The following is City Council At-Large candidate Kevin Green's complete response to our survey. Click here for the list of questions.
Kevin Green
• Date of birth: May 18, 1956
• Professional background: Real estate broker, Yost & Little Realty
• Previous political experience: None
• Highest level of education: bachelor of science, Greensboro College, 1978
• Website: electkevingreen.com
1. The good news is that the city council is committed to the Early Action Compact and the city is very close to being removed from the non-attainment list. The bad news is the standards are getting more stringent and we must remain committed to this endeavor. Bus routes, carpooling, ride sharing, bike routes, sidewalk installation will all help us attain the goal of clean air. (66)
2. Completion of Painter Boulevard needs to be a top priority. Maintaining our current 30-minute bus service is vitally important. More citizens will be using this mode of transportation as gas prices continue to rise. Increasing the bike lanes as funding becomes available is next on the list. Light rail is a long way off; it requires a large mass of riders to justify the expense of installation. Roads are largely state and federal funding. (75)
3. The Debbage report relied on some older data and did not include the recent Dell plant and HondaJet announcements. The recent report presented by the Piedmont Partnership promoting the aerotropolis concept at the airport speaks volumes of the potential of our area. We must continue to focus on the clusters that the partnership is promoting, like aviation and nanotech, if we are going to continue to rebound. (68)
4. Incentives are simply a tool from our tool kit of economic vitality. In this fragile economy, jobs are the name of the game and we are and will be competing globally for our share of the growth in the job market. We must remember that the incentives are paid after the jobs are created and the city has very strict guidelines for approving the use of incentives. (68)
5. Local business can best be supported by keeping our infrastructure up to date, ensuring we have an educated and skilled workforce and protecting our quality of life. All of these factors combined will create an environment where business will thrive and the economy will grow, and the local business owner can succeed. (53)
6. I am uncomfortable with local government mandating economic policy for business owners, such as minimum wage. Addressing this on a citywide basis becomes difficult because we do not know the cost/budget implications it could have on the local small business owner. While I would like to see this be studied further, I fear it would not be economically feasible at this time. (63)
7. Guidelines in the comp plan address sprawl and require compatibility with existing neighborhoods. The city’s geographical footprint has been set in many areas of the county by incorporation of neighboring towns and growth of surrounding cities (i.e. Summerfield, Oak Ridge, Pleasant Garden). The growth of our tax base is vital to controlling our taxes. (55)
8. The Heart of the Triad is an interesting concept and is one way to maximize efficient land use. The Piedmont Partnership is promoting the concept of regionalism as a way to rebuild our economy and bring jobs to the area and the Heart of the Triad blends well with this model. There is still much work to be done for the HOT to be successful. (66)
9. I have concerns about the allegations against the police department regarding racial discrimination. I want to wait for the release of the SBI report and other related information by the current council to understand the details. I believe in the due process of the law and a solution will evolve when we have all the facts, not just the limited information provided by the media. (66)
10. From my limited research I would have to vote against having a police review board with subpoena power. The complaint review committee that is a subcommittee of the Human Relations Commission of the city seems to be doing an effective job in handling issues with the police department at this time. The changes recently made for this committee seem to be working well and we should continue in this direction. (71)
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