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Description
Arlington County Board Member John Vihstadt's remarks at the Board's Organizational Meeting on January 2 2018.
A
A
And
in
absentia,
I
salute
J
facade
for
his
firm
and
even-handed
chairmanship
of
the
board
over
the
last
12
months,
and
for
his
decades
of
community
service,
I
learned
a
great
deal
from
him
and
while
we
occasionally
had
our
differences,
no
one
can
ever
doubt
his
dedication
to
Arlington
fresh
breezes
continued
a
course
through
County
government
I
welcome
our
newest
colleague,
Eric
gut
Shaw,
and
the
leadership
of
incoming
chair
Katie
crystal
and
vice
chair,
Christian,
Dorsey
and
Libby
Garvey.
Your
seniority
and
perspective
will
continue
to
be
helpful
to
all
of
us.
A
Yet
headwinds
from
across
the
Potomac
River
heighten
our
challenges
as
we
work
to
realize
our
potential
as
a
sustainable
and
inclusive
community.
Who
knows
what
the
ultimate
tax
consequences?
The
federal
tax
reform
and
the
next
federal
budget
hold
for
Arlington
job
losses,
lower
real
estate
tax
assessments?
How
many
more
surprises
from
Washington
are
coming
and
for
whom?
A
Combined
this
with
what
the
demographers
tell
us
by
2040
and
other
60,000
people
will
live
in
our
26
square
miles,
boosting
our
population
to
280,000
people.
That's
a
25%
increase
from
today.
We
can
meet
these
uncertainties
as
unsettling
as
they
seem
by
making
sure
that
our
communities
are
at
the
center
of
every
arlington
government
service
policy
and
initiative.
A
First,
we
can
manage
our
growth
through
new
partnerships
with
our
public
schools
and
with
the
private
sector.
It's
high
time,
we
implement
a
Cardinal
recommendation
of
the
2015
community
facilities,
study,
cost-benefit
fiscal
impact,
analyses
of
every
new
development,
including
a
study
of
the
consequences
for
our
schools,
our
parks
and
tree
canopy
infrastructure
and
more
other
jurisdictions.
Do
this
so
can
Arlington,
let's
leverage
the
new
political
dynamic
in
Richmond
by
broadening
the
scope
of
community
benefits
to
find
new
ways
to
help
offset
the
cost
and
stress
of
additional
development
on
our
surrounding
neighborhoods.
A
We
must
foster
greater
collaboration
with
our
schools,
higher
educational
institutions,
including
in
particular,
Northern
Virginia,
Community
College,
and
our
businesses,
to
ensure
that
we
meet
our
classroom
capacity,
needs
on
a
timely
basis
and
that
our
children
are
educated
for
the
21st
century
economy,
health
care
classrooms
at
the
expanded
Virginia,
Hospital,
Center
and
hospitality
education
with
our
Crystal
City
hotels
are
just
two
ideas,
I
think
are
worth
exploring.
I
look
forward
to
working
with
our
school
board
colleagues
to
innovate,
the
ways
we
teach
our
kids.
A
We
must
account
for
and
balance
increased
demand
for,
active
and
passive
green
space,
athletic
fields
and
cultural
resources
in
our
pending
update
to
the
public
spaces
master
plan
and
our
pending
4
Mile
Run
Valley
planning
process.
I.
Welcome
the
new
ideas
that
the
affordable
housing
community
have
just
provided
about
streamlining
our
planning
and
primitive
acquirements,
relieving
regulatory
barriers
and
exploring
creative
financing
tools
for
housing,
affordability
on
Columbia
Pike.
A
Second,
we
must
ensure
greater
transparency
and
openness
in
County
government.
Community
centered
government
begins
with
you,
I'm
excited
about
our
new
multi
step,
Community
Engagement
framework.
We
need
a
no
surprises
policy
with
citizens
and
stakeholders
involved
from
the
get-go,
but
we
also
need
to
do
a
better
job
ourselves
of
coordinating
projects
with
our
utility
companies
and
VDOT.
A
Our
50-some
advisory
boards
and
commissions
do
not
yet
adequately
reflect
the
rich
diversity
or
the
full
range
of
views
of
our
population.
New
voices
at
the
community
table
are
a
must
if
government
actions
are
to
be
embraced
by
all
corners
of
arlington
term,
limits
may
help
us
get
there.
Our
residents
deserve
more
details
on
big-ticket
projects
when
they're
asked
to
support
millions
in
new
spending.
A
The
ballot
wording
of
our
bonds
may
meet
the
letter
of
the
law,
but
I
will
push
to
give
additional
details
for
how
we
will
invest
the
public's
capital
funds
I
to
applaud
the
managers
open
data
initiative,
but
the
data
that
drives
County
decision-making
must
be
accessible
to
the
public
in
a
timely
manner
and
available
without
having
someone
have
without
having
to
file
a
Freedom
of
Information
Act
to
request
it.
Alright
excuse
me.
A
Third,
we've
got
to
instill
a
stronger
sense
of
fiscal
discipline
and
efficiency
in
county
government
cost
and
value
must
be
a
part
of
every
conversation
from
the
start.
I'm
pleased
that
the
board
last
month
directed
the
manager
to
propose
a
new
budget
for
fiscal
2019,
with
no
property
tax
hike
after
having
raised
taxes,
one
and
a
half
cents.
This
year
every
year
we
like
to
say
we
have
to
make
tough
choices,
but
this
coming
spring
those
won't
be
empty
words.
Trade-Offs
are
coming,
it
is
becoming
harder
to
recruit
and
retain
our
police
and
firefighters.