Walt Stanckiewitz Runs for Re-Election as Mayor

I ran for city council as a “thank you” to the citizens of Grand Terrace. It was this community who helped my family in our time of need. The support given to us by the residents gave us something to be thankful for that first Thanksgiving, only one month after our home burned down. As time on the council passed, signs of financial instability were becoming obvious. I felt that my previous management and command experience with Johnson & Johnson, Honeywell, TDK, and the US Army could help us face these problems. Shortly after being elected mayor, more of the previous financial mishandlings came to light and the governor cut funding for Redevelopment. Because of these events, it became clear that four years was not going to be enough time to get the job done. Transparency is the norm for council actions; budgets have been balanced all four years; city staff was reduced from 36 employees to less than 10; reduced work weeks were instituted; cuts to law enforcement services were reluctantly implemented; and financial reporting systems were vastly improved. We have successfully gotten the ball rolling in the right direction as we unanimously adopted and are implementing the 2030 Vision and 2014-2020 Strategic Plan. We have three immediate goals. First we must ensure our fiscal viability; we need to maintain adequate public safety, and we must to promote economic development in our city. We have plans that are already in motion to get them going. We will concurrently work on developing and implementing successful partnerships between the City and civic and business organizations as well as developing proactive communication strategies, some will be launched before year end. Grand Terrace is at a critical stage. We have put plans into motion that will not only benefit our generation, but future generations. The council has functioned as a well-run team even with changing members over the last four years. It is my desire to continue my actions of saying “thank you” to Grand Terrace by turning the dream of stability and growth into a reality for all of us.