Why are you running and why should people vote for you? I have been a lifelong resident of Maryville and currently reside at 6045 Keebler Oaks Drive with my wife Michele. For my entire adult life, I have worked tirelessly as a volunteer and Village Trustee to continue to improve and give back to the Village of Maryville that has been so good to me and my family. As a Village Trustee, I firmly support the current and past Village administrations belief that through hard work and due diligence, the city can and should be run like a business where we are accountable to our residence for the continued development of the Village and management of their tax dollars.
What is the most important issue facing your town? How would you approach it? The Village continues to grow but our primary source of revenue continues to be limited to property tax paid by our residents which puts us at a disadvantage to neighboring communities who have much more sales tax than we do to expand growth. We continue to work to attract commercial development but until it takes off, we need to push for a balanced budget that provides services on what we can afford without raising taxes.
Under what circumstances, if any, would you raise taxes or fees in the municipality? Please explain. In all my years serving as a Village Trustee, I have never been an advocate for raising taxes to support for services that we cannot afford. That is why I have always pushed and preached the importance of implementing a balanced budget that tracks expenditures to revenues monthly.
Crime has been an issue in parts of the metro-east. What is the best way to stop the problem in and around your community? The Village of Maryville has one of the lowest crime rates compared to neighboring communities. I feel that this primarily the result of the outstanding Police Department that Maryville has. The Police Department and Village Administration has worked closely with the residents on implementing neighborhood watch groups which helps the Police Depart to keep an eye on the different neighborhoods which helps reduce crime.