Platform

SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT

Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy, providing 66% of all net jobs.  They are the primary job creators, service providers, and part of the DNA of any small municipality.  I will work with the City Council and city leaders to ensure we are supporting our small businesses within the city to maximize opportunities for sustained growth.  As we continue to endure the COVID-19 pandemic, from which we will soon emerge, small businesses, micro mom and pop models, and independent sole proprietors will need to leverage as much support as possible.  Two key challenges for business owners who continue to operate are rent and cash flow.  I will be an advocate for our small businesses, for-profit and non-profit, start-up and existing, to help deliver ideas and solutions for business owners.   My plan is to research ways to leverage from and engage the newly developed Gwinnett Entrepreneur Center, which will be located in downtown Lawrenceville, to provide assistance to our small businesses.

As a small business and management consultant for the past 15 years, I have a passion for small business success and linking entrepreneurs with the resources they need to grow sustainably and successfully as they scale through the lifecycle of their business.  Our local Lawrenceville economy need small businesses to be successful and creating jobs.

SAFETY, SECURITY, QUALITY OF LIFE

As Lawrenceville grows and welcomes new citizens, consumers, students, and visitors, safety and security planning updates will have to be reviewed and considered for all who intend to work, play, shop, live, study, and seek entertainment in Lawrenceville.  Working with Lawrenceville police and the community on how we remain secure, safe, and alert is an initiative I plan to pursue as Councilman, not only for the downtown and affluent areas in the City of Lawrenceville, but also in the surrounding lower income residential areas.

Quality of life is dependent on several factors, and the city has already implemented some options for the downtown area, such as constructing sidewalks, installing bike lanes, and seating areas throughout the downtown area.  However, these options should also be considered for residents outside the downtown area and especially in low-income housing communities where sidewalks, proper lighting, bike lanes, and amenities that contribute to enhancing the quality of life for residents are currently not present.  In addition to sidewalks, some ideas expressed are renovated parks with water fountains and bathroom facilities, and brighter streetlights, among others.  As City Councilman for Post 3, I plan to discuss these ideas to provide solutions and discuss budget line items to address these concerns expressed by our underserved and underrepresented, low-income communities.

As I traveled to larger cities, I noticed several amenities of interest which will enhance the quality of life offered by the City of Lawrenceville.  A mobile phone charging station (Figure A) that offers Wi-Fi hotspot connection will certainly be an attractive benefit to the downtown business and retail district, and key areas outside the downtown area.  Another is bike sharing .  This is a great way for anyone working, residing, or doing business in Lawrenceville to travel around the city, while getting some great exercise.  Couples or families can use the cycles to spend time riding together and stopping at various points of the city.  In addition, it shall work well for individual riders.  These are excellent considerations, not only for the enhancement of quality, but attracting a younger demographic to spend more time in the city shopping at local businesses.  Future travelers staying at the new downtown Hilton Tapestry Hotel may find these ideas attractive, which can increase our competitive advantage when considering staying in Lawrenceville and strengthen our value proposition as a tourist destination.

CODE ENFORCEMENT

While serving on the executive board of the Lawrenceville Neighborhood Alliance, we worked diligently with the City Council and the office of Planning and Development to increase the visibility of city code enforcers, especially in communities where residents were/are clearly violating the codes.  These efforts resulted in the hiring of a new Code Enforcement Manager, Jessica Watson, and garnered support from Councilwoman Victoria Jones and Councilman Keith Roche to resolve concerns of residential and business code violations.  As new officers are hired to enhance and strengthen the code enforcement team, I plan to work diligently with Ms. Watson to ensure matters arising from code violations are addressed to maintain the quality we expect in Lawrenceville.  Part of keeping our community safe, appealing, and welcoming is making sure everyone adheres to the codes set in place.

TRANSPORTATION

There are approximately 31,000+ residents within the city limits of Lawrenceville, with many individuals moving around key points of interest for work, shopping, entertainment, and other activities.  Although many cars populate the roads creating massive congestion in numerous areas, there are still a high number of residents who need reliable transportation to get around the city and surrounding areas (i.e. youths, students, elderly, physically disabled, non-drivers, etc.).  The aforementioned residents are those who create demand for transportation services.  We should consider and provide options for our citizens to get around the city.  Based on the diagram I created below (a proposed model), we see an image illustrating some of the key points of interest to help drive the local Lawrenceville economy, with the Mall of Georgia in mind for those who are employed in that particular area.

As Lawrenceville increases in population with added living spaces and cars on the road, and with the new Hilton Tapestry Hotel on the horizon, the demand for alternative transportation (non-personal vehicular) has grown in significance.  The city’s population continues to increase, but the width of the roads is not expanding to accommodate increase traffic flow through the city.  This illustration above is part of my plan to propose ideas to issue Request for Quotes (RFQ’s) to transportation companies, who will submit proposals to provide shuttle/transportation service in and around the Lawrenceville Downtown area.  This will vastly help fill a void for individuals who depend on transportation to get around, but do not have their own vehicle to travel.  With private shuttle services they will have access to reliable transportation in addition to those modes which already exist like Uber, Lyft, and private taxi cabs.  It is all about providing options to the residents, visitors, consumers, and business owners.  Following are some ideas to consider, and these are only considerations:

• Daily hours of operation – 7AM to 10PM, Mon-Sat, with abbreviated service on Sundays.
• Conduct time studies at different times of the day between each point to determine travel length from start to completion, which will constitute a roundtrip beginning and ending at the Lawrenceville Lawn. This will also help determine the number of busses required to drive success of this initiative and be value-added.
• Send out RFQ’s to providers and let them provide the service at a negotiated cost per rider under the supervision of the city, or the City of Lawrenceville can purchase (x) shuttle busses and hire (x) drivers for each bus to control the cost per rider. A Cost/Benefit or Feasibility Analysis will have to be conducted if the city will bear the cost of the initiative.  Included will be a consideration of purchasing used or new vehicles, with depreciation to consider of the assets, salaries, benefits, liability insurance, etc.
• The purpose of the above illustration is to encourage discussion, but route planning will have to be considered, both for an initial pilot initiative in the short-term and expansion considerations for the long-term.

Considering the lack of sufficient alternative transportation options in and around the City of Lawrenceville, a shuttle service connecting key economic areas would be of tremendous value to our residents.  In addition to shopping, tourism, and entertainment, we must consider those individuals who will have greater access to job opportunities, and expansive transportation options for travel to their places of employment.  Local businesses will benefit from consumers having expanded options to travel and spend money at their shops (i.e. increased foot traffic, increased volume of customers, increased revenue, etc.).

Finally, we can work to identify transportation providers who offer buses with accommodations for the physically impaired.  One of the problems I discovered while listening to a program on NPR is that Lyft and Uber do not provide adequate vehicles for passengers with physical disabilities.  We can solve that problem in Lawrenceville.  Currently, Policy T1.3 in the Lawrenceville 2040 Plan (Page 39) makes a provision to pursue state, federal, and private funding for active transportation projects.  We could possibly make this a “ride free” service if properly funded.

HOMELESSNESS

According to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), Georgia currently has over 10,443 individuals reported as homeless, living in shelters, cars, tents, sleeping on park benches, and on the streets.  Among the homeless are 801 veterans, 596 youth, 1,137 who are chronically ill, and many who are suffering from mental illness.  Astonishing, 39,571 are public school students, reported by the USICH.  According to Family Promise of Gwinnett County, an organization which assists struggling homeless families, Gwinnett County has the 3^rd highest total homeless population in the state of Georgia, and Gwinnett County School System had approximately 1,943 homeless students, the organization reported.  In Lawrenceville, slightly over 3,000 individuals are experiencing homelessness.  With these alarming numbers, the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners approved $950,000 to combat homelessness in February 2019, while the City of Lawrenceville earmarked $5,000,000, according to 11Alive.com.  The Gwinnett Daily Post on February 17, 2021 reported a collaboration between Gwinnett County and the City of Lawrenceville to provide matching funds of $525,000 to help families negatively impacted by the pandemic.  These funds, with an additional $1,000,000, are provided through the Lawrenceville Response Center and Impact46.  Additionally, the city has partnered with Home First Gwinnett to combat homelessness.  Organizations such as the United Way, the Salvation Army, and other notable entities are working to resolve many of these concerns.  Local area churches such as Tabernacle International, Lawrenceville Presbyterian, First United Methodist, New Jerusalem, First Baptist Church of Lawrenceville, Pleasant Hill Baptist Church and others are currently participating in programs to feed, clothe, and provide shelter for the city’s homeless individuals.  These are significant accomplishments.

However, as Lawrenceville continues to grow, and with the development of new homes totaling in the $250,000 – $300,000 range per unit, in a city where the median household income is around $52,000, we must ensure there are options for current residents who may not be earning a living wage.  Current low-income units are scheduled for demolishing by 2023, which will drive relocation for residents in these underrepresented areas.  For those who currently reside in low-income housing and will not afford to live in new housing developments, this may further exacerbate the current problem of solving our homeless challenges.  Where will these residents go?  Who is speaking on behalf of their concerns?  I will, and my representation will be inclusive of all 31,000+ residents in Lawrenceville.