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PHILOSOPHY
Throughout the campaign, we'll post more
details on Chris's Philosophy, details on key issues, and answers to your
questions.
Please email Chris if you have a question
you'd like to see answered:
chrisformarietta@gmail.com
CITIZEN QUESTIONS:
WHITLOCK-SQUARE AREA
LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
QUESTIONNAIRE
CITIZEN QUESTIONS:
WHITLOCK-SQUARE AREA
What is your plan for the Reynolds Street
Connector?
As far as I can discern, this is not a project that has been up for
serious discussion since 2002, at least from relevant records that I can
find using the Internet. There have been many references to the idea in
citizen editorials in the MDJ since then but I have not found any
information from any official government entity since then. I can’t find
any map proposals for the area but after looking at Google Maps and
actually walking around the area on Monday, I don’t even understand how it
would go through without demolishing a ridiculous number of houses and
trees. One of the main attractions of Marietta for my wife and myself when
we were looking for a place to live was the “old town” feel that the city
offers in terms of its neighborhoods and businesses, especially in areas
around the Square. I think that it would be a travesty for Marietta to
consider the destruction and complete urbanization of one of its most
defining neighborhood areas in order to make traffic flow through (not
“to”) the city easier for west Cobb and Paulding commuters. One of the
appeals of Marietta is our beautiful neighborhoods that developed
“organically” over more than a hundred years. I am not in favor of any
redevelopment that threatens any of our city’s neighborhoods and
communities.
How can the City of Marietta (and Cobb County for that matter)
encourage West Cobb and Kennesaw residents to utilize the East-West
Connector and Barrett Parkway?
There have been countless road projects that were supposed to “fix” the
traffic congestion problems for Marietta, specifically for the
120/Whitlock corridor. Progress and development are necessary to maintain
our city and county services but it seems that the two solutions do not
necessarily mix as fantastically as we might hope. The Barrett exit (West
bound) is plagued with congestion during peak traffic thanks to a
combination of resident commuters and shoppers and uncoordinated traffic
control devices. The shopping congestion on Barrett near I-75 is also
fairly observable on weekends and only more greatly exaggerated during the
holiday shopping season. Along the East-West Connector there are stretches
of open road that become nightmares again when you hit the commercially
developed areas where needed traffic flow devices, such as stop lights,
become some of the commuter’s worst nightmares. Now combine that with the
fact that the speed limit on these raised-median divided highways is only
45. As a result of all of this congestion on these “major arteries,” the
trip through Marietta of taking a right on the loop and a left onto
Whitlock becomes almost a break-even proposition with respect to time. Add
in that people tend to be creatures of habit and you’ve got a situation
that probably wouldn’t be any better if Whitlock were three lanes in both
directions.
A partial solution seems to lie in having
better controls on traffic flow devices. This doesn’t solve the problem of
imperfect driving decisions that drivers make that cause traffic. I have
been awaiting the results of the study done in the Perimeter/Galleria area
on “smart” traffic control devices. I used to live in that area and I can
tell you from my past few trips during peak traffic in that area that
traffic flow seemed much smoother, but that may also be because a few
major road projects have been completed in the area since then as well,
such as the rerouting of Cumberland Pkwy between Cobb Pkwy and the mall.
If these smart control devices become developed to the point of
consistency and reliability, it may offer a partial solution.
Another partial solution may lie in the just recently fully approved
Macland Rd-Windy Hill connector to be completed soon. I’ve offered Macland
as an alternate route for some West Cobb friends and they seemed to think
it was faster than Whitlock even with the couple of turns that you
currently have to make off of Powder Springs Rd to wiggle over to Windy
Hill. I’d hesitate to make any changes to Whitlock until this road has
been open for some time to assess whether it provides a more useful and
direct line for the west Cobb/Paulding commuters. I feel like the
commercial development along Windy Hill is more spread out than along EW
Conn/Barrett and there isn’t much beyond the intersection of South Cobb
Drive. Macland is pretty much an open highway with few traffic lights if
you’ve ever been along it out to Paulding. I’m still not offering this as
a surefire cure as people are rather unpredictable.
Do you have plans to install wider sidewalks (or place them where they
do not exist) and bike lanes in the streets and neighborhoods around
Marietta Square to provide a safer environment for pedestrians and
bicyclists?
To answer your question very directly, no I do not have my own plans to do
this. And in fact, there are several such projects already planned to
achieve exactly some of your goals. There is a project to connect the
multi-use trail by Kennesaw Mountain to the trail that runs along Atlanta
Rd to Smyrna which ultimately will join into the Silver Comet trail. I
have also seen plans for another trail along Powder Springs Rd but that
project seems to be reduced and delayed due to diminished revenues. There
are also numerous projects in various stages to improve and extend
existing sidewalks. I do not know of any plans for bike lanes but would be
interested to know where some may have been proposed or could be proposed.
But to answer the question of whether I would be willing to consider these
ideas the answer would be yes. We are fortunate to live in a county and
city where ultimate consideration has been made for creating a walk-able
community. It would be a detriment to our city and our county if we did
not continue to strive to improve upon the successes that we have already
had in these areas. Budgetary considerations may have to be made in the
short-term, of course, but it should continue to be a priority for our
long-term goals.
Do you think a pedestrian walking bridge over South Marietta Parkway by
Whitlock Avenue is a feasible idea, both from an economical and logistical
standpoint?
I have crossed the 120 Loop at Whitlock Ave several times and at no time
did I feel particularly safe on such a large road with such a large number
of motorists. At the same time, I have also not heard of any unfortunate
encounters between motorists and pedestrians at those crossings. I’m not
saying they don’t exist, merely that I have not heard of them. Also, there
is an existing project planned for street and sidewalk improvements along
the loop between Reynolds St and Whitlock that includes an improved
crossing with audible features for the Whitlock/Loop intersection. As for
the bridge idea itself, I would have to defer to engineers and traffic
studies (motor and pedestrian studies) of the intersection to be able to
answer more fully but here is what I can offer from a first thoughts
perspective. Economically, a bridge there would definitely be yet another
strain on our currently hammered city revenues. There is a budget for
capital improvements such as this; I am just unaware of the financial
obligation a foot bridge would require and where it would end up on a
priority-based list. I imagine that it could be a significant expense due
to regulations on construction both locally and federally and when
considering the cost of purchasing right-of-way easements in the area
around the Square. Logistically speaking, I don’t know how successful it
could be directly at the corner of Whitlock due to crowded land use there
and the potential traffic problems it may create due to interference with
driver line-of-sight. There are some places along the Loop just south of
the intersection that may be more realistic for placement however
potentially less desirable for pedestrians.
Would either of the two projects above fit into the current or future
city budgets or would they require a special referendum to fund them?
I think it is possible that these projects may fall into budgets that
exist for improving roads and infrastructure. The transportation SPLOST
has already created opportunity for sidewalk improvements around the city
alongside road and drainage improvements. Unfortunately, that revenue
depends on consumer spending which has seen a decline in recent history so
that some of those projects may end up being delayed around the county.
The city has already issued bonds to go ahead with the projects now with
plans for those bonds to be paid down completely with SPLOST revenues from
the future years of the tax.
For a list of some of those planned projects, please consult the following
from the city website.
(http://www.mariettaga.gov/departments/pubworks/transportation_desc.aspx#22)
For the most up to date information on the status of these projects see
the following document.
(http://www.mariettaga.gov/departments/pubworks/docs/SPLOSTUpdateJuly2009.pdf)
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LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
QUESTIONNAIRE
Here are Chris's responses from a recent
questionnaire completed for the Georgia League of Women Voters.
The published responses and candidate comparison can be found online at
the
LWV/AJC Voter's Guide as well.
Why are you running for office?
I am running for mayor because I feel I can honestly represent why people
want to live in Marietta and I can bring much needed positive leadership
and direction to our city government. The real value in our political
process is the opportunity for ordinary people to get involved and have
their voices be heard. I want to help connect the citizens of Marietta to
this process so they may have a say in their government and the choices
made involving their neighborhoods, their homes, and their taxpayer
dollars.
Describe your education, training, and experience that qualify you for
this position.
This is the first time that I have run for public office. I feel that my
lack of political experience is positive because I can provide a fresh
perspective and do not bring along any political baggage. I do bring
practical, solid leadership experience from the classroom and from
coaching. As a result of my engineering and science background, I have
always been focused on numbers. I used those mathematical talents to
reduce Wheeler High School's renowned competition robotics team's budget
from almost $70,000 one year to close to $38,000 the next through a
combination of cutting wasteful expenses and finding lower cost
alternatives. It is my intention to apply these same cost-saving
principles when advising on our City's government.
What will be your priorities during your term of office and how will
you pursue them?
My top priorities in office will be to increase transparency in
government, protection of personal property rights, and putting taxpayers
first when spending (or not spending) tax dollars. Our city has operated
under a philosophy of "Government Knows Best" for far too long and it's my
desire to move towards a more open government with greater opportunity for
citizen input and better communication about the actions and intentions of
the city government, especially in cases where the taxpayers are
responsible for the eventual bill. It's time that our government started
working for the people instead of its people working to sustain the
government.
What, in your opinion, is the biggest budget issue facing your area and
how, if elected, would you propose to address it?
Unfortunately, Marietta citizens have been exposed to several risky
projects that unnecessarily put tax dollars in jeopardy such as the money
pit we have in the Marietta Conference Center and Hotel. It will be my
priority to work together with city officials and the citizens of Marietta
to minimize our risk in existing projects and to keep the City out of
similar ventures in the future. Also, due to tight economic times,
property values have decreased significantly in many areas of Marietta and
this will have a large impact on property tax revenues in coming years. It
is therefore important to start reviewing the budget to find areas where
money can be saved. If we can work towards always operating with a
surplus, years of lower collections would not have as much impact and
years ending in a surplus can either lower taxes or boost improvements in
parks, roads, etc. As our citizen's families must do in this time of
economic uncertainty, we need to prepare for the worst and hope for the
best!
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