of residents who live in Woodbury, work in Woodbury.
15. Are there any services currently provided by the city that you believe should be cut back or eliminated? Or, are there new opportunities to share services with other entities?
A greater partnership between the workforce center and existing businesses could increase the labor force participation rate and fill much needed roles in the local employment market.
I’d like to see the Library system expanded within Woodbury to make better use of existing infrastructure. There are a number of public schools that already have libraries, yet they remain disconnected from the Woodbury Public Library. In partnership with School Districts 833/834/622 I think it would make sense to create a more collaborative library system. Additional public meeting rooms would also be beneficial.
I think there is also an opportunity to partner with water services in neighboring cities.
16. Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
As Mayor, I will be open and transparent about decisions I make. I will also expect the city government to do the same [9]. The public has a right, and an obligation, to hold the city accountable for decisions it makes on behalf of residents. If the general public doesn’t have access to information, they are deprived of this responsibility. I will work towards full transparency and a more open government.
Citations:
Public Office Sought: Woodbury Mayor
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 651-504-2563
Website: www.joeforwoodbury.com
Twitter: @joeforwoodbury
Facebook Page: Joseph Hernandez
Candidate Bio
I am a researcher in 3M's Corporate Research Process Laboratory. My research expands internal measurement capabilities for process control. I’m also an Adjunct Professor at Dunwoody College of Technology where I teach courses in Statistical Quality Control. I earned my PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University with research focused on experimental measurement of microscale, two-phase flow.
My volunteer efforts focus on personal and family development, placing families first. I have a wide variety of leadership, volunteer and policy crafting experience that translates to a well-rounded Mayor. I have held multiple leadership positions in non-profit organizations created to help and encourage early childhood education; this includes the Great Start Collaborative, ECFE, and BHK Child Development. I am currently the Vice President of the early childhood family education (ECFE) parent advisory council and I coach in-house youth baseball with the WAA (Woodbury Athletic Association). I am married and a father of six children, 5 attend public school in district 833. Finally, I know how to work with a diverse group of people with a wide variety of personal beliefs and temperaments. The ability to compromise and a set of core beliefs will guide me during times that require tough decisions.
Business climate
1. How would you characterize the business climate in Woodbury?
The business climate in Woodbury is generally strong, but is too heavily focused on retail and storefront development. The recent expansion of medical services is a step in the right direction towards long term, industrial stability. Woodbury’s current Comprehensive Plan for 2040 [1] is not business friendly; only 33 additional acres are zoned for non-retail businesses over the next 20 years. This is a reduction in zoning for businesses by 311 acres relative to the 2030 [2] plan.
Some businesses are struggling to find workers at the lower end of the wage spectrum, especially those that rely on entry level, or service based employees. It has become increasingly difficult to find qualified employees in response to the recent retail expansion. Part of this problem, is traced to the lack of transportation infrastructure and affordable housing in Woodbury. This limits the potential employment pool because employees paid at the lower end of the wage spectrum likely cannot afford to live in Woodbury, requiring increased commuting and resource pressure on potential employees. This imbalance deters future business growth.
2. What role do you think the City should have in attracting and retaining jobs, and how would your administration actively solicit new businesses to, and retain existing businesses in, Woodbury?
The City of Woodbury should actively seek to create an economic landscape where additional jobs are created, current jobs are retained and upward mobility can occur. This starts by increasing the area zoned for “Places to Work”, creating a tax incentive for businesses to hire local residents, and encouraging students to return to Woodbury at earlier stages of their career.
Places to Work: I would devote significant resources to attracting new companies and businesses to Woodbury with an emphasis on high paying jobs. I would add a business developer to the staff whose primary responsibility would be to identify and plan for business expansion within the city. This position would include identifying new businesses, but also helping existing businesses expand or move to new locations within the city. The support structure might come in the form of a small business or industrial incubator that allows startups to take a risk without traditional early stage capital burden.
Hiring Local and retaining youth: Encouragement to hire local residents would likely be in the form of a property tax rebate. Local businesses would see a reduction in tax if a qualifying resident is employed.
I also want to encourage students to return to Woodbury while they are in school or after they have graduated, but there are too few internship opportunities or entry level jobs. I’d like to create a classroom, to school, to employment pipeline, and have businesses opt-in to the program. There is ample room for business growth in Woodbury, with a highly educated workforce, and I believe we should take advantage of this positive climate and open our doors to new businesses. Currently, the proposed 2040 Plan does not actively seek new business and places a moratorium on new “Places to Work”
3. Will you commit to hiring a business advocate as a member of your senior staff, to concentrate on business retention and expansion; new business recruitment; and business impact of proposed regulations on the business climate in Woodbury?
Yes. The city needs to recruit new business and retain existing business and that won’t happen without additional advocacy. Woodbury has an opportunity to expand the zoning of non-retail businesses instead of placing a moratorium on increased business zoning over the next 20 years as the 2040 Comprehensive Plan seeks to enact. Additionally, the 2040 Comprehensive Plan further encumbers redevelopment and expansion, “the intensity levels of future commercial/industrial areas will include impervious coverage of 65 to 70 percent based on the requirements of the City Code.” This is essentially a “Green Tax” to ensure aquifers are replenished because the City doesn’t have an adequate plan for water infrastructure. For example, the City of Woodbury currently dumps surplus water into the Mississippi River instead of short term surface storage; this overflow route was completed as part of the "Central Draw Project [3]." Business development should not be inhibited because existing water resources are not properly managed.
4. Do you support an increase to the minimum wage in Woodbury? If so, what specific steps would you take to understand the impact of an increase on the many types of businesses in Woodbury and do you support proposals to mitigate the effects on businesses like a tip credit, a youth wage, a training wage, and/or a phase-in?
If the minimum wage were increased in Woodbury, I would support tax breaks for any affected business, with the stipulation that they must hire locally, within the east metro. This approach has two advantages; it isolates uncertainty for currently successful businesses and it provides upward mobility for existing residents.
I support mitigation efforts; the existing [4] youth and training thresholds are acceptable. Additionally, I would like to see the transition from a tips system for the service industry to a standard hourly rate. The minimum wage, whatever value it is set at, should be clear and concise so that businesses can make informed financial decisions. Minimum wage increases have lagged in recent years, and I support an increase to the minimum wage to a well-defined standard of living. The Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT estimates that a living wage in Washington County is $11.96 [5] currently, which is an increase over the current $9.65 and $7.87 thresholds currently in place.
5. Do you support any other specific employment-related proposals in Woodbury (such as mandatory sick time or scheduling notice)? If so, what specific steps would you take to understand the impact of an increase on the many types of businesses in Woodbury and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
I do not support actions at the local level for dictating terms or benefits of employment for private business but it is important for a business to acknowledge the human nature of their employees; getting sick is part of life. I don’t want a city managed sick/vacation time requirement that may result in unintended consequences for employees and business community.
The more important challenge is managing a work/life balance for all employees. The city, citizens, employers and employees should have a partnership that strives to increase the quality of life for every person in Woodbury.
Public safety
6. What is your strategy to address public safety concerns?
Woodbury has a low crime rate and is generally viewed as being a safe community. I want to continue to do what works, and I believe our Public Safety division is working. One area of concern, Woodbury’s fire loss rate is higher than other comparable cities; the underlying cause for this should be investigated and understood.
I would seek to understand concerns which are raised. I think it’s worth paying for public safety rather than trying to cut corners to save a few dollars. A safe community is a prerequisite for a strong community.
Budget
7. What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
My biggest priority is to stabilize transportation infrastructure costs. The city had been paying for road maintenance through a fee assessed to real estate developers. The MN Supreme Court recently found this payment structure to be illegal [6]. Woodbury will need to find a new revenue source to pay for these maintenance costs that are now unfunded. A balance is needed between new revenue generated from businesses and homeowners.
The city must also improve its management of water resources. I expect and intend for much of this cost to be covered by state level funding. If the state manages the resource efficiently, the city may see a reduction in future expenditures associated with water resources. I would like to use any budget surplus to provide property tax relief or providing additional recreational services.
8. How do you view the relationship between commercial and residential property taxes?
Commercially zoned land produces three times the tax revenue as an equivalently sized residential zone. I can’t tell you what the ideal ratio is, but there is some notion of balance which I don’t believe currently exists. In an ideal world, property taxes on both types of land use would pay for services the government provides to each property type. This concept may be true for residential property taxes, with 25% of the taxes paid by Woodbury residents going to the city budget. By contrast, commercial Real Estate developers, which account for a substantial portion of commercial business in Woodbury, were until very recently, subsidizing road improvement and maintenance costs for residential areas. A developer recently sued the city of Woodbury and the Minnesota Supreme Court determined that the assessed fees for road infrastructure were illegal. It is completely wrong for the city to have misused the funds earmarked for public infrastructure.
9. What will you do to expand Woodbury’s tax base?
I want to expand the amount of land zoned for business. First, the 2040 plan needs to be defeated. The 2030 plan called for an increase in the “Places to Work” (business) zoning in Woodbury by roughly 311 acres, the 2040 plan essentially eliminates that increase. We need to revert back to the 2030 plan, at a minimum. Next, I want to make Woodbury the Technology Epicenter of the East Metro. Part of this effort will include establishing a technology and manufacturing incubator program to enable new businesses the resources they need to prove their business model.
We have a highly educated resident base that generally commutes outside of the city for employment. I want to bring high tech jobs and manufacturing to Woodbury. This will lead to new tax revenue and increase the liquidity of the employment market; this is good for both businesses and residents. There are positive second order affects to business expansion. For example, more high paying jobs will decrease the transportation congestion at the interstate connections as fewer residents travel outside of the city for work. Shorter commutes provide a higher quality of life, with more time being available for leisure.
Workforce development
10. How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
First, there isn’t a post-secondary school in Woodbury; the closest is Century College or Metro State University. This limits accessibility for high school students who currently have to commute from Woodbury to St. Paul to take advantage of existing programs like PSEO (Post-Secondary Enrollment Option). The city has enough resources to make post-secondary education more accessible. The city, in concert with the school district, can and should make this easier; there are many mechanisms that would achieve this, but providing some sort of busing service or subsidizing college level courses in Woodbury seem like easy solutions.
Secondly, there are many adults who may benefit from continuing education or job re-training if they are switching careers. The City of Woodbury has the resources to form partnerships with local school districts and businesses to offer better job-retraining and continuing education options. The city has a number of resources within its borders which are available for additional community education during off or idle times. These are resources that already exist; we just need to make better use of them. I would like to work more closely with the school districts and local businesses to make better use of existing facilities and curriculum to ensure Woodbury’s workforce remains highly educated.
11. What do you see as the mayor’s role with regard to public schools in Woodbury?
Woodbury has three of the best high schools in the state; Woodbury High, East Ridge High and the Math and Science Academy. These schools are largely successful because our residents value education and willingness to pay for it through referendums. A portion of school funding in Washington County is supplied by an industrial tax. Unfortunately, this tax does not benefit most schools in Woodbury. There is only one such industrial zone in Woodbury, in the northeast corner, and it happens to be the only area assigned to the Stillwater School District 834. South Washington County School District 833, which is almost entirely located in Woodbury, does not benefit from this industrial tax base. I would advocate for a new industrial zone to be created within School District 833’s boundaries to ensure that Woodbury money benefits a larger portion of residents.
While the mayor’s office has no direct oversight over public schools within Woodbury, the Mayor can advocate for policy, like zoning, which affects public school funding. I would absolutely advocate for more commercial and industrial zoning. I would also like to see the Woodbury City Council and the various different school boards work more collaboratively.
Other
12. What is the biggest challenge facing the city and how would you address it?
The biggest problem affecting the city is infrastructure; there are too few methods of transportation and there are deficiencies with how the city manages water resources.
Most households in Woodbury are required to own a car in order to go anywhere. This leads to single passenger vehicles that add to the congestion, this will only get worse as the population grows. In order to reduce congestion, I support expanding public transit, but the current proposals are inadequate alone. I believe our best chance of alleviating the transportation issue is to reduce the number of people that are forced to commute from Woodbury to their place of work, in a car, during peak traffic times. By centralizing new industry within Woodbury, fewer residents will be required to drive and that will contribute to alleviating congestion. Supporting additional transportation to the surrounding suburbs will decrease congestion. The current "spoke" model only services a portion of commuters. Employees that travel on the 494/694 interstate are required to commute or spend long hours on public transportation. Improving the quality of life of every resident is a major focus of my campaign.
The city needs to build a municipal water filtration system [7,8] and connect every residential dwelling to city water where economically feasible. The city should also explore connecting to nearby water systems such as the St. Paul Regional Water systems. The major contaminants are PFOAs and PFOCs (also referred to as PFCs or polyflurocarbons) originating from industrial waste disposal and Radium which is present in the geology of our local aquifers.
13. What would be your top three priorities if elected?
- Increasing “Places to Work” zoning.
- Improving water quality permanently.
- Improving transportation infrastructure to improve upward mobility.
14. What do you think should be the city’s top transportation related priority?
I support the expansion of public transit, but it needs to make sense and benefit commuters, local business access and general population mobility. The current proposal creates a Bus Rapid Transit Line, the Gold Line, which largely travels along interstate 94 from St. Paul to Woodbury. This project is in the development phase for the next two years, and will start operation in 2024 if approved. The estimated ridership would be 8000 people per day in 2040. The Gold Line may ease the burden of population growth, but it won’t fully address the transportation issue we’re encountering now or in the future. I view the Gold Line as mitigation to the current problem, not a full solution.
A solution to transportation congestion in Woodbury relies on several complex systems working in concert with each other. The number of high paying local jobs must be increased, which will decrease commuter congestion. An increase in affordable housing will decrease the number of people commuting from other areas to work in the vast retail marketplace in Woodbury. In short, I believe our transportation problem is exacerbated by the city’s general affluence, which is a strength of the residents of Woodbury. The city needs to address the view that only a small percentage of residents who live in Woodbury, work in Woodbury.
15. Are there any services currently provided by the city that you believe should be cut back or eliminated? Or, are there new opportunities to share services with other entities?
A greater partnership between the workforce center and existing businesses could increase the labor force participation rate and fill much needed roles in the local employment market.
I’d like to see the Library system expanded within Woodbury to make better use of existing infrastructure. There are a number of public schools that already have libraries, yet they remain disconnected from the Woodbury Public Library. In partnership with School Districts 833/834/622 I think it would make sense to create a more collaborative library system. Additional public meeting rooms would also be beneficial.
I think there is also an opportunity to partner with water services in neighboring cities.
16. Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
As Mayor, I will be open and transparent about decisions I make. I will also expect the city government to do the same [9]. The public has a right, and an obligation, to hold the city accountable for decisions it makes on behalf of residents. If the general public doesn’t have access to information, they are deprived of this responsibility. I will work towards full transparency and a more open government.
Citations:
- “Woodbury 2040 Comprehensive Plan Draft”
https://www.woodburymn.gov/departments/planning/draft_2040_comprehensive_plan.php - “Woodbury 2030 Comprehensive Plan”
https://www.woodburymn.gov/departments/planning/current_comprehensive_plan.php - “CENTRAL DRAW PROJECT AND FLOOD STORAGE AREA MAPS”
http://www.swwdmn.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/HDR-Flood-Map-Engineers-Report.pdf - “New year, new minimum-wage rate as of Jan. 1, 2018”
https://mn.gov/governor/blog/?id=1055-322280 - “Living Wage Calculation for Washington County, Minnesota”
http://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/27163 - “Supreme Court bans Woodbury development fees”
https://www.twincities.com/2018/08/15/supreme-court-bans-woodbury-development-fees/ - “Water availability and vulnerability of 225 large cities in the United States”
https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2012WR012335 - “PROTECTING SURFACE WATER FOR HEALTH”
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/pswh-160830.pdf - “Woodbury proposes fees for public data inspection”
http://www.woodburybulletin.com/news/government-and-politics/4394432-woodbury-proposes-fees-public-data-inspection