These are questions I have answered in an interview with the Wilmington Regional Association of REALTORS and the REALTORS Commercial Alliance of South Eastern North Carolina.
What is your non-political career experience?
I have been involved in the building industry for over 42 years. In that time I have developed commercial and residential properties and built all types of construction projects in multiple states. During my career I have worked closely with Realtors and other professionals in the Real Estate Industry. I am considered an expert in construction and real estate dispute resolution cases and regularly provide consulting services to numerous legal firms.
What would you consider your level of community involvement?
I am committed to helping Carolina Beach grow as a successful community, a place to live and work, and a revitalized visitor destination. Therefore, I stay constantly involved in all community and Island issues and opportunities. One of my greatest contributions as a councilman is as founder and leader of the Boardwalk Makeover Group, now in its 4th year. Following my campaign promise, this is a true economic development initiative, and with a group of committed community volunteers, we are credited with successfully transforming the CBD, and our Boardwalk, as a tourist destination, while also improving our community’s livability.
Combined with my serving as council liaison to the CB Marketing Advisory Committee, town representative on both the Ports, Waterways & Beach Commission and the County’s Tourism Development Authority and founder of our annual “Island Day,” I donate over 1,000 hours per year to my community and County, in addition to my normal council duties. I pride myself on always being available to meet with residents to help them through town issues and I contribute my time freely to most community functions and organizations.
What are some of your prior elected or appointed offices held?
I have served on Carolina Beach Town Council for the last 4 years. Prior to being a councilman, I served as a Commissioner and Chairman of the Carolina Beach Planning Commission beginning in 2003. I also served on the CB Land Use Planning Board, the Stormwater Impact Fee Subcommittee, and the Land Use Ad-Hoc Committee.
What are a few major endorsements you have recieved?
Last election cycle I was endorsed by the Wilmington/Cape Fear Home Builder’s Association and WRAR.
What has motivated you to seek election to this office?
We have made significant gains over the last four years with respect to rebuilding both our Town’s image as a place to live, and regaining our position as a popular family destination. Several of the most successful initiatives, including the Boardwalk Makeover Group, Christmas by the Sea, Island Day, as well as numerous ordinance changes that make it easier for builders and Realtors to do business, are initiatives I created and have worked diligently for since being elected.
My decision to run for Mayor is to insure that I can follow through on my original campaign pledges and important community opportunities, including the NC Aquarium Pier and Town Park, maintaining our inlet and beach, establishing our transient boater mooring park, building our Community Beach Access for the Physically Challenged, upgrading community infrastructure projects including roads, water and sewer, establishing community-wide bike paths, and finally to insure we remain focused on managing our growth while rebuilding Carolina Beach, and Pleasure Island, as a national recognized destination for people to live, work and play.
Describe what attributes and experiences you possess that particularly suit you for this office.
Running our town requires team work, managing resident expectations, problem solving skills, sound decision making, economic insight and vision; and in this day and age, compassion and understanding. All are attributes I’ve learned through my life and business experience; and are the skills I will apply to Town issues and opportunities. I’m what most refer to as a problem solver – it’s what I do best. And while our town is doing well, even in these difficult times, we still have our share of problems to solve.
I think this election is about active leadership; perhaps more so than in years previous. Past council members and mayors, when faced with a deteriorating Boardwalk and CBD, either ignored the problem, or tried to condemn businesses and drive property values down in hopes of selling our historic boardwalk off to a master developer. When faced with a similar problem, I elected to challenge and engage the business owners, Town, Chamber and our residents, to create and implement a CBD revitalization plan. Not only did that plan completely transform the aesthetics and efficacy of the area, it also restored a sense of community pride, while putting us back on the map of tourist destinations families love to visit. In these difficult times, I believe my “hands-on” approach to leadership will be the key to maintaining our current prosperity, while insuring we will be able to sustain our quality of life and our natural assets.
Have you had the opportunity to work with REALTOR® members within our community? What has been your experience?
I work with Realtors on a regular basis. Our Island is served by the largest Real Estate Brokerages and staffed with very capable and professional individuals. I use Realtors to list both my speculative properties and manage my rentals, and I regularly introduce local Realtors to my out-of-town clients. The current housing Market may be one of our most difficult challenges that effects every resident, business and stakeholder. While I don’t have all the solutions for this devastating situation, I am committed to keeping that reality at the forefront of my policy solutions, and I will always recognize the value of affordable homeownership as a principle of a successful community.
What steps have you taken to support fairness in coastal homeowner insurance rates for the homeowners in Carolina Beach?
This issue has been a devastating and unfair blight on all the homeowners of the NC coastal region, let alone Carolina Beach. While the Town has adopted formal resolutions and written letters to the Insurance Commissioner, I recognize that there is so much more than can be done. I would like to continue to work with you, and WRAR, in addressing this issue at the highest levels of state government.
Are you interested in REALTORÒsupport and endorsement? Yes
Will you accept a PAC contribution? Yes
ADMINISTRATIVE & BUDGETARY ISSUES:
What is your opinion of “growth”?
Growth is a necessary and desirable aspect of any successful community. Our concern should not be growth itself, but balancing it with our community resources to insure we can maintain our quality of life. Well-designed and planned growth strategies are critical if we are to have sustainable community balance and prosperity. In the last four years, my main priorities have been rebuilding or maintaining Carolina Beach’s infrastructure, while keeping an eye on diversifying our tax base so that homeowners don’t have to suffer ever increasing tax rates. I am proud that we have not increases property taxes during my tenure, while at the same time while growing our community to become the largest year round population of any Island on the North Carolina coast. My focus on economic development will continue to be with a view to maintaining as low a homeowner tax rate as possible, while also building our community using its recently adopted Master Plan as a guide.
What does “long-range planning” mean to you and explain your planning philosophy in the CBD?
Long-rage planning takes collective vision, foresight, intelligence and the ability to look past today’s issues to see what is needed in our future in order to enjoy positive growth while also sustaining community services. Most importantly, long range planning requires a vision of what our Town could and should be. I am in full support of our CBD Master Plan, and have supported its key planning principles and its impact on our overall quality of life at every opportunity. Unlike others, I have not wavered from the community vision established during our Master Planning process. Sometimes this means making tough decisions where the benefit to the community is not always readily apparent, but whose value will be enjoyed by generations to come.
Would you support the following to pay for growth? Impact Fees, Land Transfer Taxes, Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances, Increased Property Taxes.
I am not in favor of raising any of these fees or taxes specifically to fund growth, if at all possible. Increasing impact fees and land taxes only inhibits growth potential. We need to think smarter, form partnerships with lenders, investors, developers and devise creative and fair methods to achieve growth. Smart growth benefits everyone. The burden should not be solely on the developers or the community. First and foremost, we should not increase any costs to anyone, let alone our residents until we have explored all other possibilities and opportunities.
Do you support Tax Increment Financing?
Yes, for appropriate well-planned projects that demonstrate a clear value to our residents and stakeholders.
What is your opinion of growth for the downtown district?
We have little room to grow our downtown district, but I have spent the last four years focusing my personal and council-lead efforts on returning the CBD to its best days of full occupancy while spearheading the most important initiative to be founded in Carolina Beach in the last 10 years — the Boardwalk Makeover. This personal campaign pledge has evolved into an Island-wide, hand-on effort to revitalize the most important and visible asset in our community. And while raising money for this important nonprofit organization, I have also helped raise money for other critical community initiatives like the dredging of Carolina Beach Inlet and the Senior Center.
What are your thoughts on the regional impact of the Wilmington Convention Center project? Do you support it?
I am not attuned to all of the issues surrounding the development of this project, but generally speaking, I am in favor of these types of facilities. Most often they help community economics by putting “heads on beds” and adding revenues to fund our CVB marketing efforts. However, I am extremely conscious of having any government institution that receives support from tax payers, regardless of their community benefit; receive an unfair advantage over local businesses. While I have recently been appointed to the County’s TDA Board, my intention is to pursue a fair and balanced approach to generating ROT funds to help market our region, but also give our local meeting and hospitality spaces a fair shot at any and all business opportunities that might come their way.
What are your thoughts or additional suggestions for increasing tourism in our region?
I currently serve as our town representative on the Tourism Development Authority and our Town liaison on the CB Marketing Advisory Committee. As such, I work on tourism for our region on a regular basis. After my last election I founded and implemented the Boardwalk Makeover effort, which has completely turned our town around as a Tourist destination. We now have thousands of families visiting our Boardwalk every week, which has not only been a boost for our local business, it has help us slow the damage to our Real Estate market, and at the same time created a renewed sense of community pride.
Are the County Beaches receiving services in proportion to the amount of property taxes paid?
I don’t believe so, although the County did recently help fund our inlet dredging, so that is in our favor.
Are there other services or an expanded level of services that you would like to see the county provide?
In general I think the County should recognize the significant financial and motivational benefits the beach towns bring to the county’s financial stability. We offer visitors a source a wonderful source of diverse recreation and a sustainable and popular tax source for the county. When necessary, the County should be willing to join in partnerships with the beach towns to help sustain or grow our tourism. We are currently in need of financial help with the NC Aquarium Pier project, which would be a huge asset and direct benefit to the county and our local residents.
Hurricane evacuation and recovery plans are always important issues to residents. How successful do you think the town’s plan has been to-date and what changes, if any, would you recommend?
The town has made substantial strides in updating our “Hurricane Evacuation Plan.” But we have not tested these changes since they were implemented. Only another required evacuation will tell us where improvement is needed and whether what we have done to date is effective and adequate.
How would you modify the current structure, make-up, and funding mechanism of the Tourism Development Authority?
I currently serve as out town representative on the Tourism Development Authority and as our town liaison on the CB Marketing Advisory Committee. Over the last year, I led the way for an unprecedented Joint Resolution unanimously signed by all three beach community’s elected officials to re-brand our region away from Cape Fear Coast and provide a better identity for our beach communities and region. I continue to work on all opportunities to bring fresh ideas to our TDA and our towns.
COMMUNITY ISSUES:
How would you define “Quality of Life?”
Quality of life is a good balance between work and play, family and personal achievement, a sense of community and individual fulfillment. Our Beaches and affordable lifestyle are the primary reasons people visit and move here to Carolina Beach and as stewards for our natural resources, we need to maintain these assets in order to maintain our quality of life.
How would you keep our beaches open to the public and provide adequate access?
We recently installed a new dingy dock at our downtown area. In addition, we are installing a morning field in our harbor and a public access for kayak and small boat launches. We currently have 29 beach accesses on the North End of our island and 14 access points along our harbor, as well as, access points all along the South end. There are also plenty of nearby marinas that offer quick boating access to the ocean and beaches. And don’t forget our Town’s financial commitment to Freeman Park, one of the most unique assets and visitor destinations on the east coast.
I see no problem with adequate beach access or parking at the moment, however, we need to continue to clean-up and improve the beach and harbor access points, and when possible, establish additional recreational opportunities and parks space. Additionally, I’ve been leading the effort to bring special needs Oceanfront Park to our beach, something that would service an important sector of our community often forgotten.
What are your thoughts on beach re-nourishment and inlet dredging funding?
Maintaining the inlet and our beaches are two of our two most important and expensive issues. Since my appointment as town representative to the PWWB Commission, I’ve been working with the commissions on all aspects of beach renourishment. And while it’s a slow process, I’m pleased to say we are making headway on several levels regarding alternate approaches to sustained beach renourishment and the critical funding sources necessary so we don’t have to be a drain on county resources.
As for the inlet, I’ve been working with the county commission and other county municipalities to arrive at a fair share of contributions. I’ve also been meeting with local nonprofit groups to raise private funds, both for inlet dredging and for public awareness regarding future inlet and beach renourishment challenges. In the last two weeks alone, the groups I’ve met with have pledged over $14,000 in contributions. With the help of these groups we are also establishing ongoing fund raising and community outreach programs.
What can be done to promote positive economic development in our area?
I think my record more than speaks for itself in this area. However, we need to continue to adopt and enforce fair and reasonable ordinances and fee structures. We need to continue to promote our area as the wonderful destination it is. We need to continue to make our Town unique by building on all of our local events and activities, most of which are free to the public.
Do you support mass transit between Wilmington, New Hanover County and the beaches? Explain.
Having lived in tourist areas all of my life, I understand there are pros to connecting bus service to the mainland. However, I don’t believe a traditional bus service is in our town’s best interest, especially at the expense to taxpayers. I think a beach trolley could be an answer, and it’s also something that would be privately funded as an enterprise. Not only do I feel visitors and locals alike would prefer to ride a trolley, I see a substantial benefit to our citizens and our local businesses in connecting the ferry, Aquarium, Kure Beach, Carolina Beach, to areas around the Food Lion via a trolley service. I’ve had several discussions with the trolley companies to date and I plan to resume those talks prior to next summer season.
