Voters Guide Online

The Lehigh Valley League of Women Voters Guide to the 2007 election is online. Each of the Supervisor candidates statements are included. Check it out!

Vote on November 6th.

Candidates In The News!

The Express Times' JD Malone interviewed the four Forks Supervisor candidates. Read his article here.

The November 6 election is only weeks away. Be informed. Check out the candidates' blogs, too. (R) David Billings, (D) Robert Egolf, and (D) James Wideman have blogs.

Your comments and questions to the candidates are wanted. The blogs are open to all.

Blogs! - Billings, Egolf, and Wideman Are Online

Now three of the four Forks Supervisor candidates have personal BLOGS. Visit the blogs of (R) David Billings, (D) Robert Egolf, and (D) James Wideman.  You won't be disappointed.  You will learn more about your candidates and their visions for Forks Township.

Their blog links are also on the FAC Candidates' Page, the FAC blog, and the Forks Supervisor Candidates' blog.  All allow your comments and questions. 

The candidates look forward to hearing from you.  What an opportunity! 

November 6th is only a few weeks away.  You will be informed voters for sure!

Announcing - Candidates' Blogs!

Two of the four Supervisor candidates now have individual BLOGS. Please visit the blogs of (R) David Billings and of (D) James Wideman. There you will learn more about both gentleman and their visions for Forks Township.

The links are accessible from the FAC Candidates' Page as well as from the preceding underlined text. The general Forks Supervisor Candidates' blog remains online and open as well. You will be informed voters for sure!

2007 Supervisor Candidates & Individual Blogs

Some, if not all four, of the Forks Supervisor 2007 candidates will host their own blogs.  Links to them will be on the sidebar under links, on the FAC Election 2007 page, and on the FAC blog. 

So far, David Billings' blog is up and ready for your comments!

This FAC hosted blog will remain up.  It is open to the candidates and to all who wish to comment. 

Thanks.  And, don't forget to vote for TWO on November 6th!

The May Primary election results are finally official. I am humbled and honored to be selected as one of the four candidates for the office of Forks Township Supervisor in the November General Election.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for your support. My family and I are very pleased and excite about the upcoming campaign. We are looking forward to a robust campaign about the critical issues facing Forks Township. It is clear the citizens of Forks Township are concerned about our Quality of Life and are seeking new candidates with fresh ideas and perspectives.

We will see you on the campaign trail.

If you have any ideas or comments about critical issues facing Forks Township, please share your ideas via our blog or email at billings2007@att.net.

Greetings from the campaign trail….

I have been walking the neighborhoods this past weekend to meet the people of Forks Township. I have walked the streets meeting our fellow residents in almost every neighbor. I had the chance to discuss the future of our township and how to solve the critical issues facing our community. I heard a very strong message during my travels. We can do better!

On Sunday night (April 22, 2007), I attend the League of Woman Voters candidate forum.
It was a great experience, as I got to meet many residents of our township. All the candidates answered questions about their plans to managed growth, our police department, Weiss Supermarket development plan, storm water management, Earned Income Tax, and may other issues. It was exciting!

I would like to share my opening and closing statements from the candidate forum.


Opening Statement

Thanks for attending the event tonight.

We have seen many changes to our community in the past few years as Forks has rapidly grown in the past seven years. The key issue facing our community is our Quality of Life!

My campaign is focusing on ideas to improve our Quality of Life in Forks Township:

• Quality of Open Space – Preserve farm land, where possible, and limit ongoing high density development
• Quality of Government – Create a transparent government; incorporate new ideas.
• Responsible Fiscal Management – Sustaining sound financial policies.
• Quality of Life – Establish reasonable traffic management, uphold first class recreational facilities, and maintain critical public services (EMS, Fire, and Police),

Closing Statement

What a great day! Spring has finally arrived with the promise of hope and renewal. This election is about hope. The hope for a better Quality of Life, the hope for a better Quality of Government, the hope for a better Quality of Open Space, and the hope of a rationale growth strategy. Yes, this election about hope!

I have walked the neighborhoods of Forks Township for many weeks and I have heard a very strong message. We can do better!


We can manage our growth better
We can manage our traffic better
We must maintain our fire, police, and EMS dept
We must manage our township finances.


I am the uniquely qualified candidate that brings a new perspective to improve our Quality of Life.

I will commit to openly and honestly represent the people of Forks Township, regularly seek input from the community, and be an independent voice of reason on the Board of Supervisors.

Yes, we can do better! It is time for a change! Once again, thank you for attending tonight.


If you have any ideas or comments about critical issues facing Forks Township, please share your ideas via our blog or email at billings2007@att.net.


Get Involved – Your Vote Counts!


David Billings
billings2007@att.net

Walking the Neighborhoods - David Billings

Greetings from the campaign trail….

I have been walking the neighborhoods to better understand the needs and desires of Forks Township residents. I have been very fortunate to meet so many wonderful people who wanted to discuss the future of Forks Township. It has been a great experience!

I would like to share three questions that have been posed about my candidacy in an anonymous email.

1, What is your position on the passage of zoning ordinance 298 last year by the Board of Supervisors?

2. What is your position on the Weis Market plan for Sullivan Trail?

3. If elected, will you vote independently, or will you vote as instructed by the Forks Action Committee?

These are very important questions, as we consider the role of citizen-based political action groups in our local government. It is very important that we have active participation in our local government from all members of our community. We must have an open and honest dialog about critical issues that face our community. This is the only way to create viable solutions to some very serious issues.

I will make it a priority to take concrete actions to create a transparent government. I have outlined the specific actions in my previous blogs about Quality of Government.

In the spirit of open dialog, I would like to answer the questions posed by a concerned citizen. The challenge is to separate the issues being discussed in questions 1 and 2. The approved Zoning Ordinance 298 (conditional use for a supermarket) is a logical extension of the uses available in the current Economic Center (EC) zoning laws. The Board of Supervisor has the legislative right to establish zoning laws and approve conditional uses, as long as the zoning change does not meet the legal definition of spot zoning. The second question is whether a 100,000 square foot supermarket should be located in the updated EC zone on the corner of Uhler Road and Sullivan Trail.

What is your position on the passage of Zoning Ordinance 298 last year by the Board of Supervisors? Answer: I would have voted yes on Ordinance 298. It does make sense to update the current EC zoning laws to allow a supermarket. I would suggest a supermarket is a similar type of a retail store, such as a drug store, convenience store, motel, or any other business that can exist in an Employment Center.


What is your position on the Weis Market plan for Sullivan Trail? Answer: I would have voted no to the proposed Weis Market plan. I was very concerned about the two traffic studies and the impact on traffic around Uhler Road and Sullivan Trail. Additionally, I do feel we need a second supermarket in Forks Township, so the challenge is to find a location that could support the additional traffic created by a new market. I would support a plan by the township to hire an independent traffic engineer to determine a proper location for a new market and other commercial business.



If elected, will you vote independently, or will you vote as instructed by the Forks Action Committee? Answer: Great question. I believe the public places a sacred duty on elected officials to act in the best interests of the township and not based upon personal motivations. I will uphold this obligation and vote in the best interests of the community!


I will pledge to openly and honestly represent the people of Forks Township, regularly seek input from the community, and be an independent voice of reason on the Board of Supervisors.


If you have any ideas or comments about critical issues facing Forks Township, please share your ideas via our blog or email at billings2007@att.net.



Get Involved – Your Vote Counts!


David Billings
billings2007@att.net

Quality of Open Space - David Billings

Greetings from the campaign trail…

One of my three campaign themes is Quality of Open Space. This is a tricky issue as we face the challenges of how we manage our future growth. So, what is Quality of Open Space? This concept is all about our ability to aggressively manage growth within the context of our current zoning laws and the PA Municipal Code. I know it is easy to make a campaign promise to stop growth or create open space. My candidacy is not about campaign promises, but bringing real solutions to the community.

So, can we just create an open space law that prohibits development? For example, the current zoning laws for the Farm Preservation district states we can place one housing unit per three acres with a cluster option. The land owner, in this case, the farmer has the right to sell his/her land or maintain their farm to earn a living. The township does not have the right to force the farm owner to keep his/her farm or zone the farm as open space. The farmers have the right to sell their land to the highest bidder.

So what can we do? The best approach is to have the township purchase the prize land that can be zoned for open space or recreational areas. The funding can be obtained by increasing the real estate transfer tax creating a direct revenue stream to support open space, obtaining grants from Northampton County Open Space Initiatives (see Express Times article “Changes in open space program” – March 22, 2007) and grants from the state Growing Greener fund. You may see some discussion around increasing the Earned Income Tax, but that is not a good path, if the ACT 1 ballot initiative gets voters approval. When ACT 1 is approved, the EIT for Forks Township will be increased, as our property taxes are decreased. Some of these concepts are being discussed at the Planning Commission Comprehensive Plan workshops.

Currently, the Planning Commission has the opportunity to change the Comprehensive Plan for the Farm Preservation district from one unit per three acres with a cluster option to one unit per five acres without the cluster option. This is a good way to reduce the density of the development while operating within the laws of the land. The best statement that I have heard to address this issue is “The devil is in the density”. It is very important to limit the density of the proposed developments while we purchase land for open space initiatives.

The challenge for Forks Township is whether we have the political will to preserve farmland and create the opportunities to purchase land for open space. The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission Comprehensive Plan 2030 stated it best: “In order to cope with future growth, municipalities will need to do better planning and implementation of plans than they have done in the past.” As we have seen in Frenchtown, NJ (see Express Times article “Land preservation story shows victory is possible” – March 22, 2007) and within our own Northampton County (see Morning Call article “Northampton open wallet to save green – March 7, 2007) it is possible to create partnerships to buy and preserve farmland.

No matter what course we choose, the developers will be opposed to open space initiatives and will use our legal system as the tool to circumvent our zoning laws. As your supervisor, I will have the political will to tackle these tough issues!

If you have any ideas or comments about critical issues facing Forks Township, please share your ideas via our blog or email at billings2007@att.net.

Get Involved – Your Vote Counts!


David Billings
billings2007@att.net

Quality of Government - David Billings

Greetings from the campaign trail…

One of my three campaign themes is Quality of Government. So, what is Quality of Government? In my mind, Quality of Government has three basic components. First, a candidate for public office should have the highest level of integrity. Second, we need to have an open access policy. Finally, proactively reach out to the public on critical issues and seek diverse ideas while formulating public policy.

In my opinion, public servants need to demonstrate the highest level of integrity and honesty. I believe that public servants have a deep moral obligation to maintain the public trust and set a moral example for our community.

Open access is the ability of our township residents to have easy access to our local leadership, critical documents, and how our township operates on a daily basis. In other words, create a level of transparency between the Board of Supervisors, township operations and our residents. For example, a Government that practices open access requires having all public documents on our web site, providing a free copy of the Comprehensive plan to our residents, easy access to developers’ proposals that affect our way of life, public display of all traffic studies, and access to the 2007 budget in a timely manner.

Each of the critical service organizations (Police, Fire, and EMS) should make a yearly report to the township residents to improve our understanding of these critical services and how we benefit as a community from these dedicated professionals. Yes, I will broach the unthinkable -- broadcasting our Board of Supervisor meetings on the local cable community outlet channels.

Additionally, I believe we should have occasional Board of Supervisor, Planning Commission, and Zoning meetings on Saturdays to increase the visibility of these critical boards and commissions to our community. Town hall meetings should become a norm in our township not just a campaign slogan.

It is very important that we proactively reach out to residents to get ideas on critical township issues. If you have any ideas or comments about critical issues facing Forks Township, please share your ideas via our blog or email at billings2007@att.net.

Get Involved – Your Vote Counts!

Sincerely,


David Billings
billings2007@att.net

David Billings - Campaign Focus

Greetings from the campaign trail…..

We have seen many changes to our community in the past few years. We face many challenges as we try to maintain critical public services, update the infrastructure to support our growth, and sustain fiscally responsible policies with our township finances. I believe we need to develop robust recreational opportunities for our children and senior citizens. Improving the quality of life for the residents of Forks Township is a key issue facing our community.

My campaign will focus on ideas to improve our quality of life in Forks Township:

Quality of Open Space – Preserve farm land, where possible, and limit ongoing high density development
Quality of Government – Create a transparent government; incorporate new ideas
Responsible Fiscal Management – Sustaining sound financial policies.
Quality of Life – Establish reasonable traffic management, uphold first class recreational facilities, and maintain critical public services

If you have any ideas or comments about critical issues facing Forks Township, please share your ideas on our blog or via email at billings2007@att.net.

Get Involved – Your Vote Counts!


David Billings

Forks Township Comprehensive Plan

Greetings from the campaign trail...

I attended the Forks Township Planning Commission workshop on February 27, 2007. The planning workshop was designed to gather input on the current Forks Comprehensive Plan and to discuss ideas regarding how to update the Comprehensive Plan by year-end 2007.

Possibly due to lack of information about the process, it seems the Forks Township residents are not taking advantage of this opportunity to provide public comment on this very important document. I do believe it is critical for the Planning Commission to proactively gather widespread public comment on the Comprehensive Plan. The Planning Commission should seek public input at the Easton Area School District Board meetings, the Easton Area School District PTA Area Council meetings, the Forks School PTA meetings, the township community meetings , and meet our residents at club houses throughout the township.

This will ensure we seek our neighbors’ input and possibly create some excitement about developing a robust Forks Township Comprehensive Plan.


David Billings
billings2007@att.net

Bob Egolf's Magic Wand

Bob Egolf’s five wishes for Forks Township

1. attract quality businesses and retail merchants for the Sullivan Trail Shopping Center (former Laneco building)

2. assure that Forks’ children receive the best public education without crowded classrooms and stress on the academic program

3. help to establish a strong and viable emergency squad

4. build an all-seasons swimming facility for all ages

5. learn what else the citizens of Forks want

Magic Wand

If you could wave a magic wand and change five things in the township right now, what would they be?

1. Eliminate the ability of a Forks Supervisor to hold other township paid positions.

2. Establish a road map and financial plan to restore Forks Township EMS to Advanced Life Support Status.

3 . Hire a town manager to manage the day-to-day activities of our township.

4. Develop a Thoughtful Growth strategy that adheres to the zoning ordinance, but also takes into account development impacts from surrounding communities (i.e. traffic, schools, roads, critical public services, and environmental impact). '

5. Create a citizens advisory board to develop ideas about township planning, update the township comprehensive plan, create a profitable Community Center, and hold town hall meetings to discuss various issues.

2007 Forks Supervisor Candidates!

F.A.C. has completed interviewing candidates for the 2 open seats on the Forks Board of Supervisors. Four extremely qualified Forks residents have risen to the top! In alphabetical order, they are David Billings, Erik Chuss, Robert Egolf, and James Wideman. Photos, press releases, and email links are on their special FAC page.

Here you may read what the candidates have to say and pose your own questions and comments. You need not be registered with Blogger or Google to Comment to any post. To put up an original post (one that's not part of a thread) though, you will need a blogger invitation. To get one, email admin@forksaction.com.

This blog's for you!

We are starting it off with a question to each candidate - from the FAC candidates questionnaire. Here it is:

If you could wave a magic wand and change 5 things in the Township right now, what would they be?