| Springville City 2007 Candidate |
|---|
J. Niel Strong
A lifetime of Preparation and Service:
- Married to Carolee Eberhard; father of six children & 20 grandchildren
- Four years of service on the Springville City Council
- Six years of service on the Springville Planning Commission
- Board member - Springville Irrigation Company
- Leader of church and community groups
- A licensed Certified Public Accountant
- Over thirty years of experience in municipal finances and budgeting
- A successful small business owner
- Graduate of BYU in business and accounting
- A lifetime resident of Springville
If re-elected my commitment to the citizens of this community is:
- Be responsive and proactive – Invite citizen input and anticipate needs
- Lay a solid foundation for our city’s future – Growth & Planning
- Be fully committed – I love Springville! It is a great place to live.
- I have worked for and supported these projects:
- Traffic Relief - 400 South freeway interchange, two railroad overpasses and a five lane entrance to downtown Springville, fully funded using NO city funds.
- Downtown Commitment – Support for downtown merchants including new city facilities to help revitalize the heart of our community.
- Parks – We have acquired beautiful park sites to the east and west including a regional park of over 60 acres along Hobble Creek with proposed youth soccer fields, nature paths, baseball diamonds and covered pavilions.
- City Administration – Our city administration is accountable and works with and under the direction of the Mayor and Council.
- Customer Service – We have been proactive in improving your interactions with city government. Specifically, our emphasis is – we are here to serve you. We have hired and retained the best municipal employees we could find.
- Communication – We have held town meetings, used news letters, and provided a live telephone receptionist and a citizen comment period at the beginning of ever city council meeting
- Utility Rates – We have stabilizedpower rates and removed the PCA (Power Cost Adjustment) from your utility bill.
- Beautified Downtown – We have beautified main street and south city entrance
- Secondary Water Phase I – Phase I involves bring secondary water to new developments west of 400 W. We are working with Springville Irrigation Company to carefully review our options. We are particularly concerned about safe-guarding our city water rights.
- Commercial (Box Stores) We have been in very close contact with proposed box stores in 400 South commercial areas. We want them and they know it.
- Impact Fees Updated – Nearly every impact fee has been reviewed and updated. New development and utility infrastructure should be paid by developers – not through current resident utility rates & property taxes.
- Quality of Life - passed resolution to help our community remain free of pornography in any of its forms sending message to possible offenders. Budgeted reward money for graffiti and tagging convictions
- Responsible Budgeting – We have managed the city’s finances judiciously. We have established a Capital Project Fund with current funding at over 10M dollars. We have budgeted upgrades to leaking sewer mains, set a proposed water pressure standard of 50psi - without diminishing other necessary services.
Let Me Work for You and Our City’s Future with the Following: :
- Communication – Listen to & work with the citizens of this community. I consider this a work in progress.
- Library – I fully support construction of a new library. Library patrons have increased by tens of thousands. A new library will be a retreat for both young and old.
- Swimming Pool – Our current pool (& chlorinator) are safe but very costly to repair. It’s time for a new pool. I will carefully review the report from the pool ad hoc committee and push forward on new facility.
- Secondary Water Phase II – I support a phased approach to a secondary water system. With proper management, we can safe-guard our water rights, conserve water and share development costs with other governmental agencies. CUP (Central Utah Water Conservancy District) is currently running the “Mapleton Water Lateral” to our city boundary from the mouth of Spanish Fork Canyon - at no cost to our city. In the not too distant future, another phase of this project will run the entire length of 400 East from South to North in our community. Again, with proper planning, we could have a secondary water delivery system, curb, gutter, new road surface, new bridge etc along this street at very little cost to our citizens. I understand our opportunities in this endeavor and will work to ensure our city gets every benefit possible from this project.
- Public Safety & Emergency Response - Your homeowner’s insurance premium is based on several factors including proximity to safety facilities and response time for emergency vehicles? We need satellite safety facilities to shorten response time, lower your premiums and save lives.
- Impact Fees – Fees should be calendared for review and updated as necessary. New development costs should not be passed to established citizens.
- Plat “A” Improvement – Plat “A” (400 E to 400 W and 400 N to 400 S has been neglected long enough. We need a plan to involve citizens in this area, prioritize improvements, and work out appropriate funding methods.
- Customer (Citizen) Service – I believe our citizens are our most important asset. You deserve to be treated well and to receive maximum return on your tax dollar. I will work to that end.
- More Park and Recreation Space – Open areas for parks are disappearing fast. I am committed to park and recreation development.
- Recreation Center – Our city is rapidly approaching a population that could support a city recreation center. If a majority of our citizens will agree to bond such a facility, I will support it. Timing and location are critical issues that can be addressed by a citizen Ad Hoc committee