Louis Armstrong
Age: 45
Address: 1016 19th Ave.
Family: Married to Josephine. Son, Louis II.
Occupation: Production manager Minhas Craft Brewery
Community involvement: Past Lions Club member (highest rank, Zone Chairman)
Education: B.S. UW-Stevens Point
Personal description: Born and raised in Monroe. Graduated as senior class president Monroe High School 1983; interests are numerous, but outdoor activities lead the list, such as biking, hiking and fishing.
Previous experience and achievements:
A member of the City Council requires the ability to collect information and subsequently arrive with analytical resolve. My personality and past experiences have afforded me the opportunity to habitually practice this decision making process.
What two issues are the City of Monroe now facing, which do you consider most important? How would you recommend the city handle them?:
First, Financial responsibility should always be a priority for any entity, be it personal, private or governmental. My position with the brewery requires a decision making process that supplies the packaging line, utilizing the best price without sacrificing service or quality. I intend to bring this same philosophy as a member of the city council.
Secondly, as the city continues to pursue a city administrator, I believe the job description and requirements narrow our options, and should be rewritten to exclude the requirement of a law degree. With the position properly revised and coupled with a lowered salary, I believe we could find numerous qualified candidates and a $10,000 to 20,000 reduction in the budgeted amount for this position.
What vision of Monroe would you bring to the Common Council regarding its short-term future (three to five years)?:
Continued fiscal responsibility with longer term vision; the decisions made today without foresight can have great influence on the future.
Thurston Hanson (incumbent)
Age: 41
Address: 1012 19th Avenue
Family: Married to Elizabeth. Three children: Sam, 9; Henry, 7; Sabrina, 5
Occupation: Co-owner Hanson Motor Company
Community involvement: 7th Ward alderman
Education: Arizona State University, attended three years before being called to active duty in the military
Personal description: Born in Monroe. Graduated from Argyle High School in 1987. Enlisted in U.S. Marine Corps and served honorably in the 1st Gulf War, returned to U.S. soil in May 1991, before being honorably discharged. Worked five years and was promoted to an assistant manager at a Kroger-owned grocery store in Arizona. Worked at a large Chevy dealership in Tucson for almost nine years, and moved into management with them. Returned to this area, where many of my relatives live, in April 2005. Hobbies: None, as I am very busy trying to acquire good cars at reasonable prices. Enjoying my wife and kids would be the only "hobby" I have.
Previous experience and achievements:
I am the current 7th Ward alderman, and in that capacity, I have helped govern Monroe, along with 10 other people. As many people know, I consistently speak out about and vote against needless tax or fee increases, or government spending that I and many others do not feel is necessary. I also vote "no" on anything that I believe is needless governmental interference in our lives, such as our recently revised outdoor burning ordinance which severely restricts (essentially bans) any new outdoor furnaces, which many people use to lower the cost of heating their homes. I consistently vote "yes" on anything that I believe will promote existing business growth or expansion, and encourage new businesses to locate in Monroe.
What two issues are the City of Monroe now facing, and which do you consider most important? How would you recommend the city handle them?:
Bringing more jobs to Monroe, and encouraging existing businesses to grow. As most people know, entrepreneurs create jobs, and my job as an alderman, is to create an environment where businesses want to locate in Monroe, for example, by marketing ourselves properly and offering incentives, as necessary, to bring them to Monroe. An example is selling an acre of land for $1 in the industrial parks. We also create this environment by keeping our city taxes low, by controlling our spending even better, not creating any new "anti-business" ordinances, and by creating as few obstacles as possible for businesses. We as a council need to continue to welcome new businesses to Monroe, and not discourage businesses, as happened many times years ago.
High property tax burden on citizens. In the last four years, the current city council has showed good restraint on yearly property taxes and has slowed the tax bite, but of course, we can, and will, do even better this next budget cycle. The city's portion of your tax bill has grown much slower than the county's and school's portion of it. Controlling and slowing the tax increases and controlling the city's discretionary spending will reduce the growth of everyone's tax bills, which can only help in encouraging people and businesses to come to Monroe to live and work.
What vision of Monroe would you bring to the Common Council regarding its short-term future (three to five years)?:
My vision of Monroe is one where we all have a safe place to live and our kids go to good schools that we all support, but one where we are not taxed out of our homes and businesses. We do this by electing people who are pro-business and who are fiscally responsible with our tax dollars, by limiting tax and fee increases and controlling government spending. I have demonstrated that, and I feel I deserve your vote once again.
Age: 45
Address: 1016 19th Ave.
Family: Married to Josephine. Son, Louis II.
Occupation: Production manager Minhas Craft Brewery
Community involvement: Past Lions Club member (highest rank, Zone Chairman)
Education: B.S. UW-Stevens Point
Personal description: Born and raised in Monroe. Graduated as senior class president Monroe High School 1983; interests are numerous, but outdoor activities lead the list, such as biking, hiking and fishing.
Previous experience and achievements:
A member of the City Council requires the ability to collect information and subsequently arrive with analytical resolve. My personality and past experiences have afforded me the opportunity to habitually practice this decision making process.
What two issues are the City of Monroe now facing, which do you consider most important? How would you recommend the city handle them?:
First, Financial responsibility should always be a priority for any entity, be it personal, private or governmental. My position with the brewery requires a decision making process that supplies the packaging line, utilizing the best price without sacrificing service or quality. I intend to bring this same philosophy as a member of the city council.
Secondly, as the city continues to pursue a city administrator, I believe the job description and requirements narrow our options, and should be rewritten to exclude the requirement of a law degree. With the position properly revised and coupled with a lowered salary, I believe we could find numerous qualified candidates and a $10,000 to 20,000 reduction in the budgeted amount for this position.
What vision of Monroe would you bring to the Common Council regarding its short-term future (three to five years)?:
Continued fiscal responsibility with longer term vision; the decisions made today without foresight can have great influence on the future.
Thurston Hanson (incumbent)
Age: 41
Address: 1012 19th Avenue
Family: Married to Elizabeth. Three children: Sam, 9; Henry, 7; Sabrina, 5
Occupation: Co-owner Hanson Motor Company
Community involvement: 7th Ward alderman
Education: Arizona State University, attended three years before being called to active duty in the military
Personal description: Born in Monroe. Graduated from Argyle High School in 1987. Enlisted in U.S. Marine Corps and served honorably in the 1st Gulf War, returned to U.S. soil in May 1991, before being honorably discharged. Worked five years and was promoted to an assistant manager at a Kroger-owned grocery store in Arizona. Worked at a large Chevy dealership in Tucson for almost nine years, and moved into management with them. Returned to this area, where many of my relatives live, in April 2005. Hobbies: None, as I am very busy trying to acquire good cars at reasonable prices. Enjoying my wife and kids would be the only "hobby" I have.
Previous experience and achievements:
I am the current 7th Ward alderman, and in that capacity, I have helped govern Monroe, along with 10 other people. As many people know, I consistently speak out about and vote against needless tax or fee increases, or government spending that I and many others do not feel is necessary. I also vote "no" on anything that I believe is needless governmental interference in our lives, such as our recently revised outdoor burning ordinance which severely restricts (essentially bans) any new outdoor furnaces, which many people use to lower the cost of heating their homes. I consistently vote "yes" on anything that I believe will promote existing business growth or expansion, and encourage new businesses to locate in Monroe.
What two issues are the City of Monroe now facing, and which do you consider most important? How would you recommend the city handle them?:
Bringing more jobs to Monroe, and encouraging existing businesses to grow. As most people know, entrepreneurs create jobs, and my job as an alderman, is to create an environment where businesses want to locate in Monroe, for example, by marketing ourselves properly and offering incentives, as necessary, to bring them to Monroe. An example is selling an acre of land for $1 in the industrial parks. We also create this environment by keeping our city taxes low, by controlling our spending even better, not creating any new "anti-business" ordinances, and by creating as few obstacles as possible for businesses. We as a council need to continue to welcome new businesses to Monroe, and not discourage businesses, as happened many times years ago.
High property tax burden on citizens. In the last four years, the current city council has showed good restraint on yearly property taxes and has slowed the tax bite, but of course, we can, and will, do even better this next budget cycle. The city's portion of your tax bill has grown much slower than the county's and school's portion of it. Controlling and slowing the tax increases and controlling the city's discretionary spending will reduce the growth of everyone's tax bills, which can only help in encouraging people and businesses to come to Monroe to live and work.
What vision of Monroe would you bring to the Common Council regarding its short-term future (three to five years)?:
My vision of Monroe is one where we all have a safe place to live and our kids go to good schools that we all support, but one where we are not taxed out of our homes and businesses. We do this by electing people who are pro-business and who are fiscally responsible with our tax dollars, by limiting tax and fee increases and controlling government spending. I have demonstrated that, and I feel I deserve your vote once again.