Downtown and Village Revitalization
Downtown Taunton is certainly on the rise. In order to restore Taunton to the hub it once was, we must continue to improve our downtown and also prioritize our historic village centers. The key to revitalization is the presence of people, both residents from the community and visitors that have been attracted to the community. In order to build up this presence, we will use a three-pronged approach: physical, social, and economic. We must make our downtown and village centers walkable. There needs to be a safe and inviting atmosphere. Mixed-use development should be encouraged, with small businesses on first-floors and housing on upper-floors. All of this combined will create the environment necessary for a thriving downtown and revived village centers.
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Housing
Taunton is a community with people of all ages. As such, we need to ensure that we have a diverse housing portfolio that meets the needs of our community. Because we have an aging population, we must work to create housing units that are suitable for aging in place. On the other hand, we must build rental units and single-family homes to attract young adults and families in order to sustain our community. We must overcome the stigma of affordable housing and work to meet the state’s 10% affordable housing requirement.
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Sustainability
As the years go by, the effects of climate change are only getting worse. Municipalities have a role to play when it comes to addressing climate change. We can start by simply evaluating where we are at in terms of energy consumption and determine where we can be more efficient. We must work with TMLP to make the necessary changes to maximize our efficiency and reduce our energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Energy efficient development should be incentivized. The City should discuss the possibility of seeking Green Community designation through the MA Department of Energy Resources in order to take advantage of the technical assistance and funding made available to meet these goals.
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Economic Development
Although we have seen many successful new businesses (big and small) opening up in Taunton, there is a great deal that could be done to make Taunton more business-friendly. The City government needs to take a customer service based approach to businesses and work to cut the red tape by streamlining the permitting process. In terms of industrial development, alternative locations need to be considered as the Myles Standish Industrial Park reaches its capacity. Adaptive reuse should be used to bring vacant buildings, such as old mills, back to life.
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Government Reform
I believe there are three core tenets of effective governance: transparency, efficiency, and accountability. The presence of these three tenets is arguably most critical at the local level of government, where the decisions made affect the day-to-day lives of constituents in the most direct manner. Residents need to know what is going on at City Hall. The City government should constantly be evaluating how it can do better. We must hold ourselves accountable to the plans we are creating.