Matt Blake
Candidate for Urbandale City Council

Does the city adequately support public and active transit, such as DART and bicycle/pedestrian infrastructure? Explain why you think so.
Urbandale needs to look at ways to expand DART routes in the community and maintain routes we currently have. Further, all future business development in the community, especially those in industrial/commercial parks, should be interconnected with bike trails or have access to bike trails.
How can the city government help people experiencing homelessness connect with the resources they need?
Urbandale has increasing needs of addressing poverty in the community. We have the “suburban poor” where you may live in the community but are paying more than 30% of income for housing. Urbandale needs to do more to expand affordable housing (which we are last in the metro) and expand the footprint of the Urbandale Food Pantry (which is the second busiest in the metro). I would look at creating a human services department for Urbandale before meeting the 50,000 population requirement.
Would you support a racial profiling ordinance that includes an accountability component, and what do you think that accountability should look like?
I need more information on this ordinance. I know that racial profiling has been an issue in the Des Moines metro and I am sure there are instances of it in Urbandale. While on the Urbandale Civil Rights commission, we held a roundtable discussion on racial profiling with the Urbandale Police Department and learned about their trainings for implicit bias and other de-escalation techniques. I would be open to learning more about these ordinances moving forward.
What is the role of city government in promoting gun safety?
The candidate did not respond to this question.
What concrete actions would you take to create safer communities?
City government can take actions to try and promote gun safety in the community, however, with the state of Iowa pre-empting local authority on gun ordinances, there are few avenues cities can take to make substantive changes. I would be open to take action that is within the scope of the law.
What is the next concrete step YOUR city council should take to demonstrate leadership on climate change?
Urbandale is dealing with storm water issues that is causing flooding in the community. The infrastructure was not designed to deal with the unprecedented amounts of water we have recently received. I would be looking at how we can take a regional approach to reducing flooding and looking at new approaches to dealing with storm water. That may mean revising assumptions for appropriate ordinances dealing with stormwater infrastructure.
In broader terms, I would look at ways to make the city more energy efficient, such as mandating new construction of city buildings meet certain energy efficiency standards or all new fleet vehicles requiring to be hybrids. It could be as simple as mandating the planting of more trees on city grounds.
How do you plan to promote inclusive practices across city departments?
On the Urbandale Civil Rights Commission, I am currently drafting a welcoming statement for the community (within state law) that would promote Urbandale as a location that accepts different cultures and peoples. I would use this as a moral document that guides city practices and can be a statement to different communities that we are open to all.
What will you do to help your city increase its supply of affordable housing to people of low and moderate incomes?
I would make sure that Urbandale finishes its planned affordable housing unit and I will look at additional locations to build. Urbandale unfortunately has a lack of space on the eastern side of the community for new construction, so we would need to look at innovative ways to repurpose older buildings to make way for new housing. Maybe make Merle Hay Mall a multi-use location or taking our old school buildings and repurposing them.
I would also look to building smaller lots and houses on the western side of the community. According to the city, the average home price currently being built in Urbandale is $400,000. Most families can’t afford that. Working to balance the housing stock in new construction is essential.
Bridging the Gap (BTG) is a project of the Des Moines Civil and Human Rights Commission that seeks to create collaborative solutions for a growing city in four areas, 1. quality, affordable, stable housing; 2. economic stability; 3. city programs and workforce demographics; and 4. ongoing, mandatory training for all city staff.
Which of the four recommendations would be your top priority for civil rights, and how would you activate implementation?
My top priority would be quality, affordable, stable housing. I have mentioned above how I would look to create more affordable housing. Urbandale lacks in housing diversity at the moment and we need to do more to expand it to allow people access to live in our great community.
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