Tonya Hoeffel for Mayor of Garrett 2007 :: Issues Facing Garrett
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Below you will find my Vision for a Greater Garrett in more detail. 
 
Be sure to also look at the more condensed version in my Ten Point Plan
 
Also know that I welcome your input, so please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments.

 

Administration | Law & Order | Economic Development | Fiscal Discipline Supporting Scholarship | Transportation | Community Outreach | City Website

 

Administration

  • I believe the position of City Planner should be replaced with the position of City Manager

  • The City manager should be the Chief Administrative Officer to oversee and work with Departments and Staff that provide services to our City’s residents and businesses, in addition to the other tasks associated with the current position of City Planner

  • The City Manager’s Office would be on the first floor of City Hall to enable greater access to citizens

  • I also believe that our City manager would better serve our community as a Garrett resident, one who holds a personal stake in the City’s future

  • As a councilmember, I realize the need for our city's Council members to have detailed information on issues within our city to make informed decisions

    • Therefore, I will meet with the common council members before each council meeting to better inform them of city issues and ask their input and community concerns

  • Ensure that City Staff and Employees provide our city’s services with courtesy and respect

  • Our administration and employees should be willing to go the extra mile to see that all residents and businesses are satisfied with the service they are receiving.

  • I will involve more decision making to the members of city council and department heads so that more ideas may be brought to the table through their various expertise

  • Eliminate Inefficiency

  • Streamline operations, reduce duplicate staff, reevaluate every operation and expenditure to save the people of Garrett money

  • Implement an appeals process regarding utility billing

Law & Order

  • We should look into the possibility of having our own city court, as other cities of our size have

    • Already there is an ordinance that calls for a Garrett City Court, but it has never been implemented

  • That court would  

  • Enable a larger share of ticket fines to support our local police force

  • Would allow local residence to pay fines in Garrett, rather than traveling outside the city

  • Our city only makes $5 per traffic violation in our city.  Having our own City Court would allow us to keep the entire fine.

  • Setting up a Neighborhood Emergency Liaison in various parts of the City to help citizens in cases of crises,

  •  such as tornados, natural disasters, train derailment, ice storms, boil-water advisory, etc.

  • In partnership with the possibility of partnering with the Police and Fire Department, we should have a training session for high school and young adult residents willing to be trained in crowd control and first aid relief

  • Currently, if our city was to experience a crisis, our city would not have the resources to properly stabilize the situation

  • Webcams in the parks for parents to monitor their children

Economic Development:  “Grow Garrett Initiatives”

  • We need to move toward a comprehensive plan to encourage growth and development in a logical pattern

  • By aggressively pursuing new funding from state and federal sources

  • There are businesses and resources in our community that we can work to better advertise and make known

  • Our city should connect Forest Park Drive from Taylor Road to North Randolph Street

  • That could add a major possibilities for development, industry, and new jobs

  • We should have available a “Garrett Fact Sheet” to promote Garrett and to have available to prospective developers

  • Work more closely with our local Chamber of Commerce and The Office of DeKalb County Economic Development Partnership to plan strategies to bring more business and industry into Garrett.

  • Additional lighting on the south and north ends of town to not only provide additional security, but also to allow travelers on 205 and 8 know there is a thriving city down the road

  • Would partner with our Chamber of Commerce as well as the Garrett Historical Society to incorporate a welcome to Garrett informative newsletter or welcome letter to new businesses or residents to share the Garrett Spirit!

 Fiscal Discipline

  • Financial Advantage

    • Reduce unnecessary and excessive costs to assure the best quality services for your tax dollar

  • It is of utmost importance that our city departments have the necessary and proper equipment to properly, effectively, and efficiently do their jobs

  • One way to do this so to actively update and be aware of all needs of city departments

  • One suggestion is a 5 to 10 year plan of assessing the needs and conditions of city vehicles and equipment

  • The first step in this process would be a complete inventory of current conditions and age of vehicles and equipment

    • We should make such an inventory a consistent practice so that we are always aware of the resources we have and those that we need

  • In favor of numbering both city-owned utility polls and transformers so that repairs and maintenance can be more efficient and so that citizens may more easily report problems (such as light outages in alleys)

  • No pay hikes for public officials when Garrett is in a budget crunch

  • We should only grant tax abatements (exemption from paying local taxes) to businesses and industries that will provide good paying jobs

Supporting Scholarship and Literacy

  • “Garrett: The City that Reads” Initiative

  • Implementing literacy programs provided by our schools and the Garrett Public Library

  • I believe there should be public reading centers in the city, featuring city news and our local news sources

Transportation

  • Continue to work on my proposed idea of connecting North Pointe Crossing and Iron Horse with a sidewalk along the west side of the Golf Course, in which we would make a “Garrett Greenway”

  • It would benefit residents by both having a safe pathway into town and also by providing a scenic walking trail

 Community Outreach

  • Introduce the idea of inviting trick-or-treaters to City Hall to encourage Downtown businesses to also participate, from noon to 5pm

  • Move the Board of Works meeting to 4:00pm so not only City Employees may attend, but also community members.  (Currently the meeting is at the inconvenient time of 8am, during the workday)

  • Would have a monthly “Night in with the Mayor” at City Hall with Council members invited to speak to citizens about their concerns or to share information on current projects

  • With a collaborate effort of all citizens of Garrett, our community should create a Vision Statement, which summarizes what our City’s vision for its citizens

  • Looks to work with the city to update our downtown Christmas lights and decorations.

  • Implement volunteer and neighborhood associations to give citizens a greater collective voice

  • Also, appointments to fill board and commission vacancies should be open to the public

  • Thus, I plan to make applications available to any Garrett Citizen who is interested, via paper application in City Hall or electronic on the City’s website

City Website Improvements

  • Our website should have links to charitable and service organizations so our citizens may have better access to these resources

  • We should have in place a community wide calendar available to view in City Hall as well as our City’s website

  • We should have an “Action Center” section on our website for citizens to submit concerns and questions

  •  Our City should make all financial transactions and expenditures available to residents on our City Website

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