ISSUES
Listening to thousands of residents, I have heard some repeated concerns. People want our city to remain a faith-based, family community led by someone with a proactive approach to the challenges ahead.
ISSUES
Traffic and Infrastructure
Before 2016 the City was repaving three miles of roads per year. Many roads were on a repair list that was 40 years long. Now, we are on track to repave 60 miles of roads each year.
We adjusted the timing of several traffic lights and are starting to synchronize all the signals in the city. Major traffic projects at Gallatin Road & Walton Ferry Road and on Drakes Creek Road & Stop 30 Road will begin soon.
The Saundersville Road tunnel will remain a high priority. We will receive $30 million from the State to pay for the construction. We are acquiring land and moving swiftly to begin construction.
We have solved more than 100 drainage problems during the past several years and will keep going. We opened two new parks while making significant improvements to existing parks.
Regarding the traffic to and from Nashville, the city cannot widen I-65 and Vietnam Veterans Boulevard. We are working frequently with the state to move that project along.
I certainly can help medical providers understand that if they come out here, they've got 3,300 health care professionals that want to work for them.
That is helpful, especially for older folks, if they've got to go see a doctor. A trip to Nashville is going to take several hours out of their day.
Apartments
Hendersonville has been growing at a phenomenal rate over the past 55 years, and I love that people want to live in our exceptional city. However, new houses and apartments have caused us to out-grow our roads, schools, parks, and drainage capacity. It is essential that we strengthen and reinforce our existing infrastructure in order to accommodate our current needs before growing further
Image
I care deeply about the image of Hendersonville. With the vision of being a recreation destination, we are increasing participation in race events that bring outsiders to Hendersonville. Dozens of positive news stories were shared in the Nashville media about our exceptional city. To better serve neighbors living near ugly property, we streamlined residential maintenance complaints. We opened greenways near Saundersville Road and along Sanders Ferry Road. We have a new plan for West Main Street that encourages property owners to improve their appearances.
Jobs
Our economic development efforts have brought new businesses here and supported the expansion of existing companies (International Machine, Rocky McElhaney Law Firm, Magnetic Hold, International Machine, St. Thomas, Xtend Healthcare, Vanderbilt Hospital, Celebrity Coaches, Costco, and many others). Business owners invested $116 million in new commercial buildings in 2023, an all-time record. We will continue making pitches to bring more professional employers to Hendersonville and searching for companies to build spec office space.
Overall Vision
I will continue being a pro-active mayor focused on jobs, infrastructure, and image. Those three concerns impact everything else that is important in Hendersonville.
Other Issues and Concerns:
Growth and development
We have out-grown ourselves. We need more jobs, not more people. Business growth will help our infrastructure; residential growth presents more challenges.
Several years ago I led 800 people to fight a proposed apartment complex on Indian Lake Blvd. It would have cost the city $360,000 in services annually beyond the property tax revenue. We were successful in getting the application denied, and now several stores are in that space. They are producing $260,000 in annual sales tax for the city and a similar amount for schools.
The next step is to bring more professional jobs to Hendersonville.
Recycling
A couple years ago, we tried a pilot recycling program in Hendersonville in an effort to test the waters (video). However, the data showed that a citywide program would be very costly and could not guarantee that the material would actually be recycled. I will continue to explore this as the recycling industry adjusts.
City budget and taxes
I oppose property tax increase for three reasons:
1. The city’s sales tax revenue is increasing significantly every year, negating the need for additional property tax.
2. Long-term obligations are expiring, freeing up money for other priorities.
3. The 2020 census generated additional revenue for the city from state-shared taxes.
Many residents on fixed incomes worry about outliving their assets. A tax increase means that some seniors may have to move from Hendersonville.
Professional experience
The best qualification for a job is having done it well in the past. During the past eight years, the City has run exceptionally well.
Additionally, for 17 years I consulted for growing companies needing help navigating government red tape. They were bringing jobs, taxes, and infrastructure to communities. Hendersonville needs more jobs, and I am the candidate who understands what employers are looking for and avoiding.
This work in the private sector prepared me to lead the city. But, my community experience is also vital. I have been an alderman, planning commissioner, vice-president of the chamber of commerce, board member for many local non-profit organizations, and member of multiple city committees. No other candidate has my level of experience in government and the private sector.
Traffic
We have completed the bidding and planning process for synchronizing traffic signals. We are changing the timing of signals now and will continue with the hiring of a new traffic signal technician. We have tweaked some signals to improve traffic in very specific situations:
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Turned some signals to blinking yellow during some parts of the day.
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Switched off left-turn arrows when nobody is turning left.
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Stopped automatic cycling on some signals with pre-set timing,
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Lengthened the time that green lights appear for roads with heavier traffic.
Maintenance of roads
For too long roads only received attention after they become dangerous. The City was budgeting way too little to maintain our roads.
Before I was mayor, we were repaving fewer than 3 miles annually . Last year we repaved more than 30. Next year it should be up to 60.
Older sections of Hendersonville
The first Hendersonville house I lived in is on Walton Ferry Road. The first house I owned is off Sanders Ferry Road. My first school was Lakeside Park. The second house I owned is on Shivel Drive. I watched the city neglect the older parts of our town. The infrastructure and the image suffered.
As mayor I have:
• Enforced codes on West Main Street and on property owned by absentee landlords.
• Activated a steering committee of owners of property on West Main Street.
• Sought city funding to improve Main Street infrastructure.
• Led us to build the greenway along Drakes Creek and Sanders Ferry Road.
• Initiated a grant program to encourage property owners on Main Street to improve their appearances.