In recent years, Avon Lake has been struggling with more then a few major issues and many of them are ongoing and unresolved. Here is my position on the major issues impacting Avon Lake in 2025.

Avon Lake

2025

The First 90 Days

If elected, will draft an ordinance to require mandatory, independent Traffic Impact Studies for all new major development and zoning changes. These studies must analyze peak traffic flow and the projected infrastructure costs required to mitigate that impact. This data will be made public before planning and zoning votes, ensuring committee and council decisions are informed by facts and that developers, not taxpayers, are first in line to cover the costs of the congestion they create.

Resident-Focused Community & Responsible Development

Avon Lake is our home. It’s the neighborhood where our kids ride their bikes, the streets we walk, and the community we’ve chosen to build with our neighbors. For too long, development has been done to us, not for us. My commitment is to ensure that every decision about growth puts the people who live here at the forefront.

The Problem – What We’re Facing

We’ve all seen it: increased traffic congestion, strain on our schools and city services, and green spaces disappearing under another generic development. Too often, these projects are approved to maximize profit for outside developers, not to enhance the quality of life for those of us who already call Avon Lake home. The current approach prioritizes short-term gains over the long-term health and character of our city.

My Pledge – The Solution

As your councilmember, I will be a unwavering voice for responsible, resident-focused development. This means:

  • Demanding Community Benefits: New projects must directly benefit us. I will push for developments that include green space, improved infrastructure, and features that actively contribute to our quality of life.

  • Implementing Mandatory Traffic Impact Studies: No more approvals without all the facts. I will require independent traffic studies to be completed during peak traffic and made public before votes, so we fully understand the impact on our roads and require developers to mitigate it.

  • Saying “No” to Blank Checks for Developers: I will never support a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) deal that steals future revenue from our schools, police, and fire departments to subsidize private profit. Our tax dollars should fund our community’s needs, not a developer’s margin.

  • Preserving Our Community Character: Growth is inevitable, but losing what makes Avon Lake special is not. We will manage growth intelligently, protecting the charm and spirit of our neighborhoods.

Protecting Your Tax Dollars: No TIFF, No Corporate Handouts, No Excuses

Every dollar you pay in taxes is a dollar earned through your hard work. You deserve to know that it’s being spent wisely on the services that matter most: Emergency services, Public service buildings, Road maintenance and repair, maintaining our parks, and protecting the school system that educates our children. My commitment is to radical transparency and unwavering fiscal responsibility.

The Problem – The TIF Trap

Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is a deceptive tool that freezes the property tax value of a piece of land for up to 30 years. The “increment,” or all future tax revenue generated from new development, is then diverted away from the city and our schools, and is instead handed directly to a private developer to subsidize their project.

This isn’t economic development; it’s a corporate handout that:

  • Starves Our Schools: Millions of dollars that should fund teachers, supplies, and facilities are instead diverted to private profit margins.

  • Strains Essential Services: With revenue diverted, our city’s ability to fund critical safety services and infrastructure maintenance is severely hampered.

  • Socializes Risk and Privatizes Profit: Taxpayers bear the long-term risk if a TIF-funded project fails, while the developer reaps the guaranteed rewards.

My Pledge – The Solution

As your councilmember, I will be a firewall against irresponsible spending. It’s time to stop spending like there’s an endless supply of tax dollars.

  • An Absolute “No” Vote on TIFs: I will never, under any circumstances, vote for a Tax Increment Financing deal. My loyalty is to the taxpayers of Avon Lake, not to the bottom line of deep-pocketed developers.

  • Prioritize Core Services First: Before we fund wish-list projects, we must fully fund our essentials. I will fight to direct our limited resources to maintaining and improving our existing infrastructure, like our fire station, before ever considering subsidies for new developments like the proposed $30 Million park on the former power plant site.

  • Demand Transparency in Spending: I will push for clear, public explanations for major cost overruns and inflated budgets for city projects like the ALPS playground which started as a $400,000 project and has inflated into more than $2 Million. I will push to prevent runaway spending.

  • Support Organic, Unsubsidized Growth: A strong community with excellent services is the best economic development tool. We will attract businesses by being a well-run city, not by writing them checks with your money.