2.  Support Recreational Opportunities

Fund sufficient maintenance for parks and trails. Publicize their availability, and how sports and recreation contribute to family health, fun and learning. Support development of walking and biking trails connecting neighborhoods, including Downtown Mount Vernon and the Riverwalk which residents have recently begun to use and enjoy. Provide sidewalks so walking and biking through the city is safe and comfortable for all, especially children going to school!
Provide sports, arts, and challenge opportunities for youth and young adults with diverse interests; designate safe venues where youth can socialize, with City and community support. Create inter-generational programs with opportunities for healthful exercise, service projects, and mentoring (with time for sharing local history).

3.  Support the Public Library as a hub for public information

Adequately fund maintenance of the existing library while supporting plans for a new Mount Vernon Library. Promote use of the library by children, adult, and Senior learners as a source of high quality reading materials, media, and computer technology. Advocate for an equitably-financed county library system.

 4.  Encourage Environmentally Sound Development

Fund adequate staffing of  Permitting and Inspection for new building projects to assure full compliance with City codes. Review current design guidelines (including voluntary guidelines for design and renovation of buildings in downtown Mount Vernon submitted to the City Council by the Main Street Design Committee). Encourage well-designed, energy efficient density in current urban areas. Consider transformation of parking lot space that is currently underused in commercial areas into mixed use with residential components. Where there are existing empty homes and buildings, provide guidance and incentives for property owners to repair or upgrade these properties for housing or business as appropriate. Recognizing the needs of many Senior Citizens and people with disabilities who live in Mount Vernon, or will move here in coming years, offer incentives for innovation in accessible and universal design.

Support Skagit Transit in planning and providing access to transportation for people of all ages and abilities throughout the city.  Include foot and bicycle trails and sidewalks as requirements in new development plans. Connect these with sidewalks and bicycle lanes in existing neighborhoods so children can walk and/or bike to school and to public services safely.

Designate City staff to help residents, especially people living on fixed incomes, to know who to contact to audit their home energy use. Working with public utilities and partnering with non profits, the city can help citizens to insulate their homes, install energy efficient appliances, and upgrade out-of- date home heating to lower their energy consumption.

Require energy-conscious design in future development along the downtown riverfront. Plan for buildings on the river to include venues that can be rented for family events such as weddings, parties, and professional meetings. (The City could retain interest in a partnership that provides space for City and public events.) Create design guidelines for development--- along the Skagit River, for other locations downtown, and for greater Mount Vernon--- that tie the city together through quality and detail that maintains the integrity of the city’s historic architectural and cultural flavor while using energy-efficient materials.

5. Support Transportation Choices and Public Safety

Let’s reduce Mount Vernon’s carbon footprint and model energy-efficiency for our children! Create incentives to encourage individuals and families to walk, bicycle, carpool, and use alternatives to single-occupancy vehicle (“SOV”) trips whenever possible. Support community participation projects such as gardens and events in the parks that provide nutrition and recreation close to home.
Support allocation of space and striping for bike lanes on major thoroughfares so bicyclists can ride safely through the city. Design bicycle capacity into all new road construction. Install bicycle racks in public parking lots, and bicycle storage lockers in new parking garages.

City Council must provide leadership in supporting responsible generation of revenue and prudent use of city funds. Council members should inform their constituents regarding specific costs to the public of proposed sales or property taxes and what each tax would fund before voting for or against taxation. This can be done at Ward meetings where city staff and Councilmembers explain the City budget and fiscal needs of the City to their constituents and receive feedback. Discussions can include fire department staffing, flood protection and disaster preparedness in Mount Vernon.

 6. Revitalize Downtown Mount Vernon

7.   Affirm a Culture of Accountability and Accessibility in City Government

Make information about current and upcoming issues available at the city library and at neighborhood centers, etc. Welcome the public to City Council meetings proactively, whether they come to listen or to speak. Listen to them. Host youth forums at least twice a year to gather input on what matters to youth and young adults. Hold Ward meetings at least semi-annually for people in the Wards to meet expressly with the Councilpersons who represent them. Provide interpreters at Ward meetings for residents who understand information best in languages besides English.