Issues
Increasing Affordable Housing
The median apartment costs nearly $2,000 per month – the highest rent in the state – and the median house costs over $1 million. We can and we must work to increase the supply of affordable housing in Bellevue if we are going to keep this a place where families can raise their kids. At the same time, our essential workers and young people are enduring long commutes or leaving the area entirely because it’s too expensive to live close to their jobs. Many seniors in our community would like to downsize from their current homes to more manageable options, but want to stay close to the area they love. The supply is not meeting the demand.
The solution starts with working regionally to build affordable housing across the Puget Sound. We need to adjust our zoning laws and our regulations to prioritize building more housing that is affordable. We can increase the stock of housing while keeping the character of our neighborhoods.
Ensuring Public Safety
Everyone deserves to feel safe in their neighborhoods, and anywhere in the city. As our city grows, we need to increase funding for public safety. As a former engineer, I believe in data. My priority will always be lowering response times and lowering the rates of violent crime, property crime, and domestic violence. I believe we can use lessons learned in other cities to fight crime more effectively. These include community courts, proven violence-prevention programs, and mental health crisis first-response teams staffed by medical professionals.
At the same time, we can’t reduce crime without the full trust of our citizens in our police department, especially in the wake of racial bias incidents across the country. I support adding civilian oversight of the police department, increasing transparency and accountability, and modernizing our data portals on the city’s website to ensure every citizen understands the budget, the priorities, and the accountability measures of our Bellevue Police Department.
Improving City Government Accountability and Responsiveness
Bellevue is one of the technology capitals of the world and we need to use that ingenuity to increase transparency in every division of government, set performance metrics for what matters and report regularly on whether we are meeting goals, streamline and update the city’s website to be more usable, and reduce bureaucracy. I’m excited to bring my business and nonprofit background to increase our city’s transparency and responsiveness in every aspect of governing.
Protecting Our Environment
We live in the most beautiful place in the world. We all treasure our proximity to nature and I will always prioritize protecting our environment. This includes preserving and expanding our parks and open spaces, increasing energy efficiency in our buildings and our homes, and increasing transportation options to get around our city. Bellevue has a climate action plan with aspirational goals, like a 50% reduction in citywide greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. I’m excited to take a leadership role in pushing for concrete steps to make sure we accomplish those goals.