As the youngest candidate in this race, and the one with the least amount of time in Peachtree Corners, the first question people often ask me is why I am running in this election. I see this as a two part question, as to why I am running for city council and why am I doing so at this time. 

I'll answer the second part first as I figure that is the shorter of the two answers. I am running now because we only get one chance to set the city on the proper course. A bad start or a bad first four years is something this city will likely never recover from. As someone that has been part of the city efforts for over a year, has done communications for it, and has put my own credibility on the line when I recommended voting yes, I feel I have too much invested to let that happen.

As I have been told by many people who have served in new cities, and from what I see lined up before us over the next few years, the first few years of a new city are largely procedural, setting up a course of action and conduct for the future of the city. For the candidates interested in ribbon cuttings and the like, I suggest waiting til 2016. For myself, I enjoy the nitty-gritty of shaping procedure, things like negotiating service delivery strategy agreements, planning future zoning changes, and budgeting. This is the perfect opportunity for the civics nerd in me to take part in the creation of a new city and set it up right.

And that brings me to why I am running at all. After all, the last election I ran in was when I lost to my best friend by about 10 votes in my Middle School President election. Yet now I find myself running for city council, acting President of my HOA, discussing planning commissions and code enforcement. As someone that is not a "joiner", someone that would much rather just go on about his life and let other people handle these issues, this is all new territory for me. But for too long I felt helpless while other people made decisions for me, decisions that effect my life and my future, decisions I disagreed with, but cause I did nothing I had no say. This made me angry, angry enough to complaing to my wife about the way our government was run whenever she came home from work. Finally, after she had had enough of my ranting, she told me to do something about it or stop complaining.

At that point, I realized she was right. I could not complain about problems if I wasn't part of the solution. That was why, when I relocated to Peachtree Corners, I wanted to see how to get involved in my community, to help shape it in the way I wanted: fiscally sound, low taxes and fees, and a non-intrusive government. That is when I started attending UPCCA meetings, keeping abreast of the goings-ons of my local officials, and finding out how I can make sure my community was being governed in a way I was comfortable with.

Now, with this new city, I finally have that opportunity. And when someone says they want the opportunity to be able to set policy, there is some natural trepidation, which I completely understand. And that is why I found it so important to run for this seat at this time. Because, as I mentioned above, this election will not be about getting city halls built or roads paved or police departments started. This will be an election about how we want to be governed, how accountable we want to hold our elected officials, and how we want to limit their powers to keep our cities from heading down the negative paths of so many before us.

And that is why I am running for this seat. I am dedicated to good government, local government, limited government. I am dedicated to being a true public servant, a true representative of my constituents and my community at large. I believe in limiting our taxes to no more than we need, aligning our spending to meet (and in fact come in under) our revenues, not vice-versa. I believe in rotating our elected officials as much as possible to make sure new ideas are constantly being brought into government. I believe in maximizing communication with citizens before bills are even considered rather than after they have already been decided. To this end, I have already announced that, if I am elected, when my single term is completed, I will never seek another position in the Peachtree Corners government again.

As for the rest above, I will flesh out exactly what I hope to accomplish in my four years working for the good citizens of District 3 and Peachtree Corners as a whole. This will include specific bills I hope to pass and what they will mean for the future of the city. There will be no buildings or service expansions or bond issues in these proposals, just good government principles that will help keep the citizens in charge of the city they voted for by a narrow margin.

But my platform is limited, as I believe that my most important job is to represent my constituents and let them largely shape my positions, as long as their views do not compromise my views on limited government. To that end, I will be hosting a series of tele-town hall meetings. My first will be on our SDS strategy, sanitation, and how we work with Gwinnett County going forward. I want to hear from you what you want from your trash hauler, your police department, your public works. This doesn't mean I want to start our own services by any means, but simply what you consider to be acceptable service from Gwinnett County and what is not.

This town hall will take place this Wednesday, from 7:30-9:00 and you can take part from anywhere you have a phone (although a computer can enhance your participation). For those who can't make it, feel free to email me any questions you may have prior and I'll make sure to answer them during this session, which will be recorded and available for download at your leisure. You can receive more details on how to participate at my website, choosescott.com.

This is your city, Peachtree Corners, and I need your input to make it what you want it to be. And the seat I am running for is your seat and I respectively ask you to listen to what I have to say and would be honored if you'd let me hold it for a little while so I can assist in putting down a solid foundation, as the building of the future of our community takes place right now.