Armourdale Political Forum: UG At-Large 2

By NICK SLOAN, NJSloan212@gmail.com

As we did with the mayoral candidates, here's a brief recap of all three candidates involved in the Unified Government At-Large 2 primary. Again, these are in alphabetical order.

T.J. REARDON

Reardon said his campaign is centered around two things - ending corruption and greed in government.

"I've fought corruption for years," Reardon said. "Corruption and greed is what causes the biggest problems. I believe in the taxpayers."

He began his presentation by thanking the taxpayers, mentioning the fact the Armourdale Recreational Center wouldn't be able to hold the forum if it wasn't for taxpayers.

"I'm going to give the taxpayers their respect today," he said. "You have paid for everything."

Reardon has ran in a handful of elections before.

DANIEL SERDA

Serda began his presentation on the need for safe neighborhoods in Wyandotte County.

"I want every family and every resident to live in a safe neighborhood in Wyandotte County," he said.

Serda also called for property taxes to be lowered.

"Higher taxes in our community create a burden," he said. "We need to bring economic development everywhere."

He added that ethics "shouldn't just be a buzzword."

Serda is on the Rosedale Development Association Board and serves on the UG's Planning Commission.

He was also involved with Unified Government Mayor/CEO Joe Reardon's Google Fiber team.

HAL WALKER

While he may not have the long political resume, the Unified Government is nothing new to Walker.

Walker is running for political office after serving as the UG's Chief Counsel from 1997-2010. He was also an attorney for the city from 1986-1997.  He believes that experience will help him if he's elected to the board.

"I've sat through 23 budget sessions," Walker said. "I've seen over 100 commissioners make decisions."

Highlighted in Walker's presentation were two key areas - property taxes and economic development, particularly in the Fairfax area.

"We can't wait for another seven or eight years," Walker said. "We have to make significant progress on property taxes now."

Walker also noted that economic development in Riverside, Mo., is outpacing development in the Fairfax area.

"Riverside is killing us," Walker said. "We have to revitalize the Fairfax industrial area."