Council election: Dave Brown takes a stand for Lemoore

We also asked each candidate to provide background information as well. The candidates running for the city council are incumbent Eddie Neal, former Lemoore Recreation Director Joe Simonson, longtime Lemoore resident Ray Etchegoin, local educator Holly Blair, Navy Veteran Beverly Halliman, former City of Lemoore Planning Commissioner Dave Brown, and Kings County Administrative Assistant Angela Valenzuela.

Dave Brown

Dave Brown, 56, is a native of Indianapolis, Indiana and has lived in Lemoore the past 14 years. He currently works as a Real Property Accountable Officer and worked in NAS Lemoore Public Works for 14 years. He and his wife Dianne have been married 25 years, and both are retired from the United States Air Force. They have six children and 12 grandchildren.

Brown studied at Hawthorne College, New Hampshire, studying Airport Management. He also studied in the Community College of the Air Force in Applied Sciences as well as taking coursework in facility management, water and sewer maintenance.

He also serves as a member of the Lemoore Police Department’s Volunteers in Policing and served several years on the Lemoore Planning Commission and Lemoore Downtown Architectural Design Review Committee.

Brown made a name for himself in 2013 when the city council, led by then Mayor Billy Siegel, shut down the city’s planning department despite an overwhelming turnout of residents opposing Siegel’s move. Brown resigned in protest from the commission.

Though he’s not originally from Lemoore, Brown and his family call Lemoore home. He says that if elected … he will never forget who he works for and that is the people of Lemoore. He cares about Lemoore and its future and will work hard to make Lemoore a city of preference, a fiscally responsible city. “I will do this by evaluating Lemoore’s current and future needs, understanding our weaknesses and strengths and build from those to better our city. I believe we can maintain our values while still supporting responsible growth. I want to ensure we take care of the issues now and not pass them to our children. I will work with the other council members and create a plan, a way forward, to ensure the prosperity of our city. We will work together to draw in new business while supporting and promoting our existing business structure.”

What or who motivated you to run for a seat on the Lemoore City Council?

The State recently made Lemoore take action on its current domestic water issue and we had to react. The reason we reacted is that we did not plan. We need to truly understand our problems and put our minds together to come up with solutions, a way forward to fix our issues. We as a city need to plan and not react, as reaction is always costlier and not the fiscally responsible way to operate. Our city council must work as a team and listen to all the people of Lemoore and its city employees, businesses and others and take a proactive approach to address the issues that will not just affect our city today but 30 years from now, and our children’s future.

What in your opinion, is the most important issue facing Lemoore today?

Restoring the integrity of Lemoore’s utility infrastructure, water, sanitary sewer, storm sewer and roads that will support our current and future needs as a city is the most important issue facing Lemoore today. We need to create a Strategic Infrastructure Utility Plan that will provide a roadmap to tackle our short and long-term public utility issues and use this to supplement a realistic master plan that will roadmap the future of our city.

In your opinion, is Lemoore in a positive place right now, or are there issues that need to be addressed that may or may not have an effect on the future of this city.

I believe the people of Lemoore work hard for what they have and work hard to remain positive with hopes our city government will listen and do what is right to make Lemoore a great community. If elected I will ensure the needs of the people are addressed in a caring way while remaining ethically balanced with fairness in mind.

What is the first thing you would seek to change, or improve upon, if elected?

The people I have talked to have several common items of concern, but one that we can work on from day one is to improve communication between city council/government and the citizens and businesses of Lemoore, including West Hills College and NAS Lemoore. We need to figure out new innovative ways to make this communication happen, but the easiest step is simple, and that is to listen to what they have to say and truly use that information when making smart decisions.

How can Lemoore attract industrial and retail development? Identify, if you can, current efforts to attract retail, for example CrisCom and its contract with the city. Is this a good thing?

Most people running for city council will say they are in favor of attracting industrial and retail development, which I am too in favor of as this helps bring revenue to our city. However, we must attract industry and retail development smartly; we must do it in a way that will promote our city and not hurt the businesses already established, including West Hills College and NAS Lemoore. We have many smart people in this city. If elected I plan on tapping into that knowledge base to obtain ideas and ways forward to promote our city. One suggestion that I want to bring to the people is the re-creation of a true Lemoore planning department with a certified, experienced city planner that has vast experience in grant writing and community development. This person will be a city employee and work directly for our city and the people of Lemoore. This employee will be dedicated only to our city and have only Lemoore’s best interest and growth in mind. Their experience in grant writing will help us as a city apply for state and federal dollars to help fund our repairs to our infrastructure and much more. As far as CrisCom, we should reevaluate the cost/benefits of our current economic development services to determine if it is an effective use of taxpayer dollars.

Do you feel Lemoore is a safe community? Why or why not?

Lemoore is a safe city, and that is a direct reflection of its people. We have an excellent police department and volunteer fire department that is truly devoted to the wellbeing of our community, and I have the upmost respect for them. The biggest issue I currently see that places great strain on our safety is our state government and the propositions that have passed, and what they are trying to pass, that affect our criminal justice system with the early release of inmates. This is why many communities have seen an increase in crime. We need to work smartly to provide them the tools to help keep our community safe. This is why I endorse Measure K.

What program or programs would you immediately seek to implement if elected?

Almost 10% of Lemoore’s citizens are over the age of 65 and this is rising every year. I would like to implement a Lemoore Senior Advisory Council made up of senior citizens that would bring the issues that directly affect them directly to the city council. I would also like to create a Lemoore Youth Advisory Council, which would do the same. Open communication is key.

Any final thoughts that may not have been asked, but that you feel is an important issue, program, or need?

I truly believe that transparency and city government go hand in hand. Without it, trust is lost. Transparency allows the public to develop a more accurate picture of what is happening with our city. This allows the people to hold our elected officials accountable and answer concerns pertaining to the management of our city. Since people are affected by decisions made by our council, they “the people,” have the right to know how the decisions were made.