Voter guide: Eleanor M. Tierney, candidate for Ward 1 in Annapolis – Capital Gazette

Elected Alderwoman of Ward One in 2017.
Prior that President of the Ward One Residents Association for 4 years I am excited about the future of Annapolis. This administration has established the groundwork to move forward with big plans: City Dock revitalization, addressing sea level rise, and completing a comprehensive plan that we will use to move forward. I want to be a part of that.
Most importantly, I look forward to maintaining my engagement with the residents of Ward One, keeping them informed and involved in the processes of government, as the City Council strives to meet their needs and plan for the future of our community. I believe that social platform market trends have reached a tipping point downtown and we MUST address affordable full time housing for a more vibrant downtown. We will have to reopen STR legislation to prevent ongoing purchasing of properties by LLC’s that circumvent existing code for short term rental use. I will be firm on policy to promote apartments in current vacant floors on Main Street. I will shepherd the major infrastructure project at City Dock and insure coordination with downtown residents and businesses. I will address needed enforcement downtown as far as loading, trash pickup and beautification as the historic district welcomes people here from all over and there first impression is important. No. I think we could find a way to allow Independents to vote in the Primary but still maintain our party structure and supporting Central Committees. We are a service industry and we have to insure we are providing those services as efficiently and effectively as possible. We introduced performance measures and a review process to first: evaluate our processes and then secondary to that evaluate where we can be more efficient. We also may need to rectify some staff decisions as we have to consider the constraints we are under, eg. how skew our ‘return on staff’ is, meaning we don’t recover this cost in any way other permit and other fee for services. On the revenue side we need to optimize where we can, which is limited, due to our property tax base being hit by non taxable entities. I know our legislature works hard for a state PILOT, but we need to examine our actual costs and submit the bill. We also have to reevaluate distribution of our hotel tax. We need to incorporate a performance pricing model for all city surface parking and garages – part of this would be implementing Parkmobile in the residential parking district areas. We need to lobby for much needed infrastructure money for roads and sidewalks so that Paygo is not utilized. We need smart infill development as this growth and redevelopment will provide added tax base as well as better environmental controls. Lastly and most important we will be renegotiating our union agreements and that is the most pivotal decision we will be making to insure our budget is fixed and having no projected deficit. Every source of revenue must be reexamined. I am very proud of what we’ve done. Specifically our Office of Economic Development in supporting our businesses with necessary resources and tools to survive through this enormous stress test. I believe we continue what we are doing by implementing codes for parklets and sidewalk extensions to keep restaurants occupied to fullest extent to recover their losses from the shutdown. We were very smart to hold half of our Covid money to examine where we will need it in FY2022 as with the variant we have already seen some cancellations such as the Gay Pride parade. On efficiency and effectiveness, I believe the performance reviews and yearly reporting to the Audit Committee and City Council at public forums will be very effective. And I also believe its up to the Alderpersons to convey the professionalism, transparency and fairness of our City departments and their leadership. If we don’t convey that to our constituents, it stirs negativity and unnecessary energy instead of problem solving. I believe a State Capital must have its own life safety departments and other major services such as DPW and Parks and Recs. I would consider looking at transporation routing but it won’t change the fact that streets are controlled by different jurisdictions so not sure how respective departments could merge. Again, this is where we must get paid for our services by not only the State but the County. Our water access has to be distributed throughout the City. I am so optimistic that our Comprehensive Plan will have them mapped and prioritized. Every street end park should be public and have kayak storage so there are many options. I also understand the NPS is involved in this mapping as well, so its’ a huge investment. I know that Parks and Recs are prioritizing repair of bulkheads etc. and that is ongoing. So all a positive step. We must be true partners with HACA and support the turnover of these properties to healthy multi use communities. I have put money in the budget for multi model transportation to extend ‘bus’ routes to all HACA properties using existing inventory of paratransit and smaller vehicles. But since HUD is out of the subsidized housing industry we must help HACA find more developers who expertise is in this field for necessary financing to redevelop and enhance these properties. It must be our priority. We have to be serious about it and establish it as a major policy investment. For example, ADUs will be passed but we must mandate that they be used for permanent housing. This will bring different diversity of incomes into Ward One. And the highest and best use of a property won’t be a short term rental. We have limited existing housing stock to get this right. We need to inventory any existing vacant properties and with receivership we could introduce affordable housing possibility. We have to communicate existing tax credits for improvements in the historic district. Most importantly we must accept multi use development as a means to introduce affordable housing and employment opportunities. We have identified areas in the comprehensive plan for such studies. And with our strict stormwater measures on redevelopment we will be improving what is there now. We will not reopen ‘fee in lieu of’ providing MPDUs as that has hurt us enormously in the past. Developers have opted to pay vs. provide affordable units and that cannot ever be reinstated. We will be undertaking a major project to protect us from sea level rise which is good. We need to pursue fed’l infrastructure money to convert our city fleet of vehicles to electric and provide charging stations throughout City. We need to ensure tree protection by proactively monitoring their health. Our no net loss and other environmental requirements are the toughest in the area so we keep doing what we are doing. In writing a recent resolution it was my objective to elevate this to an epidemic and outline the structure we have to address. Our OEM department has taken the lead in monitoring and implementing the response. The Mayor’s office has been more focused on a No Harm initiative with outreach to the communities. We need to support this initiative and their efforts on securing grant money. We will continue to partner with the County on the social services that they offer. I am supporting our first ‘recovery house’ in the City sponsored by Serenity Sisters. This is important. There are two models of community policing and I think the Police Chief’s model is best for the long term results. That is partnering on programs that bring young adults into job opportunities such as HVAC training and hands on skills. Other model is events and outings for the kids to develop trust with the APD. I believe we can do both while the police force is also laser focused on stopping violence and finding the perpetrators. Yes. I did get in the budget a consultant to examine our permitting process. We need to see where the roadblocks are. Due to the pandemic we will have a lot of vacant office space etc. on West Street corridor which will need redevelopment. If we don’t grow, we essentially stay dormant and taxes would have to go up. So I am a strong supporter of smart growth with well thought out infill development and redevelopment of obsolete buildings. We also need to reach out nationally to affordable housing developers. Not sure what you mean. If asked to serve full time the salary should increase to justify at least a working wage of some sort. Yes 3 terms max. maybe even 2.