1. What do you think are the top issues facing District 2 and how would you approach each of them?

Housing affordability tops my list of issues for Salt City and is acutely felt in District Two. One of the attractive features of District Two in general and Fairpark in particular was the ability to live close to downtown without paying downtown prices. The population increase coupled with lower amounts of housing stock has raised prices to the extent there’s no price benefit to purchasing in District Two any more. Rents have also gone up dramatically. While historically low interest rates have kept mortgage payments at a reasonable level, despite the huge increase in prices, renters haven’t received the same benefit. In District Two, there are 14 homes for sale as of this writing. The average price for 84116 is $315,850 and 84104 is $329,366. In multiple offer situations, which nearly all homes undergo right now, the winning bid can be $30,000 plus over list. The drastic shortage of homes and high prices is keeping sellers out of the market because they’re afraid they won’t be able to find their next home. This logjam on the property ladder has created an unhealthy market that’s expensive and frustrating.

There are a number of possible solutions to this issue and a number of policy stances that could be taken. Cities typically wield a policy stance with a “carrot or stick” approach. I prefer the carrot. When it comes to transit oriented development, we need to incentivize the development of ownership housing products like condominiums and townhouses. One of the lasting repercussions of the Great Recession is a massive disincentive to build condos across the country. Young people and first time homebuyers have driven demand for this product type, yet few new build options exist. a high percentage of in District Two is laying the foundation for a transient resident base and decreased funding for public schools.

In a free market, naturally occurring affordable housing isn’t going to happen. As the authority and regulator for any new , the City must require affordable housing to be part of every new housing project. I believe the number should be 10% at a minimum and could look like units in multi-family projects, ADUs in single family homes or a 10% premium fee in high cost neighborhoods where neither units or ADUs are feasible. This fee should go directly to schools and housing assistance programs to the City.

Salt Lake City led Utah in establishing an accessory dwelling unit ordinance in 2018, yet the number of those units actually built has been insufficient. Only six ADUs have been built since the ordinance passed. While more applications are in the pipeline, ADUs alone won’t address the housing issue. There are a number of barriers including a conditional use application process which requires lengthy Planning Commission approval and high fees. ADU permitting fees are similar to building an entire . The passage of HB82 in this last legislative session provides financial assistance in constructing ADUs for lower income home owners or for those intending to rent their ADU to lower income residents. Salt Lake City could implement an ADU financing program through Housing and Neighborhood Development, lower its permitting fees and develop an ADU information campaign to make residents aware of how our ADU process works.

Finally, we have to look at zoning and incremental, “makes sense” density opportunities for all new construction in the City. If there’s room on a lot for two units instead of one, shouldn’t we take that opportunity? In light of changing retail and office trends, are there instances where converting or redeveloping underused commercial space into housing would be the better choice? Won’t more mixed use development with vertical growth be more cost effective, sustainable and benefit our communities than relying on the standard single family home? These are just a few of the things we need to think about as Salt Lake addresses this issue.

Continuing on the theme of affordable housing, I also think development is a critical issue for District Two. This is a concern reaching much more than just housing. Development covers the issues of the new prison, the Inland , transit oriented development zones and housing. The North Temple corridor is the only TOD zone in District Two and it’s just barely starting to develop in a meaningful way. I’m concerned about the clustering of rental products and small, micro units. The City needs to create ways to get ownership products and family size units. In today’s high cost environment for building materials and labor, the way to get that will be through incentives. The City can use the tool of deed restriction to maintain those incentive investments for perpetuity. Priority needs to be placed on City projects like the Folsom Trail which has been in development for nearly 20 years without a single shovel turning dirt. The blight in that corridor has contributed to delays in realizing the full potential of the North Temple RDA project area.

Crime is on the rise in Salt Lake City. Anecdotally I see it on Nextdoor and Facebook community pages every day. Package theft, car break ins, car theft and other property crimes are the most mentioned. I see it on North Temple with the number of businesses with broken windows and the businesses that have left. I’ve spoken to the business owners and managers on North Temple and heard about the product theft and violent attacks on staff in the stores. They’ve told me about drug overdose deaths in their store bathrooms and lots. Many of those crimes are completely under-reported. The reported crime confirms this narrative. In 2020, c rime city wide was up over 20% for both violent crimes and property crimes. District Two saw a 29.5% increase for both categories with a staggering 92.5% increase in vehicle larceny, the most of any district in the City. Personally, I’ve had items go missing from my yard, found used needles on the other side of my back fence and caught someone using my backyard as their personal store.

There are a number of factors affecting this increase in crime including the pandemic which affected jail holding policy. Another factor was bail reform legislation that drastically reduced bail amounts for felony charges. Strained police resources brought on by quarantine guidelines, Covid cases among staff and large scale civil unrest last Spring and Summer also contributed. Criminals were emboldened by the perception of light consequences for their behavior. Large camps developed around the City with criminals exploiting drug addicts, the mentally ill and the unsheltered. It’s a counter social system that creates a sense of community for those in it that’s difficult to leave.

This is a complex problem requiring a united front from the City, County, State and residents. As a resident and community leader in Fairpark, I was part of a series of weekly meetings with various community stakeholders trying to address this issue. As we quarantined in our homes, the lawless took over the streets. Councilmember Johnston started street corner meetings on North Temple. We met with police, councilmembers, County and State officials to come up with solutions to the problems. They included implementing no loitering signs on 800 West grassy medians, bringing business trespassing signs into police registry for enforcement and garbage cleanups. One of the things police officials and recovering drug addicts often mention is it’s the criminal justice system that gets them into treatment. Our current policy of “catch and release” policing isn’t benefiting the community.

Solutions to the crime issue have to include a stop to “catch and release” jailing. I propose opening an outdoor detainment facility at the Oxbow jail on a temporary basis so the jail has Covid safe holding facilities and criminals face consequences and have opportunities for drug treatment. Bail reform saw some adjustment in this year’s legislative session and I will closely watch how that plays out in real time. We need to better educate residents on how to protect their property. When I had items stolen from my yard, it motivated me to better clean and organize my property. I placed all tools in my locked garage and cleaned up so I could quickly identify if I had things missing. (Retail stores use the same tactic to reduce shoplifting.) I also installed motion lights and LED bulbs for all my outdoor lighting. I’m conscious about items I leave in my car and make sure to hide any valuables I can’t secure inside my house. I never leave my car running unattended.

Solving the homeless issue will continue to be expensive and require coordination and resources from the State and County. The creation of affordable housing I touched on earlier will incrementally address it, but it won’t be fast enough. I support the idea of a tiny home community operated by the Other Side Academy for the purpose of housing and treating drug addicts. I support the idea of housing with onsite case management for the purpose of helping the disabled and mentally ill. I support the idea of incentivizing landlords to accept homeless individuals with housing vouchers. I support the idea of the City establishing

alternate ways to establish consumer credit tradelines like a registry of on-time rent payers or utility payments. I support the idea of reimagining incentives for homeless service providers to shift from the number of people helped towards the number of people who stay housed, employed or substance free after going through the provider’s program. There is no silver bullet for solving homelessness. But a number of smaller, sustainable programs will help provide a collective impact.

I’ve lived on the West Side for nearly twenty years cumulatively. Most importantly, I spent my formative years here. I was six years old when my family moved from Jamaica to Salt Lake. We initially settled in Rose but quickly found a house in Glendale that I grew up in. That was an odd spot on 900 West across from the Liquor Commission. For years we didn’t have curbing and guttering or sidewalks. I walked to school on the side of the road, avoiding cars and huge puddles when it was wet. That was my first experience with the inequity we faced as west side residents as neither the City, nor the County considered our location as part of their jurisdiction. When I went to high school, I was able to take a school bus only because our neighbor had tirelessly advocated for buses in the previous years. Otherwise it was a two mile walk, something I would need to do when participating in after-school activities. The West Side communities comprise the lowest median incomes, the highest number of ethnic minorities, a history of being a dumping ground for the Jordan and we’re divided by three freeways and separated by freight rail lines which impede timely access to jobs and schools.

Key school closures of West Side schools during the 1980’s further divided the population. High school students who live in District One have the opportunity to attend a local high school at West High. Those same aged students who live in Glendale are bused to East High which denies them opportunities to participate in after school activities unless they can arrange other transportation. After school activities like band, athletics, speech/drama, choir are the building blocks to the resumes that make for successful college applications. While efforts have been made over the years to improve conditions on the West Side, the inequity is real. The most current issue of the C ity Weekly has an article on d ensity in the City. Yalecrest resident Lynn Pershing said the city should help develop west-side communities "instead of destroying what's already good."

That the West Side is somehow not “good” is what drives inequality. In an age of prosperity gospels and building walls, our community of the poorest and most racially diverse residents continues to take the brunt of lesser desired items like prisons, density and an Inland Port. West Side amenities like a par 3 golf course, a water park and an old mansion are left to slowly decay. Our residents take that to heart. A few years ago, the County Sheriff proposed a sanctioned homeless camp at 600 West and South Temple; the very site of the Folsom Trail. Neglecting the West Side has consequences other governmental entities see very clearly.

The City Council has opportunities to address this historical inequity. The establishment of a Public Market at the Fairpark will soon come to fruition. This wouldn’t have happened without the fiery advocacy of Councilmember Rogers in District One or the efforts of the Westside Coalition and River District Chamber. On the housing front, the Council will be faced with a vote on a rezone in the upper Avenues to allow 20 single family homes, 15 of which have ADUs in them. It’s the sort of “makes sense”, incremental density I believe is critical to addressing both the housing shortage and the unfairness that has long divided our City on geographic lines. The neighbors to this three acre property who are most opposed to it ironically live in higher density condos and townhomes. They have formed loud opposition and hired lawyers and lobbyists to advance their case for not adjusting the zone. On the West Side, there are nearly 2,000 housing units proposed or in the planning process within a quarter mile of North Temple. The inequity is real.

Countering inequity will require resident participation. While many of our residents face demanding work schedules limiting civic participation, many others don’t. Rising home prices are changing the demographic of who lives here and it’s encouraging to see new blood infused into the community. Opportunities abound in District Two for City boards and commissions. Community councils need board members and a plucky little newspaper called T he W estview can always use contributors. As the Councilmember for District Two, I would actively recruit to fill the open positions on City boards and commissions and take every opportunity to explain the myriad of ways to get civically engaged and participate.

2. What is an example of a District 2 project or program from the last five years that you think was a success, and why do you think it was successful?

I moved to my house in Fairpark in late August, 2015. Back then, the City’s approach to bulk waste collection (old furniture, tree limbs and other junk) was to allow residents to place it on the curb and in about a month, City trucks would roll around and pick it up. Having lived in other parts of the County, this was the only place this particular practice was implemented. Other municipalities typically placed a dumpster in a neighborhood for a short window of time to address bulk waste. Those are not without their problems. Too much waste could overflow into the neighborhood. Scavengers, scrap collectors and recyclers would often come by as well, sometimes not cleaning up after their search. Needless to say, having so many residences dispose of bulk waste at the same time with a long window before pickup was a mess. One person I spoke to who had witnessed it described our cleanup season as if “a bomb had been detonated.”

The City Council began to address the problem and with lots of public input came up with our current program for bulk waste; “Call to Haul.” Instead of waiting for certain times of the year, residents can now call the City, put their items to the curb, and get it picked up in a short period of time. Since everyone isn’t doing it at the same time, it no longer looks like a bomb has gone off in our neighborhoods each Fall. I was skeptical at first with this program, but the kinks have been worked out and it seems to have found favor among the residents. By seeking public input, the Council got the community buy in necessary to make it successful.

3. With regard to the Utah Inland Port, what do you think are the top 3 priorities about its development and the City’s role or interaction with the Inland ?

It was an early morning meeting of the Salt Lake Community Network when I first learned of the passage of SB234 which established the Inland Port. This was an issue I had followed for months as Chair of the River District Chamber. I’d attended community meetings with Mayor Biskupski and Speaker Hughes but the details of the Port weren’t fully revealed until that final night of the 2018 legislative session. I volunteered to write the initial response to SB234 on behalf of SLCN which comprises all of Salt Lake’s Community Councils. Through this process I developed a strategy for addressing the Port.

First, I made the assumption the Port could not be stopped from happening so my first priority was to take action that protects the neighbors to the east and south. Ensuring suitable environmental protections including a focus on air quality, green building of the Port and addressing train traffic were key.

As a licensed Realtor and community leader I was in a unique position to interact with City government, State government and the developer through the Salt Lake Board of Realtors Commercial Alliance committee. Protecting the community comes first.

Second, one of the City’s chief objections to the funding portion of the Port is the concern it would be financially responsible for the Police and Fire services without the opportunity to collect revenue. SB234 allows the State to collect up to 100% of Port income for a long time in the future. The City currently has a lawsuit on appeal at the Supreme Court concerning this point. I believe it’s important to negotiate this concern and re-establish a relationship with the State over the Inland Port. There have been many leadership changes at a City and State level since SB234 passed and now is a critical time to repair relationships and fix this funding inequity.

Having sat in City Council work sessions on the Inland Port prior to SB234’s passage, I understood Salt Lake City retained zoning control over the area. Since I didn’t believe the Inland Port could be stopped, I advocated for “makes sense” zoning that protects our communities. These were the four key areas I identified and advocated for with zoning in a letter to the Planning Director Nick Norris and copied to Mayor Biskupski and Councilmember Johnston. I settled on these key points after discussion with other River District Chamber members, Soren Simonsen and the Westside Coalition.

First, we would like to see a landscaping overlay to try and preserve the environmental look of the Northwest Quadrant. It will be costly and challenging to install sod and sprinklers for this very sandy area of the valley. We request an overlay to help preserve the exisng nature of the property, lower costs for land owners/tenants and maintain the habitat for the many species of animals living in the area.

Secondly, we are concerned with the possibility of installed concrete or asphalt changing water flow from rainfall to neighboring areas and businesses. We would like to see zoning migate rainwater flow requirements in the Inland Port zone. Thirdly, the size of the being proposed are enormous. Some of the smaller buildings are a minimum of 500,000 square feet footprints while others are one million. We hope the builders would want to construct buildings with efficiency in construcon, operaon, maintenance and ulity in mind. The Chamber asks planning to consult with the state department of environmental quality to create standards that are ecologically and operaonally efficient without an undue cost aached. Further, we support the idea of offering incenves to incorporate green/sustainable building technologies, reducon of energy consumpon and maximizing generaon of renewable energy sources

Finally, as we look at the way railroad lines divide the area we represent, we’re extremely concerned addional rail traffic will create both a commung and distribuon nightmare for businesses and neighborhoods in the area. We’ve been told Colmena Group doesn’t ancipate sending rail traffic east aer a new rail hub is completed. This in itself should migate the traffic concern we have, but we would like to see what the City can do to codify this protecon for the neighborhoods we represent.

If I were to be appointed to this position, I would continue with these priorities concerning the Inland Port. I believe the State has made important adjustments to the Port’s structure in forming a hub and spoke model that allows rural producers of overseas goods direct shipping to coastal . I’ve also had the opportunity to meet with Inland Port CEO Jack Hedge on several occasions and support his mission to develop the greenest Port in the nation, if not the world.