Issues & VALUES
My Top priority:
IMPROVING
achievable housing
Of the many issues facing Moscow today, none is greater than access to housing. I want Moscow’s kids to be able to choose to stay here because they can afford to live here.
Housing in Moscow is creating an unsustainable situation where people are being forced out of town or having to make the choice of housing vs other basic necessities. My experience as a professional civil engineer specializing in land development and site design gives me technical expertise and insight into the housing challenges that Moscow faces. As a City Council member, I’ll ensure that Moscow responds to the challenges responsibly, while expanding access to housing.
I like to use the phrase “achievable housing” instead of “affordable housing.” People tend to think of affordable housing just in terms of the price of homes — but that’s driven by the market, and the city doesn’t have a lot of control over it.
Creating achievable housing is about rethinking housing in terms of the size of homes, locations, size of properties, and more, especially when it comes to entry-level homes. The City Council can influence this through tools like zoning codes and parking regulations. Long-term rentals, resident-owned communities and collectives, shared equity, and wholly owned housing options all need to be explored and expanded.
The city can also find ways to encourage developers to intermix different kinds of properties, building neighborhoods like the one I grew up in, which had apartments, duplexes, single-family homes of different sizes, schools, parks, and even small businesses.
Planning for Sustainable Growth
Growing up in Moscow and living here as an adult, I know our town has a special identity. As a City Council member, I will be a leader in helping Moscow grow and thrive strategically and sustainably.
My experience as a civil engineer gives me a strong background in finding practical solutions to add more housing and business space within current city limits. As the city stretches into new spaces, we need to develop with a clear plan so that we can keep our community feel without sprawl. The zoning code is the city’s most powerful tool for accomplishing this – we can reduce the burden on developers while encouraging the types of growth we want to see.
Sustainable growth also requires infrastructure. As a City Council member, I will prioritize maintaining our roads, sewers, water system, and other existing infrastructure. Regular maintenance and upkeep are significantly more cost effective than emergency repairs.
As we grow, we should think about the city as a whole, not isolated to individual developments, and with that, I believe that there are opportunities for the city to partner with developers to cost share regional infrastructure improvements.
I also will be a steward of our resources for future generations. Moscow especially needs to be a steward of our region’s aquifers and make progress on solidifying our long-term source of water.
Collaborating
with Our
Public Schools
I am proud of the education I received at Lena Whitmore Elementary, Moscow Junior High (it is still weird for me to call it MMS), Moscow High School, and the University of Idaho. I’ve always felt I was well-prepared for the next challenge that awaited me, and I’ve seen Moscow’s public schools do the same for my kids. Our schools are essential to our community’s economic growth and are a key reason people move to and stay in Moscow.
Even with the amazing things our public schools do, they still need work and support from our community. Our aging school buildings are barely able to serve the teachers, staff, and students that occupy them every day. We need major upgrades to our facilities, possibly a new school. That is going to take support from the community, and the results will benefit the whole community and generations to come.
As a City Council member, I will also seek opportunities to advocate for our public schools as well as promote collaboration between the city, school district, and other organizations that can benefit Moscow’s kids. The Safe Routes to School Initiative is a great example of this. It brought together the University of Idaho and City of Moscow to improve sidewalks to all our schools.
BUILDING THE Town/Gown Connection
As someone who grew up in Moscow, a Vandal alumni, and a business owner, I know that the success of Moscow is intertwined with the University of Idaho.
For decades, the city and university have shared resources for both their benefit. The city provides essential services to the university, including transportation and public safety, while the university attracts students, faculty, and staff members, along with thousands of visitors to our town.
As a City Council member, I will continue our long tradition of a positive town-gown partnership as well as encourage innovative new ideas. I believe there are more opportunities for the city, through the Chamber of Commerce and local business owners, to expand their outreach to students on our great local businesses and events to more effectively incorporate them into our community.
As the city and the university grow, I will help bring university and city leaders to the table to encourage strategic planning that benefits both institutions and our community.
Supporting small & local businesses
I co-founded SynTier Engineering in 2019 and we now have offices in Moscow, Pullman, and Spokane. I’m proud to be part of Moscow’s small business community, and I believe we can all play a part in making sure that our community’s dollars stay here on the Palouse rather than going to national online retailers.
When Moscow’s small and locally owned businesses thrive, we all benefit. A healthy business community means more jobs, economic growth, a broader tax base, and a better quality of life for everyone.
The City Council plays a role in supporting small and locally owned businesses by making sure that processes are efficient and city officials and staff are responsive. I’ve navigated city, county, and state government agencies as a business owner and experienced how government can make a positive difference for a local business community. Local business owners do not have the time and resources to spend on ever-changing, subjective regulations and can’t wait years for action. I support a government that is business friendly, and that allows small businesses to benefit our communities by expanding resources and opportunities.
As a City Council member, I will support small businesses by listening to business owners and ensuring they’re included in discussions about issues that affect them directly.
MORE ISSUES I CARE ABOUT:
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I’ve been on the Moscow Transportation Commission for four years, serving as chair for three. I know we need to think about transportation infrastructure as an ongoing, long-term project that is about more than just cars. Instead of reacting as change happens, we have to design strategically.
We’re already seeing more electric bikes and scooters around town, and the city must design infrastructure with those uses in mind, making sure streets and sidewalks are safe for everyone. With the growth in electric vehicles, the city should consider how we can use electric vehicle charging stations to draw people to local businesses.
I will also work to keep Moscow a walkable city. We can find ways to incentivize sidewalk maintenance and construction so all routes are safe for pedestrians and ADA-accessible. The SMART Transit system also serves an important role for people who can’t or don’t drive, and it should be part of our infrastructure planning.
Another recent big issue is the proposed truck route bypass. I believe the city should do more research on the positive and negative impacts similar bypasses have had on other cities.
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As an engineer, I’m already a numbers person. As a business owner with multiple offices and 20-30 employees, I manage budgets on a daily basis. As Transportation Commission chair, I’ve had conversations with city staff about how Moscow’s finances work, and I’m prepared to handle the complexities of the city budget.
An important thing to remember is that a city is not a business, so it can’t budget like one. A business can cut costs and take the risk of losing money on a project, but city projects require checks and balances to make sure the taxpayers are getting what they paid for. Unlike a business, the city can’t just raise prices — it has a limited and regulated ability to increase fees.
As a City Council Member, I would approach the budget with the mindset of providing the greatest good we can with the money we have. I believe Moscow has done a good job of budgeting for anticipated future projects, and our budget is proportional to our population.
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I’ve presented to the City Council and the public on behalf of my company many times over the years. I know people don’t always agree about what the city should do, and I won’t always see eye to eye with everyone, but I believe in treating everyone with respect and listening to people’s points of view.
As a City Council member, I’ll listen to members of the public and make sure I’m seeking advice from experts, getting information from stakeholders, and learning from the people affected by the city’s decisions.
The City Council is the voice of Moscow’s residents. Their role is to champion the Comprehensive Plan, set priorities, provide direction to city staff, and be stewards of our resources. I’ll work respectfully and collaboratively with my fellow council members, the mayor, and city staff members — which I’m already confident about because I have done it regularly throughout my career.
