OPINION
THE MESA TRIBUNE | JUNE 5, 2022
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To our readers
The Mesa Tribune invited the candidates for Mesa City Council on the Aug. 2 ballot to submit two 500-word columns on topics of their choosing. This is the first round and a second will be published later this month. Candidates who did not submit columns will have theirs published at themesatribune.com if they choose to write later. The candidates’ answers to the Tribune’s questionnaire also are at themesatribune.com.
Somers: My job for my district is not yet done BY SCOTT SOMERS District 6 Candidate
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y wife and I made Mesa our home over 27 years ago following our service in the U.S. Air Force. We raised our family here in southeast Mesa. I was honored to serve as your councilmember for two-terms between 2006-2014. During that time, I was proud to play a role in kicking off the tremendous economic success and residential growth in District 6. Speaking of that growth, while I see many familiar faces in our community, I am pleased to take a moment to introduce myself to those who may not know me. I am a veteran, a first responder, an educator, a father, and now a grandfather. I have been active in building a better Mesa through
charitable and community organizations. Term limits required that I step away from City Council - but my job is not done. I am asking you to return me to Mesa City Council to complete the work I began when I first served. My priorities now, as then, are promoting fiscal responsibility at city hall, supporting businesses and job growth, enhancing public safety, and building strong neighborhoods. During my first term, I helped Mesa navigate the great recession by creating fiscally responsible budgets and streamlining municipal operations resulting in nearly 20% savings to taxpayers over three years. I appointed the first independent city auditor to increase accountability to citizens. It is imperative we maintain fiscal discipline to protect Mesa taxpayers, especially those on fixed incomes. Keeping families safe is Mesa’s top pri-
ority and my life’s work. I have spent my career on the front-line as a firefighter and paramedic, so I understand firsthand the challenges our responders face. I facilitated partnerships and created programs that reduced non-emergency medical calls and avoidable hospital visits, cut crime around motels and convenience stores, and hired civilians to investigate minor thefts. These innovations freed up our police, firefighters and paramedics for true emergencies. I am the only candidate with experience in economic development. Working with ASU Polytechnic I created LaunchPoint, a small business incubator to support local technology entrepreneurs. I worked directly with companies like Able Aerospace, Bridgestone, CMC Steel, Matheson, and others to locate in Mesa. But what makes Mesa truly great are our
neighborhoods. To improve our quality of life, I partnered with businesses, faithbased and volunteer organizations to institute the Building Strong Neighborhoods initiative to provide quick response and collaborative problem solving for neighborhood safety, appearance, and cohesiveness. Working together, we invested in District 6 by securing land to expand Monterey Park, built the Skyline Aquatic Center, opened the Mesa Express Library, and laid the foundation for the award-winning Eastmark and Cadence communities. Serving Mesa over the years has connected me with great community leaders. As I return to the campaign trail, many of those same leaders have come out to support me and motivated me to work harder to realize our vision for Mesa. I am asking for your vote and would be honored to have your trust again.
critical skills to succeeding on City Council. For me, I know what fiscal responsibility is because I have had to live on a budget myself. I’ve run a family business through good times, a recession and everything in between. I know what it means to use the money I have wisely and to save for the future. Through volunteering for most of my adult life in both schools and my church, I have learned to work with a variety of people to accomplish goals that benefit everyone. This has meant sharing my own ideas but also listening to others and working collaboratively to find the best solutions. As a mother and volunteer, I am in the community all the time building relation-
ships with my neighbors, my kids’ friends’ parents, church leaders, administrators, teachers and coaches. My involvement in my neighborhood, church and schools has helped me meet people and build relationships with others who have different experiences from my own. I have learned that behind every issue there are real people and I value listening to the experiences that have helped a person come to a specific perspective. Fresh ideas: Someone who is new to political office brings with them fresh ideas seeing new solutions to issues which those who have been entrenched in government for years may not. I haven’t been on council in the past. I can look at issues Mesa is facing from the per-
spective of an everyday citizen, not a political insider. As someone new, I will never have a “this is how we’ve always done it” mentality but instead “let’s do it better.” No favors owed: My loyalty is with my neighbors, the people of District 6. I bring real-life interaction and relationships with people in my district. I’ll seek feedback and solutions from the people of District 6. I am not running to further my political career or get back into office. I’m running because Mesa District 6 needs someone in office who can finally help bridge the gap between our communities and the rest of our wonderful city. I believe residents of District 6 are work-
Trendler: My loyalty will be to my neighbors BY DARLA TRENDLER District 6 Candidate
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friend recently asked me what she should tell others when they ask why they should vote for me, someone who has never held office before. We do not need another career politician but instead need more ordinary people who are grounded in the same day-to-day lives as the people they are running to represent. I’m Darla Trendler; I’m not a career politician, and I’m running to make Mesa District 6 better for everyone. Real-life experience: Budgeting, solving problems and building relationships are
see TRENDLER page 22
