Community vision
Esteban “Steve” Velasquez brings confidence to City Council campaign
Esteban “Steve” Velasquez, a candidate for Lindsay City Council, sat down outside the library in Lindsay on Saturday to share his ideas for the city if he is re-elected to represent his community.
“The people should elect me for my passion and commitment, for the quality of life for all residents of Lindsay,” began Velasquez about his campaign. Velasquez was very clear on the areas he would push for if re-elected to the Council.
“I certainly would advocate to increase the budget for the police department and filling any vacancy that we may still have there,” said Velasquez. “We want to create a safe community and one of the ways you do that is by getting the technologies they need like cameras and electronic investigative equipment the police department needs.”
Public safety was not the only area Velasquez was concerned about. He also emphasized that he would like to see higher end housing be established in the city.
“One of the main issues right now is housing-- not affordable housing, but middle and upper income housing,” said Velasquez. “We need to develop middle and upper income housing so people can move into our community. With upper and middle income housing we can bring in those residents that can help the economy.”
Velasquez also had other ideas to help promote a vibrant and thriving economy in Lindsay.
“We need to do something to encourage businesses to come in to the community,” stated Velasquez before talking about an incubator program for new businesses. Velasquez proposed that the city help new businesses start up with free rent for a period of time and then also help relocate those businesses once they were up and running.
Velasquez was also adamant that the city should capitalize on what they already have. He suggested that the city use the multiple Mexican restaurants in town to entice people to come and visit.
Velasquez, who has sat on the City Council previously, expressed that his experience as a representative could be beneficial to the city in future endeavors. “I’m involved and have been in-
involved for a long time, and I will
continue to do what I can,” Velasquez stated.
He spoke about his volunteer work in the city and some of his experiences as a Council member. He stated that he has coached sports in the city, has volunteered for over ten years to help build parade floats, volunteered his time to help clean-up and re-do the Olive Bowl, and has sat on many boards and committees as a Council representative, such as the Tulare County Economic Development Corporation board and the Tulare County Association of Governments.
Velasquez stated that what he has done in the past doesn't matter as much as what he will do in the future.
“I don't like to dwell so much on what I've done in the past, it about what I can do now,” said Velasquez. “That's really important.”
Velasquez also offered his opinions on the local cannabis measure known as Measure G. He did not shy away from saying that he supports the measure.
“The idea of Measure G is to be able to come up with a tax for square footage for those who want to open a manufacturer of cannabis,” stated Velasquez. “That money is desperately needed in our community. We don't want to keep taxing the community and the residents, but we need to develop a way to bring in revenue. What we do with the Measure G money is what is really important. How do we use it to maximize its uses? That's creating
a safe community, developing incentives, [and] creating higher end housing.”
He also shared his ideas on how to repair and maintain the roads,especially the ones that have already been fixed or are in the plans to be fixed within the upcoming years.
“The key is continuing to maintain the roads as we go,” expressed Velasquez. “If we can continue
to do the maintenance on the roads instead of putting it off, then they won't get as bad and we can do more roads at a lower cost.”
Velasquez is confident that he could represent the city and its residents to the fullest, and believes that his experiences both on and off the Council could really push the city forward.
“The technical role of
a City Council member is to govern the city affairs – this is the infrastructure and city government,” said Velasquez. “It isn't micromanaging staff or
the community, but really
setting a direction and vision for the whole community, something that all residents can be proud of.”