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Michelle Putz
I am Michelle Putz. I am running for Sitka Assembly. And I want your vote.
On Oct. 2, you will be voting for three Assembly candidates. I hope to be one of your three choices when you cast your ballot.
I am running for Assembly because I want to help make our wonderful community even better. I intend to work hard to move our community forward on good ideas that will help our people, our community and our economy.
I hope to help Sitka as an Assembly member through passion, experience and hard work. My passion is working with others and coming up with creative ideas and solutions to difficult problems. My greatest strength is strategizing solutions. In other words, I am very good at finding the path that leads to the solution with the least number of mistakes along the way. And I have experience and a strong desire to help lead and implement those strategies so they turn into solutions.
So what are some of my and other Sitkans’ ideas that I hope to implement?
First, I hope to set up a work process that uses and honors our volunteer commissions’ hard work, by reviewing and implementing the planning efforts already done for Sitka. In each Assembly meeting, I hope to ask specific questions, review specific parts of each plan, and get the commissions’ recommendations on how to move Sitka forward on questions related to improving the economy, saving city money, and other topics.
Second, I hope to work with the Assembly and the community to prioritize the city’s important services, facilities and needs. I, like others, want to work toward these priorities as we make funding and budget decisions. I also want us to know our priorities so we can weigh the trade-offs of reduced facilities and services.
Third, I agree with and would support efforts to review and revise Sitka’s overall tax structure to make it more fair and supportive of our people and community priorities.
And yes, I’ll be looking at creative ideas for reducing costs, increasing revenues, helping to develop affordable housing, finding jobs to keep families in Sitka, improving graduation rates for the Native community and other at-risk kids, and helping Sitka families and businesses.
Tall order? Yes, and I am up for it and enthusiastic about the effort. So as you cast your ballot on Oct. 2, please include me, Michelle Putz, as one of your choices for Sitka Assembly. Thank you for your efforts to make Sitka a great community, and thank you for your vote.
