JOSH ASKVIG - BISMARCK CITY COMMISSION WHY ARE YOU RUNNING FOR CITY COMMISSIONER AND WHAT QUALIFIES YOU FOR THIS POSITION? It has been an honor to serve the City of Bismarck the last four years. Working with citizens to ensure that we have strong neighborhoods, quality infrastructure and making Bismarck a great place to live and raise a family is a passion of mine. My experience over the last four years has taught me the importance of working with my neighbors and fellow residents to strive towards our vision of being “…a preferred destination place and prosperous community where people enjoy living, learning, working and playing…” I hope to earn their votes and trust again this election to build upon my positive record over the last four years. WHAT IS YOUR TOP PRIORITY THE CITY COMMISSION SHOULD ADDRESS IN THE NEXT THREE YEARS? Fully Implementing the Strategic Plan: It was an honor when Mayor Warford asked me to chair the City of Bismarck Strategic Planning process. Bismarck citizens, community leaders and our local business leaders wrote the roadmap for our community. With well over 60 percent of the plan either substantially completed or started, we are on the right path to carrying out that directive. I want to see it fully realized. HOW DOES THE COMMISSION ADDRESS FUTURE FUNDING REQUIREMENTS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE? During my tenure on the commission, the biggest concern I have heard is that of special assessments and how we pay for the local portion of our infrastructure needs. Moving forward we need to examine how we fund necessary public improvements. With decreased federal investments in infrastructure, Bismarck needs to form an infrastructure investment task force, including local business leaders to study how we fund water, sewer, roads and the other necessary investments to ensure our steady growth continues at a sustainable rate. The infrastructure investment task force would be charged with exploring how other communities fund public improvements, examining Bismarck’s current model for funding public improvements and making suggestions on how Bismarck should fund them in the future. Done right we can create a model that is right for Bismarck and our businesses and citizens.
KIM BADENHOP - BISMARCK CITY COMMISSION WHY ARE YOU RUNNING FOR CITY COMMISSIONER AND WHAT QUALIFIES YOU FOR THIS POSITION? I want to ensure Bismarck maintains all the wonderful qualities I found when I chose to move here. The work of the commission is very similar to a previous employment where I worked with a team of six people who oversaw a two billion dollar operational budget. We evaluated contracts, ensured facilities were maintained and oversaw a police force. I am familiar with listening to constituent concerns, evaluating their requests and balancing them with needs and requirements, while thoughtfully managing taxpayer dollars. WHAT IS YOUR TOP PRIORITY THE CITY COMMISSION SHOULD ADDRESS IN THE NEXT THREE YEARS? Road infrastructure, commercial development and residential development are the priority issues the commission should address. All three affect the entire city. Additional road infrastructure should be developed to alleviate increasing traffic. We need to encourage commercial growth in all geographic areas of Bismarck, with a focus on dispersing traffic, providing options in new areas of town while not losing a vibrant downtown. HOW DOES THE COMMISSION ADDRESS FUTURE FUNDING REQUIREMENTS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE? Infrastructure needs pose unique, less frequent and often more costly expenses than day-to-day operational expenses. I would encourage the development of innovative public/private partnerships where and working with State Government for infrastructure projects. Relying on federal assistance is impractical given the current federal budget circumstances. 6 | Chamber Connection