Henry Nickel, San Bernardino City Council Ward 5, 2024 Election Questionnaire – San Bernardino Sun

Ahead of the November general election, the Southern California News Group has compiled a list of questions to ask the candidates you want to represent. The full questionnaire can be found below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar and length, and in some cases hate speech and offensive language have been removed.

MORE: Read all candidate responses in our voter guide

Name: Henry Nickel

Current job title: County Workforce Development Analyst/Business Owner

Incumbent: NO

Other political offices: San Bernardino City Council District 5

City where you live: San Bernardino

Campaign website or social media: henrynickel.com, www.facebook.com/NickelforCC5

How can the city best meet demand and the need for more housing, including at lower prices, while preserving the quality of life of existing neighborhoods and residents?

Increasing home ownership and providing services and incentives to existing and future homeowners must be a priority in the next council terms. The city’s current homeownership rate is less than 48%. According to the governor’s office, in Fontana, our county’s second-largest city, the figure is 64%. Additionally, the city must focus on mixed-use redevelopment of the downtown core to create a sustainable engine for economic and community vitality. This must be coordinated in collaboration with county and regional stakeholders to reduce the disproportionate concentration of chronic homelessness, poverty, blight, crime, mental illness and substance abuse in the city.

The City must streamline and expedite community development permitting for routine construction of accessory dwelling units for primary residences, including fee waivers, same-day city plan reviews, and encouraging qualified five-year deferred property reassessment after construction. In addition, the city should consider down payments, renovation and refinancing assistance for primary residences in the city’s economic zones. Finally, offer a 10-year deferred/forgivable home purchase or improvement loan to city and possibly county employees whose primary residence is in the city.

How should the city balance paying off debts such as pension liabilities and building reserves while meeting the needs of residents? Should a solution be to bring in new revenue, cut the budget, or something else entirely?

Our city agreed to turn over all property tax revenue to San Bernardino County as part of the city’s bankruptcy settlement in 2016. This means the city’s general fund is dependent on sales tax. Yet our downtown is one of the least attractive for generating a robust sales tax. Over the last four years we have seen further decay and decline in our downtown area due to youth infighting and corrupt political opportunism. By advancing a coherent and competent mixed-use redevelopment strategy and plan like those implemented in Riverside, we can stabilize our community while generating the significant sales tax revenue needed.

Our county’s collaboration is critical to this renaissance. Ironically, as the largest employer and benefactor of our city’s property tax assets, the county stands to benefit greatly from helping our city prosper. The current assessed total values ​​of all city parcels are only 50% of the value of Ontario and less than 60% of the value of Fontana, all smaller than San Bernardino. Even a small increase in assessed property values ​​through effective mixed-use redevelopment of the downtown area can reap hundreds of millions of dollars for the county by helping our city address its current disproportionate concentration of chronic homelessness, poverty, blight, crime, mental illness and substance abuse overcome abuse.

What do you think is your city’s greatest need and how would you respond to it?

Our city lacks self-confidence. It lacks the confidence to defend itself against the corrupting influences of external special interests and donors. It lacks the confidence to stand up to those who seek to exploit our current challenges. There is a lack of confidence to take action to hold those in positions of regional authority and influence accountable. There is a lack of confidence to adopt best practices from communities across the country that have overcome similar obstacles. There is a lack of confidence to recognize that we already have the resources and opportunities necessary to change our city for the better.

As a long-time former council member who has witnessed and overcome some of our city’s greatest challenges, I am ready to roll up my sleeves once again. Unlike others, I have refrained from accepting contributions from outside special interests and donors. Unlike others, I have good working relationships with other council members and regional officials. Unlike others, I consciously meet with voters and our local press to ensure transparency and accountability. I will once again host community discussions before ALL council meetings, open to the public and press, while inviting other local officials as guests to ensure we stay on track and regain trust.

Why would you make a good leader and how would you represent the diverse communities in your city?

We must demand accountability from our elected officials and regional leaders. After nearly two decades of public service, it is obvious that an elected official’s job must be to represent the interests of those they represent, not themselves. Time and time again, we have witnessed our city being run by disgraced elected officials officials were exploited in search of personal gain. Our city faces many challenges today. Not only do I have the expertise to tackle complex problems, but I also have the heart to do the right thing.

Our family has called San Bernardino “home” for over a century. I understand the strength of our diverse heritage. As a teenager, I served at our former Norton Air Force Base and as a congressional intern while attending Crafton Hills College. At age 20, I earned a bachelor’s degree in communications, government and economics from American University in Washington, DC. I have served in the U.S. Treasury and abroad. I attended law school and earned my degree in National Security Studies. I worked in transportation, education, economics and workforce development and served our community in both public health and the arts. I am a well-rounded person who gets things done while also being a steward of our tax dollars, committed to family and our community.