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Robert L. Dye is running to represent District...
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Robert L. Dye is running to represent District 1 on the Lee’s Summit City Council, April 3rd.
March 31, 2012
Robert Dye
Robert L. Dye is running to represent District 1 on the Lee’s Summit City Council.
He is married to Darline and has three children, Dana, Linda, Bryan. Dye has lived in Lee’s Summit for 21 years.
He is a member of theWilliam Jewell Alumni Association, A.A.R.P, Sierra Club, Arbor Day and the Big Bucks Club. He volunteers with One Good Meal and Raintree Shoreline Adoption.
Dye received a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from William Jewell College. He has a graduate diploma from the American Savings and Loan Institute and certifications in supervisory skills and real estate appraisal from Rockhurst College.
His experience is in finance, real estate mortgage loan operations, bank management, business organization and management. He is a retired senior executive
1
What type of involvement have you had in the District in which you live and serve? I served as a publicly elected member of the Raintree Lake Homeowners Assn. Delivered meals to the elderly in Lee’s Summit for one and a half years. Cleaned a quarter mile of shoreline at Raintree Lake for about two years.
2
How would you involve more people in their community? Create or maintain existing volunteer programs sponsored by the city of Lee’s Summit such as community gardens on public land or city beautification projects or city health programs for uninsured or under insured residents. Publicize these programs in mailings sent to area residents and ask for volunteers. Volunteers for special city events or celebrations should be an objective. A listing of all volunteers should be maintained and matched with compatible programs.
3
No matter how unpopular or controversial their opinion is, what will you do to ensure that our population’s voice is heard? An open line of communication is essential to secure all viewpoints on any relevant issue or problem. All opinions are important to fully understand the impact of any decision made on the local residents affected.
4
What are your thoughts on retail growth and the city’s involvement? Retail growth should be a naturally occurring event based on market demand and need for services and/or products. The city’s involvement in growth of retail commercial activity should be rare and certainly not involved in speculative ventures and unproven new business proposals requiring tax payers’ money or bonding. Personal investment by new businesses is the only sound basis for retail growth.
5
Economic growth and eliminating underemployment are critical to sustain the quality of life in Lee’s Summit. What role should the City, Economic Development (EDC) and Downtown Main Street each play? Economic growth is vitally important to Lee’s Summit to sustain the quality of life and optimum city services. The Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Development Council, Downtown Main Street and the City of Lee’s Summit should all focus their full attention and effort on attracting sustainable and proven (and needed) retail business, manufacturing and industrial organizations to increase not only job opportunities, but the tax base to relieve the burden of tax pressure on the homeowners. The local business community should be encouraged to install and hire a Lees Summit resident first policy (all things being equal). The number of non-residents working in Lee’s Summit is extremely high.
6
What do you believe the city should be doing in the area of Cultural Arts? Until the city can resolve all the problems with Arnold Hall as an arts and cultural center, I feel the city should consider a possible alliance with John Knox Village to use the pavilion as a center for arts, culture and theatre. The pavilion is well located, ready for immediate use, excellent parking and occupancy space. It would be a perfect location for art fairs, special events, theatre productions, conventions, etc. John Knox Village representatives have expressed an interest in discussing the possibilities of using the pavilion for mutual benefit.
7
What do you think about privatizing some city services in order to reduce costs and improve efficiency? Should solid waste management and recycling be a department of the city? Privatizing city services to reduce cost and improve efficiency and downsize city responsibility is worthwhile. The city should retain oversight and monitoring to assure quality service however. I believe the city should rethink the entire waste management program and give consideration to a no landfill waste management program such as Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands presently have. They have a strong recycling program and burn the remaining waste in low emission plants that generate energy for the cities to use.
8
What is your most “out of the box” idea for our community? I believe the city and the R-7 School District should combine their resources when a fourth high school is built in the next five to ten years and build a multiuse facility that can be used for regional sports, conventions, special events, theatre and art fairs.
9
R-7 is a separate entity, but schools are a big part of what makes Lee’s Summit a great community. What are your thoughts about the current situation with the Kansas City school district and the possible rapid growth to our district with students from outside our community? It is unfair that the school districts around the Kansas City perimeter are being forced to take on the problems that have devastated the Kansas City school system. The burden is being simply shifted to other localities and other taxpayers who have had no relationship to those problems. The need for more school facilities, more teachers and more of everything and costs are being placed on innocent victims.
10
What would you do to improve coordination between the city and the R-7 school district? The majority of R-7 funding comes from property taxes which are directly impacted by the cities actions with regards to zoning and use of TIFs. The R-7 School District officials and city officials need to come to a mutual and agreeable understanding of the basic and critical needs regarding the maintenance of high level standards in education. Any action by the city government that would negatively affect the financial support base of the R-7 School should be critically reviewed and examined by all concerned.
11
What are your opinions on the proposed Commuter Rail project and the re-activation of the Rock Island rail line on the West side of the city which has been inactive for decades? The only type of transportation system that would probably benefit Lee’s Summit and surrounding communities would be a rapid transit bus program or a fixed rail rapid transit commuter system. Light Rail is only being considered for a two mile stretch of downtown Kansas City.
12
How would you attract more industry to our city? Attracting new industry, manufacturing and commercial business is a highly competitive effort made by most cities. The key to stable and successful commercial growth is to focus on attracting companies with proven performance who are willing to invest their own resources in their operation and are willing to hire local residents to fill job openings. All barriers to the companies that meet these qualifications should be eliminated and assistance given in locating a site for operation and initial setup.
13
Do you know or have a copy of Roberts Rules of Order? I am familiar with Roberts Rules of Order.
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