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Los Angeles County, CA | April 13, 2010 Election |
Understanding One Valley, One VisionBy David GaunyCandidate for Member, City Council; City of Santa Clarita | |
This information is provided by the candidate |
Important facts about the future planning of Santa ClaritaNo one questions that Santa Clarita is a beautiful city but recent decisions from our City Council have many asking something else: where are we headed? The 2010 City Council will begin review of One Valley, One Vision (OVOV), a proposal that will forever redraw zoning and planning guidelines in virtually every part of our city. It is not an exaggeration to say that Santa Clarita is at the precipice of becoming either a well-planned city with premium venues or the next city to be overrun with L.A.'s urban sprawl. Execution of One Valley, One Vision will determine our fate. Here are a few examples of the potential damage we will incur without alert leadership:
That said, process up to this point has been disastrous. At community workshops that were supposed to invite public input, staff produced only blank pages on every key zoning question I asked. How does the public weigh in without information? Such process is the reason why our city continues to suffer 11th hour pushback from citizens. Wasted time, money, and lawsuits are the result. Good process makes a better plan and our refusal to embrace this concept is costing our taxpayers dearly. And this strikes at the heart of the heart of why I'm running for council. Whether it's lack of interest or conflict of interest, our incumbent leadership has a dismal record of understanding complex proposals. It is telling that OVOV was deliberately delayed until after the election, as this method of avoiding meaningful debate and exposure of intentions has been employed by this group more than once. Outside money increasingly funds incumbent campaigns and without new leadership we will suffer the inevitable effects. What I support. As a businessman, I understand that growth is both necessary and beneficial to the health of our city. But to avoid L.A.'s density nightmare, we need better checks and balances from our City Council and a real plan to keep public safety and services funded. My goal is to bring representation and a plan that better protects our community moving forward:
Our city council has not demonstrated vision that includes high-paying jobs in our valley. With a dismal .90:1 jobs/housing ratio, even low-wage jobs are lacking. Roads are clogged with people leaving our valley for work and people outside our valley coming here to work. They then take their check and spend it elsewhere. This is not a plan for growth and the incumbents have been asleep at the switch. OVOV is only a bad thing if we fail to bring the high-paying jobs our citizens need to live and work locally. The incumbents have already demonstrated their vision and political will here. We need critical thought and thorough review of the proposal to protect our home values and our quality of life. I am committed to the ideas and energy that will get us there. |
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