John Mazzitello
Name: John Mazzitello
Public Office Sought: Mendota Heights City Council
Email: [email protected]
Campaign Phone: 651-249-7306
Campaign Website: www.mazz4mh.net
Twitter handle: N/A
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/Mazzitello for Mendota Heights City Council
Candidate Bio
I’ve lived in Mendota Heights for 14 years and have served the city for that entire time (8 years as Public Works Director/City Engineer, 4 years on the Planning Commission, and 2 years on the City Council). I was born in Saint Paul, grew up in Maplewood & Roseville, and graduated from Cretin-Derham Hall high school. I have a Civil Engineering Degree from Marquette University, and a Master of Business Administration from Argosy University. I served 22 years in the Air Force/Air National Guard with assignments in Italy, England, Alaska, & Minnesota; deploying 5 times (including Operation Desert Storm and Afghanistan), retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel and Squadron Commander.
I have made a career out of finding ways to make things work for the people I serve, whether that was during the 6 years in the active-duty Air Force, environmental work with the State of Alaska, as a land development engineering consultant, as your Public Works Director/City Engineer, or in my current role as Deputy Director of Public Works for Ramsey County. I hold integrity, quality, and service as my core values, and I look forward to continuing to serve the City of Mendota Heights for another 4 years!
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
1 – Mendota Heights enjoys some of the best, highest quality city services in the Metro Area. I want to make sure these services remain this way. I intend to maintain and improve our city’s level of service and take care of the public assets of the city so future generations can enjoy them.
2 – Mendota Heights has one of the lowest property tax rates of any city in the Metro for a city of our size. I want to make sure our taxpayers’ dollars are used wisely and efficiently to keep that tax rate low, and to guide the city to decisions that avoid financial harm to the residents.
3 – I will focus on our city’s future through logical planning and forecasting of needs and wants to ensure Mendota Heights continues to be a vibrant and thriving city for future generations.
I will continue do these things with fairness, inclusiveness, honor, and integrity!
How would you characterize the business climate in Mendota Heights and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
The business climate in Mendota Heights is growing. Our highly desirable geographic location with proximity to both downtowns, as well as Twin Cities International Airport, and access to Interstates 494 & 35E give businesses a lot of options when choosing to locate in Mendota Heights. Developments in Eagan and Inver Grove Heights have provided competition, but the recent decisions in Mendota Heights which call for the addition newly created and diverse housing options have bolstered the business climate and make Mendota Heights a more and more desirable place to do business.
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, Mendota Heights?
The city and business community should have a symbiotic relationship where communication between businesses and the city is constant. The city needs to understand the issues and needs facing the business community to keep and grow job opportunities and make sure Mendota Heights remains a vibrant, thriving, and relevant community from a local and regional perspective. I would work with our principal business operators and commercial property owners to gage the business climate and how the city can encourage development of amenities needed to keep our business community growing. In addition, the city should work with business owners and commercial agents to collaborate on what elements of our 40+ year-old city code could be modified to meet current market demands.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address the labor shortage?
I believe the city should advocate for small businesses in our area and promote employment opportunities within our city. The labor shortage extends far beyond the Mendota Heights border and should really be addressed regionally, but the city can be a partner with the Dakota County Workforce Development Board as well as with our public and private schools and post-secondary educational institutions to promote employment opportunities in our city and in our region.
Do you support any specific employment-related proposals in Mendota Heights (such as minimum wage, sick time, or mandatory scheduling notice)? Probably not. If so, what steps would you take to understand the impact of an ordinance on the many types of businesses in Mendota Heights and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
I do not believe it is government’s place to overly regulate how a business operates and competes within the market. While I understand the desire for everyone to make a wage or salary that they can live on and have competitive benefits, a competitive business market makes the whole of the community stronger. If local governments get too involved in mandating compensation and benefits packages, the competitive edge for a business is removed, and the potential for businesses to relocate elsewhere will loom. If the business community has ideas on what the city could do to enhance competition and grow the business community in our city, I am all ears!
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?
Public Safety is one of the core, essential, and foundational services a local government provides. Mendota Heights enjoys outstanding police, fire, and medical response services, and practice the principles of community policing in role model form. I have and would continue to make these services a priority as a City Council member to ensure the high quality of public safety level of service we enjoy continues far into the future. Specifically, I support and encourage community events that put our residents and businesses in contact with our public safety professionals in a non-emergency environment. Building community is essential to building trust, and that trust in our public safety professionals is at the very heart of our city.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address housing issues facing your community?
Our city’s housing strategy is outlined in our 2020-2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan. As a city that is almost fully developed, new housing opportunities are at a premium. In order to keep our housing market competitive and thriving, we should find mechanisms to encourage improvement and added value to our existing housing stock. The approval of new high-density developments in Mendota Heights since 2016 has added “rooftops” to our community that have and will continue to benefit local businesses.
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?
Our city’s transportation strategy and policy is outlined in our 2020-2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan, a plan I helped draft and finalize. The biggest transportation issue in Mendota Heights continues to be periodic congestion along the Highway 62 corridor. Working with Dakota County, the city was able to get the county’s Regional Roadway Visioning Study updated to include this corridor as an area of focus and future need in the region. This will go a long way to realizing congestion relief projects through MnDOT.
The pandemic has changed traffic patterns all over the metro. Not only are traffic volumes down overall, but what we once saw as traditional “peak times” have reduced by a substantial margin. Traffic patterns now resemble more of a plateau instead of the more traditional pre-pandemic peak and valley model, which has affected how and when any congestion issues materialize. This is most likely due to new post-pandemic work-from-home policies. This alters how we look at traffic improvements. Transit opportunities in Mendota Heights are relatively minimal. I welcome discussions with the business community to see if and how transit opportunities could be of benefit.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
First and foremost, I want to ensure the city lives within its means. I want to make sure our essential services (police, fire, public works, planning) are taken care of first. Once those are secured, I would focus on the list of needs and wants facing our city that we have heard from our residents and businesses. Most of these were incorporated into our 2020-2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan including improvements to our park facilities, recreations programming, and most importantly, the implementation of our Natural Resources Management Plan.
What will you do to expand Mendota Heights’ tax base?
Mendota Heights is almost completely developed. Opportunities for increasing our tax base need to come from property improvements, business growth, and redevelopment opportunities. Almost all of those redevelopment opportunities are now pretty exclusive to our industrial park. There are some properties within our industrial zone that have tremendous potential for redevelopment. In fact, there is one site under redevelopment now. In addition, providing mechanisms to encourage property improvements in our residential zones can help add to the tax base, allowing the city to maintain the lower property tax rates that have become a trademark of Mendota Heights.
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
Mendota Heights a remarkable plethora of excellent educational opportunities. Being part of ISD197 and the excellent education its member schools provide, while having the private school options of Visitation and Saint Thomas Academy in our city, and being in close proximity to Cretin-Derham Hall, and over a dozen post-secondary educational options makes the relationship between Mendota Heights and educational institutions one of the many great strengths of our city. I try to exemplify this in the leadership roles I have had in Mendota Heights for the past 14 years.
For 13 of the past 14 years (missing only one year due to an Afghanistan Deployment), I have been a volunteer at Friendly Hills Middle School (FHMS) in Mendota Heights, mentoring 6th through 8thgrade students as part of the Future Cities Competition Program. The Future Cities program teaches middle school students about how a city functions and challenges them to develop their own “city of the future” based on a specific annual theme. Each year FHMS has participated, they have brought home awards. Some of the students from the program have even gone on to become civil engineers! I have brought in representatives from the business community to speak to the students about how cities and business need to work together for the benefit of the entire community. As a City Council member, I exemplify and encourage volunteerism and the blending of academics and business in manners such as this.
In addition, I am a long-time volunteer with Cretin-Derham Hall high school in Saint Paul (my alma matter), participating in a number of student interactive events such as Alumni Leaders In The Classroom, and coming in as a guest speaker in classes.
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?
The City runs a lean machine already and enjoys one of the lowest property tax rates in the Metro Area as a result. There are a few minor, small-dollar subsidy expenditures I would look at if we needed budget reductions; but as a general rule, I would budget based on the essential services listed above and see where the budget falls in the end. If program cuts are needed, I would start talking to the taxpayers early to get a feel for the community desire.
Sharing of services is something I have supported and actively worked while Public Works Director/City Engineer for Mendota Heights. Cooperative agreements with West Saint Paul, Eagan, Saint Paul, Lilydale, and Dakota County helped all entities involved increase efficiency and reduce unnecessary duplicative costs. Additionally, our Parks & Recreation programs have been growing and collaborating with our neighboring communities, building on the efficiency models established in Public Works years ago. I would continue to support such agreements as a City Council member.
What is the role of the City Council in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Mendota Heights?
Small businesses in general are the future of our economy in Mendota Heights. With most small businesses in the past decade being minority and women owned, this plays into the small business market in Mendota Heights. As our neighbors have developed since 2000, the customer base for local small business has declined (people from outside our city are not patronizing our businesses as frequently). Our businesses either need to be unique enough to pull customers from neighboring communities, or we need added local population to invigorate our small businesses. The addition of a small amount of new “rooftop” housing will inject a new vigor into our “downtown” area at Hwy 62 and Dodd Road. There are many opportunities for small businesses in this area, and we are now starting to see an increase in start-up businesses, many of which are minority and woman owned.
What further policies can Mendota Heights adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
During the pandemic (both during shut-down periods and limited business regulatory periods), the city distributed CARES Act funding to those businesses who signed up for the program. As (if) additional funding is made available for business relief, the city should expedite the processing of applications to the best of our ability to make sure the businesses get the relief they need. City staff is continuing to monitor COVID-19 case data and can keep the council and the public informed if case trends appear to be nearing state or county regulatory limits again.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
As someone who has spent their entire adult life in public service, I am committed to the long-term prosperity, vitality, and thriving nature of Mendota Heights. If elected to the City Council, I will be a year-round Council Member who will be inclusive, positive, and excited about our future. The best is yet to come! I ask for your vote on November 8th!
Public Office Sought: Mendota Heights City Council
Email: [email protected]
Campaign Phone: 651-249-7306
Campaign Website: www.mazz4mh.net
Twitter handle: N/A
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/Mazzitello for Mendota Heights City Council
Candidate Bio
I’ve lived in Mendota Heights for 14 years and have served the city for that entire time (8 years as Public Works Director/City Engineer, 4 years on the Planning Commission, and 2 years on the City Council). I was born in Saint Paul, grew up in Maplewood & Roseville, and graduated from Cretin-Derham Hall high school. I have a Civil Engineering Degree from Marquette University, and a Master of Business Administration from Argosy University. I served 22 years in the Air Force/Air National Guard with assignments in Italy, England, Alaska, & Minnesota; deploying 5 times (including Operation Desert Storm and Afghanistan), retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel and Squadron Commander.
I have made a career out of finding ways to make things work for the people I serve, whether that was during the 6 years in the active-duty Air Force, environmental work with the State of Alaska, as a land development engineering consultant, as your Public Works Director/City Engineer, or in my current role as Deputy Director of Public Works for Ramsey County. I hold integrity, quality, and service as my core values, and I look forward to continuing to serve the City of Mendota Heights for another 4 years!
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
1 – Mendota Heights enjoys some of the best, highest quality city services in the Metro Area. I want to make sure these services remain this way. I intend to maintain and improve our city’s level of service and take care of the public assets of the city so future generations can enjoy them.
2 – Mendota Heights has one of the lowest property tax rates of any city in the Metro for a city of our size. I want to make sure our taxpayers’ dollars are used wisely and efficiently to keep that tax rate low, and to guide the city to decisions that avoid financial harm to the residents.
3 – I will focus on our city’s future through logical planning and forecasting of needs and wants to ensure Mendota Heights continues to be a vibrant and thriving city for future generations.
I will continue do these things with fairness, inclusiveness, honor, and integrity!
How would you characterize the business climate in Mendota Heights and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
The business climate in Mendota Heights is growing. Our highly desirable geographic location with proximity to both downtowns, as well as Twin Cities International Airport, and access to Interstates 494 & 35E give businesses a lot of options when choosing to locate in Mendota Heights. Developments in Eagan and Inver Grove Heights have provided competition, but the recent decisions in Mendota Heights which call for the addition newly created and diverse housing options have bolstered the business climate and make Mendota Heights a more and more desirable place to do business.
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, Mendota Heights?
The city and business community should have a symbiotic relationship where communication between businesses and the city is constant. The city needs to understand the issues and needs facing the business community to keep and grow job opportunities and make sure Mendota Heights remains a vibrant, thriving, and relevant community from a local and regional perspective. I would work with our principal business operators and commercial property owners to gage the business climate and how the city can encourage development of amenities needed to keep our business community growing. In addition, the city should work with business owners and commercial agents to collaborate on what elements of our 40+ year-old city code could be modified to meet current market demands.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address the labor shortage?
I believe the city should advocate for small businesses in our area and promote employment opportunities within our city. The labor shortage extends far beyond the Mendota Heights border and should really be addressed regionally, but the city can be a partner with the Dakota County Workforce Development Board as well as with our public and private schools and post-secondary educational institutions to promote employment opportunities in our city and in our region.
Do you support any specific employment-related proposals in Mendota Heights (such as minimum wage, sick time, or mandatory scheduling notice)? Probably not. If so, what steps would you take to understand the impact of an ordinance on the many types of businesses in Mendota Heights and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
I do not believe it is government’s place to overly regulate how a business operates and competes within the market. While I understand the desire for everyone to make a wage or salary that they can live on and have competitive benefits, a competitive business market makes the whole of the community stronger. If local governments get too involved in mandating compensation and benefits packages, the competitive edge for a business is removed, and the potential for businesses to relocate elsewhere will loom. If the business community has ideas on what the city could do to enhance competition and grow the business community in our city, I am all ears!
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?
Public Safety is one of the core, essential, and foundational services a local government provides. Mendota Heights enjoys outstanding police, fire, and medical response services, and practice the principles of community policing in role model form. I have and would continue to make these services a priority as a City Council member to ensure the high quality of public safety level of service we enjoy continues far into the future. Specifically, I support and encourage community events that put our residents and businesses in contact with our public safety professionals in a non-emergency environment. Building community is essential to building trust, and that trust in our public safety professionals is at the very heart of our city.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address housing issues facing your community?
Our city’s housing strategy is outlined in our 2020-2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan. As a city that is almost fully developed, new housing opportunities are at a premium. In order to keep our housing market competitive and thriving, we should find mechanisms to encourage improvement and added value to our existing housing stock. The approval of new high-density developments in Mendota Heights since 2016 has added “rooftops” to our community that have and will continue to benefit local businesses.
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?
Our city’s transportation strategy and policy is outlined in our 2020-2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan, a plan I helped draft and finalize. The biggest transportation issue in Mendota Heights continues to be periodic congestion along the Highway 62 corridor. Working with Dakota County, the city was able to get the county’s Regional Roadway Visioning Study updated to include this corridor as an area of focus and future need in the region. This will go a long way to realizing congestion relief projects through MnDOT.
The pandemic has changed traffic patterns all over the metro. Not only are traffic volumes down overall, but what we once saw as traditional “peak times” have reduced by a substantial margin. Traffic patterns now resemble more of a plateau instead of the more traditional pre-pandemic peak and valley model, which has affected how and when any congestion issues materialize. This is most likely due to new post-pandemic work-from-home policies. This alters how we look at traffic improvements. Transit opportunities in Mendota Heights are relatively minimal. I welcome discussions with the business community to see if and how transit opportunities could be of benefit.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
First and foremost, I want to ensure the city lives within its means. I want to make sure our essential services (police, fire, public works, planning) are taken care of first. Once those are secured, I would focus on the list of needs and wants facing our city that we have heard from our residents and businesses. Most of these were incorporated into our 2020-2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan including improvements to our park facilities, recreations programming, and most importantly, the implementation of our Natural Resources Management Plan.
What will you do to expand Mendota Heights’ tax base?
Mendota Heights is almost completely developed. Opportunities for increasing our tax base need to come from property improvements, business growth, and redevelopment opportunities. Almost all of those redevelopment opportunities are now pretty exclusive to our industrial park. There are some properties within our industrial zone that have tremendous potential for redevelopment. In fact, there is one site under redevelopment now. In addition, providing mechanisms to encourage property improvements in our residential zones can help add to the tax base, allowing the city to maintain the lower property tax rates that have become a trademark of Mendota Heights.
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
Mendota Heights a remarkable plethora of excellent educational opportunities. Being part of ISD197 and the excellent education its member schools provide, while having the private school options of Visitation and Saint Thomas Academy in our city, and being in close proximity to Cretin-Derham Hall, and over a dozen post-secondary educational options makes the relationship between Mendota Heights and educational institutions one of the many great strengths of our city. I try to exemplify this in the leadership roles I have had in Mendota Heights for the past 14 years.
For 13 of the past 14 years (missing only one year due to an Afghanistan Deployment), I have been a volunteer at Friendly Hills Middle School (FHMS) in Mendota Heights, mentoring 6th through 8thgrade students as part of the Future Cities Competition Program. The Future Cities program teaches middle school students about how a city functions and challenges them to develop their own “city of the future” based on a specific annual theme. Each year FHMS has participated, they have brought home awards. Some of the students from the program have even gone on to become civil engineers! I have brought in representatives from the business community to speak to the students about how cities and business need to work together for the benefit of the entire community. As a City Council member, I exemplify and encourage volunteerism and the blending of academics and business in manners such as this.
In addition, I am a long-time volunteer with Cretin-Derham Hall high school in Saint Paul (my alma matter), participating in a number of student interactive events such as Alumni Leaders In The Classroom, and coming in as a guest speaker in classes.
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?
The City runs a lean machine already and enjoys one of the lowest property tax rates in the Metro Area as a result. There are a few minor, small-dollar subsidy expenditures I would look at if we needed budget reductions; but as a general rule, I would budget based on the essential services listed above and see where the budget falls in the end. If program cuts are needed, I would start talking to the taxpayers early to get a feel for the community desire.
Sharing of services is something I have supported and actively worked while Public Works Director/City Engineer for Mendota Heights. Cooperative agreements with West Saint Paul, Eagan, Saint Paul, Lilydale, and Dakota County helped all entities involved increase efficiency and reduce unnecessary duplicative costs. Additionally, our Parks & Recreation programs have been growing and collaborating with our neighboring communities, building on the efficiency models established in Public Works years ago. I would continue to support such agreements as a City Council member.
What is the role of the City Council in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Mendota Heights?
Small businesses in general are the future of our economy in Mendota Heights. With most small businesses in the past decade being minority and women owned, this plays into the small business market in Mendota Heights. As our neighbors have developed since 2000, the customer base for local small business has declined (people from outside our city are not patronizing our businesses as frequently). Our businesses either need to be unique enough to pull customers from neighboring communities, or we need added local population to invigorate our small businesses. The addition of a small amount of new “rooftop” housing will inject a new vigor into our “downtown” area at Hwy 62 and Dodd Road. There are many opportunities for small businesses in this area, and we are now starting to see an increase in start-up businesses, many of which are minority and woman owned.
What further policies can Mendota Heights adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
During the pandemic (both during shut-down periods and limited business regulatory periods), the city distributed CARES Act funding to those businesses who signed up for the program. As (if) additional funding is made available for business relief, the city should expedite the processing of applications to the best of our ability to make sure the businesses get the relief they need. City staff is continuing to monitor COVID-19 case data and can keep the council and the public informed if case trends appear to be nearing state or county regulatory limits again.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
As someone who has spent their entire adult life in public service, I am committed to the long-term prosperity, vitality, and thriving nature of Mendota Heights. If elected to the City Council, I will be a year-round Council Member who will be inclusive, positive, and excited about our future. The best is yet to come! I ask for your vote on November 8th!