I was interviewed by the Morning Call this AM for my candidacy for Lehigh County Commissioner. I want to thank the paper for covering these critical local elections despite having to do so with less and less reporters. Below are the the areas Morning Call readers indicated they were most interested in and therefore were the subject of most of the interview.

Why I am running? I spoke with the reporter about my reasons for seeking this office. First, I spoke about the fact that in 8-years as a Lower Macungie Commissioner we’ve accomplished many of the major goals we set out to achieve. We preserved a historic amount of farmland, removed warehouses from the zoning code, delivered balanced budgets, enacted a residential property tax reduction and adopted a new zoning code that works hand in hand with preservation efforts while guiding economic development to areas of the township where infrastructure already exists. So, I feel really comfortable leaving my position in Lower Mac. As someone who believes in term limits, I think folks should seek office with a clear platform and goals, work to achieve those goals and then move on. So now, I’m looking now forward to the challenges of County Government which touches so many important areas. From Health and Human services, overseeing local elections, to law enforcement, the court system, land use, the county jail and the county parks system.

1.) Land Use, Warehouses & Farmland Preservation.

• First of all, as a County Commissioner I want to carry Percy Dougherty’s banner as Commissioner focused on land use and quality of life issues. Percy for decades along with Sterling Raber for a long time were the Commissioners most engaged in farmland and land use issues over the last 30 years. The board will miss Percy’s expertise and passion for the area. This is something I hope to continue.

• Warehouses – I want to work as a County Commissioner with fellow commissioners and the LVPC to continue advocating with State Elected officials for meaningful municipal planning code reform in an effort to give communities facing intense development pressure more tools to enact local control for more balanced growth. This is something I already have done as a township commissioner, but serving as a county commissioner will offer a bigger platform for advocacy.

• Farmland Preservation – I will always work to ensure the county program remains fully funded. I’ve served as a member of the Lehigh County Farmland Preservation Board for several years.

2.) Election Integrity

• Lehigh County had no major issues that I am aware of and locally I accept the reported results of the 2020 election. The Lehigh County Voter Registration office did an admirable job under very tough circumstances given they had to deal with rapidly evolving laws at the last minute. Local audits and state audits already occur to verify election results.

• While I do think the 2020 election results were accurate, I believe we have an obligation to always work to always find ways to make elections even more secure. One area I have concern is with overnight 24/7 drop box located downtown. District drop boxes were located inside secured lobbies and limited to certain hours. The downtown box however was open overnight which I don’t think is the most secure arrangement. Additionally, cameras utilized to monitor the downtown box overnight had technical issues and residents did not have access to the video.

3.) Budget

• The biggest consideration coming over the next few years relative to the county budget is possible consideration of a bi-county health bureau. The decision when it’s made needs to be data driven as opposed to political or emotional. The cost to taxpayers is estimated around $1.6 million a year. Throughout the pandemic compared to other counties with bureaus, Lehigh County fared measurably better. One example is vaccination rates. This is in large part thanks to our two world class health networks. Would a county bureau be redundant with existing services? At this time I have not heard a convincing argument regarding how creating another bureaucracy would serve our residents better than existing entities already do. Instead of creating another government department we should explore additional partnerships with existing health bureaus and the local health networks.

4.) Other areas:

I spoke about my endorsements from law enforcement, Percy Dougherty and a myriad of local municipal officials who support our campaign.