Why are you running? I want to contribute to making Denton a better place to live. Denton is a very diverse community.

The diversity of this community should be reflected in all the tiers of Dentons government. It is paramount to having a democratic society to have civic engagement by its citizens. One of my goals is to improve civic participation and engagement by Dentons diverse community. Describe your professional experience and how it qualifies you for office. While having professional experience is not a prerequisite to being a public city official, my background is that I am a Wildlife Biologist. I retired from the USDA Forest Service in 2011. During my career, I was part of a team that coordinated the management of a National Forest and Grasslands. I wrote and reviewed environmental assessment documents that dealt with many issues including oil and gas. I am a veteran from the United States Army where I served as a Squad Sergeant. I know how to coordinate and cooperate in order to get things done. What qualifies me in particular for this office is that I am a Denton citizen who is concerned with how the city is being managed. I have decided to try to make a difference by running for City Council. It is the Denton citizens in District 2 who will ultimately decide if I am qualified to serve as their City Council representative. It is ultimately the citizens of District 2 who will listen to me, review my credentials and decide if they want me to represent them. What capital project is most needed for Denton and how would you pay for it? Denton is a rapidly growing city. There are many issues that face rapidly growing cities, for example, new schools and expanding schools, maintaining roads and expanding roads, etc. etc. It is the citizens who should ultimately be responsible in identifying the priority of capital projects. It is their money that is being spent, so ultimately they should have a say on how they want to pay for capital projects. If I am elected to represent District 2, it is my obligation to keep the citizens of District 2 informed of the issues. I should ultimately be representing their views on issues, not mine. In what areas do you see waste in your government and what would you do about it? Denton citizens are our best eyes to root out government waste. My recommendation is to put in place a monetary awards program for citizens to identify waste and their ideas to correct that waste. All Denton citizens would be eligible to participate not just government employees (government employees could be excluded because they should not be compensated for decreasing waste in their departments, because it is part of their job to be good fiduciaries of the public funds). The suggestions would be reviewed by an independent board of volunteers. The suggestions would be reviewed every 2 months to bring about a rapid stop to waste. The award could be based on a percentage of the savings for the first 6 months or one year. What do you think is the most pressing issue for the city right now and why? The most pressing issue is the 2030 Plan and that it is done correctly. The 2030 Plan should set the parameters for the goals and objectives for the future of Denton. The 2030 Plan is a based on citizen input about where we want Denton to go in the next 15 years. Therefore, the city needs to engage its diverse community to ensure that all its citizens are represented in the future of Denton.