Lessons from the First Term

“During my first set of budget meetings shortly after taking office, I found myself ill-prepared and outmaneuvered as I worked to move fiscally responsible priorities forward,

Hokanson explained. “It was a lesson I took to heart. In my second budget session, I negotiated with each of the budget committee members to bring forward a united budget proposal to make sure my priorities were adequately funded including WinterFest, Cedar Park, and SandyNet infrastructure. I believe those hard-earned lessons will help serve Sandy in the future as we continue to try and handle growth in a way that doesn’t put us deeply in debt.”

Out of Town Stakeholders and Special Interests

When asked about his stance on the involvement of out-of-town neighbors in the city, Hokanson prefaced his answer with: “Let me start by stating that my personal standard is to refuse all political funding so I am not beholden to any big-money interests inside or outside of our community.”

“Having said that, I truly believe that all voices matter,” he explained. “As a councilor, I appreciate perspectives offered by all stakeholders of the city. The variety of stakeholders vested in the success of our community is wonderful and includes residents, business owners, non-profits, environmental groups, other government agencies, and so forth... With so many stakeholders, it is no surprise that it isn’t always possible to please everyone.”

He encourages people to get involved, whether that is by volunteering or by attending a meeting – virtually or in person.

“In the last year, a few people, including some non-residents, were upset with a highly-publicized decision made by the city manager,” Hokanson added. “They suggested that the will of the majority of people was suppressed. However, the only real measure of the will of the people is a vote such as the one we will have this November. It is not a sampling of opinions taken by a few people who attended a town workshop or a Facebook poll. The City Council’s job when faced with issues like this is to consider all stakeholders, including those that may not speak up or post on Facebook.”

Uniquely Qualified to Serve

“My professional career as an analyst, project manager, and business consultant have provided a wide variety of experiences to draw from” he explained. “For example, my experience in establishing asset management programs in a utility company have allowed me to quickly understand the dire situation of our water and wastewater infrastructure systems. It has also allowed me to counsel with highly specialized consultants to help craft the best possible path forward for Sandy. I’m extremely analytical: I ask questions, and I take a logical, factual or data-based approach to every issue.”

“We have some big challenges ahead of us in terms of federal- and state-mandated upgrades to our infrastructure,” he explained of his inspiration to seek a second term. “While we’ve made a lot of progress, I feel like I am in a unique position to continue to shepherd these efforts to secure Sandy’s future without unnecessary pause or redirection.”

Motivated by a Desire to Serve Sandy

Additionally, Hokanson felt the need to clarify that “the mayor and council (in Sandy) are not paid positions, and the perks are minimal.”

“This last year has generated a lot of very pointed comments about those who have been serving as mayor and councilors,” he said. “By a rough calculation I have dedicated over 800 hours in preparing for and attending meetings. And that doesn’t count the amount of time responding to Facebook, media inquiries and other city-related activities. Some on council, including the mayor, have spent far more time on our behalf. It’s OK to disagree with someone’s decisions, values and opinions. In those cases, I would like to encourage people to engage in civil dialogue rather than disparaging others, especially those that are giving of their time so freely. At the end of the day, we are all just neighbors in this town we call Sandy.”

Read the full article at the Sandy Post.