The following was posed to me on Facebook. They are good, valid questions, so I thought I'd re-print them here for non-Facebook folk to read, along with my answers:
Question. I understand the tax base, but do we really need another all-sups? Plus, some like att/Starbucks are so horribly planned, they are going to cause an accident, future plans? And, what about code enforcement for landlord/ property owners that don't keep up their property? Tired of all house being student houses in a residential neighborhood, that just get trashed. Or older homes that are not kept up. Or people just plain being trashy.
Ms. S----.
_Excellent_ points. I'll share with you my thoughts.
Let me address first the Starbucks/ATT strip mall access:
I agree wholeheartedly; you couldn’t find a better example of poor planning and zoning implementation in all of Stephenville. Apparently in the duel between having a few anemic green trees or safe ingress and egress, the trees won. Please know I am all for beautification and green spaces, but not when the mandating of such causes a significant safety issue.
This exactly the type of common sense thing I wish to address for our community if I am elected to the city council, where my retail background is a direct asset to council deliberations and hopefully will contribute to their understanding of the long-reaching results of their decisions.
Regarding, "Do we really need another all-sups?"
I am hoping for more new indie stores, myself. :) But whether through small shops or large industries—by growing our town’s economic base for jobs and bringing in a greater tax revenue flow, we would be able to boost our budget for services and infrastructure, and consumers would benefit from robust competition for their spending dollars.
Regarding student housing issues in residential areas:
I've researched this, and it appears that Tarleton should be helping with this responsibility.
From their Student Rules Handbook:
“Students are subject to such reasonable disciplinary action as the administration of the university may consider appropriate, including suspension and expulsion in appropriate cases for breach of federal, state, or local laws or university rules and regulations. This principle extends to conduct off campus which is likely to have an adverse effect on the university or the educational process, or which deems the offender an unfit associate for other students.”
It should certainly be something about which the city and the college should have a dialogue, as it is mutually beneficial to both that students be responsible members of the community.
