Issues
Growth and Development
One of the issues I tend to hear about most as I speak to citizens are concerns about development. This is obviously closely tied with the related issue of there not being enough housing to meet the demand. I have seen both sides of the issue. When my husband and I were first married, we were still going through school, but we wanted to live here in Orem where my husband grew up. It was a struggle to find a place to live. Fortunately, we were able to find a place to live and save enough to buy a home in southwest Orem a couple years ago. On the other hand, I have seen the issues that can arise when developers want to build huge complexes adjacent to long established neighborhoods. Although these projects do provide housing, it often isn't the type of housing that many people want when they move to Orem. When not planned properly, it can cause a strain on our infrastructure and lower the quality of life of those who live nearby. We need to find creative solutions to provide housing while also keeping the character that makes Orem so attractive to so many families.
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I think we need to revisit and revise the city's master plan. I appreciate that a lot of work and thought went into that process. However, the feedback I have heard from people is that the plan isn’t meeting the community’s needs. I have made enough plans that haven’t quite worked out in my life to know that sometimes we need to recognize something isn’t working and make whatever adjustments are needed. Ensuring we have a good baseline plan is important. It is not enough to have a vision for Orem’s future, we need to consider the details and try to anticipate how developers may try to take advantage of loopholes. This isn’t something that can wait, as developers buy land, we are constrained by the existing zoning the master plan has created. A city council needs to make sure to ask tough questions of developers and listen to the needs of the citizens.
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High Density Housing
Obviously this is closely tied to the previous issue. The nature of the relationship between the city council and private developers was one of the main reasons I decided to run for city council. Many residents will remember a few years ago when Woodbury started buying single family homes in the neighborhood immediately west of Lakeridge Jr. High. At the time, the land was zoned for single family homes. After buying the entire neighborhood and destroying the homes, Woodbury went to the city and asked for it to be rezoned. Despite the fact that the Mayor and City Council had promised that no developments would be allowed in neighborhoods, the council voted to allow the developer to build a massive 6-story apartment complex. Only two council members voted against it, Debby Lauret and Brent Sumner. Along the way, the council relied on faulty legal arguments and threats. Woodbury decided to ask for forgiveness rather than permission, and rather than shutting it down, the city council gave in to what they wanted. I understand that good arguments can be made as to why having apartments that there might be for students next to campus. That is not the point. The city council's vote signaled to developers that they could do business that way and that is unacceptable.
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Landowners have rights, whether that person owns a single family home, an orchard, a business, or an empty lot. Those rights are constitutionally protected. However, the city has the responsibility to ensure those sometimes disparate interests are kept in balance. When the council heeds the call of developers more than the cries of residents, they have stopped listening to their most important constituents. This experience is what I will keep in mind if I am elected. I recognize that University Place plays an important role in our city in terms of being a place to shop, a community gathering place, and a source of income. I want the mall not just to survive and thrive. I do not want that growth to be at the expense of neighborhoods and the people who live there. Woodbury is presently attempting to buy homes in the Hillcrest neighborhood, north of the mall, west of Costco. I have no doubt that once they have acquired enough homes they will destroy them and ask the city to rezone, just like they did near Lakeridge. If Woodbury, or any other developer, comes to me asking for forgiveness, the answer will be “No.”
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The next point to consider is where does that leave us with high density housing. On the one hand, there are college students, young professionals, and small families that all need a place to live. As noted, I am not that far removed from their struggle of finding a place to live. On the other hand, most people do not come to Orem with the dream of living in an apartment long-term, most people who want to live here long-term have dreams of buying their own home. Expensive high density apartments don’t meet either of those needs, when an apartment costs as much to rent per month as a mortgage, it is not going to be much help to newly married students. High density housing should be dramatically limited. I think Orem would be better served looking at medium density housing options. To me, that means things like twin-homes and townhomes. By doing that, we can increase the supply of homes in the price-range of first-time home buyers, ensure people have ownership, and increase the density in a much more manageable, neighborhood friendly way.
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Parking
Closely related to the issue of high density housing is parking. Often, when a new complex is being built, developers will claim that most of the residents will not bring cars because the apartments are close to public transportation. That may have been true in the past, but having been a student myself not all that long ago, I know that most students do bring cars. Even if it is convenient to walk to campus, students often need (or want) cars to be able to get to work, go out to eat, and do all the other things that everyone else does. I agree that in an ideal world, there would be less cars on the road. Public transportation, biking, and walking are all wonderful alternatives that should be encouraged. However, we need to be realistic rather than optimistic when it comes to planning.
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In many neighborhoods, including streets near my home, apartment complexes do not have sufficient parking for their residents. This lack of parking leads to problems related to street parking. When deciding whether to approve construction of a new complex, the city council should ensure there is a parking spot for every resident and extra space for guests. The city should also consider ways they can fix or mitigate problems that have already been created. Additionally, the city should investigate how much the management intends to charge residents to park. If the fees are excessive, it doesn’t matter how many spots there are, residents will park on the roads.
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First Responders
I consider police officers, firemen, other first responders, and their support teams to be my people. Many of my family members have made those types of jobs their career. I have worked with law enforcement myself in a variety of capacities. Most notably I worked for the FBI on a domestic security squad. That means I worked in the office with federal agents along with local sheriff and police officers who worked together to ensure they could keep their city safe. As an attorney representing abused and neglected children, I was always grateful for the efforts made and the risks taken by local law enforcement to protect my clients.
By all accounts, we have a good police chief and fire chief. The city council needs to make sure to listen to those leaders and whatever needs they may express. Members of the city council should also work to develop relationships with the other officers in the city so they can have a relationship of trust. City leadership needs to know when a problem starts, not when something starts to be a problem. We need to consider pay, benefits, and culture, to ensure we can attract, retrain, and train high quality individuals. This may necessitate reallocating the present budget or even increasing it if that is what we need to make sure our law enforcement is taken care of. We need a police force that can develop good relationships with the community, Orem citizens should ideally have positive interactions with law enforcement, not only when they are in trouble. If the police force is not properly supported, it makes it more difficult to build those types of relationships of trust.
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Although not technically “first responders,” I would be remiss if I did not mention public works. After leaving the military, my father spent the rest of his career working in waste water management. Without the good men and women who pick up our garbage and make sure we have clean water in our taps, the quality of life in Orem would be a lot smellier and far less desirable.
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Parks
As the mother of a toddler, I spend a lot of time in parks. I have gone around Orem and let my daughter visit every park in the city (with the exception of the skate park, that would be well beyond the abilities of my 2-year-old.) In visiting these parks, I have been able to see them from the point of view of my children and other neighbors playing. To me, parks are not just the number of slides and tennis courts and the cost of maintenance, they are a part of my daily life. Overall, Orem has wonderful parks. However, I have found a few, generally in less affluent neighborhoods, that are run-down and seem to have missed a cycle in upgrades. As a member of the city council and a mother, I will work to ensure parks are functional and safe for children, and hopefully have enough shade and benches to be comfortable for the parents and grandparents who accompany them.
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UVU Growth
This is an important issue since it directly impacts many of the other issues. UVU is a wonderful institution that does an excellent job of providing education and work for many Orem residents. However, UVU’s long-term plan is to have more students than the University of Utah despite being on a far smaller campus. Additionally, Orem is a much smaller city than Salt Lake and it is immediately adjacent to Provo, the home of another major university. Doubling UVU is not sustainable. I would work to lobby the legislature to increase online education, and build satellite campuses outside of Orem/Provo/Vineyard, if that isn’t possible, then a cap on enrollment will be necessary for the good of Orem and of the school. The city has very little formal ability to stop that growth, but the city council should be a voice for Orem’s citizens.
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Constitution
When I was 4 years old, I memorized the preamble of the U.S. Constitution (I am working on that with my 2 year old now). As a law student, I had the amazing opportunity to really study the U.S. Constitution. I loved learning about the structure the founders put in place to protect our society. I was also inspired as I studied the continued struggle that occurred to ensure that all people, men and women, black and white, young and old could have the rights that had been endowed on “all men” by their creator. Although the city council doesn’t often have reason to point to those lofty ideals, I believe they are important.
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Environment and Natural Resources
My interest in Orem is not just in the present, but in the future that my children and grandchildren will be inheriting. Whenever the city is considering changes, they should also be mindful of the impact that decision will have on future generations. We need to make sure that our water use is sustainable, that our air quality is healthy, and that there are green space to enjoy nature, not just in the mountains, but in the city. I appreciate some of the proposals I have seen to improve in this regard. Specifically, I think using reclaimed water for the Springwater Golf Course and Lakeside Sports complex is a good first-step to take.
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A Voice for the Voiceless
Growing up, my parents were both blue-collar workers who often worked multiple jobs to make sure there was food on the table and ensure that my siblings and I had the chance to get a good education. However, their daily struggle made it difficult for them to do things like attend city council meetings. That did not make their needs and concerns any less important. Orem has many people in those same types of situations, I want to be a voice for them.
Others in this city are able to go to hearings and meetings, hoping to make their voice heard. Although they speak, all too often they feel like they have not been heard when their concerns are callously disregarded in favor of a developer. Compared to someone prepared to drop thousands of dollars to make their own voice heard, we are all the little guy.
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I have worked advocating for children, the portion of our population with the smallest voice. I worked to make sure that when they were sitting in a courtroom, they felt heard, like their opinion mattered. I want to work to make sure all voices in Orem are heard and represented on the council.
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Families
I like to say that I married into “Family City USA.” My husband moved to Orem when he was two. When I hear about the childhood he had here in Orem I know that is what I want for my children. I want all Orem families to have the types of opportunities that he had. I recognize that not all families look the same. A child should not be disadvantaged, just because their family is not a mom, dad, and two siblings. The city council needs to provide more ways for the citizen voice to be heard and then the city council needs to take actions that reflect the citizen voice. The city council exist to serve individuals and families, if Orem wants to remain Family City U.S.A.
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