The RB Landmark sent questionnaires to each person running for public office in 2025. The Landmark’s questions are in bold and the candidate’s responses are below.
Political experience
Village President and Trustee, Riverside Board of Trustees
Community experience
I have been Village President since October, 2023. Previously I was a Village Trustee from 2013 to 2023. Previous to my time on the Village Board, I also served on the Village’s Plan Commission and Ad Hoc Long Term Finance Committee. I was also a member of the Riverside Little League Board.
How will you balance Riverside’s history and Olmstedian design with future development? How do you balance development with conserving tax dollars?
It is essential that all Village officials understand Riverside’s history and the values of the Olmsted Plan. As a dedicated student of Riverside’s history and Olmsted’s planning principles, I remain committed to honoring this legacy. I will continue to use that knowledge to ensure that all decisions regarding new development and infrastructure improvements align with these foundational ideals. Development has the potential to increase tax revenues as well as to demand Village services that incur expenses. This is the calculation needed to analyze the impact on Village tax dollars and revenues. Of course, fiscal analysis is only one of many factors to consider when reviewing new development and is not always the most important consideration.
How do you perceive Riverside is changing? What is the village board’s role in creating change, preserving history, or blending those two things?
Riverside has seen a significant turnover in population over the last five or so years with a younger demographic moving into our Village. Riverside has also seen a significant investment in infrastructure (e.g. downtown streetscapes, water and sewer utilities, and street maintenance). Both of these changes have positively impacted our Village. The Village Board has a responsibility to understand and respond to change while also pursuing opportunities that benefit our community. One of our Village’s greatest success stories over the past 150 years is its ability to adapt to an ever-evolving environment while preserving and enhancing its historical legacy as an Olmsted Village.
Should the village seek to develop more transit-oriented development, or is such development reaching a saturation point?
When opportunities arise, Riverside should continue to pursue transit oriented development consistent with the recently adopted amendments to the Zoning Code and consistent with existing development in Riverside. While the market will tell us if new transit oriented development is viable, it would seem most likely to occur in the Harlem/Burlington area as there is already new development in the pipeline for downtown Riverside.
What is the biggest challenge facing Riverside?
Riverside’s biggest challenge continues to be finding long term solutions for funding Village services. The 2024 approval of the street referendum is an example of the innovative approach needed to provide such long term financing. The referendum provided significant, long term funding for street maintenance without increase anyone’s property tax bill.
As a member of the village board, how will you respond to Trump-administration policies at the local level?
Each iteration of the Village Board over the course of the last 12+ years has been committed to the values of equal treatment under the law, sustainability, inclusiveness, and preservation. Any federal government mandate that impacts us locally will continue to be considered with these values as the basis for decision making. There is no federal mandate that will stop us from continuing to be a Village that welcomes all and uses our people, our history, and our environment to inform and inspire.