As a resident of the Carlson Park neighborhood of our city, my quality of life has been severely impacted by the developments that the Council chooses to approve.

Each development often comes with added traffic, pollution and population density. I’m not against development. But I want to make sure each development fits in with the needs of our city and the residents living nearby.

When speaking recently to City Clerk Chris Armenta, I was impressed by his plan for development in the city.

He told me that, as a member of the City Council, every major development project would have a committee formed from the beginning that would include residents and business owners from that area and throughout the city.

He wants to be that sure that all of us are included in the development process from the beginning.

I was quite surprised recently that the City Council went against a decision by the city’s Redevelopment Agency and approved development that the community was against.

I congratulate my neighbors in Carlson Park for their wonderful event last week to educate our community on development issues.

However, once educated, we need a City Council that will allow us to use that knowledge to improve the community.

With Chris and his plan, we will have better developments, fewer fights with the neighbors, and overall a better city.

I encourage you to join me in voting for Chris Armenta on April 8 for City Council.