Issues

I am running for city council to support the amazing community we have in Jeffersontown and facilitate our growth into the future. With the growing number of young families making Jeffersontown home, I want to ensure they have a connection to the council and know how the city works so they can be actively involved. I already show up for Jeffersontown at community events and that will only continue when I am in office. I would also plan to host community meet-ups to hear directly from residents and be accessible to them as a councilwoman.

Part of what I love about Jeffersontown is that while we are a top 20 city in Kentucky in terms of population, and now part of Louisville Metro, we have maintained our sense of a community that knows and cares about each other. As we continue to grow, I want to ensure we maintain the small town energy that makes this community great and support new folks moving to Jeffersontown and joining this community. Connecting us with the advances in technology is an important way of how we do this. We already have council meetings streamed online, and I would work with the council to make it even easier for the community to know issues that are being discussed and provide input, because an engaged community is a connected community.

Our Mayor has already done a great job of identifying issues and bringing in additional help to support this project. What I would do personally, if elected, is visit  the site once a week or every two weeks to keep tabs on what is going on. I would interact with the project manager and those involved in completion to see where the project is and what, if any issues, are being encountered. If there are continued issues or delays, I would engage with the Mayor and the council on what we can do to help mitigate the challenges. I would also communicate about the progress of the amphitheater with the community as there might be people in our community who could serve as further assets to complete this quickly.

To ensure a successful launch of programming I would work with the Chamber and local businesses to ensure we have a great programming calendar. I believe that with the right events and marketing, we can make the amphitheater a destination for folks from across Jeffersontown as well as Louisville Metro. I would attend all the programming I could and encourage others in my network to go. While there have been several setbacks to the progress of the amphitheater, I would do everything in my power to make it a successful space for the city moving forward.

If elected, two items that I would focus on are traffic lights and patterns. A continued review of potential improvements will help ensure we adjust as our city grows. Another way to address current issues is to work to encourage other modes of transportation, especially for folks who live in Jeffersontown. This would mean looking at our walkability and bikeability throughout the town. If someone is going somewhere for dinner, it would be great if they felt safe to bike or walk the distance instead of needing to take a car if they wanted. I would also partner with the Jeffersontown police and harness connections I have with Metro and state officials to address potential solutions that might extend beyond the purview of city council. 

I will also be a voice to ensure that new developments have proper traffic consideration in their plans, and that results of all traffic studies are easily accessible to the public. We can guide development by ensuring that, especially for new multi unit developments, thought has been given to ingress and regress options and roads are capable of handling the new traffic. I would push to ensure there are good plans for a new development before voting to approve it. Growth is normally far from perfect, but we can learn from challenges and work to improve with each new step.

Strengthening TARC in Jeffersontown goes hand in hand with addressing the traffic challenges we face. This critical service is used by thousands of folks living and working in Jeffersontown every day and is an important part of our economic development as a community. I already have good connections with several sitting Metro Council members, so on the council, I will work with my counterparts at Louisville Metro to explore increasing our city’s contributions to the TARC fund and to explore other strategies to ensure routes are not further cut. This could look like prioritizing key routes that most directly impact those commuting for work. 

Additionally, as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other recent federal legislation, there are hundreds of millions of dollars available for cities to modernize and build resiliency within transit systems. I would explore how Jeffersontown and/or Louisville Metro government could access these funds, as well as alternative funding sources to ensure continued TARC routes in Jeffersontown. I will also look into options for partnering with local businesses that are particularly dependent on TARC and explore creating a sponsorship for Jeffersontown businesses to support a shuttle from TARC stations to business hubs to help employees get to work.

I love all the city and chamber are already doing to bring the community to downtown Jeffersontown. These events provide wonderful activities for families to form memories and connect with others throughout the community. I have heard from fellow residents as I’ve been talking to them that they feel nervous when downtown with their kids, especially on days such as the farmer's market because of traffic and being concerned about their kids running into traffic. I would look at options the council may already be considering to improve pedestrian safety downtown and create more bike parking spaces to encourage young people, families, and others to bike from their homes to downtown, park their bikes, and spend time walking around, shopping, and grabbing a bite to eat. I would also coordinate with the police department to address issues they have identified as well as solutions they may suggest.

I love the many local businesses we have downtown and I want to see more move into spaces as they are available. One of my favorite spots is the historic log cabin building downtown. I want to see what we can do to make it something people from across Louisville will visit. I think this is a great piece of our downtown that will feel unique and special if used well.

I have already built relationships with many small businesses in Jeffersontown, including those located in the Bluegrass Commerce Park. When elected, I will send an email to each business in the Bluegrass Commerce Park, and all of Jeffersontown introducing myself and including my contact information. I would prioritize meeting with businesses as much as possible, and if they have issues that need to be resolved I would make sure to figure out how I could connect them with the Mayor and the council to find a solution. I may not know how to solve every issue businesses have, or even have the authority, but I'll be a connector and make sure our businesses get the resources and support they need.

As new businesses move to Jeffersontown, I will meet with them and ensure they have the support needed to make the move successfully. I would also work to ensure that we bring in businesses that better the community. One thing I would champion is helping people who live in Jeffersontown start businesses if they want to. Having people from the community own and run small businesses here will help us maintain our close-knit and connected community. One of my personal dreams is to own a small business and I would love nothing more than to help folks in Jeffersontown achieve that dream!