Are We Better Off Than 4 Years Ago?

By Craig Young

My service as Vice Chair for the Lincoln Club, Local Elections Committee has taught me to look below the surface. Yorba Linda leadership suffers from believing its own press. We are listed as #1 in OC for reserves which mean we are either hoarding or taxing too much. Investments must be made.

Core Concerns OCWatchdog reports Yorba Linda as having the largest reserves as a percentage of general expenditures. This neglects repeated deficit spending. Having the highest reserve means either we are failing to spend money where needed or we're charging our citizens too much. I'm in favor of being fiscally sound. I am opposed to over taxing and not investing in our neighborhoods. I manage investment property in California, Colorado and New Mexico. A city that turns off water to common areas is not business friendly. I will use my experience to assure a balanced budget that focuses on maintaining a healthy community.

Core Competencies Many of the issues that face Yorba Linda are real estate centric. This is true when negotiating the development of Town Center, managing Lighting and Landscaping Districts, assuring proper protection with the Cielo Vista/Esperanza Hills development and providing leadership during the Friends High School, Library, Arts and Equestrian desires.

Experiences My experience includes a commercial real estate license in 1983 followed by my Doctorate in law in 1988. I'm not a litigator and think we've got that base covered with the hundreds of thousands of dollars we spend each year with one of the county's top firms. For 30 years I have helped companies purchase strategic properties and form mission critical alliances. I've served as the CFO for a hospital foundation, President to a division of a Fortune 100 Insurance Company, President of a University Foundation and Vice-President/Senior Wealth Advisor to a Bank. I've enjoyed teaching University classes in Ethics and Negotiation.

My work on boards has been extensive. This includes reporting directly to my university board liaison, Admiral Vern Clark (ret.), former Chief of Naval Operations. I have served on highly functional boards (the Admiral's being one) and have worked with a few that had much to learn. A key to successful leadership is to operate as a strategic, critical-thinking unit not one that is tactical and micro-managing. We are all worthy of being treated with dignity and respect.

If you feel safer with a common sense businessman who accepts the responsibility of protecting the entire Yorba Linda community, please vote Craig Young for City Council.

Thank you.

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