Susan Hartley Kuiler
My husband and I have lived in Fairfax City for more than 39 years. After having lived in the Midwest and on the West Coast, Fairfax City is our home. We care for the city: We buy from the shops here, we enjoy each other’s company in the restaurants here, we sit quietly in our city’s parks to enjoy breaks from our busy lives, and we walk our dogs in our neighborhood.
I decided to run for mayor because the current mayor is not listening to residents’ concerns. After attending council meeting after council meeting, I realized that the incumbent mayor is neither listening to citizens nor resolving differences on the City Council in a productive manner. And I’m tired of excuses. What we need is a mayor who will leave party politics at home and has the experience and skills to do the hard work of achieving consensus that will move us forward.
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I have a varied background in business. I worked in retail for several years, during which I managed a store that went from losing money for the preceding 7 years to turning a profit and did it during an economic downturn. I did this by building the team: I drew on each member’s skills and ideas and together we streamlined processes, developed good relationships with vendors, and we achieved our goals. I learned firsthand the power of a highly collaborative team.
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In addition, I have worked as a government project and program manager for 40 years, during which time my teams developed disaster response and recovery systems for FEMA and IT solutions for other agencies. During 9-11, in support of the US Transportation Command, my team and I stayed on duty to provide pilots and logistics officers with geographic coordinates for locations in Afghanistan and Iraq. In building these systems, all team members contributed, we reached consensus on what to do, and then I oversaw the execution of the solution. We were effective and efficient.
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As president of a City Homeowners Association and as Grounds and Maintenance Chair, I have led groups of neighbors to accomplish much-needed common area tasks, oversaw street and parking lot repairs, issued lawn and tree maintenance contracts, managed challenging budgets, and worked to keep us on track and pulling together. As mayor, I will apply this same dedication and team-based approach to addressing the city’s tough problems.
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Based on my conversations with City residents, I understand fully that citizens not only deserve to be heard but also have a lot to contribute. I will welcome your help and I will meet with citizens regularly in an open format discussion forum. I will actively seek out neighborhood and community input, and solicit city staff ideas, with the goal of making sure our government is responsive to the issues of importance to the community. Concerns like keeping a lid on taxes, for example, can be better addressed when there is ample discussion time to learn from you and figure out what the city can do to improve its services and keep taxes in check. Safety is a concern shared by many, and an issue where there is not a simple, one-off solution. In reality, there is an array of opportunities to improve our sense of safety and reduce criminal activity but without community input our leaders are throwing darts in the dark.
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I believe in providing all residents honest and unbiased information so that they can make informed decisions about what is best for them, their families, their neighborhoods, their businesses, and our City. None of us wants empty words, political slogans, or worse, to be ignored. We need, and can achieve, practical, cost-effective solutions. I will listen. And then, working with the Council and concerned citizens, I will create a path to action that best addresses our concerns while staying within our means.