Questions & Answers

What is the importance of City Council to residents of Champaign?

City Council is important in every aspect of a resident's life. City Council also is important because it works with so many other forms of government such as the school district, the park district, state and federal legislators. Literally, a city council's most important job is to work through the priorities of the residents to ensure that every resident has access to the best quality of life.

Why are you qualified to be on the City Council?

I am a servant and have served this city for 10 years on the City Council. I have had the blessing, honor and privilege to work on a number of issues deemed important by the citizens of Champaign. Ranging from improving community-police relationships through the creation of the Community Coalition to working on issues such as economic development, stormwater issues, building and improving relationships, maintaining a balanced budget, improving downtown, increasing affordable housing, and the like. I have been blessed to grow and serve this community.

If elected, what is something you want to accomplish on the City Council, and how long will it take?

There are a number of things that I would like to accomplish in the coming years, but public safety has to be the number one issue. A major component of public safety is strong community development. I want to increase funding and partnerships across the city to address gun violence in our community. We can continue to work with our community partners as a strategy, but I believe that to be more effective - we will have to increase the level of funding in this area. Increasing the funding and truly evaluating the effectiveness of our partnerships can happen within the next two years.

Is there anything else you would like to say to an undecided voter?

I will start and end by saying that public office requires the heart of a good and knowledgeable servant. I enjoy serving with passion, humility and respect - understanding that some issues take time, patience and consistency. Over the past 10 years, I have been blessed to work hard for the residents of Champaign, while still serving my family. The work that I have been blessed to do has had a positive impact on all of our community and I would like to continue these works with the spirit of a humble servant.