Longmont Supports Richard Juday
Juday shares my vision
Richard Juday’s background as an engineer with NASA, as professionally competent a group imaginable, is extremely important to me as I consider who to support for council representative. A man with the time - he’s retired and has put forth effort on city boards, mentoring college-age students, teaching calculus and other significant volunteer efforts. Being a grandparent, having raised children, he realizes the importance of educating our children to become strong, independent citizens.
Juday will bring strengths to council through support of benchmarks already established but languishing for lack of support. What does quality of life mean? We need to stop putting development ahead of everything else, which has created overcrowded classrooms, resulting in less than excellent education for our children. A common-sense attitude toward putting our most precious resource - our kids - first is necessary and vital if we are to give them the education they deserve. Our city council, working with our school board, can make great strides in achieving educational goals we all can support and make Longmont an even better community.
Intelligent growth, planned growth, is important. Juday’s vision aligns with mine. Supporting local businesses is a priority. Efficient use of funds for economic development sounds refreshing and sound.
We all can support this candidate’s desire for our city council to be accessible and responsive to all citizens. As our representative, I believe he will be diligent in his responsibilities and extremely competent and able to understand and navigate the financial requirements of running this community. Check out his Web site, www.richard-juday.net.
At 7 p.m. Jan. 15, City Council’s only agenda item invites residents to speak your concerns. Jan. 26 and Jan. 29 are drop-off sites for ballots at the Civic Center. Go to www .voteboulder.org to verify your registration status.
NORMA FIGGS
Longmont
Times-Call, January 13, 2008
Elect Richard Juday to Longmont City Council
I’m for straight talk, especially in the halls of government.
That’s why I’m voting for Richard Juday for City Council. There’s no question that this guy is overeducated and seriously overqualified.
All the accolades bestowed upon Juday’s hard work in his professional career didn’t swell his head, and he can easily communicate with non-engineers. Juday has a successful track record of scientific thinking and problem solving in applied engineering and business growth.
Longmont exemplifies the kind of entrepreneurial spirit that Richard displays, and we need these skills at council.
Juday is retired. I think that this is important, as council is a real job and very demanding.
There appears to be a new idea of Glasnost burgeoning at council, and, if elected, Richard Juday will help to usher in a new age of open government in Longmont. Please help Longmont and elect Richard Juday on Jan. 29.
PAUL TIGER
Longmont
Times-Call, January 12, 2008
Posted by Boulder Daily Camera Staff
David Wiley: Richard Juday for Longmont City Council
Posted January 17, 2008
I have known Richard for nearly ten years now and can unreservedly recommend him for the Longmont City Council. This is not because I agree with him on every point. Far from it. Working with Richard I find myself disagreeing with him about half the time, but I respect and admire the way he makes decisions. He is a patient and intense listener. We serve together on our HOA and are subject to many animated discourses from our members. Richard not only lets everyone have their say, but takes the time to understand what they are saying. He is skilled taking these diverse opinions and formulating a plan that produces a consensus.
Recently Longmont voters overturned a City Council decision to annex the Lifebridge development into the city. Whether you agree or disagree with the result, it was clear that the Longmont City Council was out of touch with its citizens. The council had stopped listening.
Richard Juday is exactly the person I want to see on the City Council. He is not beholden to a special interest nor does he have a specific axe to grind. The issues facing Longmont over the coming years defy simple answers. We need someone who is willing and capable of understanding all sides of a problem and then create a workable and inventive solution. Richard is someone who will hear and represent all the citizens of Longmont and decide each issue on its own merits.
David Wiley
Longmont, Colorado
Posted by Boulder Daily Camera Staff
Shari Malloy: Richard Juday for Longmont City Council
Posted January 7, 2008
Richard Juday is smart, dedicated and will do the “homework” necessary to be an effective Longmont City Council member. A retired NASA scientist, Richard is an independent thinker who supports sustainable growth, small local businesses, working cooperatively with the school district and encouraging technical industries to come to Longmont.
Juday believes City Council should be more accessible and responsive to residents and City staff. His flyer includes his website, his email and even his phone number! People can meet Richard on Jan. 12 and 19 from 3:30-6:00 p.m. at the Longmont Free University where he will avail himself to input and questions.
Shari Malloy
Longmont
Cast your ballot for Richard Juday
(LTE Times-Call, Jan 4, 2008)
I am so fortunate. I moved to Longmont in 1968; my wife and I found good paying jobs ; we have pensions, social security, health coverage and good health. Our children and grandchildren live close by.
Boulder County is one of the best educated in the USA. We are high tech and need to remain so. We need more good paying jobs with benefits. We need to have the kind of jobs to hold our families close to us, if that is what our children and grandchildren want to do. What parent or grandparent doesn’t want the best for their children and their grandchildren?
Raise your hand if you have given or loaned money to your children or grandchildren to pay the mortgage payment, car loan, medical bills and so on. See results below.
I like my City Council. I like the varied backgrounds they bring to us. We elected the people we think have the skills to lead us through some tough times and complicated issues ahead. I like the fact one holds a doctorate degree.
I will vote for Richard Juday in the coming election because he has been instrumental in helping to bring good paying . jobs to Longmont; volunteered his time to significant boards, committees and his HOA; is pro education; and mentors children in optics. He doesn’t just sit at Longmont City council meetings. He stands up to address tough issues and offers suggestions.
What I like most about Richard Juday is his passion and proactive stance in searching for companies to bring more of their existing good paying jobs and support staff positions to Longmont or to get small companies to do their start ups here.
If you raised your hand, you want a better future for your children and grandchildren in Longmont. So does Richard Juday.
Vote for better jobs. Vote for Richard Juday, Ph.D.
DENNIS ETCHELLS
Longmont
Inform yourselves about the candidates
(LTE Times-Call, Jan 9, 2008)
While perusing Web sites for the candidates for Longmont’s special city council election to take place by mail later this month, I was extremely impressed with candidate Richard Juday. I believe he is an expansive thinker, able to hold the “big picture” in mind while focusing with equal facility on the small details necessary toactually implement change and make thmgs happen efficiently.
Mostly I was impressed by what I consider good old fashioned compassion, an interest in serving all constituencies of our community, not just those set to benefit by short-term financial gain.
Words such as “living wage,” “environmental issues” and “campaign financing” pepper his thoughts, definitely indicating someone who can think out of the box and with conviction.
Please take the time to inform yourselves about the candidates, and don’t forget to vote when you receive your ballots by mail.
ANN KROHN RICK
Longmont
The Dream of a Better Longmont
(LTE Times-Call, Jan 7, 2008)
After 14 years of living in Longmont we have a City Council who represents my vision for the future of Longmont. Maybe now we can hold true to our Longmont Area Comprehensive Plan (LACP) and stop approving amendments which change the character of the City and the intent of the plan. Maybe now we can focus on supporting a vibrant downtown district instead of supporting big-box retail and development on the outskirts of the City. Maybe now we can support our open space program and stop denying open space acquisitions and give it the attention it deserves.
It seems our past council would fly loose with the importance of the LACP. Instead of amending this plan as different development is proposed we should hold true to its intent and follow through on the well thought-out vision that the plan sets forth.
Hopefully our new council will value the downtown district and get a parking structure with mixed retail built. Boulder has been able to build multiple mixed-use structures even while their sales tax revenues took a bigger hit than Longmont’s. Not that a parking structure will solve downtown’s problems. It will however, be a positive start towards downtown’s rehabilitation.
If we would have fiercely supported our open space plan and diligently pursued acquisitions of an eastern buffer we wouldn’t be wearing the Union development like a black eye. We should continue preserving the eastern buffer, support historical agriculture and preserve sensitive wildlife areas before it is too late. Maybe we can even renegotiate the purchase of the Union property into a deal that works for both developer and land preservationists alike.
On January 29th the City will hold a special election. Let’s continue our dream for a better Longmont and vote Dr. Richard Juday for City Council.
John D’Amico
Longmont
Kudos to Richard Juday
Re: “Budgeting wisely,” Nov. 29, Open Forum
I moved here almost 20 years ago from a community close to the current size of Longmont. Like our city, my old home town for almost 20 years had relied heavily on growth and use fees to pay the bills. Fees were a cash cow, easy money, a gravy train of income for the city. Along with the income came the infrastructure costs associated with growth, costs that didn’t stop with the initial construction but continued indefinitely.
The interior of the town was starting to look a bit shabby, but new growth income wasn’t sufficient to pay for upgrades. Then the growth-based time bomb went off. The major employer in the community, and my employer, decided to move most of their business out of the area. The effect on the town finances was devastating. My 2,500-square-foot home, then only 12 years old, sold for $59,000 after three years on the market. Supporting businesses closed as people moved away in search of work, further decreasing the sales tax base. The town, and those around it, were (and still are) in financial ruin. More prudent budgeting and slower growth would have prevented many of the problems that came later. The city would have been better prepared to meet the inevitable limit on its growth.
We’re already starting to see the same in Longmont. Roads in poor shape after years of constant patching, water concerns during dry periods, inadequate police and fire support, etc. Growing bigger will only create additional infrastructure support problems when we inevitably run out of land that’s able to be annexed or we suffer additional losses of employers or an economic recession. The time is now to learn to live without all those growth fees or at least spread them out over a longer time period.
GERALD F. COLE
Longmont
Times-Call, December 2, 2007
More like Boulder?
A recent Open Forum letter urged voting for Gabe Santos in the upcoming council election. The letter was driven by the writer’s ultimate fear that, because of the present council and presumably Richard Juday, “Longmont is well on its way to becoming another Boulder.” It is true that the current council is not satisfied with Longmont’s direction in the past few years and would like to see some progressive changes in policy and direction. While exactly duplicating another city isn’t possible or even desirable, what would it actually mean to Longmont residents if we were more like Boulder?
It would mean that there might be a pedestrian-friendly downtown area that actually attracted high-quality restaurants, bars and upscale shops rather than pawn shops. We might be able to sit at an outdoor table and enjoy a quiet meal without listening to semi-trailer trucks and mufflerless motorcycles roaring by 30 feet away on U.S. Highway 287. There might be more walking and bicycling trails and other opportunities for outdoor recreation.
Most importantly, our property values would be significantly higher and less affected by market downturns such as the presently bursting housing bubble. The past city councils have lead Longmont down the path of unlimited housing with sprawl in every direction. A more limited housing supply is actually beneficial for our residents. Boulder, with its limited growth policies, actually cares more about the long-term welfare of its current citizens than about the short-term infusion of fees from outside real estate developers. What a concept.
Being more like Boulder sure sounds good to me! Vote for Richard Juday . He has the vision and commitment to make Longmont a much more livable community.
CRAIG D. SMITH
Longmont
Times-Call, December 30, 2007
Cast vote for Juday
I am pleased Dr. Richard Juday is running for Longmont City Council. Juday has a very broad base of experience that will help City Council with long-term planning. In the near future, Longmont City Council must make many important decisions regarding a shrinking tax base, water resources, land use, urban renewal, transportation, traffic, energy sources, environmental concerns, public safety, parks and open space, jobs and diminishing home and property values.
His experience in science, technology and government will allow us to attract new high tech businesses to Longmont that are primary employers. This will help reduce unemployment, increase local retail sales and bring us out of our current budget shortage. New jobs and businesses will help us re-establish and maintain a reasonable balance between supply and demand for housing and other real estate. This will help maintain reasonable home values, reduce home foreclosures and control sprawl. This is important since a lot of Longmont residents have most of their savings in real estate. Balance is important for renters so that rates are reasonable and rental properties are well maintained. Juday has extensively studied long-term sustainability in Longmont for water, electricity, classroom capacity, street capacity, housing, police and fire protection. His experience will allow the city to maintain a more reasonable growth rate and maintain long term economic vitality.
Juday is very experienced dealing with difficult problems by being part of the team at NASA that solves problems in order to achieve complicated goals.
I think he will work very well with the current City Council, and I sincerely hope he wins the election.
BRIAN HANSEN
Longmont City Council Ward 1
Times-Call
December 31, 2007
Support new Longmont City Council
I know it’s hard to lose an election, and we still hear whining. But we see a new generation of Longmonters given the mandate for change from the majority of voters. The new generation of city councilpeople will do a great job if we all give them a chance.
I believe we are at a golden crossroads being able to fill out our city council with someone so qualified as Richard Juday. He has the energy, talent and ability to help lead our great city.
Juday spent his years before retiring to Longmont solving problems for the United States space programs at NASA.
I believe Juday is the person to help create a great future and bring primary jobs to Longmont from his fresh contacts within the space industry.
Having served on the Longmont City Council for more than 22 years, in good times and in bad, I know how important it is to have capable people on the city council such as Brian Hansen and now candidate Richard Juday.
So I ask you to continue to support your new city council and vote for Richard Juday on Jan. 29.
TOM McCOY
Longmont
Times-Call
January 2, 2008