Name: Bill Bishop
Family: Married to Melody Bishop with son Bill
Occupation: Architect
Political/Government experience: Served two terms on Jacksonville City Council from 2007 to 2015 and served as council president in 2012/13.
Years lived in Jacksonville: 38
Campaign website: www.billbishopforcitycouncil.com
Why did you decide to run for office: Jacksonville is a growing city on the cusp of a great future. It is my home and I want it to be the best it can be. I believe that with my background and experience, I can help it achieve greatness. I want my district and all the neighborhoods in it to once again be places in which people aspire to live and I believe I am the best candidate in this race to help make that happen.
What is the biggest problem facing Jacksonville as a city overall, and how specifically would seek to address that: There are several items that could rise to the status of "biggest problem" depending on one's perspective and timeline for resolution. These include crime, the state of our schools, crumbling infrastructure, etc. In my opinion, the issue that over the long term has the greatest potential for both good and bad is the lack of economic opportunity and infrastructure neglect in certain parts of our city. Lack of job opportunities has a direct impact on crime. Infrastructure neglect has a direct affect on the quality of life. When large segments of our city feel left out of our overall prosperity, it is hard to achieve a unified vision for our city. As the aspirant to a council seat that represents a district which includes areas suffering from neglect, my goals include focusing on adequate infrastructure funding as well as promoting a broad based economic development program.
What makes your constituents unique, and how would that influence your time in office: In many ways, my constituents are not unique in that they, like everyone in the city, want safe and clean neighborhoods, good schools for their children, economic opportunity, and somebody to respond when they call the city with questions or concerns. I will be spending a great deal of time helping people get answers to questions and solutions to problems that occur in their neighborhoods.
What would be your main budget priority for the upcoming fiscal year: Making sure that funding is in place to begin executing some of the revitalization plans for Arlington and that adequate capital improvement funds are included for infrastructure maintenance.
How do you define what you hope Jacksonville will be ten years from now: My hope is that in ten years time Jacksonville has a thriving downtown, that the commercial heart of Arlington is well on the way to revitalization, and that Arlington neighborhoods are considered by the city at large as destinations for a great quality of life.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: WOKV asked all candidates in a race to answer the same questions, and the answers here are their unedited responses. WOKV has not independently verified information in these answers, nor is WOKV endorsing any candidates.
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