John Cooper is the Mayor of Nashville in Tennessee. With access to a $25 million revolving housing fund, community development corporations and other builders will be able to access approximately $250 million in funding from banks and other lenders to build affordable housing. I am running for mayor to provide sound financial management, recapture tourism revenues, end a culture of giveaways, and get our citys finances back on track. Its time to put our focus back on our neighborhoods. Metro has heavily used the tool downtown, but TIF can be used to bring benefits to neglected parts of our community. THE TEA PARTY and . left: 0; Parks positively inform the character of our neighborhoods, and provide the opportunity for all to gather in shared public space. The Mayor of Nashville needs to be a financial manager with experience in long-term capital planning, and that why I am the right Mayor for Nashville right now. .widget-row.value-only.black { I have been strongly opposed to it, and it requires future council action for it to happen. We should use nonprofit groups to leverage other federal and state housing funds for affordable housing in Nashville. Incumbents are bolded and underlined. We can do better, and as mayor, I will do better. My family and I love to spend time at Bells Bend and the Warner Parks, however, not all neighborhoods and families have easy access to our great parks and greenways. font-weight: 300; In the race for five open at-large seats, candidates included Buddy Baker, Jody Ball, Karen Bennett, Al Carota, Erin Coleman, John Cooper, Elizabeth Dachowski, Adam Dread, Robert Duvall, Leroy Johnny Ellis, Erica Gilmore, Ronnie Greer, Sr., Frank Harrison, Jason Holleman, Martin Holsinger, Phillip Joseph Hostettler, Jr., Walter Hunt, Sharon W Hurt, Ken Jakes, James Keeton, John Lasiter, Don Majors, Lonnell Matthews, Jr., Bob Mendes, Sandra Moore and Jim Shulman. In response, Mayor Briley announced that he was hitting the pause button on his parking plan. I would like to be remembered as the Mayor who got our city back on track. The Lumina Foundation has designated Nashville as a Talent Hub, investing money in our citys workforce development efforts. However, even this was botched. Community-wide cooperation. Parks can play a critical role in increasing sustainable and resilient infrastructure. Wage stagnation makes it hard to sustain a career in teaching; it shouldnt take 18 years of teaching in MNPS with a Masters degree to reach $60,000 per year. .race_header.democratic { I believe that Nashvillians are ready to address this problem. Fifth & Broadway, the site of our old convention center, was probably the most valuable piece of undeveloped property in the Southeastern United States. I have already cosponsored legislation that would match affordable housing dollars with incentive dollars. State and local courts | Bennett, Coleman, Cooper, Duvall, Gilmore, Holleman, Hurt, Matthews, Mendes and Shulman advanced to the runoff election. Taxpayers footed the bill for the Omni by providing $61.56 million in tax increment financing (TIF), a 62.5% property tax abatement for 20 years, and $245.5 million in cash payments over 20 years. Private events need to begin paying for their own costs. Approximately 18% of MNPS students missed at least 10% of school days last year. It is my goal to make Nashville a city that works for everyone. Nashville deserves better deals. width: 250px; Not surprisingly, half of all renters and a quarter of all homeowners now spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing. Despite the challenges, there is much to celebrate about our school system. Steve Riley on February 14, 2013: Just right off the bat. font-weight: bold; But, the judge hasn't expressed his political opinion in public. Moving forward, this program should have sustained support and all corporations that receive any sort of incentive funding from the city should be required to have strong TDM plans in place. You can change the bad things in this mayors budget by changing the mayor. overflow: hidden; He steered ten acres of public land at the Fairgrounds to private development. } @media (max-width:600px) { I commit to creating and publishing a public engagement plan for transportation planning, something the current Mayor has not done. } We should celebrate that! } The pattern is clear. As of April 24, 2019, 31 sworn officers have resigned from the force this year. It was later revealed that Mayor Briley had given merit pay raises to his personal staff. Here is what I said at the time: I feel that we will regret selling this site for $2 million. font-weight: bold; .widget-key { John C. Cooper is a judge of the Second Circuit Court of Florida. He won a special election to fill a partial term in the Arkansas Senate in 2014, and was reelected in 2016. Nashville is going to grow more over the next five years than it has in the previous five years. As mayor, I will commit to directing over half of new revenue into our school system. Keeping people safe is the most fundamental job of government. I have spent my career in finance, real estate development, and project management. padding-top: 8px; Creating an equitable transportation plan starts with changing the public planning process to make it more inclusive. The increased cost of living in Nashville has made it difficult for many educators to afford to live in the county. Payments on our rising debt have limited the investments that can be made in education and affordable housing. Vote Smart provides free, unbiased, in-depth information about current officials, candidates, issues, legislation, and voting. We must set goals, provide resources, and bring agencies together with residents, businesses, and donors to keep Nashville green. Carrell plays Garry Zimmer, a Democratic Party strategist who delves into a political race in small-town Wisconsin. While many residents are within only a few miles of our bustling downtown, they have not been able to benefit from the citys growth. margin-bottom: 0; Instead of listening to these criticisms and developing a new plan, Mayor Briley has announced that if he is reelected there will be no plan in the next four years. TENNESSEE DEMOCRATIC PARTY: COOPER, JOHN F. MR. OAKLAND, CA 94611: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA/RESEARCH C: $200: 08/19/2008: P: NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL . As mayor, I will put taxpayers first in negotiations. We need to fully staff the police department and our E-911 call center and embrace a shift to community policing. I want to hear your thoughts and ideas. This requires investment in human capital. .mw-body #mw-content-text th.votebox-results-cell--text { } In short, this administration is faking it. width: 150px; So do our workforce and lower income residents. In fact, in a 2016 interview with Howard Stern, Anderson went so far as to say that he believes reporters shouldn't vote. For the past two years the money going towards public schools has represented just under 40% of Metros general operating budget. max-width: 600px; font-size: 1.2em; It is critical that Nashville remains a place where small businesses open, grow, and flourish. } Private developers, not the public, were the winners. As mayor, I will work with our police chief to more seriously implement the proposals presented in the Presidents Task Force on 21st Century Policing. These best practices include engaging the community in positive, non-enforcement actions and measuring satisfaction through surveys. Look closely, though, and you will see a plan that is all sound bite and no substance. letter-spacing: .04em; That means targeted marketing and reaching out to HBCUs and minority police officer associations. Instead of coming back with a more responsible plan, Mayor Briley has said that if he is reelected, he will not bring another plan before voters in the next four years. } overflow-x: scroll; display: inline-block; It was driven by a desire to go as big as possible, not a realistic assessment of our needs. Ill put taxpayers first when it comes to negotiating development deals. Here are some of my ideas. Interest groups and activists make parties their . Metro has now significantly reduced traffic stops following the Policing Projects report in November 2018; however, we should have changed course much earlier at least after the Gideons Army report in 2016. It values promoting development, not protecting our quality of life. height: 50px; Briley wants to give the impression that he is hard at work addressing the affordable housing crisis through his Under One Roof affordable housing proposal. We also need to work with nonprofits, churches, neighborhood associations, and others to figure out the needs of each community. City hall is also mismanaging taxpayers money. As your mayor, I will set clear goals, provide the resources necessary to realize those goals, and hold people accountable for results. display: inline; Improve safety. The Westin Hotel received $14 million of tax increment financing in 2014. Earlier this year, Mayor Briley proposed a parking modernization plan that would result in private management of our street parking, an increase in fees and fines, and a doubling (at the very least) of the number of parking meters. The Mayors Office has used broad claims of executive privilege and deliberative process to avoid open records requests by members of the press, in order to keep negotiations, plans, and communications secret. Shared prosperity begins with fiscal sanity and people-centric growth. height: 22px; John Cooper completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. Cooper INDIVIDUAL: Coppins Monroe PA ENTITY: Davisson Dunlap III INDIVIDUAL: The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Cooper's responses. color: #6db24f; That means ending the culture of secrecy, evasiveness, and insider dealing that have taken root at city hall. A responsible city needs to evaluate opportunities systematically and openly. The Nashville Metro Council is full of talented, dedicated individuals with vast institutional knowledge who should be consulted on major initiatives for the city. He was elected to the bench in 2002, filling a vacancy created by the retirement of the Hon. border-radius: 50%; Parks and Green Spaces: We should not have included a bonus of ten acres at the Fairgrounds beyond the incentive of the stadium. [2], .votebox { Mayor Briley opposed the Community Oversight Board. Here is what I said at the time: Once again, we are using taxpayer money to subsidize the wealthiest, and once again we dont need to. .votebox-results-cell--check { Democratic Coalition Against Trump. We have to provide the resources and support for a great school system, provide adequate funding for our emergency services workers, and make sure that the costs of growth are not falling upon our citizens who need our help the most. Nashville taxes then paid to build a $34 million parking garage on the site for the developer. z-index:1; Restoring Trust: left: 0px; color: #0645ad; padding-left: 10px; The Promise Zone is made up of areas where poverty is concentrated; unemployment is high, educational attainment is lower than other areas of the city, residents are geographically isolated from healthy food options and employment opportunities, and violent crimes are more likely to occur. Nashville is booming and employers from around the country want to be here. As the city continues to grow, housing should be a part of every development incentive deal, but it hasnt been. All of the above thoughts and policies will require a foundation of trust. We need to conduct performance audits of Metro departments and agencies to increase the transparency of how tax dollars are spent and identify areas for improvement. After four years on the city council, Ive seen what Metro is doing to address the housing problem. You deserve a safe city where citizens and officers are treated fairly. Building safer crosswalks and making strategic sidewalk connections should be prioritized in our city budget. } Overview; Contributions; Expenditures; . font-size: .9em; As everyone in Nashville knows, the private market has responded to the demand for housing. Calming traffic in pedestrian-heavy areas using actual physical measures such as reduced lane widths, speed tables, raised crosswalks, roundabouts, curb extensions, and better lighting are reasonable cost solutions and best practices that we must implement. Here is how Mayor Brileys $750 million headline number breaks out: In short, the mayors supposedly three-quarter billion dollar housing investment is made up of unsecured promises for private contributions and a reframing of pre-existing funding and development plans. margin: auto; Its time for a different approach. "[12] On April 20, 2021, Chauvin was found guilty of murder and manslaughter in relation to Floyd's death. Consider the current discussions around purchasing the Morris Memorial Building. The first question I will ask as mayor on any issue will be how does this affect residents?. width: 250px; [8] The same day, Mayor John Cooper (D) declared a state of emergency, issued a curfew, and requested that Gov. This is by far the most cost-effective way to build new affordable housing. Cooper won in the general runoff election on September 12, 2019. Cooper completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. I know how to manage large, complex projects. background-color: #f4f4f4; font-weight: 300; There are numerous opportunities to expand access to green space amidst Nashvilles development. font-style: italic; The developer paid MDHA $9.4 million, but the land was actually worth many millions more, perhaps double. But instead of developing a plan to address them, the current administration is avoiding them. The 62.5% property tax abatement was worth $2.28 million to Omni last year alone. Metro agreed to give $15.2 million to the developers of Nashville Yards, the future home of Amazon. width: 100%; Economic incentives have their place, and that is creating livable neighborhoods and spreading prosperity and opportunity across our large county. @media screen and (max-width: 350px) { display: block; padding-top: 3px; I will end the giveaway culture that is more focused on enriching a small elite than serving our entire city. .results_table_container { John C. Cooper is a Circuit Judge for the Second Judicial Circuit of Florida in Leon County. It saw an immediate increase in bus ridership and decreases in trip times. Metro deficits over the last three years are bigger proportionally than the Federal governments during the same time frame. . That will allow us to preserve existing units. width: 100% !important; Use Economic Incentives to Increase Quality of Life.