Office Sought: Supervisor, Sully District
Party Affiliation: Democrat
Previous offices held:
Occupation: Small business owner.
Current Employment: Harbor Consultants International, Inc.
P.O. Box 221616
Chantilly, VA 20153
Education: Attended University of New Mexico
Community Ties: President-Elect, Business and Professional Women of Greater Fairfax
Member, Advisory Council, Education for Independence
President, Rock Hill Civic Association (RHCA)
Member, Land Use Committee, Sully District Council (SDC)
RHCA Representative, Western Fairfax County Civic Association (WFCCA)
Endorsements: Endorsed by Central Labor Council of Virginia AFL-CIO
Endorsed by Fairfax Professional Fire Fighters Local 2068
Endorsed by Fairfax Coalition of Police Local 5000
Endorsed by Fairfax Deputy Sheriff's Coalition
Endorsed by Sierra Club
1. What is your top public-service accomplishment?
GK: I led the fight to repeal a proposed Zoning Ordinance Amendment that would have allowed the Board of Supervisors to enter into public-private partnership with little to no citizen oversight.
2. What are the top five problems facing your constituents and what approaches will you use to solve them? Describe one challenge (or more) in your district that is different than other parts of the county.
GK: The top five concerns of the voters in Sully are transportation, education, public safety, response and communications from their Supervisor, and taxes. Details regarding challenges are found throughout the rest of the questionnaire.
3. What qualities, qualifications and characteristics will you bring to this office?
GK: With over 30 years of business experience, I am a person with vitality, listening skills, and have the ability to get things finished. I am an individual who puts the needs of the residents first and baseball last. I am a strong proactive leader who will bring energy and will ensure that their quality of life will not disappear. I am a leader that will not let traffic grow unabatedly, that will keep public safety as a high priority, and that will continue to support the excellent education system in Fairfax County. Voters in Sully want a leader who addresses the concerns of today with a vision towards tomorrow.
I am that leader.
4. How will voters best distinguish between you and your opponent(s)?
GK: I have already distinguished my self from my opponent by knocking on over 12,000 doors, getting out and meeting the residents of the different communities, taking time to listen to their concerns and needs. My opponent has failed to get out in the community and answer the calls from his constituents for 12 years. Also, I am opposed to a taxpayer funded baseball stadium in Northern Virginia.
5. What specific solutions will you propose for the transportation dilemma?
GK: The first and most important step that can be taken is to manage unabated development until transportation solutions can be put into place to handle the current demands on the transportation infrastructure.
The transportation plan developed by Gerry Connolly is an excellent start towards resolving gridlock. I would also work to add the following pieces to the Connolly plan:
Major Transit and Highway Projects:
The widening of I-66 from Washington D.C. to Gainesville or further.
The extension of Metro rail to Chantilly/Centreville or the addition of light rail to Chantilly/Centreville.
The inclusion of HOT lanes to provide alleviation of traffic congestion on I-66.
The building of the cut through road in Quinn Farm Park to Connect Braddock Road and Old Lee Road. This will eliminate the very dangerous S curve on Braddock Road and will allow the Fairfax County Park Authority to move forward in building active rectangular fields at Quinn Farm Park.
The installation of sound walls on I-66 as it passes Northbourne Street in Chantilly. The proffers from the builder specify the building of a sound wall. However, this proffer has not been enforced.
The installation of a sound wall on Fairfax County Parkway just north of Franklin Farm Road. At present there is no sound wall or fencing to separate and protect these homes which back up to the Fairfax County Parkway.. At present, children and animals can walk out into the parkway traffic unimpeded. This public safety hazard must be addressed quickly.
Spot Intersection Improvements:
Widening of the intersection of Pleasant Valley Road and Braddock Road. School buses are unable to turn right from Pleasant valley Road unto Braddock Road if cars are at the intersection.
Widening of the intersection of Old Mill Road and Old Centreville Road. Again, the intersection is extremely dangerous to cars waiting on Old Mill Road facing East by cars turning right from Old Centreville unto Old Mill Road.
Improve and fix the curve on Old Mill Road and Mount Olive Road. The current road is a patchwork of tar paving projects that is dangerous and inadequate for the traffic volume.
Pedestrian Improvements:
Connect the trail on Compton road with a bridge over the creek at the pumping station. Currently children walking to school are forced to walk on Compton Road at a very dangerous curve with a guardrail which does not permit the children the ability to move out of the way.
The connection of the trail along Braddock Road just west of Route 28 to the trail along Route 28. This will allow residents to be able to walk, bicycle, skate. Stroll, etc. to attractions at the intersection of Route 28 and Route 29.
The installation of a crosswalk and stop signs at the intersection Northbourne and Melville Streets.
The installation of stop signs on Sully park Drive and Kamputa Road.
6. Fairfax County now dedicates more than 50 percent of its budget to public school system. How will you measure the effectiveness of this expenditure? What do you see as the biggest challenges? Is this sort of expenditure sustainable given that fewer than 25 percent of households have children in the schools?
GK: There are several tools which measure the effectiveness of the expenditures made thus far. The state mandated SOL testing is one tool. Another has been the ranking of all of the County's high schools (save Thomas Jefferson because it admits based on scores) as being in the top 4% nationwide which is significant.
Our educational system benefits us economically. We attract businesses who want to take advantage of our well educated work force and employees who wish to capitalize on the excellent education offered in Fairfax County for their own children.
The biggest challenge is to sustain such a high level of performance to continue to attract new businesses to Fairfax County.
7. Many parts of Northern Virginia are approaching buildout, and the current economic climate favors residential over commercial construction. Do local governments have the tools they need to control and guide growth? How will state and local governments cope with the additional demand for services that come with additional residential construction? What are the important features of "smart growth" and can more emphasis on smart growth help offset the effects of suburban development?
GK: The Supervisors have the comprehensive plan and the ability to zone land for particular use. There are no other tools to protect resources unless the County government purchases the land. This is not highly feasible given the current economic conditions. Supervisors must be able to stop development in the "by right" state in order to effectively manage the buildout of Fairfax County.
8. What are your top environmental priorities? Please address air quality, water quality, open space, etc.
GK: My top environmental concerns are two fold. The first is air quality and the second is water quality. The air quality component can best be addressed through the steps listed in the transportation improvements. Encouraging and promoting alternative sources of power (such as natural gas and hybrid solutions) are the only real alternatives at present. Therefore, making traffic move becomes paramount.
Water quality is of utmost concerns. The water that flows into our streams becomes our drinking water and therefore must be managed well. Natural filtration is key in maintaining the quality of our drinking water. Additionally, keeping our streams in good shape is very important in maintaining our drinking water free from toxins. Storm water management is crucial in preventing the damage from the velocity and volume of rain water runoff. Additionally, storm water management ponds allow for additional filtration of water and mitigate the impact on streams.
9. Are residents safe enough? How do public safety officials balance new demands of "homeland security" with other safety and quality of life issues?
GK: Western Fairfax County grew by over 50% from 1990 to 2000. The growth reflects many cultures and languages. The ratio of police officers to population has remained stagnant or has been reduced. The rapid growth and language challenges threaten the excellent record and results achieved by the Fairfax County Police with fatal and violent crimes on the rise. Within the county, Fairfax County police is understaffed and underpaid. We are consistently losing seasoned police men and women to other jurisdictions, including homeland security, which are paying higher wages.
County officials must address the needs of their citizens first and foremost. In doing so, many of the homeland security requirements will also be resolved. However, the choice, when funds are limited, between homeland security and the needs of the citizens of Fairfax County must always be directed to the needs of the citizens of Fairfax County first.
10. Do you have any concerns about civil liberties and public access to information in the wake of the patriot Act and other responses to September 11?
GK: Yes I do. It is too far reaching and allows the federal government too much latitude without the normal checks and balances necessary to ensure that abuse of power is not carried out.
11. Working poor families in Northern Virginia face a daunting cost of living, with little in the way of affordable housing, health care, child care and transportation. Are low-wage workers important to the local economy? What do you propose to address the needs of these families?
GK: The Zoning Ordinance for Affordable Housing is an excellent framework for getting affordable housing units built and into the market for low-wage families. They crucial component is to disallow waivers to this Zoning Ordinance. This will ensure that developers do construct the housing units needed. It is important to recognize that a balanced economy originates from a balanced work force.
12. Should counties have the taxing authorities of cities?
GK: Yes!
13. What proposals do you have for mitigating the effects of soaring property values and related taxes? Do you endorse the 5 percent cap on property tax increases? If you support a cap on property tax increases, please name at least one service provided by the county government that you currently use that you would be prepared to live without.
GK: The soaring market value of homes is due to the market forces at work. The related taxes are as a result of under funded and unfunded mandates which Fairfax County must carry out. The real key to mitigating these effects is effective state tax reform for revenue collection and proper allocation of funds to counties throughout the Commonwealth. Additionally, the ability to generate revenues from additional resources will also relieve the dependence on real estate taxes.
The current Local Composite Index only returns 18 cents on the dollar sent to Richmond to pay for educational costs. Severe under funding of programs like the Standards of Quality (SOQ) have required Fairfax County homeowners to pick up the tab left by the state. Last year the shortfall in funding was $200 million to Fairfax County alone. Full funding of educational programs by the state, like SOQ, will help to relieve the high dependence homeowner taxes.
14. Fairfax County has more than 10,000 full-time employees. How should the Board of Supervisors guide such a large bureaucracy? How do you measure the effectiveness of such a work force? We've heard stories of departments that resist change and are unresponsive to both citizens and elected officials. How would you address these concerns? Please give specific examples.
GK: The effectiveness of such a group has to be broken down to the respective departments and their abilities to meet established goals within the given constraints they face. I believe that all the different department heads should be appointed by the Board of Supervisors and should be recalled if their performance or the performance of the Department does not meet the needs of Fairfax County.
15. What campaign finance reform do you support? How should the county avoid conflict of interest, or even the appearance of conflict, given the Board's role in approving development and zoning changes and contributions by development interests?
GK: The costs of running campaigns have reached unacceptable levels. However, finance reform at the federal level has encountered too many problems that cannot be resolved locally. At present, the current system will have to do. Once meaningful finance reform is enacted at the federal level, that model could be applied, with modifications, at the local level.
Conflict of interests should be addressed through the County attorney. The County attorney can and has rendered an impartial ruling as to the existence of conflict or lack thereof.