West Lafayette city council candidates on climate change and affordable housing
Candidates are running for election and reelection for West Lafayette's At-large city council and in Districts 1-6. Election Day is Nov. 5.
West Lafayette city council candidates on climate change and affordable housing Candidates are running for election and reelection for West Lafayette's At-large city council and in Districts 1-6. Election Day is Nov. 5. Check out this story on jconline.com: https://www.jconline.com/story/news/2019/11/01/west-lafayette-city-council-candidates-issues/4108454002/
Emily Deletter, Lafayette Journal & Courier Published 5:55 p.m. ET Nov. 1, 2019 | Updated 9:22 a.m. ET Nov. 5, 2019
Jessica Torres votes inside Purdue's Krach Leadership Center, Friday, Oct. 25, 2019 in West Lafayette. (Photo: Nikos Frazier | Journal & Courier)
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Early voting continues ahead of Election Day on Nov. 5, at the Tippecanoe County Board of Elections and Voter Registration on the third floor of the Tippecanoe County Office Building, 20 N. Third St. in Lafayette. Hours: 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 1, and 8 a.m. to noon Nov. 4.
Here's what the candidates running for city council in West Lafayette had to say about some local issues affecting the city. Answers were either given to the J&C by the candidates or through the VOTE411 website.
Questions to West Lafayette candidates:
What steps can West Lafayette take to continue to address its impact on climate change?
How can the city further address development, including making housing affordable for residents and students?
Note: * marks the incumbent candidate(s).
►Nick DeBoer (D)*- 31, Copywriter and web designer
1. I'm in favor of supply-side solutions – building an abundance of wind, solar, and hydro – which are outside the budget of a municipality without state and federal support. We need to tear coal plants to the ground, and from their ashes create new energy solutions that can't be used to burn our planet to the ground. And while it's a moral imperative for municipalities to take steps to make everything more energy efficient, the unfortunate fact is that while coal and gas plants exist, they will find customers to add to the planets inferno. They must be closed and replaced with all the haste we can possibly muster.
2. The most immediate and pressing problem facing student residents, young professionals, businesses, and our city is the exorbitant cost of rent. West Lafayette is the most expensive rental market in the state of Indiana.Housing prices are a direct result of land use regulation, minimum parking requirements, negotiating power of the customer, and housing stock. When insufficient stock exists, income becomes the deciding factor in who has access to that supply; permitting those with wealth to outbid lower and modest-income residents. The investment is clearly here, and investors have repeatedly pressed for us to allow greater density and fewer minimum parking regulations. This is the only solution to creating affordable housing stock. Until that housing stock is created, wealthy parents and those born with good fortune will continue to outbid those of more modest means for the current housing supply.
► Sydney Rivera (R)- candidate did not respond in time for publication.
► Peter Bunder (D)*- 68, Retired Purdue episcopal campus minister
1. Solar panels will power the new city Wellness/Recreation Center on Kalberer Rd. Methane turbines provide power to the water reclamation plant. Mayor John Dennis is one of 359 US mayors to sign on to the Mayor's Climate Agreement, pledging to honor and uphold the tenets of the Paris Climate Change Agreement. In July 2017, the West Lafayette City Council unanimously supported Resolution # 10-17, affirming West Lafayette's commitment to a greener, more sustainable future. Last month we approved Resolution #12-19 to reduce carbon emissions. We have a Climate Action Plan (May 2018). I am proud to have made the Go Green Commission (2008) part of the city's official life by ordinance. The energy of the Purdue Student Sustainability Council and of the West Lafayette High School climate strikers around climate change has moved us all. Any major city environmental initiatives (e.g. banning plastic bags) are subject to the state legislature's policy of preemption.
2. Our conversations on "affordable housing" usually begin and end with student housing. That's unfortunate. I have a professional interest in housing the poor. Still, the one lever on student housing costs available to the city is to increase the supply of student housing. That we have certainly done. We will be very interested to see the December 2019 Student Rental Report.?? There may be further opportunities for mixed income redevelopment on the riverfront. It will be important to see how the aging housing stock south of State St. is redeveloped. This is also a great question for Purdue University. I helped to develop the political consensus that has given us State St. redevelopment. I pushed for the New Chauncey Land Use Plan beginning in 2009, and for Historic Preservation beginning in 2011. I am part of the steering committee for the West Lafayette Downtown Development Plan. I like the smorgasbord of housing options now available in our West Lafayette neighborhoods.
► Jonathan Livermore (R)*- candidate did not respond in time for publication.
► Shannon Kang (D)- 19, student
1. I support any changes we can make to reduce the city's impact on climate change. As Executive Director on Purdue Student Government's Sustainability Committee, I am working to bring awareness and any changes that are environmentally positive. If elected to the city council, it would put me in a unique position to listen and act on student and other citizen's ideas on tackling climate change.
2. The city should encourage practical apartment development rather than decorative and high-class living that are beyond what students need. We shouldn't be putting students in a situation to be struggling to find affordable housing; I'm willing to work with the rest of the city council to negotiate all options with the student's need in mind.
► Jon Jones (R)*- 24, second year medical student at IUSM-West Lafayette
1. Unfortunately, the city is limited in its capacity to address the global issue of climate change. That being said, the council can take steps to make sure the Mayor's Administration is living up to the standards laid out in Resolution 12-19 on climate change, such as the following: The City of West Lafayette intends to reduce emissions by twenty percent (20%) with a goal of further reductions of twenty percent (20%) every four (4) years thereafter. The City of West Lafayette intends to organize a resiliency clinic in collaboration with the local resiliency coordinator by January of 2020. The City of West Lafayette intends to support Purdue University's implementation of the Sustainability Strategic Plan released in 2019.The City of West Lafayette intends to engage in education and outreach activities for community members and to support individual lifestyle changes that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
2. The city can further address development by taking a look at existing regulations/code and eliminating unnecessary burdens and costs. A simple example of an unnecessary burden applies to many of the student rentals and family home residences to the northeast of campus near Mackey Arena. In this area, homeowners looking to install new windows/doors as a part of basic maintenance for their home have to replace them with new ones that "match the originals in size, design, material, color, shape, and number of panes". This restriction is overburdensome. It ends up having 3 effects on homeowners: 1. It costs them more money to match original material compared to alternative choices, 2. It limits their ability to choose more energy efficient replacements, hurting the environment and again, costing the homeowner more money in the long run, and 3. It limits the homeowners right to personalize their property and express themselves through the design of their home.
► Larry Leverenz (D)*- Retired Professor in the Dept. of Health & Kinesiology at Purdue
1. Certainly, education plays an important role. Making people aware of how they, as individuals, can help the environment by doing the little things that make it better is an important role of government. We don't have to be thinking globally to affect our neighborhoods. West Lafayette is doing a pretty good job as a city and we just passed a resolution to continue to strive to be as green as we can. That being said, there are still things to do such as taking a look at our vehicle fleet to see if we can incorporate "greener" fuels. I'm sure we will continue to monitor our city and call for the use of new technologies and changes as they become available. I believe everyone on the council and in city government should be committed to addressing the issues of climate change and its effect on us locally.
2. For 9 months of the year, West Lafayette is a city of 90,000 and it continues to grow. With that growth, housing and the costs associated with it become a concern to be addressed. I believe we've done a good job of allowing some development and not allowing others based on the overall plan for the city. We also now have a plan for the development of the US 231 corridor. That plan includes areas for both single family and multifamily residences. We do, though, have to monitor both the need and the cost of housing for both students and citizens while, at the same time, allowing for the type of housing people desire. We can't control what people charge for housing. To a large degree, the market will determine the fair price. We will, certainly, continue to monitor the costs and work with the university to do what we can to keep the costs as low as possible.
► Kathy Parker (D)- 51, ESL Tutor at WLES and Director of LUM Thanksgiving
1. The climate is an urgent aspect of policy that every community in America should be addressing. There is currently technology available that turns all waste (except PVC pipe) into energy, with net zero carbon emissions. It has been used in other parts of the world for a decade. This is a worthy technology for our city to pursue, giving us the potential to be a leader in both developing new business and reducing carbon emissions. Until we have this available, we should be informing the public about proper recycling. PSAs would be a good idea, depicting what happens when people fail to recycle the right way. Other states figured out how to recycle 40 years ago. We can follow suit. We need to start training everyone in how recycling works. Have the experts teach business leaders, restaurant owners, school personnel, etc... once trained, those people can further the training in their respective job areas, with the goal of teaching everyone. Eventually, the majority of the community will know how it's done properly. Children can learn it as well and make it work in schools.
2. Regarding housing, I need to know more about what "affordable" means. I think a conversation would be a great place to start. Landlords should be at the table for that discussion, as well as business owners, community members, city leaders, and those looking for housing! People in low income housing will need easy access to grocery stores and public transportation, and the people affected by high rents need to be invited to lead these discussions. As for development, we have a few new great ventures in the works, with SAAB and the new Wellness Center. SAAB will be bringing jobs to WL, and more families who will need housing! To keep our city strong, we need this kind of business growth!
► John Meyers (R)- 72, Senior prosecutor
1. Not only climate change—we should note the city's impact on the environment as a whole. City government should be and is committed to being green. A challenge is to identify and adopt useful innovations that are affordable, advance city services and reduce our climate impact. Energy efficiency is a goal. The City is already using solar panels where practical. Using the proper lighting is obvious and looking to electric vehicles should be on our list. Innovation is a key, but I am not in favor of spending a lot of money for little gain. There is a question of a ban on plastic straws. By itself, banning plastic straws is trivial when real offenders such as one-use plastic bottles or plastic bags and the like are left alone. Our nation needs a frontal assault on the pervasive and profligate popular use of plastic at times that practical alternatives are available. Plastic has become an ecological crisis. This problem is best one for state and federal governments.
2. I understand the problem of "affordable housing" fully having lived it while in college and when in law school in Washington, DC. I lived in old houses that rented rooms, and I did not have a car. My experience is that, even though it may be challenging, it is easier on students than on poorer non-students, especially those with families. Through planning that makes provision for less expensive housing, realistic zoning of housing to reduce costs generated by overly complex zoning practices, and encouraging projects with less expensive housing, some help can be found. To be considered too is the access to transportation and shopping such as groceries. When such systems are proximate, practical and useful, a wider range of housing opportunities open. Critical again is our bond with Purdue in planning for student housing in the future.
► Austin Bohlin (D)- 22, student
1. I would like to have the city investigate the viability of split stream recycling in our community. Single stream recycling tends to be very inefficient. Education on this aspect could be beneficial as many people may not know what is and is not recyclable. Encouraging new developments to use either LEED or Green Globes building aspects can help ensure new buildings have a high level of environmental performance. Putting more of a focus on public transit and pedestrian traffic would also help reduce the number of cars on the road.
2. I feel the strategy of building more housing will help keep the market from becoming any more under-saturated. Maintaining a healthy supply of apartment developments as the city and student populations grow is essential in keeping apartment costs low. However, because of the surge of housing, it is important to take a pause on new developments as recommended by the Tippecanoe County Student Rental Report. If vacancy rates are still too low, then we should continue building more housing until we can supply more beds then we need. At the point, rental housing should become more affordable.
► Norris Wang (R)*- 64, Adjunct professor at Ivy Tech
1.The city already promotes and has curb side recycling for residences. Our city government also has required recycling too. I like to see the city shift more to hybrid vehicles use where possible to reduce pollution and the impact of carbon dioxide. I voted against the county's proposal to ban windmill turbine development because it is a means of providing clean energy. I also like to see the county, state and federal government promote tax credits for installing and using solar paneling.
2. The lure of industries and companies to bring good paying jobs here to afford housing is a start. If housing businesses seek tax credits or inducements they should be asked to set-aside a portion of their housing to low-income tenants.
COUNCIL AT-LARGE (THREE SEATS)
► James Blanco (D)- 24, CVS worker
1. We can strive to improve public transportation by reducing wait times for buses, expanding operating hours and making CityBus fare-free, so that people can get on at their convenience. Then, people can use public transit instead of their cars. This will reduce our carbon footprint while lessening traffic congestion and improving safety for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists alike. Similar programs in Kokomo and Columbus, Ohio have been quite successful; in Columbus, a similar fare-free system was used predominantly by people who owned cars of their own (93% of the users).
2. Let's get to work on improving the conditions of housing that already exists. It's not as if West Lafayette doesn't have any apartments that are affordable; the problem is that most of these units are either in poor shape or are far away from Purdue's campus. I'd like to improve conditions of such units by working closely with our rental inspections program, so that units such as these become a more viable option for residents. When cheaper units are of decent quality, it becomes harder for developers to raise the rents.
► David Sanders (D)*- Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, Purdue University
1. As a scientist, I have made confronting climate change a central component of my political career. We must make a commitment to make changes at three levels, individual behavior, the community, and the state and national governments. Continuing to regard petroleum as a fuel is the equivalent of burning down one's house in order to keep oneself warm. I have already been promoting a reduction in the consumption of single-use plastics, more informed recycling policies, composting, electric vehicles, and public transportation. Encouraging small-scale solar-energy installations and supporting markets for local produce will be a priority. I assert that continuous education is essential for success.
2. We must ensure that the community continues to maintain its character as a desirable place for all its residents, including families, retirees and students. Future development should mandate the inclusion of affordable housing. I have been an advocate for carefully examining each development on its merits and have been the most vigorous in proposing that there be a moratorium on the construction of high-rise buildings in West Lafayette.
► Gerald Thomas (D)*- 64, City councilman at large, retired
1.The mayor has outlined (in the city's climate resolution passed during the October city council meeting) steps and goals the city will undertake to reduce its carbon footprint In West Lafayette. The city can also encourage alternative means of travel (walking, bicycling, riding scooters, carpooling and riding City Bus). The city is also planning to include energy-saving ideas within the development of the new Wellness Center and the renovated City Hall.
2. Regarding housing developments, each development will need to stand on its own merit and fit within the city's plans for future development. With freshmen enrollment continuing to increase annually at Purdue, the various housing stock within the city will be stressed. The APC report concerning housing/rentals and vacancy rates being published by the end of the year will give the city a good feel for additional developments that may be needed. The city will also continue to work with HUD and our Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program to push for affordable housing options within our city. The city can also look for innovative ways in dealing with developers to push for affordable housing options when a new development is being planned.
► Steve Dietrich (R)*- 64, Clery Compliance Administrator for Purdue
1. I supported Resolution 10-17 which Mayor Dennis presented to Council in support of the Paris Agreement showing our support for the global climate initiative. During the recent October meeting, the West Lafayette City Council followed Mayor Dennis' lead and passed his resolution to reduce carbon emissions, increase energy efficiency and renewable energy use and to create a climate change-resilient city of West Lafayette. This resolution sets a goal to reduce emissions by 20 percent every four years. In addition to this resolution, the City's only City owned utility, Wastewater Treatment has a long track record in working toward Renewable Energy with the City's digester that convert fats, oils, and grease (called FOG) and food scrap waste from Purdue University to produce energy that is being used to augment the plant's electricity usage. In 2012, the City of West Lafayette accept the Governor's Award of Environmental Excellence. The award "The City of West Lafayette and the Wastewater Treatment Utility can be proud of their success in going above and beyond Indiana's basic environmental requirements in renovating the plant's digesters, IDEM is pleased to recognize the City for its extraordinary efforts to reduce energy consumption and reduce unnecessary waste." Wastewater Treatment is also in the final stages of a $9 million improvement of the City's wet water treatment facilities to reduce Combined Sewer Overflows during large rains. Lastly, to sustain our impact on Climate change the City will need support and assistance from local businesses. We need to recognize local businesses that make an effort to change our climate footprint. For example, our local Dog and Suds restaurants switched from plastic straws to paper ones near the time the Council passed a related resolution. They are to be commended for doing their part. While none of these efforts will reverse Climate change, they are a start and the City's recognition of the problem.
2. The October 2019 draft of the West Lafayette downtown Plan cites one of the objectives of Goal #2 is to "Expand housing opportunities and affordable housing options in the downtown." A portion of the newly designated WL downtown area will be affordable housing. Property values in West Lafayette continue to rise because it is a great place to live. People want to live near Purdue University and in a city with the amenities and diversity we offer. We don't want to attempt to restrict or control property values. It is a free market economy. The City is proceeding with appropriate caution by waiting for the release of the Area Plan's occupancy report before approving additional housing projects. I am committed to preserving our neighborhoods. They represent the character of West Lafayette. We have rezoned too many residential areas to allow multiple housing units. While each project will be reviewed on a case by case basis, the City has committed to higher density housing south of State Street. Ideally, additional housing projects south of State Street would draw residents from the rentals in New Chauncey and other nearby neighborhoods freeing up additional houses for single family occupancy. Perhaps, this is a condition the City may be able work with landlords to encourage.
Emily DeLetter is a news reporter for the Journal & Courier. Contact her at (765) 420-5205 or via email at edeletter@jconline.com. Follow her on Twitter at @EmilyDeLetter.
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