Dillon is my forever home. My wife and I raised our two sons here and have devoted much of our efforts to ensure that our neighbors, our visitors and our businesses have the opportunity to grow and thrive and enjoy that special sense of community that comes from living in a small mountain town. I am proud of the time I have already served on the Town Council. Below are some of the many accomplishments that occurred during my tenure:
- The purchase of the Marina and moving it from management by Keystone to direct town management and control
- The first major redevelopment of the Amphitheater, including hiring an acoustic engineer to help with sound mitigation
- Getting the Town charter passed on the first try
- Facilitating the business-initiated Business Improvement District
- Creating Main Street and renaming and redesigning Lake Dillon Drive
- Working with Denver Water on the sale of their land for the ultimate development of Dillon Ridge shopping center
- Worked on under-grounding power lines in front of condos on East LaBonte and lower Tenderfoot
Priority 1: Building trust and collaboration
I want to return the governance of Dillon back to a place where there is meaningful and respectful dialogue with local residents, business owners, second-home owners and visitors. While there was not always 100% agreement on everything, previous town councils that I served on were characterized by respect, open-mindedness, a willingness to talk things through, and always, a desire to do both what was in the best interest of the community, but more importantly, what the community saw as important. There was a long period, even after I left the council, where Dillon continued to communicate and listen to its residents, second-home owners and business owners, just as it had become accustomed to when my wife was mayor and I was on town council. But over time that communication started to diminish, and with it, the long-standing trust and confidence that the community had with the town council. I want to restore that trust and confidence in town government.
Priority 2: Financial security
Financial security for Dillon is important. But it seems as though the town has developed a sense of entitlement that instead of looking at tightening the budget and spending less when things get tough, it instead focuses solely on making more money. Early in my service on town council, the town was in the midst of climbing out of a significant fiscal deficit. From that time forward, Dillon never looked back. Where Dillon is financially now is nowhere near where it was then, and with strong fiscal oversight of the budget, and ensuring priorities match what the community sees as priorities will be essential for the Dillon town council moving forward without damaging its character and aesthetics and all the things that make Dillon so special. Fiscal responsibility will be key.
Priority 3: Improving infrastructure
Develop a more rational strategy for investments made by the town in the marina, the amphitheater and town parks. Review how the town is planning for and funding maintenance and improvement of existing infrastructure. Dillon is the last remaining larger town in Summit County that has yet to complete under-grounding of all electrical utilities, phone lines and cable. I want to explore the possibility of making that happen, including the cost of extending the underground utilities to the residence, business or commercial buildings in town. Dillon should also consider the benefits of creating a micro-grid to ensure essential services have the necessary power to operate in the event of a major disruption of power.
Benedict J. Raitano is a candidate for Dillon Town Council. For all candidate columns, articles and Q&As, visit SummitDaily.com/election.
Source link