I believe the Borough should pursue economic development in the Valley very aggressively. One of the most often mentioned concerns of the parents I've talked to are jobs for their children when they get out of school. Most everyone would like their children to be able to live and work in the Valley. It won’t happen unless we produce more of what we use, right here.

     Development of the port at Point MacKenzie is a good foundation for future development. It will be our economic gateway to the world and is in the best interest of the entire borough to proceed with paving the road, get electricity out there, and have the Alaska Rail Road install a rail spur to it. As we get more people and businesses in this area, it will be important to have our own access to shipping without having to go through Anchorage.

     I also believe we have a lot of untapped potential for recreational development, including Hatcher Pass. For example, if we had more specific areas created for snowmachining, we wouldn’t have the serious “outlaw” problem we now have on private property and we could reduce the avalanche deaths every year. Everyone would be a winner, including the businesses that support them, the locals and visitors who use them, and the private property owners.

     I will actively pursue getting more high tech businesses to locate in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. It would be great if the State of Alaska could locate more training facilities in this area similar to AVTEC in Seward or the Trooper academy in Sitka. We need to expand our thinking beyond being solely a bedroom community of Anchorage and get more and better paying jobs here. We need to have more places for tourists to go, and businesses that cater to them so that the Mat-Su is a “destination” instead just a “pass-through” location.