After hearing that Councilmember Ryan Dickey would be running for mayor, Tana Toly decided she had another four years in her to continue serving on the council.
“After the mayor [Nann Worel] decided that she was not going to run, Ryan and I did have a conversation about that, and I supported Ryan running from the very beginning,” Toly said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Monday. “We had some great conversations about it, and I'm very thrilled to have him as our mayor and look forward to working with him. We have had an amazing relationship over the last four years and work really well together.”
One of the first items of business in January will be selecting a resident to serve the rest of Dickey’s unexpired term on the council. Once that’s done, Toly says they can start sorting through the applications and begin the process of hiring a new city manager.
As for the last four years, Toly says she’s proud the city was able to close on the $64 million 105-acre Treasure Hill conservation easement, permanently protecting the western hillsides of Old Town.
“I like to say it's our export. Our nature is our export,” she said. “And in order to continue to have a really thriving economy, we are going to need to continue to ensure that nature is protected.”
The council also supports protecting most of the Clark Ranch purchase as open space, leaving 10 acres open for development and another 5 acres as an open space buffer.
“We're excited to put the land conservation easement on that, and to move forward in continuing with the Alexander Company on putting some sort of affordable housing, workforce housing, attainable housing,” Toly said. “We're not exactly sure what that will all look like on the remaining 10 acres.”
Going forward, Toly hopes to see construction begin on a new senior center at City Park, approve and implement a Main Street Area Plan and work on easing traffic in town.
“Traffic is just something that you peel away the onion, and you just try to put in smaller solutions,” she said. “And I think that we've actually done quite a bit with traffic and with transportation. There is a lot more to do. And in this upcoming four years, I think this the first year we need a park-and-ride, and we need to, you know, we have Gordo, we have Richardson Flat, and just getting shovels in the ground and actually ensuring that next season, we have, you know, 500 more spots for people to park before having to come into town.”
The new mayor and councilmembers will be sworn into office at a ceremony on Monday, Jan. 5, at 4 p.m. outside at the Bob Wells Plaza, just below City Hall.
