{"id":69,"date":"2011-02-21T22:57:11","date_gmt":"2011-02-21T22:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/svenforcitycommission.com\/?p=69"},"modified":"2011-02-21T22:57:11","modified_gmt":"2011-02-21T22:57:11","slug":"fire-fighters-local-1596-candidate-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/2011\/02\/21\/fire-fighters-local-1596-candidate-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"Fire Fighters Local 1596: Candidate Questions"},"content":{"rendered":"

February 22, 2011<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

(A)\u00a0\u00a0 Do you have previous experience in government? If so, explain.<\/em><\/strong> <\/em><\/p>\n

No, I do not have experience as a government employee or elected official. However, I have served on several advisory boards and professional organization committees.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Past memberships:
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

    \n
  • AIA Kansas City Government Affairs Committee<\/em><\/li>\n
  • AIA Colorado Government Affairs Committee<\/em><\/li>\n
  • AIA Kansas City Historic Resources Committee<\/em><\/li>\n
  • AIA Colorado Historic Resources Committee<\/em><\/li>\n
  • City of Aspen Historic Preservation Commission member 1994 \u2013 1997<\/em><\/li>\n
  • City of Lawrence Historic Resources Commission member 2004 \u2013 2007<\/em><\/li>\n
  • City of Aspen Design Review Committee (DRAC) 1994 \u2013 1997<\/em><\/li>\n
  • Aspen\/Pitkin County Light Rail Task Force 2000<\/em><\/li>\n
  • Aspen Area Community Plan 2000 Commission member 1999<\/em><\/li>\n
  • City of Aspen Downtown & Pedestrian Plan Committee member 1997 \u2013 1998<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n


    \n(B)\u00a0\u00a0 As a commission member what are your top three priorities for the City? <\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    Firstly, fostering an environment of cooperation between local government, business and our neighborhoods. I encourage all neighborhoods in Lawrence to think creatively about the long-term plans for their own schools, neighborhood-retail and business locations in or near their respective neighborhood. We need to improve communications with our local small businesses and keep those lines of communication always open to improve and grow our community with an eye toward reaching all northeastern Kansas markets and beyond from Lawrence. <\/em><\/p>\n

    Secondly, encouraging Downtown Lawrence to grow healthily but not by using artificial TIF-financed projects or by adding any additional sales tax districts. While TIF [Tax Increment Financing] and additional sales tax districts may help when developing retail areas around the Sprint Center in Kansas City I am opposed to any new TIF or tax districts in Lawrence, in part due to the scale of our community.<\/em><\/p>\n

    Thirdly, finding a solution to the Community Shelter problem and encouraging support of Just Food and its food pantry for Douglas County.<\/em><\/p>\n


    \n(C)\u00a0\u00a0 What are the core services that you believe the city should provide? <\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    I believe that the City of Lawrence is providing excellent services in Fire and Police, Trash, Parks & Recreation, Water and Sewer, and other departments as well.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    Historic Preservation should be strongly supported by the City Commission since both Downtown Lawrence and our historic neighborhoods are part of the heritage of Lawrence and the attraction that our community holds for visitors.<\/em><\/p>\n

    <\/em>
    \n(D)\u00a0\u00a0 Do you have knowledge or have worked with labor unions? If so, explain? <\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    As an architect,\u00a0 I have\u00a0 worked extensively with unions in the construction industry: electricians, plumbers, sheet metal workers, elevator equipment contractors, carpenter unions and so forth. Furthermore, as an architect licensed in Kansas and five other states, I can tell you that quality is an important attribute of union labor. Apprenticeship and training within the context of a labor union environment are very beneficial in the construction industry. This quality of training is even more important with regard to Firefighters and Police and I strongly support the heritage and culture of labor unions in education and quality assessment in their respective fields.<\/em><\/p>\n


    \n(E)\u00a0\u00a0 The International Association of Firefighters Local 1596 believes very strongly in the safety of the public, and also the safety of our firefighters. A national study was done by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which found that four-person crews were able to perform fire ground operations more effectively, and safer than crews that only used 3- or 2-person crews. We believe that staffing is an important part in keeping the public and firefighters safe. We would ask you to support this idea and to work to make staffing levels a priority.<\/em><\/strong> <\/em><\/div>\n

    I definitely support four-person crews for firefighters. This makes sense to\u00a0 me and I do wholeheartedly support this crew-assignment approach.\u00a0 I am certain that having two pairs of hands and eyes available makes much more sense than one pair with only a single backup. It is obvious that two pairs of firefighters can arrive, setup and be much more effective together in an emergency situation.<\/em><\/p>\n


    \n(F) \u00a0 In Lawrence currently, there are only two employee groups that enter into contracts with the City. Do you feel that other employee groups should be given the opportunity to meet and confer with city management in regards to pay, benefits and a safe working environment? Also, please make further comments you have on this item below. <\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    I believe that other employment groups should also have the right to be formed and to collectively bargain with the City. I strongly support collective bargaining for fire, police and all municipal employees. I believe that a responsible, self-regulating labor force produces a better quality work environment and makes cooperation between management and employment groups more productive.<\/em><\/p>\n


    \n(G) \u00a0 Would you, if offered, accept an endorsement from the Lawrence Professional\u00a0 Firefighters PAC?<\/em><\/strong> <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    I have known both volunteer and non-volunteer firefighters in both Kansas and Colorado and would be honored to have your endorsement.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    February 22, 2011 (A)\u00a0\u00a0 Do you have previous experience in government? If so, explain. No, I do not have experience as a government employee or elected official. However, I have served on several advisory boards and professional organization committees. Past memberships: AIA Kansas City Government Affairs Committee AIA Colorado Government Affairs Committee AIA Kansas City […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5,6,7,8,11,12,13,15,18,24],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wysocki.co.uk\/wordpress\/svenforcitycommission2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}