Hello and welcome to my platform!

A note before you read. This is my big wish list for our county and I very much want your vote!  However, it is important to note that as a county councilor, I won't be able to make these changes per the job description which is: Councilors are responsible for setting salaries, the annual budget, and special spending. The council also has limited authority to impose local taxes, usually in the form of an income tax that is subject to state level approval, excise taxes, or service taxes, like those on dining or lodging.

Most of my list doesn't fall under those parameters, but I promise you I will continue to work to connect with the people who can make these changes for our community. A vote for me is telling our current supermajority that we want change! If you pay any attention to Bargersville, the town has started to implement many things on my town council platform from last year. This may be pure coincidence, but I choose to believe that those who voted for me last year sent a clear message to the town officials.

This is a living platform that will be amended regularly as I speak to residents and people with great ideas! I may also periodically remove ideas if I am given a reason why they should be eliminated or if I learn more about a subject that I didn't otherwise know enough about.

If you have ideas, I will never use your name and anything you tell me will be confidential. I want candid, honest ideas that will benefit our community as a whole.

I am learning and growing along with my campaign and my platform. Something I want you to keep in the back of your mind as you look through my platform and website is that YOU have experiences and opinions that hold value to me and our community.

“Regular everyday people deserve the chance to be leaders in our community...your life experiences make you qualified to do the work.” Extend your hands to the people who aren’t engaged politically. They will make the changes.” – Kentucky House Representative Keturah Herron

Finally, before I start my platform, I am here to listen and be available. Please reach out and lets plan time to meet and talk about how we can modify this platform to better support and serve our neighbors.

Now, get cozy, because I have a lot of ideas!

1. Term limits. All elected officials in Johnson County should have a limit to how long they can hold an office. Younger people need to be taught politics and how things work in office, and political parties, without a few select individuals having all of the power and knowledge.  

2. Operation Green Light needs to be adopted to better support and recognize our veterans. If you'd like to support this, sign the petition here and lets tell our county officials to enact this! Furthermore, I would love to see property tax breaks for 100% disabled veterans. 

3. People experiencing homelessness need better support and we need to fight to reduce homelessness in our community. Most of us are three bad months away from being homeless and NOT three good months away from being millionaires. Johnson County has many amazing non-profits but NO ONE, especially the politicians in our county, should be relying solely on non-profits for social support and services. One great place to start would be utilizing empty spaces like the old Marsh on 135 and the old Indian Creek Elementary School on Pearl Street. The county needs to stop relying solely on our amazing network of nonprofits to help with the issues our county faces, including homelessness. 

4. Fewer new stop lights and stop signs, more new roundabouts throughout the county. The amount of time and money wasted on lights and stop signs is astounding. This will also help with traffic congestion and, hopefully, speeding to add roundabouts. 

5. Fewer paved parking lots and trails and more materials that allow water to flow to the earth and not emit toxic chemicals. Yeah, it isn't as glamorous, but its also less maintenance and better for our neighbors, farmers, and ecosystems. 

6. Tesla Supercharging stations. We have an entire police force with Teslas and many Tesla owners living and visiting our county. We need better options for electric vehicles. 

7. More solar and wind, less coal power throughout the county. 

8. Ensuring all new construction is built sustainably with smarter materials, glass that is treated to prevent birds from flying into it, and working with Johnson County Recycling District to ensure the county has mandatory access to recycling. We also need to be working with the Johnson County Soil and Water District to remove and replace invasic Bradford Pear Trees and replacing non-native grasses with native perennial grasses and flowering plants. We are a farming community and we need to support our farmers with pollinators. All homes costing more than $500,000 to build need to have at least 80% of their energy source from solar or wind. 

9. I want to redefine and expand on what Hoosier Hospitality means for JoCo residents and our visitors. Hoosier Hospitality should mean freedom to thrive in the Hoosier state, especially Johnson County! The freedom of true liberty. The freedom in the Hoosier state and JoCo to access our community regardless of age, ability, or mode of transportation be it foot, chair, cane, walker, bike, scooter, golf cart, car, etc. Additionally, let's start working with the state and surrounding counties to use the railroad to our advantage. Part of our history is the railroad, so why not add a commuter options to get people to and from our towns and cities? We should capitalize on the empty rail lines as much as possible!

10. Hoosier hospitality in welcoming all visitors to our businesses. ALL commercial entrances, regardless of the age of the buildings need to have ADA-compatible entrances at the land/property owner's expense no later than 2028. We are neglecting a large portion of the population by not making this something that the county shows care for. 

11. Hoosier hospitality in how we interact with our environment and help lessen the burden on our water treatment facilities and sewer lines. When we have events, parades, etc. only biodegradable balloons and confetti are to be used. Counties can lead the way in banning certain toxic products.

There is currently no ordinance stating that businesses MUST be aware of the environmental impact of their festivals and festivities. Furthermore, the Farmer's Markets, parades, and festival booths need to be held better accountable for the waste they are leaving behind the single-use items they are using, and the materials used in goods being sold. If the county emphasizes care in materials being used in all outdoor spaces, it will start to spread positively to the surrounding areas. 

12. Hoosier hospitality should be offered by way of more comfort to those visiting our parks. Let's add more shade/sunshades in our parks! Another thing we need to consider with the parks is the environment. We need to ensure that while parties and fun can be had it isn't at the expense of wildlife and the environment. The frequency at which families are using water balloons in park areas is astounding and it is VERY bad for waterways, dogs, birds, children, and the environment in general. I would propose adding signage and verbiage to contracts for the shelters that NO water balloons are allowed on park property and only biodegradable balloons are allowed in the parks. We have to protect our local ecosystems and our families! Let's require our park visitors to be hospitable to others and the environment. 

13. Things that can easily be improved to improve the quality of life for all JoCo residents and visitors would improve infrastructure (widening roads, adding roundabouts, etc.) BEFORE new buildings and homes/apartments/subdivisions go in. Adding new architecture before road improvements is silly and wasteful. This can help prevent traffic issues.

Improving the roads also make travel and spaces more accessible for out emergency personnel (postal workers, delivery drivers, police, fire, ambulance, etc.). We need to make sure we are protecting our civil servants and emergency workers as well as our residents and visitors. 

14. Hoosier hospitality in supporting our farmers, increasing the agricultural appearance and diversity, and helping out the environment and ecosystems. I would like to see all new (to start) commercial and residential buildings need to have ordinances stating that grass is not to be used for landscaping. Zero-scaping/xeriscaping, native perennial/sustainable plants, etc. only. This helps our crops, stormwater, well water, etc. I also plan to engage the community and plant 2,000 trees over the next four years. Long term, I want native canopy trees lining as many trails and roads as possible as well as eliminating all grass that the county maintains and instead planting native perennial flowers and plants. We want to keep our ag roots and this will assist in that while we grow! Also, ban Bradford Pear trees. 

15. Hoosier Hospitality in honoring our history. We need more information/signage honoring the native/indigenous land we are on. Too little public information is included on historical markers, the county and city/town websites, etc. about the land that was theirs. 

16. Hoosier hospitality in how we welcome residents and visitors. This is not a statement claiming I know how the entire county feels about any group(s) of people, this is a general point of leading the way for our state. Johnson County can be a trailblazer in lots of ways! We cannot lead people if we do not honor and recognize them. We MUST see our community members (fellow taxpayers) and visitors as equals, as humans, as neighbors. Let's ensure they thrive with the freedom to love and live in a manner that feels safe for them.

Ordinances, special resolution(s), and proclamation(s) acknowledging and celebrating Juneteenth, Hispanic Heritage Month, Black History Month, and Pride Month each year need to be added to our town ordinance lists. Excluding support for the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities is unkind (I am not saying this is being done intentionally). Johnson County and Southsiders have a reputation (again, not everyone but we cannot argue our reputation) for being exclusive of members of the global majority and JoCo should lead the way in changing that. We should also be encouraging and actively seeking out [small] businesses owned by BIPOC, First Nations, LGBTQIA+, and immigrant community members. 

This doesn't have to cost money or be anything more than social media posts acknowledging these months and days and presenting our town as an ally to show that we see and accept them as they are. 

Additionally, we need a comprehensive ordinance that criminalizes hate crimes. Our state needs to do better with its laws and Johnson County should lead the way in addressing that. Perhaps we can use "criminal money" to fund preventing hate crimes instead of billboards. 

17. Ensuring that ALL police, fire, county, city, and town personnel have safe working environments and conditions to include the equipment they need to perform their tasks. We need to also be sure that the people serving our community can afford to live in our county and the spaces they serve and protect. Few things irritate me more than knowing the Bargersville Police Officers, and likely other county departments (I am still learning, let me know where I need to focus this), cannot afford to live in the jurisdiction(s) they protect. Take care of the people who are there to take care of us!

Furthermore, females, people of color, and members of the LGBTQIA+ communities need to have equitable opportunities of being hired by police and fire departments as well as county and municipal careers as well as equitable pay and benefits that allow them to support themselves and their families.

18. All existing businesses, regardless of age of the building, should be required before 2028 to have ADA accessible entrances. The lack of attention to older buildings is a safety and equity issue in Johnson County.

19. Set the parks master plan, adopter in August 2019, in motion NOW!  You can see the plans here. 

20. Allow the opportunity for the county employees to unionize and teach them the benefits of such a move.  We also need to get an HR department with well compensated staff. The best way to keep employees happy is fair wages, a safe working environment and I believe that unions can help do that if that is what our team of government workers want!


More coming soon!

I am doing this at nearly midnight and I have a toddler!