Laurie Elliot
Name: Laurie Elliot
Public Office Sought: Newport Mayor
Email: Lelliott.newport@gmail.com
Phone: 651-458-5885
Website: NA
Twitter handle: NA
Facebook page: @laurieelliot4mayor
Candidate Bio
As a Newport Council Member with 25+ years of experience at the cities of Moorhead (City Manager’s assistant), Maplewood, and Shoreview (Human Resources Director) I bring an excellent understanding of local government operations. Each City had its own concerns and goals, and each job gave me insights on a wide variety of city services and challenges. I’ve served on the Newport Planning Commission and two League of Minnesota Cities policy committees. My education includes a BS and Master’s degree in Business Administration.
Two accomplishments I’ve supported since being on the City Council are the Wings of Newport 200 unit apartment building and the new Public Safety/City Hall building.
I’ve lived in Newport for almost 30 years. I’m level-headed, a thoughtful decision-maker, and use my strong analytical and organizational skills to tackle the tough problems. I believe in working together to find creative solutions and move Newport forward.
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
1) Fiscal Responsibility
How would you characterize the business climate in Newport and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
Keeping existing businesses and bringing in new businesses to the community broadens our tax base and brings services and jobs closer to our residents. The City has had some recent commercial and residential success stories and this points to Newport’s healthy business climate. The City should continue to place a high priority on retaining and growing our key businesses and attracting new businesses to our community. The addition of one or two destination-type businesses could capitalize on the traffic numbers that pass through Newport on a daily basis.
The quality of life in our community is directly connected to the many businesses that operate in Newport. Businesses bring the convenience of local service, local jobs and local amenities.
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, Newport?
Added housing in Newport provides a larger workforce for businesses to draw from for their employee needs. Washington County has an “Open to Business” program that helps businesses in the county, or new businesses looking to locate in the County. We should work closely with the County to ensure their staff has the information they need to promote business opportunities in Newport and what we have to offer.
Do you support any other specific employment-related proposals in Newport (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 Newport and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
Most businesses in Newport are small operations and mandatory regulations are especially burdensome to these owners, both through the added monetary cost and the time for administrative tracking. This would also create work for Newport’s very small staff to track compliance and deal with penalties for non-compliance. The City does not need to create employment-related regulations for businesses.
What are your strategies to address public safety, housing, and transportation issues facing your community?
Having experienced the Newport Fire Department in action, I’d say they were well-trained, professional and responded very quickly. Two important challenges law enforcement faces are illegal drug use and domestic violence. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office has been a leader in use of force reporting and review. We need to support continued training for their staff and open communication between the City and Washington County public safety leadership.
Newport has a variety of life cycle housing options for singles, young families, established families, and empty nesters. We also have a high level of affordable housing in our community.
Transportation is our most difficult challenge and it comes down to cost and ridership. Exploring options to help with funding (such as grants) or increase ridership are needed.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
Maintain a reasonable tax levy while delivering the services residents need and want.
Maintain the City’s AA Stable bond rating, which results in lower interest rates when borrowing and a significant tax savings to the community. Continued maintenance of the City’s infrastructure and addressing funding for storm water issues.
What will you do to expand Newport’s tax base?
Support residential and commercial development projects that positively impact Newport. Work with staff and the Washington County Community Development Agency and create an inventory of available spaces so they can assist new businesses with finding suitable locations in Newport for their needs. Work to promote Newport as a great place to live, work and do business.
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
The City isn’t specifically involved in the education business, but we need to strongly communicate to the school district the importance of our local elementary school in our community. We need to support education that includes teaching skills for the 21st century, preparing students for jobs that don’t exist yet, and teaching vocational skills because the trades are hurting for skilled workers. We need to respect our role in their process of information sharing.
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?
A decision to cut services would need to be evaluated with input from the residents, and/or business owners, affected groups or experts on the subject before being eliminated. Joint service agreements would need to be studied to determine the costs, benefits, and desired results would be in Newport’s best interest before agreeing to share. I wouldn’t make any specific suggestions in this area without first doing my homework.
What is the role of the City Council in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Newport?
The City Council sets the tone for a community and I’m proud that we already have women-owned and minority-owned businesses in our community. As outlined in question 8, we need to market our available spaces to all interested parties including these underserved business owners. Contacting associations that represent these businesses groups with our space availability is just one way to cultivate more businesses that represent these groups.
What further policies can Newport adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
We can’t recover from this pandemic until small businesses rebound. We need to promote that where you shop matters and the positive impact shopping locally can have on Newport. It takes all of us working together to help our businesses stay in business.
The Council has taken action and approved use of parking areas for outdoor dining to create the social distancing that’s currently required. We are open to other requests to help our businesses through this pandemic.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
I’m the experienced leader Newport needs who can collaborate with others and strengthen our relationships with our community partners. They are an important part of our ability to deliver quality services to our residents in a cost effective manner.
We need to set our community and business priorities and focus our limited resources around those priorities. During my extensive career as a leader in city government I have learned to see projects through to completion. I’ve experience many city challenges and solutions that can be adapted to help Newport with the opportunities that lay ahead. As the Mayor of Newport I can effect meaningful change and improve transparency with residents.
Thank you for reading and please vote for me with absentee/early voting starting September 18, and on Election Day, November 3. Thank you!
Public Office Sought: Newport Mayor
Email: Lelliott.newport@gmail.com
Phone: 651-458-5885
Website: NA
Twitter handle: NA
Facebook page: @laurieelliot4mayor
Candidate Bio
As a Newport Council Member with 25+ years of experience at the cities of Moorhead (City Manager’s assistant), Maplewood, and Shoreview (Human Resources Director) I bring an excellent understanding of local government operations. Each City had its own concerns and goals, and each job gave me insights on a wide variety of city services and challenges. I’ve served on the Newport Planning Commission and two League of Minnesota Cities policy committees. My education includes a BS and Master’s degree in Business Administration.
Two accomplishments I’ve supported since being on the City Council are the Wings of Newport 200 unit apartment building and the new Public Safety/City Hall building.
I’ve lived in Newport for almost 30 years. I’m level-headed, a thoughtful decision-maker, and use my strong analytical and organizational skills to tackle the tough problems. I believe in working together to find creative solutions and move Newport forward.
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
1) Fiscal Responsibility
- Maintain a reasonable tax rate
- Maximize value for our tax dollars
- Continued use of contracting for services to save money (engineering, city planning, police, recreation programs, code enforcement, and other services)
- Construction of new public safety and city hall facility to meet community needs for 60+ years
- Thorough review of City Code to establish community standards and consistent code enforcement
- Bring new businesses and housing into the community
- Increases tax base
- Increases water and sewer revenues
- Increases support of businesses in the community
How would you characterize the business climate in Newport and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
Keeping existing businesses and bringing in new businesses to the community broadens our tax base and brings services and jobs closer to our residents. The City has had some recent commercial and residential success stories and this points to Newport’s healthy business climate. The City should continue to place a high priority on retaining and growing our key businesses and attracting new businesses to our community. The addition of one or two destination-type businesses could capitalize on the traffic numbers that pass through Newport on a daily basis.
The quality of life in our community is directly connected to the many businesses that operate in Newport. Businesses bring the convenience of local service, local jobs and local amenities.
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, Newport?
Added housing in Newport provides a larger workforce for businesses to draw from for their employee needs. Washington County has an “Open to Business” program that helps businesses in the county, or new businesses looking to locate in the County. We should work closely with the County to ensure their staff has the information they need to promote business opportunities in Newport and what we have to offer.
- Our immediate access to the highway system and close proximity to the airport
- Business spaces from smaller retail store fronts for rent to large acre sites for new construction
- A local high school with a 96% graduation rate and in the top 20% for math proficiency and top 5% for reading proficiency in Minnesota
- Beautiful outdoor trails and Mississippi River access for all to use
Do you support any other specific employment-related proposals in Newport (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 Newport and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
Most businesses in Newport are small operations and mandatory regulations are especially burdensome to these owners, both through the added monetary cost and the time for administrative tracking. This would also create work for Newport’s very small staff to track compliance and deal with penalties for non-compliance. The City does not need to create employment-related regulations for businesses.
What are your strategies to address public safety, housing, and transportation issues facing your community?
Having experienced the Newport Fire Department in action, I’d say they were well-trained, professional and responded very quickly. Two important challenges law enforcement faces are illegal drug use and domestic violence. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office has been a leader in use of force reporting and review. We need to support continued training for their staff and open communication between the City and Washington County public safety leadership.
Newport has a variety of life cycle housing options for singles, young families, established families, and empty nesters. We also have a high level of affordable housing in our community.
Transportation is our most difficult challenge and it comes down to cost and ridership. Exploring options to help with funding (such as grants) or increase ridership are needed.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
Maintain a reasonable tax levy while delivering the services residents need and want.
Maintain the City’s AA Stable bond rating, which results in lower interest rates when borrowing and a significant tax savings to the community. Continued maintenance of the City’s infrastructure and addressing funding for storm water issues.
What will you do to expand Newport’s tax base?
Support residential and commercial development projects that positively impact Newport. Work with staff and the Washington County Community Development Agency and create an inventory of available spaces so they can assist new businesses with finding suitable locations in Newport for their needs. Work to promote Newport as a great place to live, work and do business.
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
The City isn’t specifically involved in the education business, but we need to strongly communicate to the school district the importance of our local elementary school in our community. We need to support education that includes teaching skills for the 21st century, preparing students for jobs that don’t exist yet, and teaching vocational skills because the trades are hurting for skilled workers. We need to respect our role in their process of information sharing.
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?
A decision to cut services would need to be evaluated with input from the residents, and/or business owners, affected groups or experts on the subject before being eliminated. Joint service agreements would need to be studied to determine the costs, benefits, and desired results would be in Newport’s best interest before agreeing to share. I wouldn’t make any specific suggestions in this area without first doing my homework.
What is the role of the City Council in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Newport?
The City Council sets the tone for a community and I’m proud that we already have women-owned and minority-owned businesses in our community. As outlined in question 8, we need to market our available spaces to all interested parties including these underserved business owners. Contacting associations that represent these businesses groups with our space availability is just one way to cultivate more businesses that represent these groups.
What further policies can Newport adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
We can’t recover from this pandemic until small businesses rebound. We need to promote that where you shop matters and the positive impact shopping locally can have on Newport. It takes all of us working together to help our businesses stay in business.
The Council has taken action and approved use of parking areas for outdoor dining to create the social distancing that’s currently required. We are open to other requests to help our businesses through this pandemic.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
I’m the experienced leader Newport needs who can collaborate with others and strengthen our relationships with our community partners. They are an important part of our ability to deliver quality services to our residents in a cost effective manner.
We need to set our community and business priorities and focus our limited resources around those priorities. During my extensive career as a leader in city government I have learned to see projects through to completion. I’ve experience many city challenges and solutions that can be adapted to help Newport with the opportunities that lay ahead. As the Mayor of Newport I can effect meaningful change and improve transparency with residents.
Thank you for reading and please vote for me with absentee/early voting starting September 18, and on Election Day, November 3. Thank you!