Business Stability
If we build a stable infrastructure with safe sidewalks, improved services and a comprehensive transportation plan… then businesses will build themselves around the foundation.
It is time to stop government competition with locally owned businesses. Our city must end participation in countless projects where we have no business spending tax dollars or focusing government efforts. Our city must stop the practices adopted as of recent of being the Real Estate Agent, Land Developer, and guarantor of leases and loans for private businesses to take risk at the expense of the community.
No government at any level has ever been successful at picking winners and losers in a free market system. Artificial economic growth is neither smart nor sustainable. We need to let our free market take the natural course where the winners will be rewarded based on good old fashioned hard work and not an association to certain clicks.
Education and Infrastructure
Ogden does not need to start more legacy projects. We need to finish what has been started and connect the dots.
If monumental projects are proposed and approved, they must be paid for by the private groups or individuals who will profit from them. Our legacy projects began years ago before many of us were born. Those legacy projects, which we are currently measured by, we are failing at.
Our sidewalks are not safe, our roads, though getting better, need much more work, and are becoming more congested, and our basic services are in need of improvement. Many of our neighborhoods are littered with trash.
Local services such as public education have faded from the most important. We owe all the children of Ogden more, and we must work together to bring about localized control of our education. We can do this in several ways and under my administration I will work to harness the parents, students and teachers in our community for collective solutions.
By combining less government and focusing our investment in our infrastructure and education, Ogden will recognize organic growth which we will be measured with long term stability.
Employment
Higher paying jobs give more time for moms and dads to spend with their family.
When much of our community lives below the poverty level we need to focus more on level of jobs.
We need to support our outstanding technology schools and growing university to continue forward thinking in developing curriculum to provide the training needed to attract students and businesses which will get Ogden back to work. By exploring the MADE IN OGDEN product development program we will provide long term employment, for all skill levels, with opportunity for advancement while simultaneously letting the world know that we mean business. We will employ a hard working and happy work force further attracting quality companies and families to Ogden, Utah.
Transportation
Connecting the DOTS Ogden.
We need to build much stronger relationships with the Utah Transit Authority, Weber County, the surrounding cities along with the many stakeholders in order to connect the dots of our community.
Over the past 10 years we have talked about gondolas, street cars, trolleys, and bus routes to better serve the Community’s growing transportation requirements. These conversations have often been guided by single areas of interest and haven’t taken into account all of Ogden and the growth of greater Weber County.
As a community we need to discuss how to connect all current economic clusters and plan for those that need to be built. While connecting these main points of interest, such as the airport, business centers, colleges, hospitals and schools we also need to insure we service neighborhoods which could create a quicker revitalization and bring back the pride in all of our neighborhoods.
As we build new mass transportation infrastructure we need to continue to maintain our existing roads and build vertical parking structures to accommodate the existing demands.
We also need to develop the entries into the community off the I-15 to support logistics of products and the ability to efficiently move people where they want to go. Our focus should not be just one freeway exit, but every entry into our great city.
- 89 Entrance
- The 31st street exit is important to accessing the airport and east bench.
- 24th could be great for helping support logistics for product delivery to the business park and be one of the entries to the historic downtown.
- 20th Street has already been well developed and has the potential of creating another economic business cluster as well as servicing the west side communities.
- The 12th street corridor is a necessity to supporting product shipments from the Business Depot Ogden in addition to being the point of travel for accessing our northern communities and Ogden Valley. Together these off ramps support the major demand of our community and play a vital role in supporting growth in Ogden.
- North Ogden entrance
- Valley entrance