Issues
Business Experience
Providing oversight of the business practices within our county government is a key function of our County Commissioners.
I ran the operations of our family owned Distribution Company and in 2007 I earned a Masters of Business Administration from Wright State University. As part of the management team of a business with over 100 employees, I became familiar with the challenges that companies face on a daily basis. After the company sale in 2010, I worked as a business process consultant, focusing on consolidated purchasing and shared services projects.
As a City Council Member I rely on my experience as a business person and MBA graduate to help provide oversight of the city’s internal business practices. Kettering is recognized as one of the best run government entities in the region and as an elected official I have learned much about the high standards for finance and accounting that are the hallmark of an efficient and effective government body. I will continue to pay close attention to expenditures of tax dollars to make sure they are reasonable and in the best interest of the community.
Economic Development
Good things are happening in Montgomery County because businesses are taking the initiative. Looking at the recent recommendation for disbursement of Economic Development/Government Equity (ED/GE) funds tells us two things. First, the Economic Development priorities that have been established by the current County Commission are off target. The current County Commission is promoting the same four areas of Economic Development focus that they have had in place since 2007. These are Aerospace Technology, Logistics and Distribution, Downtown Dayton, and I-75 Growth Corridor. Second, contrary to the rumors of its demise, manufacturing is alive and well in Dayton. Even though there has been no concerted effort to capitalize on the area’s rich manufacturing heritage as part of the county’s economic development plan, two thirds of this round of EDGE projects and over half of the funding has been awarded to companies that make something!
Of the 9 projects that have been recommended for funding, only two have direct application to any of the four economic development areas that have been established by the current Commissioners. MidMark Corporation will be building out 18,000 feet of their Tech Town facility (Downtown Dayton) and Butler Township will receive $75,000 to conduct a Strategic Market Analysis (Logistics and Distribution). The good news is that the ED/GE program, as designed in 1992, relies on communities to nominate projects and a diverse 15 member board to make recommendations about where funding will go. This protects the taxpayer from Commissioners funding pet projects or spending economic development funds in areas that do not have local backing.
The big take-away from analysis of this round of ED/GE funding recommendations is that our County needs to refine our economic development priorities and bring them in line with the types of opportunities that our communities are bringing forward. In addition, we need to devote the resources to our economic development efforts required to achieve success. Over the past three years, at a time when we should have been increasing our economic development efforts, the current Commission cut the number of budgeted positions in Community/Economic Development. I believe this was the wrong course of action. Instead, we should have increased the personnel and resources allocated to marketing Montgomery County to new businesses and encouraging growth of existing businesses during this time period in order to increase business activity and grow employment opportunities for our residents.
In order to have a program that is more focused and takes advantage of our competitive advantages, I propose the following focus areas for Economic Development in Montgomery County:
1. Aerospace Corridor
a. Link Downtown to Riverside/WPAFB.
b. Encourage businesses to locate in the corridor using Ohio Aerospace Hub of Innovation assistance and incentives.
c. Strengthen ties to WPAFB/Prepare for BRAC.
– Protect current missions.
– Pursue missions cut from other bases.
2. Advanced Manufacturing – Fill 4,000 estimated open manufacturing jobs as soon as possible!
a. Promote our region’s history and potential for future in manufacturing
b. Initiate/expand Workforce Development for manufacturing in area Career Tech programs at the High School level.
c. Integrate manufacturing skills training into Job Center career transition education programs.
d. Fill the gap between local AF Research and local AF Acquisition with local AF Manufacturing.
3. Business Advancement
a. Provide one stop support for start-up companies and entrepreneurs
b. Expand program of site visits to current employers to learn about needs and communicate County’s commitment to their company’s success
c. Encourage branding of complimentary business clusters and target companies in these markets. Potential clusters include:
– Aerospace (Vehicles & Propulsion/AFRL)
– Energy Storage (TechConnction in Trotwood)
– Research and Technology (Miami Valley Research Park)
– Transportation & Logistics (Brookville/Clayton/Butler Twp)
– Advanced Materials (National Composite Center)
– Healthcare (Human Performance/AFRL)
– Information Technology (Reynolds & Reynolds/Lexis Nexis)
– Sensors (RFID Center)
Safety Services
As a citizen-soldier in the National Guard, I have a great deal of respect and empathy for our Deputy Sheriffs and their willingness to put themselves in harms way in order to help keep our families safe. We owe these men and women the best training and equipment that our County can provide. As a guardsman I have been trained on the Department of Homeland Security’s National Incident Management System and while in Iraq I helped train Iraqi Police and Security Forces. Montgomery County’s top law enforcement officer, Sheriff Phil Plummer, recognized my experience in this area and has endorsed me in the County Commission race. I am also appreciative of the unanimous endorsement of the voting members from Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 104, representing the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies and other Law Enforcement personnel from across Montgomery County.
Our County Sheriff’s Department, Coroner’s Office and Crime Lab have been cut significantly over the past 4 years. The capabilities of our county-wide law enforcement efforts have been significantly degraded. It is imperative that we fund our Law Enforcement organizations at levels that allow them to address issues of crime and gang violence in order to prevent harm to citizens, disruption of business activity, and further erosion of home values. I am committed to providing resources for our Sheriff and Coroner to allow them to do their jobs effectively.
Why am I running for Commission?
I have a vested interest in making our County the best possible place to live, work and play. After graduating from West Point and serving in the active duty Army, my wife, Emily, and I could have settled down anywhere. We chose to come back home to the Dayton area because we wanted to be close to family and have an opportunity to make an impact on our community. Our three children attend local schools, and when they graduate I want to make sure they will be able to find great opportunities for employment and good neighborhoods that will make them want to choose to live here in Montgomery County.
I believe my background is uniquely suited to serve the needs of Montgomery County’s 535,000 citizens who need principled leadership with experience in business, government, and the military. I hope I can count on your support on November 6th. Please feel free to use the contact tab above to send me any feedback you may have or ask a question. Thanks for taking the time to learn more about my campaign and the issues that I think are important for Montgomery County
Ashley