progessive 


pragmatic

Mark STEM
I believe:

That Hood River is truly a special place.  As city leaders and advocates, we have the responsibility to build on what we have by engaging with the community, listening honestly, and continuously improving the way we do things.  I will continue to think progressively, work hard, and act cooperatively to make Hood River better.

My Experience
Opportunities

ALL of these topics are important to me and are very much interconnected.  How the City Council and City operations prioritizes these things is improved when we get clear inputs from the community - please help me understand your perspecitives and inputs.

Operational Excellence

Core services provided by the City are admin, Police, Fire, key infrastructure (water, sewer, storm-water, and roads), planning, building, and engineering. A ton of work being done by a wonderful team of professionals.

hOUSING

Housing issues are a consistently high priority for the City which is working on on planning rule updates to encourage smaller footprint, creative housing forms. Housing for those below median income is only possible with subsidization by the City and partners working on these efforts.

PARKS AND gREENSPACE

As Hood River grows, the need for parks and greenway connections will be key to our city connectivity and livability.  I have been an active proponent of parks and open space since moving here in 1991.

EQUITY & cOMMUNICATIONS

I value the continued discussions about diversity, equity, and inclusion with residents and local partner agencies.  We CAN do better - societally, personally, and as a community.  To me, the requirement - the test - is that every citizen feels safe, listened to, and welcomed.

Communications are so important.  The $64 question is HOW do we continually improve positive, open discussions and inputs –how we communicate with each other will be a continued focus for me.

ENVIRONMENT & ENERGY

Caring about the environment is very much a part of the ethos of Hood River that I love.  The City has been active in implementing the Hood River County Energy Plan and has committed to achieve net zero City operations by 2035.

ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION

The ability to walk or bike as much as possible is a quality of life multiplier that should be actively encouraged.  Working on safe routes to school and bike routes within the City is something I actively support and work to accomplish.