Will Peckham[/caption]
Tracie Storie[/caption]Two candidates are vying for Round Rock City Council Place 4. Election day is May 6. The candidates, in alphabetical order include Will Peckham and Tracie Storie. Community Impact Newspaper asked questions of each candidate. Their answers are printed with limited editing.
1. Experience:
PECKHAM: Round Rock City Council Place 4: Have served since May of 2014. Am a current member of City of Round Rock Transportation and Economic Development Corporation; served on the City of Round Rock Planning and Zoning Commission; served on the City of Round Rock Ethics Commission; served on the 2013 Williamson County Bond Advisory Committee; served on the Round Rock Chamber Board of Directors; served on the YMCA of Greater Williamson County Board of Directors; served on the Chasco Family YMCA Board of Directors; am a current member of the Round Rock Rotary Club; past president of the Round Rock Rotary Club; a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International; a past president of Williamson County Texas A&M Club; a current member of Leadership Round Rock Planning Committee; a current member of the Ascend Leadership Council; a Leadership Round Rock Graduate, 2004; a Ascend Leadership Graduate, 2010.
STORIE: As a community organizer, I have spent much of my career organizing and informing residents about local, state and national elections. I am passionate about community engagement, serving as chair of Precinct 138 for eight years and I volunteer as a Deputy Voter Registrar and Poll Worker. I have held leadership positions in local non-profits, including Sam Bass Community Theatre and Allen R. Baca Center Art Club. I graduated with honors from the University of Texas.
2. What are the major issues you see facing Round Rock and what are the solutions?
STORIE: The major issues facing Round Rock Residents are rapid growth without the much needed supporting infrastructure and lack of affordability for residents.
The solution to these issues is when permits are granted by the City Council, developers must be required to include infrastructure improvements for the area. This lessens our taxpayer burden by shifting the cost to the developer. This would include traffic mitigation, allocations of first-time and mid-range buyer housing, and pedestrian safety. In addition, we must revitalize older neighborhoods and explore and implement more transit options to ease traffic.
PECKHAM: Round Rock is a great place to live. In order to keep the quality of life (safety, parks, etc.) and one of the lowest tax rates in the region, we have to continue bringing new businesses that provide good jobs with strong benefits for their employees. These companies also bring investment to our community that diversifies our tax base and keeps the burden low on homeowners. As this growth occurs we must continue to work with other public and private partners to ensure we are best using our tax dollars and resources to maintain and improve transportation infrastructure, and educational opportunities for our residents. It has taken a focused effort by our leaders over the years for Round Rock to be listed as one of the Safest Cities in America, as one of the Best Cities to Start a Family, and of the Best Affordable Places to Live in America.
3. What type of businesses do you think Round Rock should attract?
PECKHAM: When recruiting businesses to join our community, we need to continue to keep a focus on several areas: Jobs with strong wage and benefit packages, diversified businesses that will support capital investment and a low tax rate for our residents, and companies that make the best use of our land and infrastructure resource are critical factors to consider as we work with new businesses interested in being part of our community.
STORIE: Round Rock needs smart and sustainable business growth. We need businesses that do not add a burden to our current overloaded infrastructure. Businesses large and small are needed in Round Rock to create a revenue flow that does not increase local taxes and fees on residents. In addition, our thriving downtown area needs more diversity of locally owned businesses to keep Round Rock vibrant and attractive to a greater number of visitors and our residents.
4. What can be done better?
STORIE: The City Council must improve their resident engagement. The current City Council speaks and votes for the business community, yet residents are directly affected by their decisions. It is crucial that the City Council considers both the residents and business community in all their decisions. Honest conversation between residents and elected officials should not be limited to 3 minutes at City Council meetings. Opportunities to engage residents are imperative.
PECKHAM: Our hometown is an incredible place to live and we should always strive for ongoing improvement Looking for more new partnership opportunities like Round Rock’s award winning Play for All Abilities Park is one way to strengthen our community even further. This is an example of public and private dollars creating a place that brings visitors from all over the region. We also need to keep searching for ways to improve our transportation network. Our partnership and work with CAMPO has brought almost $50 million in transportation funding to Round Rock. These are both huge wins for Round Rock and serve as great examples of how we can continue to move forward as city.
