For Ashland Parks and recreation Commissioner

As an ashland native…

As an Ashland native, I’m running to ensure that our beloved public spaces continue to thrive and serve present and coming generations as graciously as they’ve served past ones.

Priorities

Take our trails seriously

We have world-class trails that draw tourism from all across the country right in our back-yard, yet they often lack proper upkeep, signage, and face persistent traffic use battles. In order to diversify our tourism draws, it’s time we took trails seriously. We are already listed in the top 10 trail destinations in the US,

This is not the same as saying we need to drastically change how we spend our money. Even something as simple as better, consistent signage, displaying things like

• permitted traffic/uses

• trail etiquette

• trail hours

• Closure notices

• Wildlife to be alert to…

could drastically improve our trail experience.

Whether you enjoy them as a biker or a hiker, our trails are a massive draw for people all over. If we don’t keep up with our maintenance and care of them, we will likely start losing out to other nearby trail havens like Klamath Falls, Shasta, Redding, etc…

Our trails have earned our attention and can simultaneously be an immense tourism draw, an example of environmental attention, safe, and a respite for locals.

Use parks to help the local economy

We are a tourist town and we thrive by the visitors we receive. By getting creative about how Parks can draw more outsiders and keep them longer. While we still have plenty of draw to our town, we have been slow to adjust to rapidly shifting dynamics such as smoke, waning interest in Shakespeare, and greater regional competition.

Even before Shakespeare, TripAdvisor recommends you visit Lithia Park when visiting Ashland.

This proves the influence that Parks can have on our local economy.

By harnessing that influence, we can pull in even more people, with things like more summer concerts, movies in the park, sponsoring or hosting more tournaments and races, and much, much more.

Strengthen Ashland’s young-family appeal

The median age of the US is 38.

The median age of Oregon is 38.

The median age of Medford and Portland is 38.

The median age of Ashland is 48.

But the problem is not an excess of an aging population, but a lack of draw and opportunity for younger families.

While Parks & Recreation alone might not solve Ashland’s cost of living issues, through creative initiatives, events, programs, and groups, perhaps it can increase it’s draw for young families.

Diversify funding to decrease reliance on the Food & Beverage tax

I’d been considering running for the Parks commission for a long time, but hearing the news of the Black Sheep closing is what helped me to finally pull the trigger.

I have fond memories enjoying tea and shepherds pie while looking down at a dark rainy plaza.

Clarinda, the owner has spoken up at city council more than ounce to call out the added burden of the food and beverage tax, and while I wont name the F&B tax as the undisputed sole cause of its departure, it certainly did not help, and I hope it’s not the proverbial sheep in the coal mine for Ashland’s restaurants.

As long as I’ve lived here, I’ve lived with the F&B tax, but it’s time to look for new ways to fund the parks.

While I’m not committing to any one idea, hopefully as an exersice in expanding creativity, some ideas might include

• Trail sponsorships

• Eco-tourism partnerships with outfitters, wineries, and others sold as a package with a portion going towards parks

• Seasonal ticketed outdoor events

• Artist-in-Residence Program: Create a program where artists can stay and work in designated park areas. Their art could be sold to benefit both the artist and the parks.

• Selling subscriptions to outdoor coworking spaces

• Indigenous Plants Nursery: Start a native plant nursery in the parks, selling local species to gardeners and for restoration projects. This could also serve as an educational resource.

• For many of the free events that the APRC already hosts, finding ways to add an income element, like selling food-truck space, or including additional paid offerings.

While these things might not be able to eliminate the entirety of the food and beverage tax, it could perhaps get us closer to needing a less invasive tax that has mostly fallen upon locals and local businesses.